Minnesota Real Estate & Relocation Guide

Grand Rapids, Minnesota

Population: 8,500

Located in Itasca County

Grand Rapids is a vibrant community with life and energy. Acclaimed as one of the "100 Best Small Towns in America", this vigorous city affords a progressive educational system, steady economy, excellent health care and all the fun recreational activities imaginable. Located in northland Minnesota's "arrowhead region", Grand Rapids boasts all the beauty and splendor usually reserved for fleeting vacations. The residents of this northern city enjoy beautiful forestry, sparkling rivers and even the Mighty Mississippi River meanders its way through this hip little city.

Grand Rapids is the birthplace of Judy Garland. It is here that you can truly follow the yellow brick road up to her home and enjoy a tour of this restored home preserved to resemble the way it would have looked when she lived there. The city honors her annually with the "Judy Garland Festival" every June.

Two hundred acres of land reserved for parks and recreation are scattered throughout the city. Grand Rapids is proud to have been awarded the distinction of "Tree City U.S.A." by the National Arbor Day Foundation. Fifteen park facilities afford playground equipment, picnic areas, softball fields, tennis courts, sand volleyball, fishing piers and much more. Golfing is prohibited in the park areas, but that is o.k. because Grand Rapids is only fifteen minutes away from several championship golf courses. Affording well maintained layouts, and a beautiful countryside, Pokegama, Wendigo, Sugarbrooke, and Eagle Ridge all offer pristine golf at its best.

The Grand Rapids area brings hunters from all over the country. With good habitat and abundant public hunting property, sportsmen enjoy the challenge that every fall brings with grouse and deer hunting. The prestigious National Ruffed Grouse Society Hunt takes place in this northland community every October. Deer hunters enjoy the thrill of the hunt as trophy bucks roam the forestry.

Corporations and companies send their business people to Grand Rapids for meetings and conventions. With several facilities that can accommodate both large and small groups, it is easy to attend a meeting, and then jump in the fishing boat, snowmobile, or A.T.V. for some after hour's fun. Because the Twin Cities area is only a short three-hours away and Duluth is only a mere hour and a half away, Grand Rapids is the perfect destination for business trips or weekend getaways.

Grand Rapids may be considered as a "rural" community, but one would never realize this fact while walking the streets of the downtown district. The retail community has built an impressive reputation of nationally recognized stores and restaurants making this city the shopping hub of the region. There is a pleasing array of locally owned shops such as Jenny & Co., and The Red Willow and the Purple Pinecone, that offer unique superior quality merchandise normally found in large metro areas.

Housing in Grand Rapids is a bit more expensive than other parts of the northland region, but with so many metro-like amenities, this community is definitely worth it. A quaint home with three bedrooms, two bathrooms with over 1,600 feet of living space on a wooded two-acre lot would be about $115,000. A beautiful two-story home with four bedrooms and three bathrooms with well over 2,000 square feet of living space would start at $320,000. There is plenty of water front property available in this area as over 1,000 lakes are scattered throughout the region. A spacious home with three bedrooms and four bathrooms with over 4,600 square feet of space beautifully situated along the waterfront would be about 2.3 million dollars.

Grand Rapids is a growing community offering a wealth of employment opportunities paired with plenty of recreation. While seemingly a vacationers favorite place to spend a weekend, Grand Rapids is a great place to live. The residents here carry a sense of pride in their community and it certainly shows. Grand Rapids offers a lifestyle similar to that in larger cities, with gentle, rural surroundings.