Residents oppose parking permit proposal in Heritage Hill, John Ball neighborhoods

Anna Skog
·3 min read

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Grand Rapids residents gathered at the downtown library Thursday to express their concerns about a parking permit proposal for two neighborhoods.

Mobile GR, the city’s transportation department, has proposed adding residential parking permit areas in the John Ball Area Neighborhood and the Heritage Hill and East Hills area. City commission noted that the proposal is aimed to help offset the need for parking after it approved a plan to build both an amphitheater and soccer stadium downtown within the last year.

GR soccer stadium plans spark worries about parking

The proposal suggests permit parking would begin in the northeast section of the John Ball Area Neighborhood in November 2024 and the south and west areas, closer to John Ball Park, in 2025. Permit parking would be enforced from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday, the city said.

Heritage Hill, which the city said “has requested” residential parking permits in the past, would include blocks from Cherry Street SE to Pleasant Street SE between Propect Avenue and Union Avenue. Hours would also be from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

“The fact that Heritage Hill was on board with the RPP program, that is not true. We are not on board … we are definitely not on board at this moment until we have more community engagement,” said Byran Cody, president of the Heritage Hill Association.

A map of the section of Heritage Hill neighborhood that would require residential permit parking under a proposal. (Courtesy City of Grand Rapids)
A map of the section of Heritage Hill neighborhood that would require residential permit parking under a proposal. (Courtesy City of Grand Rapids)
A map of the section of John Ball Area Neighborhood that would require residential permit parking under a proposal. The green shading denotes a start date of November 2024. The purple shading indicates a 2025 date. (Courtesy City of Grand Rapids)
A map of the section of John Ball Area Neighborhood that would require residential permit parking under a proposal. The green shading denotes a start date of November 2024. The purple shading indicates a 2025 date. (Courtesy City of Grand Rapids)

Around 100 community members at Thursday’s meeting expressed concerns about costs, logistics and the proposal itself.

“It seems ridiculous that should my mother want to come visit her family for a week, we would have to foot the bill $15 for her to park in front of our house,” said James Earley, pastor at Servant’s Community Church, located on the West Side within the John Ball Area Neighborhood proposed for parking permits.

“It strikes me that you may not want to hear from Westsiders for this,” he added.

Business owners in those neighborhoods worried the paid parking would put them out of business. People raised questions about parking during events at local churches and Polish Halls. Residents anticipated sidewalk blockages with people packing their driveways and expressed that it was already difficult to find parking during odd/even parking months.

Cody called for more community engagement.

“I think we should go individually street by street and if the neighbors and the residents who live on that street oppose it, we should not go for it,” Cody said.

He added that the Heritage Hill Association sent out a survey about the proposal, which garnered over 100 responses in two days.

“86% opposed,” he said.

Mobile GR’s proposal will be reviewed in July and August and the city says it will practice “continued engagement with Residents and Businesses in proposed RPP areas” throughout the summer and fall.

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