GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Nearly 400,000 visitors came to downtown Grand Rapids for shows at Acrisure Amphitheater in 2026, surpassing the initial estimate of 300,000, according to Grand Rapids Chamber data.
The amphitheater is nearing the end of its inaugural season, and nearby businesses say they are feeling the impact.
FOX17 reporter Matt Witkos has more on the economic impact in the video below:
Vertigo Music on Division, just blocks from the amphitheater, is among the businesses seeing a boost in foot traffic.
"Like a lot of people are walking by. So we get a lot of foot traffic from that," Vertigo Music stock boy Damian Master said.
"When Weird Al played here, it's like we're looking around, 'Hey there's a bunch of people wearing Hawaiian shirts, there's a lot of kids running around here with their parents,' and it's like, 'Oh yeah, Weird Al's playing tonight,'" Vertigo Music stock boy John Serba said.
The music shop carries thousands of records and CDs. Master said concert-goers often come in looking for records by the bands performing that night — and it is not just fans walking through the door.
"The funny thing too, is that not only do we get lots of customers and people that are going to the amphitheater, but we get a lot of like crew guys," Master said. "We've seen a noticeable uptick with every show."
The Grand Rapids Chamber says the foot traffic is translating into a broader economic boost for the area.
"Not only has it delivered expectations of being transformational, but it's also exceeded those expectations. And that's from visitor experience. If folks haven't been there, they need to get down before the end of the year because it is amazing," Grand Rapids Chamber Senior VP of Advocacy Josh Lunger said.
Lunger said restaurants in the area are also taking notice.
"The restaurants are saying it, night and day compared to last summer in terms of a lot of the foot traffic, and that's what we want. When the economic case was being made over the 30 years, they're anticipating almost a billion dollars in economic impact, over a billion dollars if you include the soccer stadium and amphitheater," Lunger said.
Parking concerns that surfaced when the venue opened have also eased, Lunger said, though he expects the conversation to resurface.
"I'm sure as we approach the spring, and there's a lot of excitement about this Amway Stadium, there'll be discussions about parking again, and it just comes back to, let's identify clearly for folks what's available, where it's available, how do we make sure it's a good experience, and I think we've proven as a community we can take it," Lunger said.
The amphitheater has also faced scrutiny over noise. Last month, a judge ruled the venue must comply with Grand Rapids' noise ordinance. The city has received additional noise complaints since that ruling.
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