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High school Future Prep students pitch MAP plan to strengthen Grand Haven downtown
Summary
A team of Grand Haven High School juniors and seniors presented recommendations to the city and Main Street DDA to help attract and retain downtown businesses using an acronym MAP (Marketing, Events, People, Planning). Council members praised the students’ ideas and recommended further engagement with downtown leaders.
A group of juniors and seniors from Grand Haven High School presented a several-month Future Prep project to the city council on March 3 that outlined strategies for strengthening and unifying downtown Grand Haven’s businesses.
The students framed their recommendations using the acronym MAP — Marketing, Events, People and Planning — and proposed a mix of short- and long-term actions, including improved social-media marketing and coordinated event promotion, more downtown events in spring and fall, expanded business mentoring and succession planning, incentives and grants to activate vacant storefronts, and family- and teen-focused attractions to increase off-peak visitation.
The students described their research as involving meetings with DDA members, business owners and city staff and said one recurring theme was a breakdown in communication after the COVID-19 pandemic. “We want to make sure that everybody that we've talked to is feeling seen and heard,” said one student during the presentation. They recommended a mentoring program to link retiring or experienced business owners with new entrepreneurs and suggested targeted marketing and events to address seasonality.
Council members complimented the students for their organization and ideas. “I thought there were some really neat ideas on there,” said a council member, praising the mentoring suggestion. A council member suggested the students present their proposal to the DDA and downtown business groups; staff indicated they would help connect the students with downtown leadership for follow-up.
The presentation was informational; no council action was required. Students thanked city staff Ashley and Dana for support and asked for council questions at the end of the presentation.
