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Originally posted on 9/25/08
Work has already begun over here. They’re starting with a new roof. As I was walking through snapping photos, I was almost decapitated when a bunch of roofing debris fell through the ceiling and narrowly missed my big head.
Update: It’s done, and I’m still alive!

Originally posted 5/8/08
This will provide for an interesting “before and after???” (well, maybe if these online pictures were Scratch-and-Sniff) Really, it should be a very nice home in no time. The house has 3 beds and 2 baths with a nice sized yard. I’ll let the pictures do a little talking…
Update: All done. So [...]

Originally posted 6/6/08
We’re taking over this block! We now manage about 15 – 20 units within a stone’s throw of this house (including the one next door, across the street, and two houses down). This is a nice place, complete with deck and garage. Here are some pictures before the contractors get to work:
Update: She’s [...]

Originally posted 5/8/08
What a beautiful house! This one is a two unit, with an upper and lower 3 bed/1.5 bath apartment. Lots of hardwoods, pocket & French doors, and fireplaces (2 of them) remain. This will be a nice place!
Update: Originally posted 9/24/08
All done, minus some work to the driveway/landscaping:

Last Friday, September 19th, we participated in National Parking Day. It was the first time that Grand Rapids participated in this annual, nationwide event. We had a blast!

The basic idea behind the event was to make people think hard about how we use our public spaces. Normally, the streets are used to house vehicles. Not on Park(ing) Day. Downtown Grand Rapids was home to about 20 small “parks” that replaced normal, metered parking spaces. For the day, there was definitely increased vibrancy downtown as passer-by’s and participants alike were invited to hang out in urban oases. We heard many comments like “They should do this every day” and “You guys should turf the entire street.” I think the day succeeded in raising awareness about how we use our public spaces. As the City of Grand Rapids works to write the new master plan (Green Grand Rapids), I hope to see more public space allocated to green and community space. I think many downtown-goers from Park(ing) Day will agree.

We arrived at about 7:30 am to meet the man from AAA Turf (Hudsonville, MI). He dropped off about 350 sf of sod that became the foundation of our “park.” After dirtying our hands and clothing laying down the sod, we set out chairs, yard games (corn hole, specifically), a table filled with snacks and beverages, and a radio (you have to have tunes!).

It turned out to be a beautiful day. As the morning wore on, we had a couple clients stop by for brief meetings. Between work, we managed to fit in a couple games of corn hole before lunch. Andy Dragt, from Rapid Growth Media (www.rapidgrowthmedia.com), swung by to capture the events of the day on video. You can check those out here:

We were later greeted by members of the television media and press. I was happy to see that many of them took a day off from covering the bad news in the world to cover Park(ing) Day–a day of community and “greenness.”

As noon rolled around, it was time to fire up the grill. Unfortunately, none of us had a clue when it came to charcoal. It took three grown men, a bottle of charcoal lighter fluid, and three arms of singed hair to get the coals hot enough. By 12:30, the first batch of burgers were ready, and the crowd started forming. We asked for donations to Habitat for Humanity in exchange for a meal, and were able to collect $80.00 throughout the day. Not a lot of money, but every little bit helps.

Tenants, attorneys, property owners, friends, strangers, homeless people, rich people, coworkers, contractors, and just about everybody else you can imagine stopped by for a meal and t-shirt. At one point, we had a 30 minute wait for a burger. I was very happy to share our park with all of these people, and I hope that they took something away from our efforts.

After the rush, it was back to relaxation. We took on some people in corn hole, though I lost every game.

As the day winded down, we slowly dismantled our park and rolled up the sod to donate to Habitat for Humanity. With tired eyes, dirty fingernails, and singed arms, we made our way to Flanagans to cap off the busy day. It was a great day in Downtown Grand Rapids. I hope that this event continues and grows every year. Please plan on coming down to visit or create your own park next year. Thanks to everybody who stopped by to share the day with us.

Until next Park(ing) Day…

Originally posted on 5/17/08
I love the layout of this house. It would be perfect for anybody with mobility problems (or not too). The road construction makes it hard to reach right now, but it will be done by the end of the summer. Construction will start soon.
Update: Finally, after many delays, this one is now [...]

Originally posted on 6/6/08
This is a nice little 3 bed/1 bath home. The hardwoods will pose a small problem. The contractors are trying to keep them, but a few divots will make refinishing them difficult due to the dark color. The contractor explained to me that the sander can’t reach the divots in the floor, [...]

Originally posted 6/27/08
What a cool house, but WHAT A MESS! This house has two apartments. The lower unit, on the main floor, has 3 bedrooms and 1 bathroom. The second unit, which takes up the entire second and third floors, has 7 bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms. That’s right…7 bedrooms/2.5 bathrooms.
I’m very excited for this one, [...]

Originally posted on 5/8/08
Again, this place isn’t in bad shape. It will make a nice home for somebody once a few things are repaired, replaced, and cleaned up. Work will begin next week.
Update: Complete!