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Grand Rapids, MI, is Michigan's second-largest city, located on the banks of the Grand River, 25 miles inland from Lake Michigan. The city's population is approximately 200,000 but the metropolitan area of Grand Rapids has an overall population nearing 1,000,000. Grand Rapids is also the seat of government for Kent County.
Grand Rapids was incorporated in 1850 and is the principal city in West Michigan. It is a distribution, wholesale and industrial center for fruit, dairy and farm produce, gypsum and gravel. Furniture manufacturing began in 1859 and remains essential to the area economy, particularly the manufacture and distribution of office furniture and office systems. Grand Rapids and West Michigan is home to several major corporations whose founders have contributed greatly to the area's exceptional arts and education opportunities, including Meijer, Inc., Amway, Steelcase, Herman Miller, Spartan Stores, Wolverine Worldwide, Universal Forest Products and others.
Culture
Since 1970, Grand Rapids has been host to an annual festival of the arts downtown, known to locals simply as "Festival". The first weekend in June, several blocks of downtown surrounding the Calder Stabile sculpture next to City Hall are closed to traffic.
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Grand Rapids Festival (http://www.festivalofthearts.org) features several stages with free live performances, food booths selling a variety of ethnic cuisine, art demonstrations and sales, and other arts-related activities. Organizers bill it as the largest all-volunteer arts festival in the United States. Also in Calder Plaza, Grand Rapids hosts a variety of country-specific ethnic festivals throughout the summer season. |
In mid-2004, Grand Rapids began construction on a new, larger building for its art museum collection. The new building site is several blocks from the present museum, facing downtown's Rosa Parks Circle.
Grand Rapids is home to several colleges and universities. Aquinas College, Calvin College, Reformed Bible College and Cornerstone University are private, religious schools, each with a campus on the east side of the city. Grand Rapids Community College maintains an extensive campus downtown and facilities in other parts of the city and surrounding region. Grand Valley State University continues to develop its presence in the city with an expanding downtown campus, begun in the late 1990s on the west bank of the Grand River. Ferris State University has a growing campus downtown, including Kendall College of Art and Design and the Applied Technology Center (operated with GRCC). Davenport University, a state-wide educational institution, has one of its main campuses in downtown Grand Rapids.
Other cultural opportunities:
Grand Rapids is home to several colleges and universities. Aquinas College, Calvin College, Reformed Bible College and Cornerstone University are private, religious schools, each with a campus on the east side of the city. Grand Rapids Community College maintains an extensive campus downtown and facilities in other parts of the city and surrounding region. Grand Valley State University continues to develop its presence in the city with an expanding downtown campus, begun in the late 1990s on the west bank of the Grand River. Ferris State University has a growing campus downtown, including Kendall College of Art and Design and the Applied Technology Center (operated with GRCC). Davenport University, a state-wide educational institution, has one of its main campuses in downtown Grand Rapids.
Grand Rapids Art Museum -- Start your weekend off right with Friday Nights at GRAM, featuring live music, giveaways, art discussions and more. Feast Your Eyes on the Arts each First Friday with special events, food, theme nights, local artists and much more! Don't miss our popular First Fridays which feature all the regular Friday night programs plus Artists on Art, theme nights, dramatic performances, dance demonstratoins, wine and food tasting and special Museum Store promotions.
Grand Rapids Symphony - As the Grand Rapids Symphony celebrates its 75th year, history shows that the Grand Rapids Symphony has grown to become one of the finest regional orchestras in the country because of the strong community support it has received. "The community deserves a huge round of applause for developing and adding to the Symphony´s growth all of these years," said Symphony President William Ryberg. "The orchestra is a community treasure that touches thousands of lives each year. Based on our history of achievement and continual growth, we look forward to an even greater future, thanks to continued support from our wonderful community."
Opera Grand Rapids
Grand Rapids Civic Theatre - The Grand Rapids Civic Theatre is the largest community theatre in Michigan and the second largest in the U.S., with over 6,000 season ticket holders annually. It reaches over 90,000 people during a single season: 110 performances of the six main stage productions; twenty performances of the two productions for children; and a varying number of special events - under the leadership of 12 professional staff and over 30 guest artists. Grand Rapids Civic Theatre is one of the oldest community theatres in Michigan and in the United States. GRCT has a history of continuity and is one of the more self-sufficient arts organizations in our cultural community.
Grand Rapids Community College - Grand Rapids Junior College (GRJC) was founded in 1914 by the Grand Rapids Board of Education after a resolution was passed by the University of Michigan´s faculty which encouraged the establishment of junior colleges in Michigan. Today, GRCC´s eight-block downtown campus includes several classroom buildings, a learning center and library, Spectrum Theater, the Applied Technology Center, a remodeled music building, a fieldhouse with natatorium, a student center (including the Diversity Learning Center), Bostwick Commons, and the state-of-the-art Calkins Science Center.
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