A Glimpse into the Future of Grand Rapids

Dream Grand and GROW

LinkedIn named Grand Rapids the #1 U.S. City on the Rise in 2025 – and things are certainly rising along the city’s downtown riverfront.

Experience Grand Rapids has produced a new video depicting seven developments that are transforming the downtown experience for residents and visitors alike. “Dream Grand And Grow” invites viewers on a trip down the Grand River to glimpse new and upcoming projects that together represent one of the largest active riverfront developments in the United States.

You can go behind the scenes of the video creation process here – and read on for details on the seven projects featured, in order of their video appearance:

Lyon Square

Status: Now Open

The future is now at Lyon Square, a newly reimagined public plaza along the Grand River between DeVos Place Convention Center and the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel.

For years, Lyon Square was little more than the endpoint of a driveway between the two facilities, graced by a small river overlook. Today, it has been transformed with pedestrian paths, greenery, seating, colorful lighting and a spacious platform overlooking the river. After dark, the park is illuminated with strings of lights and a large-scale projector displays a nightly art show on the entrance of the historic Civic Auditorium at DeVos Place. A snowmelt system keeps the gathering space event-ready in every season.

Completed in 2025, this $12 million project was one of the first major investments in activating the Grand River corridor and bringing new life to the downtown riverfront.

Amway Stadium

Status: Opening Spring 2027

It’s a 10-minute walk from Lyon Square to the site of the new Amway Stadium, which is on the opposite (west) side of the Grand River. Scheduled to be completed in spring 2027, the $175 million soccer and event venue will be home to Athletic Club Grand Rapids (aka AC Grand Rapids), the region's first MLS NEXT Pro team.

Fans can walk 10 minutes to and from the restaurants, breweries and nightclubs of the Bridge Street Entertainment District before and after games. The multi-purpose stadium will also host youth sports and various community events.

Amway, which is headquartered in Ada, 15 minutes from downtown GR, has purchased long-term naming rights for the stadium.

Grand Rapids Public Museum

Status: Phase 1 Renovations Complete Early 2026

Founded in 1854, the Grand Rapids Public Museum is a place of never-ending inspiration and discovery for all ages. Its current facility opened in 1994 on the west bank of the Grand River, just a three-minute walk from the future Amway Soccer Stadium. In early 2024, the Museum broke ground on a $50 million expansion project to elevate the visitor experience through modernized exhibits and enhanced accessibility.

The  Cook Carousel Pavilion, which houses the Museum’s working 1928 Spillman Carousel – and the carousel horses you see in the video – has been detached from the main facility to allow for an accessible trail connection along the riverfront. Self-propelled ramps inside and outside the pavilion create universal access around and into the Carousel. The Carousel’s walkway roof is accessible from inside the Museum, providing a new outdoor viewing experience of the river.

A new outdoor classroom is surrounded by exhibits detailing the area’s natural history and will seat 50 students. Outdoor event space and hands-on science stations are being connected to improved riverfront walkways and trails. An outdoor dining area, children’s playscape, pollinator garden and accessible riverfront seating add to the vitality of the space. Terracing makes the river accessible to visitors no matter the water level, while a retaining wall tells the story of the river’s geological layers.

The outdoor work on this project is slated for completion in early 2026, after which phase two – which includes construction of a four-story tower on the Museum’s south lawn – will begin.

Grand River Greenway

Status: Ongoing Improvements

The river’s edge trails outside the Grand Rapids Public Museum are part of a larger initiative to connect a network of trails and parks along the Grand River between Grand Rapids and Grand Haven (to the west) and Ionia (to the east). Set for completion by 2031, the Grand River Greenway will enable users to hike, bike or kayak the 85+ miles between cities.

The project will connect more than 30 public parks along the river, including downtown GR’s Canal Park. A $7.5 million renovation of this park is underway to create a universally accessible play space, an accessible kayak launch, river outlooks, seating terraces and a multi-purpose plaza with an enclosed pavilion for events. The renovation should be completed in the summer of 2026. Other local parks will also get upgrades.

The Grand River Greenway will also provide connections to many other regional trails, including the 13-mile trail connecting Lowell to Ionia, the 92-mile Fred Meijer White Pine Trail between Grand Rapids and Cadillac, and the 4,800-mile North Country Trail that runs through Lowell on its path from North Dakota to Vermont, as well as mountain biking trail networks through Cannonsburg State Game Area, Cannonsburg Ski Area and Luton Park.

Fulton & Market

Status: In Design & Development

A nationally recognized real estate developer has been selected as the development partner for a massive, skyline-defining mixed-use project on what is currently seven acres of surface parking lot at the riverfront intersection of Fulton St. and Market Ave.

The $797 million project is one of the biggest in the city’s history. The plan also includes a pedestrian pathway along the Grand River, extending downtown’s river-edge trails to the south and enhancing connectivity and walkability from Fulton Street to the new Acrisure Amphitheater (see below).

The city has championed the project and is working with the development team to secure buy-in on a Transformational Brownfield plan from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. Additional planning and design work will ensue once the brownfield plan is approved, with construction to follow as soon as possible.

This project will turn what is now essentially a gateway corridor into one of downtown’s most active and connected zones, where hotel guests, residents and retail customers can easily walk to the city center’s cultural, entertainment and business hubs.

Grand River Restoration

Status: Construction Planned to Begin Summer 2026

Carved out by receding glacial ice around 11,000 years ago, the Grand River valley winds 252 miles from Jackson to Grand Haven, making it Michigan’s longest river. Grand Rapids took its name from the rapids that once stretched for a mile on the Grand River as it winds its way through the downtown area. But a series of dams built in the late 1800s and early 1900s subverted the river’s natural flow and eliminated the rapids.

Grand Rapids WhiteWater, a nonprofit collaborative effort of local public and private entities, has been working with the City of Grand Rapids to restore the downtown rapids, enhance the river habitat for more diverse aquatic species, and provide additional recreational opportunities in the heart of the city, including wading, angling and whitewater paddling sports.

The project has been in the works for more than 15 years, as each element has had to undergo extensive scrutiny by regulatory agencies on issues such as hydraulic modeling, fish passage, and impacts to endangered mussels. Construction is now expected to begin in summer 2026.

Acrisure Amphitheater

Status: Opens May 2026

Spanning 10 acres along the Grand River, just a five-minute walk from the future Fulton & Market development, the Acrisure Amphitheater is set to redefine entertainment in West Michigan. The  $184 million outdoor performance venue will accommodate 12,000 concertgoers – 7,000 in fixed seats and 5,000 on a tiered lawn – with 22 entry points for easy access. A football field-sized canopy shelters seats from weather and provides unobstructed views for all patrons, thanks to an innovative two-pillar support system.

Ground was broken in May 2024 and the venue is set to open in May 2026. Several major concerts were quickly booked for the amphitheater’s first few months of operation, including country star Russell Dickerson, MGK with Wiz Khalifa, singer-songwriter Jack Johnson and pop-rock sensation 5 Seconds of Summer. Visit our Concerts & Live Music page to find all amphitheater concerts as soon as they’re announced.

The Acrisure Amphitheater is part of a 31-acre mixed-use development that will also include housing, retail and commercial properties, as well as green spaces and trails.

We Dream Grand and Grow so you can Dream Grand and Go to a city that offers endless opportunities for fun and recreation. CNN named Grand Rapids one of America’s 10 Best Towns to Visit in 2024 – and the best is yet to come!