Apartments approved for downtown Grand Rapids students

Grand Rapids - Developers won approval this morning for some new apartments for downtown Grand Rapids students.

The building will be known as Hopson Flats, it's at 212 through 216 Grandville Avenue, southwest, near the Grand Central Station Transit Center. A total of 152 students will live in the upper floors with stores and shops on the ground floor. Developers say the building will have unique amenities including a large game room, a study lounge and fitness center. It will also include wireless internet access.

Hopson Flats Developer John Green Says, "The design is very edgy, we've actually done focus groups with students who told us what they want to see in a project."

Downtown Development Authority members approved the plan Tuesday morning to spend $366,000 toward the public facilities portion of the building. Re-developing the building will cost nearly $9 million. Hopson Flats should be ready for its first tenants next summer. Apartments will be priced between $400 and $600 per month, per person.