Departments

City of Grand Rapids

City of Grand Rapids

Recent News

Grand Rapids Business Guide
The City of Grand Rapids Business Guide includes resources and City requirements for a typical business. We have created the guide to help you find the person, organization or application that you need. The guide also includes our Open for Business Checklist, which complements the information in the business guide.
Read More
Start your Business with InsYght for Entrepreneurs
InsYght provides free business resources for entrepreneurs. It is a service that helps you identify exactly what is available to support your business needs. Get the tools to help your business today.
Read More
West Michigan Small Business Resource Guide
The West Michigan Small Business Resource Guide has over 30 organizations and offices that can help you with all your business and entrepreneurial needs.
Read More
Grand Rapids is a Top Performing Community!
The City of Grand Rapids is one of eight communities from across the state of Michigan to receive a Top Performing Community Award from the University of Michigan-Dearborn’s Center for Innovation and Research. This award was given to eight communities that best foster entrepreneurial growth and economic development according to the annual eCities study.
Read More

Mission

Our mission is to retain and foster employment opportunities by improving our business environment and encouraging sustainable business development. Our economic development effort is aimed at facilitating greater levels of economic prosperity through innovation, collaboration and the linking and leveraging of resources.

What We Do

See the reported outcomes of projects utilizing tax abatements over the past two years. The City’s return on investment has been 170%. Click here to view report.

Economic Development has assisted 409 projects over the past 10 years. See the overview below, or click for the most up-to-date 2013 report. Archived reports: 2012 | 2011 | 2010

Top Performing Communities Video

Changes to Michigan Tax Law

There have been significant changes to Michigan's Tax Legislation over the past few months. Click the links below to find out if they affect you or your business.

New Market Tax Credit Investment

Open for Business

Whether you’re a sole proprietor, small business owner, or CEO of a corporation, you’ll find that Grand Rapids is a great place to do business.

Business opportunities abound for every size and type of company: incubator space for startups, centers for cutting-edge science and technology development, and industrial sites for manufacturing – all in proximity to award-winning colleges, universities and a trained workforce.

The Grand Rapids Economic Development Office is standing by to help you grow your business or bring your business to Grand Rapids by working alongside you and local and state agencies to get what you need to do business here.

To view the Open for Business brochure, click on the cover image below.

Click here to view our brochure map of downtown GR.