Joe Carter, the Senior Editor of the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion & Liberty, recently wrote a story on the organization’s PowerBlog that defends Islamophobia.
The article written by Carter is entitled, Bernie Sanders imposes a religious test for public office, focuses on a confirmation hearing last week for Russell Vought, nominated for deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget.
What Senator Sanders too issue with during the confirmation hearing was the following comment written by Russell Vought in an online publication called The Resurgent.
“Muslims do not simply have a deficient theology,” wrote Vought, pushing back against a claim made by theologian John Stackhouse. “They do not know God because they have rejected Jesus Christ his Son, and they stand condemned.”
Senator Sanders challenged this statement and pushed Russell Vought to own it, which you can hear in this video.
Vought never really answers Sen. Sanders’ question, he only argues that he is a Christian and we are all supposed to deduce from that, that as a Christian he rejects all other faiths.
The Senior Acton Editor then ends his post with these comments:
The fact that Sanders and Van Hollen are profoundly ignorant about both Christianity and Islam is neither surprising nor all that disconcerting. But for them to imply that anyone who holds a traditional Christian view on salvation is unfit for public office is repugnant and unconstitutional.
Although most of America has been distracted by the Comey hearing, we shouldn’t ignore this threat to our religious freedom. We must send a clear message to Washington: Such displays of anti-Christian bias by politicians like Senator Sanders and Van Hollen has the potential to set a dangerous precedent and will not be tolerated.
Such contempt should come as no surprise to anyone who has followed the Acton Institute over the years. Their founder, Rev. Robert Sirico, is a close friend of Erik Prince (the founder of Blackwater). In fact, Sirico performed the ceremony at Prince’s wedding and acts as somewhat of a “spiritual Advisor,” according to Jeremy Scahill’s book, Blackwater: The Rise of the World’s Most Powerful Mercenary Army.
Erik Prince even sees himself as a modern day crusader who seeks to eliminate infidels around the world, including those who practice Islam. It would seem that Joe Carter is simply continuing the position of Islamophobia that the Acton Institute’s founder has endorsed for some time now.
Billed as Community-Police relations “listening tour,” the meeting was a highly managed forum
Last night, I attended one of the 5 community-police relations meetings that are being held throughout the city. The one this writer attended was held on the westside of Grand Rapids, at Stocking School.
Billed as a “listening tour,” the format of the forum was to hear a report back from a city staffer on the progress of 6 of the 12-point plan the city has been working on for the past 2 years, then break into smaller groups and have participants provide feedback on the so-called progress. 
There was a handout provided on the progress made on 6 of the 12-point plan. However, a city staffer read through that handout, with some elaboration, which seemed unnecessary and those from the community could not ask questions or make comments during the large group meeting.
We were divided into three groups, each with a moderator, to cover just to 6 themes that the City wanted participants to discuss. In many ways this felt like the parameters of what people could talk about were highly managed. In addition, there was a limited amount of time allotted for each theme that was discussed, which felt more like a kind of speed dating rather than allowing for lots of feedback from the community and some robust dialogue to talk place.
At one point, the facilitator in our group said that they wanted to provide a safe space for people. However, there were several police officers in the room sitting just on the periphery of the breakout sessions, which didn’t really make the space safe. Did having police presence causing anyone in the community to self-censor? Police Chief Rahinsky was also present and moved around to the 3 groups as they were discussing issues.
There was also two retired police officers in the small group I was part of who were very dismissive of the current criticism of the GRPD. These two men had a very “back in my day” attitude, which seemed disrespectful to the criticisms and comments coming from participants. At one point, one of these retired cops interrupted an African American community member who was talking about the traffic study and who gets stopped more often and made a comment about the 1967 riot in Grand Rapids, saying, “Who do you think was rioting?” The African American community member responded by saying, “and why do you think they were rioting?”
Those who facilitated were asking questions like, “Are we headed in the right direction?” and “what was missing” in the six themes that we were encouraged to discuss. Several people in my breakout session wanted more accountability, a citizen review board with subpoena power and more transparency with police date and practices.
The amount of time that people were provided to give input was limited, although sticky notes were provided so that people could give additional written input. This meeting did not feel at all like the numerous city commission meetings, where dozens of Grand Rapids residents spoke passionately with their criticisms of the GRPD. At a recent city commission meeting members of the African American community even called for a State of Emergency.
One of the reasons why the meeting felt so managed was that it was limited to discussion of just 6 predetermined points. There was not much of an opening for people to discuss issues outside of the predetermined framework and even then it felt like you would be stepping outside of acceptable boundaries.
What I was hoping to hear and to discuss was a recent comment that City Commissioner Joe Jones had made. He stated the following:
If I had it my way, the urban core of Grand Rapids would be devoid of police presence because of an unwavering commitment by the people to police our own communities. Not only should we aspire to do this, but we must also commit ourselves to creating real opportunities for our children and for others in our community to thrive. We have to engage in the work of community change by first of all being present in the community. We must avail ourselves and lend all of our gifts, talents, and resources collectively to provide uplift for any and all who desire to do and experience better. I believe if there were greater prosperity and access to opportunity in the urban core of Grand Rapids, there would be a reduction in crime. http://www.rapidgrowthmedia.com/features/rapidblogjoejones.aspx
Not only does this statement operate outside of the dominant narrative on policing, it makes it clear that there are other possibilities. In addition, the commissioner’s statement makes it clear that economic inequality in the city is a main obstacle to realizing a vision where neighborhoods could police themselves, since it is likely that crime would be significantly reduced with great income equality.
These are the kinds of topics and discussions we need to have in this community. We can not limit ourselves to a narrative and a framework that is determined by those with power.
The DeVos-created organization, AmplifyGR, will be hosting a meeting on June 29, from 6 – 7:30pm at the Living Word Church, located at 1534 Kalamazoo Ave. SE.
In the past two weeks, we have posted two stories about the DeVos/Rockford Construction plans to re-develop parts of Southtown.
In our May 29 article, we primarily provided information on the meetings and planning that AmplifyGR has been participating in, meetings that have largely been limited to planners and policy makers. The May 29 article also provides details of the vision that the DeVos/Rockford Construction tandem has for parts of the southeast area of Grand Rapids.
On June 1st, we reported that AmplifyGR had canceled a scheduled meeting they were invited to that was being hosted by GR Homes for All. That meeting was cancelled in part because of the fact that AmplifyGR was clearly presented as a DeVos-created entity, something that they were not transparent about on either their website or their Facebook page.
Last week, we then posted part two of our initial article on the DeVos/Rockford Construction collaboration to redesign parts of Southtown, with details on how many properties they had purchased in preparation for their development plans.
Now the June 29 meeting has been scheduled. The AmplifyGR facebook page says that the meeting is being hosted by the two Third Ward City Commissioners (Lenear and Allen) and AmplifyGR. The description also says that Doug DeVos, from the Doug & Maria DeVos Foundation will speak, followed by the CEO of Rockford Construction, Mike VanGessel.
The Doug & Maria DeVos Foundation are financing this re-development project, although we do not know how much money they are investing in the project, since their foundation will not have to legally post their 990 financial disclosure documents for another two years. However, we do have information on what the Doug & Maria DeVos Foundation has been funding in recent years that are relevant to the AmplifyGR discussion. 
First, the person who is working for AmplifyGR, Willie Patterson, used to work for LINC, which has received more funding from the Doug & Maria DeVos Foundation since their founding than any other source.
Second, the Doug & Maria DeVos Foundation has invested significantly in “educational” projects in Grand Rapids, often in conjunction with the Grand Rapids Public Schools. Their foundation has been the primary funding source for the Believe 2 Become project, which has been a way for the DeVos family to inject religion into the local public schools, along with the Grand Rapids Initiative for Leadership, which is an even more overtly faith-based program that works with the GRPS. This “educational” funding is relevant, since one of the components of the Southtown development vision is education. Education, with the DeVos context means private, charter or faith-based programing with a public school system.
Lastly, the Doug & Maria DeVos Foundation has provided hundreds of thousands of dollars to ideologically driven organizations, such as the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), which has been a leader in opposing marriage equality in the US. More importantly, the Doug & Maria DeVos Foundation regularly funds groups like the Acton Institute, the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, the Heritage Foundation and the American Enterprise Institute, all of which support neoliberal economic policies that harm working class families and communities, like the neighborhoods being targeted in the AmplifyGR plans.
After Doug DeVos and Mike VanGessel speak at the June 29 AmplifyGR meeting, there will be a presentation of the development plans, “followed by the opportunity for neighborhood residents and business owners to ask questions and learn how to stay involved in the ongoing planning in the community by the City of Grand Rapids and AmplifyGR.”
This last sentence suggests that what is being developed is more or less a done deal and that the June 29 meeting is designed merely to inform people what they will be doing. Let’s face it, a meeting that only lasts 90 minutes, includes comments from politicians, Doug DeVos and the CEO of Rockford Construction, followed by a presentation of the AmplifyGR project, won’t allow for much time for people to speak up. In reality, the June 29 meeting is a managed meeting, like so many other meetings led by developers, and is not really designed for public input, rather it is just to create a perception that they want to hear from the community.
With more assets than Koch or DeVos, the Bradley Foundation also impacts policy in Michigan and the Midwest
We all know what influence that the Acton Institute and the Mackinac Center for Public Policy had in making Michigan a Right to Work state a few years ago. Funding from the DeVos Family certainly played a role in pushing for Michigan to become a Right to Work state.
However, new research coming out of the Wisconsin-based group, the Center for Media & Democracy (CMD), has uncovered the influence of a little known entity known as the Bradley Foundation. According to the CMD:
Documents examined by the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) expose a national effort funded by the Milwaukee-based Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation to assess and expand right-wing “infrastructure” to influence policies and politicians in statehouses nationwide.
The documents open a window to the behind-the-scenes workings of one of America’s largest right-wing foundations. With $835 million in assets as of June 2016, the Bradley Foundation is as large as the three Koch family foundations combined, yet receives much less attention as a significant funder of the right.
CMD has examined thousands of these documents, including Bradley board documents between 2013-2016. The documents indicate that Bradley has a new stream of funding to build this “conservative infrastructure” and is using a metric to assess the strength and depth of that infrastructure in individual states — including “receptive” politicians, right-wing “think tanks,” symbiotic “grassroots” groups, friendly media, litigation centers, and opposition research — to guide Bradley’s strategic funding initiatives.
Watch this Bradley Foundation video, which seeks to recruit others in their efforts to maintain Blue Lakes and create Red States.
One area in particular that the Bradley Foundation has focused their energy is on attacking and undermining labor unions. One of their partner organizations in this work is Berman and Co,, founded by Richard Berman.
Berman came to Grand Rapids in 2010, to present an anti-union strategy at the West Michigan Policy Forum Conference.
This is consistent with the CMD documentation on Michigan and Right to Work, where the Bradley Foundation has essentially bankrolled the Mackinac Center for Public Policy.
Since 1993, Bradley has provided $1,357,000 in support of Mackinac Center for Public Policy’s (MCPP) activities, almost all for its anti-union “Labor Education Project.” Mackinac, a member of SPN, has also worked aggressively to roll out and defend ALEC-style “right to work” legislation in Michigan and other states (Mackinac, Grant Proposal Record, 2/24/15).
In 2015, Bradley gave the group $175,000 to support general operations. “Mackinac is among the most aggressive and, as the right-to-work victory shows, successful state think tanks in America. With many Bradley-supported allies, Mackinac and its labor, legal, and educational efforts provide good programmatic and organizational models for the rest of the country.” Bradley has funded the group’s app, called VoteSpotter, which”provides a concise, neutral, ‘plain-English’ descriptions [sic] of specific legislative actions, in real time” (Mackinac, Grant Proposal Record, 2/24/15).
In 2014, Bradley gave Mackinac $50,000 to support general operations. The grant describes some of Mackinac’s activities: “Bradley’s recent support of Mackinac has been styled as for its Labor and Education Project. Mackinac would also like to use some of any continued Bradley support for its Mackinac Center Legal Foundation (MCLF), the attorneys of which do most of their work on labor- and education-related matters. Mackinac’s director of labor policy is Vincent Vernuccio, who chairs a committee of the labor task force of the Bradley-supported American Legislative Exchange Council and previously has worked at the Bradley-supported Capital Research Center and Bradley-supported Competitive Enterprise Institute… MCLF spent much of last year helping to defend the new right-to-work law, in policy and legal arguments, as well as in the larger public discourse in the state and nationally… MCLF is working with the Bradley-supported National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation on this and several other legal matters surrounding implementation of right to work in Michigan… On education, among other things, Mackinac is analyzing mroe [sic] than 200 collective-bargaining agreements (CBAs) in the state, covering some 75% of the state’s public-school students, to see if and if so, how, they are adhering to the teacher-tenure and -evaluation policy changes. The results will be an important, in-depth, one-state version of the larger, national study of CBAs being done by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute…” (Mackinac, Grant Proposal Record, 2/25/14).
“Its labor and education work in particular has been funded by the Dow, Earhart, Herrick Foundations and Chrysler,” say the Bradley files (Mackinac, Grant Proposal Record, 2/25/14).
Like Bradley, Mackinac is a tax-exempt “charitable” organization. It is prohibited from engaging in partisan political activities and can only engage in very limited “grassroots” lobbying. It reported zero direct or grassroots lobbying to the IRS in 2012.
Yet audio released by Progress Michigan reveals Mackinac Director of Labor Policy F. Vincent Vernuccio telling supporters at an Americans for Prosperity gathering in 2012 that he had met with Michigan lawmakers to make a plan for ramming a “right to work” bill through the state legislature during a lame-duck session. Right-wing pundit and Trump campaign advisor, Stephen Moore, also wrote that Mackinac “persuaded Lansing lawmakers to pass a right-to-work law in the Wolverine State.”
The Bradley Foundation also has a long history of funding charter schools, school privatization and opposing marriage equality. With this new information, it is an important reminder for any social movement to always do a power analysis and understand what forces are organized to push back against the current freedom struggles.
Meijer Golf Tournament Fights Hunger? Another example of the Charity Industrial Complex in West Michigan
The Charity Industrial Complex is not something new. It has been around for decades, but it has evolved over the years in an attempt to supplant the hard work of social movements.
The Charity Industrial Complex is essentially the business and philanthropic community’s attempt to convince the public that what they are doing is “making a difference.” Virtually every week, events are hosted by businesses and sometimes by non-profits, with the purpose of getting the public to donate towards whatever cause is popular and trendy.
One of the most popular causes these days is “fighting hunger.” People can go to their favorite bar or restaurant and a portion of what they spend will go to a local charity that claims to be fighting hunger. Lots of people participate, because they don’t have to do anything other than be a good consumer. People get to drink beer or eat fish tacos and still feel like they are contributing to efforts to end hunger. What’s even better, is that they don’t even need to interact with people who are experiencing poverty.
However, the activities of the Charity Industrial Complex is fundamentally based on a lie. All of businesses and non-profits that claim to be fighting hunger are really just offering another bandaid to the deeply systemic problem of hunger and poverty. In fact, many of the same businesses that participate in the anti-hunger campaigns are the same ones that are profiting from the current food system that is designed to keep people malnourished and hungry.
Last month, we posted an article about the fallacies of food drives. Food drives are really designed to distract us into think that we are making a difference, when in fact we end up perpetuating the problem by not addressing the root causes of hunger and poverty.
Golfing Fights Hunger???
Next week, West Michigan will play host to the Meijer LPGA Classic at the Blythefield Country Club. The annual golf tournament is one way for the Meijer Corporation to con the public into thinking that they care about the community, through their Simply Give program.
In the upbeat video, we are told over and over again that this whole effort is to “help feed the hungry” and to make sure that “no one goes to bed hungry.” Amazing! Those with power have been able to manipulate the public into believing that a huge corporate golf tournament will actually fight hunger. So, how do they do this?
First, the Meijer Corporation spends a ton of money on their Simply Give campaign, in much the same way that they market their business image. Meijer is seen as an important resource in West Michigan and banks on the idea that people can’t imagine a West Michigan without the food retail giant.
Second, the Golf Tournament enlists celebrities and thousands of volunteers through the local news media, which has been promoting this event for years and begins promoting months ahead of the actual golf tournament. In addition, the news media participates as sponsors of events like the Meijer LPGA Classic and presents it as a fun, family opportunity that will also do some good, by fighting hunger.
Third, this event (and the Charity Industrial Complex as a whole) is normalizing the way in which society solves problems, which is through charitable efforts for the “less fortunate.” We are not allowed to ask the question, “why are so many people going hungry in our community.” We just have to accept that those who are in need, are struggling because of some misfortune. We cannot allowed to have any discussion that seeks to understand the root causes of hunger and the systemic forces that are the beneficiaries of hunger and poverty.
I mean, look at the list of co-sponsors of the Meijer LPGA Classic in the graphic below. These are all corporations that are part of the food industry. These corporations have made billions off of an unjust food system and primarily sell and market products that make us unhealthy. They are also corporations that have spent millions to support political candidates and to lobby members of Congress to maintain an unjust food system and to line their pockets with billions of dollars in subsidies.
It is important that we not buy into these lies and that we expose the Charity Industrial Complex as just another way to maintain systems of oppression and exploitation.
The Michigan legislature will be hearing testimony tomorrow about House Bill 4015, also known as the Sanctuary Policy Prohibition Act.
This legislation will make it law that will prohibit and city, county or township government in the state of Michigan from enacting a sanctuary policy, particularly a policy that would make it illegal for local law enforcement to NOT cooperate with federal officials as it relates to undocumented people.
Section 5 of the proposed legislation reads:
Section 9 of the proposed legislation is equally problematic. It reads:
House Bill 4051 also means that local governments must provide in writing to the state of Michigan that they have complied with this legislation, should it pass, and if it does not do so, the “state treasurer shall withhold the total annual payment amount that the 5 local unit of government receives under the Glenn Steil state 6 revenue sharing act of 1971, 1971 PA 140, MCL 141.901 to 141.921, 7 for each year or portion of a year that the local unit of 8 government fails to comply with the requirements of this act.”
The sponsors of this legislation are Representatives Pamela Hornberger, Tim Kelly, Jim Runestad, Gary Glenn, Peter Lucido and Tom Barrett. Rep. Hornberger was only elected to the Michigan House in 2016 and she was the primary sponsor that introduced this legislation.
According to the Michigan Campaign Finance Network’s data base, Rep. Pamela Hornberger’s number one campaign contributor is the DeVos Family.
There is also subsequent legislation that is being proposed and will be discussed in Lansing, House Bill 4334. The language of this legislation is very similar to HB 4051, but is more broadly advocating for local law enforcement to fully cooperate with federal officials.
There is a rally being held in front of the Capital on Wednesday, June 7 at 10am, followed by a Press Conference. In addition, individuals and organizations will be submitting comments and letters in opposition to this legislation during the hearing, which is scheduled for noon.
If you are unable to attend and want to send a letter in opposition to this legislation, you need to do it TODAY. Email your testimony to the Committee Clerk: Angie Lake alake@house.mi.gov.
In addition, it is important to get as many people trained in Rapid Response to ICE. The next training is Thursday, June 15, from 6:30 – 8:30pm, with more details at this link.
The DeVos Family now wants to remake part of a southeast Grand Rapids neighborhood: Part II
Last week we reported on the organization known as AmplifyGR, an organization that is a non-profit, 
created by the DeVos family’s RDV Corporation.
We reported that AmplifyGR was working with Rockford Construction Company and the Doug & Maria DeVos Foundation to develop parts of the Southtown neighborhood area, particularly, the Boston Square area and part of industrial area surrounding Cottage Grove SE.
In the March 15, 2017, Southtown Corridor Improvement District meeting minutes it states in part, “Longer term they are asking how do they reposition the properties in Boston Square and Cottage grove in a way that provides employment to people living in Southeast Grand Rapids.”
While these minutes reflect the notion that AmplifyGR and Rockford Construction want to provide employment opportunities to people in the area, Rockford Construction had purchased more than two dozen properties in these neighborhoods more than a year before these pronouncements were made at the Southtown Corridor Improvement District meeting.
We Call it a Land Grab
In the first map (below), you can see that Rockford Construction (according to the most recent data available on the Grand Rapids Parcel Viewer map) owns thirteen properties in the Boston Square area. The land that Rockford Construction owns in this area is fairly substantial and makes them the largest land owner along the Kalamazoo corridor in the Boston Square neighborhood.
In this second map below (according to the most recent data available on the Grand Rapids Parcel Viewer map), one can see that the Rockford Construction Company now owns fifteen lots in the Cottage Grove area between Jefferson and College SE. In this instance, Rockford Construction, along with the Notions Marketing Corporation.
This means that as of right now Rockford Construction owns 28 properties in the target area for development, as proposed through the information presented by AmplifyGR. In addition, what this information suggests is that for at least a full year before AmplifyGR began to “engage” the community, Rockford Construction was quietly buying up property with the intention of developing the Boston Square and Cottage Grove areas.
Here is where resident are at a disadvantage. Developers, like Rockford Construction, do not come to residents in neighborhoods to present an idea before they develop plans or buy property. It seems that the only just thing to do would be for residents to have an equal say in what happens to their neighborhoods before plans are being developed or property is being purchased by an outside entity.
Now, this may seem unrealistic in a world where property ownership is held sacrosanct, but such a process would limit the power that developers, land speculators and investors have in the process.
What AmplifyGR is really doing, and what it was designed to do (in my opinion), is to amplify the voices of developers and investors who have purchased land in the Southtown area, without telling residents, thus creating a power dynamic that favors those with wealth.
In this instance, with an imbalance of power, what recourse do residents have if they do not want what AmplifyGR, Rockford Construction or the Doug & Maria DeVos Foundation is selling? Residents could organize and ban together to create and community land trust, which takes time and is no easy task or they could organize to publicly resist these forces through an informational campaign that would seek to get the larger community behind them to stop the proposed plans laid out by AmplifyGR, as we reported on last week.
AmplifyGR already pulled out of a scheduled meeting with Grand Rapids Homes for All that is scheduled to be held at the Baxter Community Center on June 8. However, this seems like an important opportunity for people who are concerned about the economic and political forces like Rockford Construction and members of the DeVos family who want to redesign an entire neighborhood. One of the best ways to defeat power is by shinning the light on what they are doing, along with resistance to whatever plans they want to impose on residents of that area.
Yesterday, the Grand Rapids Cosecha Movement engaged in their latest action in their campaign to demand respect, dignity and permanent protection for all immigrants.
At the 54th street Walmart, Cosecha GR members participated in what they were calling a “penny action.” The action involved adults and children buying milk and paying with pennies.
People went to the checkout lanes, each with 2 gallons of milk, and paid with pennies counting them one at a time.
Clogging up the checkout lanes caused them to backup, creating long lines of shoppers, as you can see in the pictures below.
This process played out for about 30 minutes, including people the returning the same milk they had just purchased. Eventually, Cosecha members took out a banner that said we will stop disrupting you, when you stop disrupting our families. Then, another member of Cosecha GR, with the use of a megaphone read a statement, which you can see in this video:
One of the things that the Cosecha GR action was attempting to draw attention to was the fact that there are literally thousands of immigrants working in the agricultural sector. Migrant workers pick the food we eat and milk the cows we drink. These migrant workers don’t make a livable income, which is why the Cosecha Movement is calling for a strike. A strike, even if it only involved immigrant workers, would cause tremendous financial harm to businesses all across the country.
The Cosecha GR members were also appealing to Walmart workers who don’t make a livable wage, often relying on food assistance.
Cosecha members also handed out information to customers with some explanation of the action, along with an invitation to be part of the local movement. In fact, they are inviting anyone with a commitment to immigrant justice to text the word Huelga or Strike and the number 41411.
Walmart management attempted to silence the action and to prevent Cosecha GR members from filming, but were unable to do so. Walmart called the local cops, who showed up just as the Cosecha GR members were leaving the store.
Yesterday, the DeVos-created group AmplifyGR sent an e-mail to the group Grand Rapids Homes for All cancelling the meeting that was scheduled for June 8 at the Baxter Community Center.
Here is the message that AmplifyGR sent:
I wanted to let you and the Grand Rapids Homes for All team know that we will need to reschedule our June 8 meeting scheduled until July/August.
We have been working with City Commissioners to host a neighborhood meeting in late June to share information with residents on Amplify GR’s goals, planning process, partnerships and real estate transactions. Once that meeting happens, we would like to reschedule with Grand Rapids Homes for All and work with you to maximize attendance and discuss how our goals align for creating and maintaining quality housing for all.
I apologize for the disruption, but hopefully we can identify an opportunity to continue the conversation in July/August.
Sincerely, Jon Ippel
The GR Homes for All Facebook event made it clear that the AmplifyGR group was funded and created by the RDV Corporation, which is part of the DeVos family holdings.
The fact that AmplifyGR canceled this community meeting raises questions about what it is that they don’t want the public to know, particularly those who will be most impacted by the development plans they are working on as it relates to the Boston Square and Cottage Grove neighborhood areas, as we reported on Tuesday.
If indeed a public meeting will be taking place in the Southtown neighborhood area, how will that meeting be run and who will be facilitating it? Once a meeting date is known, we will post information about it so that people can attend, ask the necessary questions and raise concerns about the process so far, which appears to favor the Rockford Construction/DeVos-led development project at the expense of residents.
It is not yet known if the Grand Rapids Homes for All meeting will still be held on June 8. Once we know for sure, we will update this post.
Over the past several years, we have seen the impact that developers and investors are having on the gentrification of neighborhoods throughout Grand Rapids.
The Wealthy Street corridor, Michigan Street, the Belknap neighborhood, Bridge Street and West Fulton are just a few examples of neighborhoods that have seen the cost of rent rise dramatically, houses being torn down, families being displaced and the new development projects primarily benefiting the business/professional class.
There are now plans under way in the Southtown area of Grand Rapids, specifically the area that is bordered by Hall St. to the North, Burton St. to the South, Division St. to the West and Fuller/Kalamazoo to the East. Some people also refer to this area as the Boston Square neighborhood and the Cottage Grove business district.
One of the entities that is pushing for the re-development of this area is the Rockford Construction Company. Last year it was revealed that the major Grand Rapids development company had already drafted a blueprint for the area without the knowledge of those who actually live in that neighborhood.
The other major player to surface with an interest in the Boston Square neighborhood/Cottage Grove business district is a lesser-known organization called AmplifyGR. AmplifyGR is a non-profit organization recently created by the DeVos entity known as RDV Corporation.
AmplifyGR has a website, but there is very little content found at the site. However, there is more information about what AmplifyGR has been up to, based on city documents, mostly from the Southtown Corridor Improvement District minutes. Those minutes (1/18/2017) include the following information about AmplifyGR:
Jon Ippel and Brad Mathis shared that over the last nine months, Rockford Construction, in partnership with the Doug and Maria DeVos Foundation, has been developing Amplify GR. Their focus area, which overlaps the Southtown CID, is from Burton St SE to 28th St SE and S Division Ave to Kalamazoo/Fuller Ave SE. Amplify GR will be opening an office in the community and partnering with existing organizations to address issues faced by the community. They developed this model based on the Purposeful Communities model in Atlanta. They plan to begin community engagement in February, 2017. This is anticipated to long term work (15+ years). (Full presentation added to the agenda packet.)
Commissioner Senita Lenear talked about the long-term, community benefit of ownership, both of homes and businesses. Commissioner Lenear asked Mr. Mathis to speak to the property acquisitions that they have made in the focus area. Mr. Mathis shared that Rockford Construction has purchased roughly 12 buildings, the most visible being the former Dexter Lock factory at 1601 Madison Ave SE.
It should be noted that the Doug Maria DeVos Foundation have also been the primary funders of LINC.
This new partnership between Rockford Construction and the DeVos family should raise lots of red flags to anyone who has seen what Rockford has done on Bridge St and the near westside of Grand Rapids in recent years. Such a partnership should also raise red flags for those who are aware of the pro-capitalist, anti-worker, anti-LGBTQ, anti-public schools history of the DeVos family.
What follows is the AmplifyGR presentation that was mentioned in the minutes of the 1/18/2017 meeting:
What is most alarming about the AmplifyGR presentation information is the neo-liberal capitalist language such as entrepreneurship, “defined neighborhood” and “cradle to career educational excellence.” The cradle to career educational excellent is code for charter schools, schools of choice and privatized education and the rest of the language reflects a certain form of paternalism, which suggests that those who currently live in the neighborhood just can’t improve their situation on their own.
In the March 15, 2017, Southtown Corridor Improvement District meeting minutes it states:
Jon Ippel gave the update of Amplify GR hiring of Willie Patterson, formerly of LINC, to continue the work of identifying key areas of partnership. Amplify is focused primarily in the Boston Square and Cottage Grove areas. They are working on partnering with communities on developing and repositioning underutilized properties, working with the local schools, and increasing affordable housing. J. Ippel emphasized that they want to respect the work that has been and being done by others. They are looking to partner with orgs and people such as LINC, Seeds of Promise and Oakdale Neighbors already doing this work.
First phase of community engagement led by W. Patterson is a survey in partnership with Seeds of Promise and Oakdale Neighbors. In spring larger meetings looking to identify the opportunities and assets available to see out the vision.
Longer term they are asking how do they reposition the properties in Boston Square and Cottage grove in a way that provides employment to people living in Southeast Grand Rapids.
Helen Harp asked about a timeline of when things start. J. Ippel stated that the survey begins in April. They will move into office space in Boston Square in 2 weeks. They hope to have a better sense of when community meeting can be set within the coming few weeks.
H. Harp asked about joining the Area Specific Plan (ASP) surveys with Amplify GR’s survey. Com. Senita Lenear noted that it may to be done at the district level.
Pat Pulliam voiced the concern of the ongoing planning process with the ASPs while at the same time developers are going forward with their projects and their own visions. Without the ASP vision being laid out and developers already moving ahead, particularly on parcels that are being built by right, there is potential for conflict.
It was suggested that it would be good to have Amplify work closely with Planning Dept. to get the concerns and vision of the communities as well as sync up the different timelines.
P. Pulliam noted that given that they are beginning the process again this was an opportunity to get the communication, planning and engagement right. Concern of development getting ahead of the actual planning and solidifying the vision, particularly given that the CID is large and each Business district is unique. Com. S. Lenear recommended that Amplify be sure to work closely with the CID and get the timeline together in order to give Amplify more credibility when engaging the community as a new organization.
J. Ippel spoke on the urgency given the needs of housing and employment but was willing to work in partnership. Com. S. Lenear noted that it may be necessary to do the project well and correctly since there will always be urgency and the ramifications of getting it wrong will be felt for a long time.
It seems clear from these minutes that AmplifyGR wants to move forward quickly and not have to be bothered by the tedious process of public and resident input, because there is an “urgency.”
All of these developments are taking place somewhat under the radar and should concern all of us who care about justice and equity. The group Grand Rapids Homes for All is hosting a meeting with AmplifyGR on Thursday, June 8, from 6 – 8pm at the Baxter Community Center. Come with questions, come with concerns and lets not allow the DeVos family to dictate the future of yet another part of the city of Grand Rapids.
