Matthew’s House
Matthew’s House is looking to get a Special Land Use from the Grand Rapids Planning Commission to move their day services to 1050 Leonard St. NW on the West Leonard Business Corridor. They have out grown their current location and have the opportunity to move to a much larger location to be able to provide their day services.
View of layout for the proposed location:
The proposed location has 8316.6 Square Feet of space. Their current location has 1386 Square feet of space.
The previous tenant of this location was Bibles for Missions Thrift/Legacy Thrift.
Matthew’s House specifically is being asked by the City of Grand Rapids to create a Good Neighbor Plan (GNP) and provide Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) as part of their plan for this location. We will be providing those details on this page shortly so please stay tuned to this page as we get this information online for you.
There have been many questions asked about the proposed move and as we get the answers to the questions we will post them below. Current Questions & Answers submitted:
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Outgrowing the Current Facility
If you go to their current location during their open hours you can see that the current space is bursting at the seams with people and because their current space is so small, people are waiting on sidewalks during the day.
The existing site currently lacks the space and infrastructure needed to adequately serve their expanding array of programs and clients.
Enhanced Facilities and Expanded Services
The new location at 1050 Leonard St NW offers an opportunity for significant improvements and expansion of services, including:
Basic Needs Support:
The new facility will offer food, clothing, laundry, and showers.
Life Skills and Educational Classes: Planned programming includes sewing, knitting, art classes, and eventually parenting classes.
Health and Social Services: The facility will house a counselor for mental health support, involve nursing students providing services, and offer case management for housing, job training, and substance abuse recovery.
Spiritual and Emotional Support: Regular Bible studies and spiritual counseling will be available.
Infrastructure Improvements
The Leonard location allows for critical upgrades that weren’t feasible at the current site, including:
Additional bathrooms and showers.
A kitchen for meal preparation.
Private offices for counseling.
A dedicated laundry room with six washers and dryers.
Energy-efficient renovations like updated windows.
Better Alignment with Community Needs
The new site, previously occupied by a thrift store, aligns well with the Ministry’s social service mission. The zoning classification (Traditional Neighborhood – Traditional Business Area) accommodates their intended use as a religious and social service facility.
Commitment to Community Integration
The ministry has committed to developing a robust Good Neighbor Plan, which includes:
On-site security and surveillance.
Clear behavioral expectations for guests.
A community liaison and regular neighborhood meetings.
Sustainability measures like composting for food waste.
In summary, the move to 1050 Leonard St NW is driven by the need for expanded capacity, improved facilities, and a location that better supports both operational goals and community integration. The new site will enable Matthew’s House to serve more individuals in a safer, more comprehensive, and sustainable manner.
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The location will suit the needs of the unhoused community that already exist here on the westside and provide a place for them to be during the day. The building became available and was offered to Matthew’s House. The previous tenant was a thrift store that was open for limited hours.
Additionally the new location offers 24 parking spots that would able to be used by volunteers, delivery drivers and other guests, where there is only on street parking at their current location.
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The larger space will allow Matthew’s House to have people indoors waiting for services instead of lining up outside the building like at their current location. It would also allow people to spread out more inside the building which could actually help lessen police calls for service.
Additionally, the Leonard St. corridor has more cameras on it, more eyes that can spot potential trouble. Their current location there is not good visibility.
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They are already in the Leonard area and have been for quite some time. We have people throughout the neighborhood living in cars, several encampments all over the westside and the shelters do get full. During the day the unhoused do not have many places to go to be safe.
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The new location is on a bus line and within walking distance of the Dash bus line which gives free bus service to downtown where the shelters are at.
Other services nearby are:
Oasis of Hope Center (a medical clinic at 522 Leonard St. for the uninsured)
The Northwest Food Pantry on 1222 Davis
West Grand Neighborhood Organization also operates a heating and cooling center for the unhoused that is within walking distance of the proposed location at 754 Leonard St NW. They also provide information for those looking for services.
The Grand Rapids Public Library - West Leonard Branch at 1017 Leonard St. NW. The unhoused use the public computers there to look for jobs, apply for housing and other services.
While the proposed location would be further away from Cherry Health than their current location, it is still on a bus line that would enable people to get there fairly easy.
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CPTED is a multi-disciplinary approach to deterring criminal behavior through environmental design. CPTED focuses on enhancement of lighting, design of buildings and open spaces, to discourage criminals.
CPTED principles include:
Natural Surveillance: Designing spaces to allow for natural observation, making it easier for people to see and be seen.
Natural Access Control: Restricting access to certain areas or creating clear boundaries to deter unwanted entry.
Territorial Reinforcement: Creating a sense of ownership and responsibility for an area, making people feel more accountable for its safety.
Maintenance: Keeping spaces clean, well-maintained, and in good repair to prevent them from appearing abandoned or neglected.
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This is a snippet example of language from a City of Grand Rapids Good Neighbor Plan.
Standards for consideration in the development of a Good Neighbor Plan (Sec. 5.12.06.D.):
Some uses by the nature of the activities occurring within, on, or around the property on which they are located may have a deleterious impact on the neighborhood, business, or industrial district, or any area in which the facility is situated. Potential impacts associated with operations, and opportunities to mitigate those impacts, shall be taken into consideration in the development of a Good Neighbor Plan and Special Land Use request.
Considerations shall include:
The adverse effects, if any, that the hours of operation of the proposed establishment will have upon neighboring properties, with particular attention to the effects of noise, odors, litter, loitering, parking, and glare from exterior lighting or headlights on nearby residential properties.
The amount and degree of law enforcement activities which could reasonably be anticipated to be generated by the proposed establishment, both outside and inside, with particular emphasis upon noise, calls for service, trespass enforcement, parking, vehicular use by patrons, and vandalism.
Whether the proposed use makes adequate provisions to eliminate the potential for adverse impacts upon the stability of adjacent areas by depreciating the desirability of the property or nearby properties by the placement of the use; or, conversely, the exacerbation of price escalation in rents or values that would result in the displacement of residents or businesses and how the requested use might reasonably protect the surrounding area so as not to have an adverse impact.
How the proposed use balances mobility options so as insure increased access and opportunity for those who might not own or be able to operate a vehicle, and to avoid an excessive parking burden or increased congestion in the general area.
NOTE: Compliance with the GNP would be a condition of approval. If they are not in compliance with the condition of approval, the city would go up the ladder of enforcement (Notice of Compliant, Notice of Violation with fee, misdemeanor, etc.). Their SLU approval could also be revoked.
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Per city ordinance:
Notification. Notice shall be provided at least fourteen (14) days prior to the neighborhood meeting by a postcard delivered by mail, for all addresses within a three hundred-foot radius of the subject property. This notice shall comply with the requirements of Section 5.12.06.C.1.c.
So if your residence fell outside that 300 foot radius from 1050 Leonard St. NW, you may not of gotten notification of the prior meeting. Matthew’s House did have to provide a list of the address they delivered notice to in their Special Land Use Application and it is included in their packet.
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No, in their Special Land Use Application they are not asking to house people at the potential site. Their daily operations would wrap up at 4 PM per what the application states.
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It would revert back to the owner of the property. It will be up to the owner to decide what to do with the property after that.
Upcoming Meetings
Click Image to RSVP!
Click Image to see Agenda and other documents such as their Special Land Use application and supporting documentation.
We have created a survey for neighbors to provide feedback and questions. Please see the survey below:
If we get more questions via this feedback survey we will do our best to provide answers in the Q & A section above.