Hudsonville, MI

From Farm Town to Destination Downtown

How This City Gem is Building Smart Growth with a Long-Term Vision

In the City of Hudsonville, growth is not being left to chance. Located between Grand Rapids and the Lake Michigan shoreline, Hudsonville has long been known as a close-knit, faith-oriented community with a strong family focus and a reputation for safety and quality schools.  Today, it is also becoming a model for how a small city can guide rapid expansion without losing the character that drew residents there in the first place.

Mayor Mark Northrup describes Hudsonville’s transformation as deliberate. In just a few years,  the city is on pace to grow from roughly 7,500 residents to more than 9,000, supported by a major increase in housing development activity. That growth, he emphasizes, has been planned, structured, and aligned with a shared vision among city leadership, staff, and community partners. For a mayor, Northrup notes, the job becomes far more manageable when the commission, the city team, and the broader community are aligned around what kind of city they want to build.

Creating a Downtown Where None Truly Existed

Perhaps the most defining element of Hudsonville’s current evolution is that it is not revitalizing a traditional downtown—it is building one.

City Commissioner Jack Groot, also Chair of the Downtown Development Authority, recalls that when he joined the DDA, residents often responded to the phrase “downtown Hudsonville” with disbelief. The original downtown had been fragmented over time, cut apart by a major state road and a railroad, with portions of the district dominated by used car lots and underutilized spaces.  The city recognized that private investment was unlikely to arrive without a public catalyst. As a result, Hudsonville took a bold step that many small cities are reluctant to pursue: it led.

The city bonded, acquired key distressed property, and redeveloped a former auto showroom site into a walkable downtown footprint—before there were even buildings to populate it. That public commitment created a framework that signaled to developers that Hudsonville was serious, prepared, and aligned. Once the environment existed, private-sector momentum followed.

The results are now visible. The downtown district includes two completed three-story mixed-use buildings, and a larger multi-building development valued at approximately $35 million is

underway. Hudsonville’s intent is clear: build a downtown that blends residential density, retail,  restaurants, services, and gathering spaces in a way that feels cohesive and embraced by the community.

Master Planning with Discipline

A key reason Hudsonville’s downtown development has stayed on track is its commitment to long-term planning. Northrup notes that the city has adhered to its master plan without deviation, even in the face of pushback. Like many communities, Hudsonville experiences the realities of NIMBY concerns, where residents fear that growth will undermine the quality of life. City leadership has taken those concerns seriously without allowing fear to drive policy. The city’s approach has been to remain consistent, reinforce the plan that was developed through public process, and avoid improvising growth decisions.

That discipline has also brought recognition. Hudsonville received a Michigan Municipal League  Community Excellence Award for the boldness of its downtown effort, an acknowledgment that sometimes calculated risk, when paired with strong planning, delivers transformational payoff.

Incentives That Make Projects Possible

Groot emphasizes that in the current economic climate, building downtown mixed-use projects often requires layered financing. Hudsonville has used tools such as Tax Increment Financing,  brownfield support, and planned unit development frameworks to make early downtown projects feasible. The goal is to structure incentives in a way that supports private-sector viability while protecting public responsibility. Developers need to build and earn returns. The city needs long-term value and community fit. Hudsonville’s strategy has been to find structures where both can win.

Early projects reflect that outcome. One three-story building now houses restaurants and a coffee shop on the lower levels with office and residential above. Another new building includes healthcare-related space alongside a restaurant and mixed-use components. A separate residential development just off the downtown core, Prospect Flats, brought 41 units online and is nearing full occupancy, reflecting strong demand for walkable living options.

Turning Blight into Opportunity

City Manager Tyler Dotson highlights Prospect Flats as an example of how Hudsonville has used collaboration to unlock value. A previously blighted building site was paired with adjacent city and DDA-owned parcels that had been vacant for years. Through coordinated sequencing

and shared intent, the city and DDA sold the land to a developer, the building was demolished,  and the project delivered housing while returning a large portion of the parcel to the public for a future phase. Dotson describes it as a domino-effect project where multiple actions had to occur in the right order, and the outcome was a significant win for both development and long-term planning.

The next major downtown catalyst is Terra Station, a project that will bring 141 residential units and roughly 4,800 square feet of commercial space into the heart of downtown. Once used as a former farmers’ co-op site, the land was acquired by the city and structured through a purchase development agreement, allowing the project to move forward with clarity and alignment.  Hudsonville’s view is that residential density drives commercial momentum. When more people live downtown, business follows, and downtown becomes less of a concept and more of a daily destination.

A Downtown Built on Community Relationships

The Hudsonville Area Chamber of Commerce plays a central role in this evolution. Community  Engagement Director and Chamber Executive Director Lindsey Hicks describes Hudsonville’s business culture as relational and deeply connected. New business owners want a direct connection to the city and chamber, and Hudsonville’s approach is to provide that access,  guiding businesses through permitting, licensing, and integration into the community.

The chamber also acts as a connector, helping businesses build relationships with local leaders and with each other. Hicks points to a long-standing tradition of local businesses supporting community events, even when it means sacrificing convenience or normal sales patterns for a day. For her, that willingness reflects the deeper reality of Hudsonville: downtown businesses operate as part of the community, not separate from it.

A Distillery and Social District as Downtown Catalysts

One of the most anticipated additions to downtown is Legacy Winery and Spirits, a distillery and wine-focused concept expected to open in early spring. Hicks explains that the owners have been methodical, working through licensing, equipment sourcing, and buildout planning, while staying closely connected with the chamber and city through each step. The business is also integrating into the downtown ecosystem through partnerships, including collaboration with a  local restaurant that plans to feature Legacy’s products in both menu offerings and retail shelf presence.

Legacy is expected to support downtown activation beyond its own operations, including participating in Hudsonville’s social district. The social district, first introduced in 2023, allows adults to enjoy beverages in designated areas while attending community events and walking through downtown.

Northrup notes it has proven successful and responsible, strengthening business activity and community engagement rather than creating problems. The city views it as one more example of smart, open-minded policy that supports a modern downtown experience while maintaining community standards.

Safety, Mobility, and the Realities of Growth

Hudsonville’s growth has also required attention to infrastructure and traffic management, as evidenced by $2.4 million in grant funding towards infrastructure projects since 2023. The city’s water and sewer systems are stable and well-maintained, and downtown servicing capacity is not expected to be a major barrier. Transportation is a more complex challenge, particularly where state-controlled roads and rail infrastructure intersect with local needs.

Northrup describes a major safety improvement effort on 32nd Avenue near the high school,  where the city implemented a road diet—reducing lanes from four to three—despite pushback.  The result has been improved traffic flow and a dramatic reduction in serious accidents near the school. Hudsonville’s view is clear: when infrastructure changes are guided by safety and long-term livability, the benefits eventually become undeniable.

Public transportation is also part of long-term discussion, though cultural perception remains a hurdle. Leadership notes that there is growing interest in transit solutions, but lingering misconceptions create resistance. Even so, Hudsonville is engaging regional conversations,  including involvement in concepts like West Michigan Express, recognizing that workforce mobility and community connectivity will matter more as the region grows.

The Next Chapter: The Village Green

When asked what success will look like in the next phase of downtown development, Dotson’s answer is specific: the creation of the Village Green. Planned as a central open space in the heart of downtown, the Village Green is intended to serve as a true community heartbeat—a flexible, activated green space built for programming, events, markets, and everyday gathering.  It is designed using smart growth principles and integrated infrastructure planning so that surrounding development supports the space rather than competing with it.

For Hudsonville, the Village Green is not just an amenity. It represents the moment when  downtown shifts from “being built” to “being lived.”

A City Building for the Next 100 Years

Across city leadership, the common theme is long-term thinking. Hudsonville’s goal is not short-term growth or quick wins. It is a downtown and community structure that residents 50 to 100  years from now will recognize as intentional, sustainable, and thoughtfully executed.

With a disciplined master plan, catalytic public investment, strong public-private partnerships,  increased grant funding, and a community culture rooted in collaboration, Hudsonville is proving that even a small city can build a destination downtown—with the right vision, the right leadership, and the willingness to be bold.

AT A GLANCE

Who: Hudsonville, Michigan

What: A fast-growing, yet close-knit community with development projects aimed for its residents and those passing through

Where: Ottawa County, Michigan

Website: www.hudsonville.org