Locals asked for urban planning input

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) - A Grand Rapids group is asking for local residents to give their input to help shape the future of the southtown neighborhood.

Organizers call it holistic urban planning. The idea is to get not only developers involved, but also to also get the input of the people who actually live in neighborhoods in need of revitalization.

"'How do we get the people who live in the neighborhood to design the neighborhood?' And that is really what LINC is all about," said LINC Co-Executive Director Darel Ross.
 
LINC is a not-for-profit neighborhood revitalization and it has set its sights on the future of two areas of Grand Rapids' southtown neighborhood: Eastern and Franklin and Eastern and Wealthy.

The organization has set up a series of meetings for neighbors, developers, business owners and anyone who wants to attend to discuss what they would like to see these areas look like. Then the group will attempt to get city leaders on board.

Ideally, Ross said, plans worked out in the meetings would go to the city planning commission and then be adopted into the municipality's master plan.

"So what happens then is any developer who comes in or any organization that comes in, they would have to follow this road map and this plan that the citizens have drawn," said Ross.

"The area is downtrodden," said meeting attending John Rosser, adding that it needs something uplifting.

Rosser said he has seen this neighborhood change over the years and he thinks it is time to work together.

"I think we should grab this and vamp this area and make it do what it do and set the tone for other neighborhoods and communities," said Rosser.

More meetings are scheduled for Thursday between noon and 2 p.m. and again from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Reagan Marketing on Wealthy Street.

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