People + Places

On Jan. 1, Grand Rapids gained its newest poet laureate in Ericka “Kyd Kane” Thompson. She is the seventh to take on the title and the first Black woman and openly queer person to hold the role.

Bank of America, Merrill and Bank of America Private Bank credit and debit cardholders can receive free admission to the Grand Rapids Public Museum and Grand Rapids Art Museum this weekend, courtesy of the Bank of America Museums on Us program.

Plaster Creek Family Park won the 2020 Park Design Award from the Michigan Recreation & Park Association, and The Pack Indoor Dog Park is now open for business.

Experience Grand Rapids is partnering with Kent County-area hotels to provide staycation deals to revive the tourism and hospitality sector of the local economy that suffered under the COVID-19 pandemic.

A local nonprofit secured another building that will become sober living apartments.

Discriminatory housing practices will be discussed in the next installment of Holland Museum’s Cultural Lens series.

Shelbie Schoenborn, a sophomore at Coopersville High School, is a delegate to the Congress of Future Medical Leaders.

The 2021 Cheers & Chocolate Community Crawl will connect with Muskegon-area businesses to raise funds for a local domestic and sexual assault shelter.

Ann Arbor-based Exclusive Brands announced the opening of its newest retail store to serve both adult-use and medical cannabis consumers in Grand Rapids.

After many years of closure, the Division Avenue Arts Collective will reopen at its new permanent location, 1553 Plainfield Ave. NE, in the funky Creston neighborhood.

On Saturday, The Body Mind Being Institute will be hosting its grand opening celebration from 1-9 p.m. at 1005 Parchment Drive SE, Suite 1007 in Grand Rapids.

“Stamp Your Way Through the U.S.A.,” a series co-written by Grand Rapids natives Emily Matheny and her mother Mary O’Hare, received the 2020 Moonbeam Awards gold medal for children’s activity book – educational, science, history.

New Standard Sand Lake, a new recreational-only cannabis provisionary, opened in Sand Lake on Jan. 23, making it the second New Standard cannabis dispensary in Michigan.

Find out what singles in Grand Rapids are looking for.

A new report puts Grand Rapids in last place among large metro areas where women earn more than their husbands.

Grand Rapids’ West Side has seen massive expansion over the past decade, becoming a new hub for some of the city’s best dining and entertainment.

Dr. Charles Gibson is one of only a few Black trauma surgeons in the country.

A new report says Grand Rapids is one of the top 10 cities best positioned to attract remote workers.

“Ecliptic” at Rosa Parks Circle is getting a $2 million restoration that will increase the lifespan of the materials used in the art installation.

A startup aims to help local individuals and businesses make the most of expensive parking spaces, and Grand Rapids native Shanae Gooch fulfilled her dream of going to esthetician school and starting her own business.