The Grand Rapids Market Located on the banks of the Grand River, Grand Rapids is rated among the top cities in the U.S., and combines sophisticated charm with midwestern friendliness. The downtown features a major new convention center, many restaurants and hotels - including the new J.W. Marriott.  Minutes away from spectacular Lake Michigan beaches and beach towns, Grand Rapids is known for its major art and cultural events, plays, museums, and a world-class botanical garden. Quick Facts Michigan’s second largest city with a metropolitan population of 1,302,372 Home to many national and multi-national headquarters including Steelcase, Herman Miller, Haworth, Alticor (formerly Amway), Wolverine World Wide, and Meijer stores. In 1945, Grand Rapids was the first city in the U.S. to add fluoride to its drinking water In November 1998, Grand Rapids was named by Fortune magazine as one of the Top 10 Best Cities for Business in the U.S. The 1913 Room at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel is the only 5-Diamond restaurant in the Midwest outside of Chicago There are 28 public golf courses with many only fifteen minutes from downtown making it one of the top cities in the U.S. in number of public golf courses-to-population ratio The Gerald R. Ford International Airport is the second largest airport in Michigan and the 86th largest airport nationally, serving more than 2 million passengers annually In April 2004, Grand Rapids was named as one of America’s Most Livable Communities by the Partners for Livable Communities Gerald R. Ford, a native son, became the 38th President of the United States on August 9, 1974 - and is interred at the Gerald R. Ford Museum in Grand Rapids. Grand Rapids leads the country in environmentally friendly LEED-Certified buildings