ECONOMIC INDICATORS
 

 

Employment

 
Total Downtown Labor Force
12,553
 
County Labor Force
128,670
 
County Unemployment Rate
8.7% (Upjohn Institute for Employment Research)
 
Largest Downtown Employers
Pfizer, Bronson Healthcare Group, City of Kalamazoo, Radisson Hotel, Healthcare Midwest, AT&T, County of Kalamazoo
Cost of Living Index
95.2
 

Downtown Development

Average Retail Square Foot Cost

• Class A

$13-$17 NNN
• Class B
$10-$13 NNN
 
Current Total Retail Square Feet
938,682
Current Number of Retailers
156
 
Average Office Square Foot Cost
• Class A
$15-$18 NNN
• Class B
$11-$15 NNN
   

Traffic Counts

 
Michigan Avenue (eastbound, one way) 17,000
Kalamazoo Avenue (westbound, one way) 14,500
Park Street (northbound, one way) 10,200
Westnedge Avenue (southbound, one way) 14,300
 Source: MDOT, 2011

Vacancy Rates (as of July, 2011)

 click here for the report

Retail
10.4%
Office
13%
Residential
1.9%

 

 

Attractions in Downtown Kalamazoo

 
Four-Star Radisson Plaza Hotel & Restaurant (800,000 visitors annually)

Epic Center (100,000 visitors annually)

Kalamazoo Valley Community College (5,000 students downtown)

Kalamazoo Valley Museum (130,000+ visitors annually)

Kalamazoo Library (1,000,000+ visitors annually)

Downtown Festivals and Arcadia Festival Site (450,000 visitors annually)   
 
 

Major News Annoucements

 

Downtown Kalamazoo Inc. retail incubator takes Innovation Michigan Award
Kalamazoo Gazette, August 1, 2010

Retail, residential looking strong in downtown Kalamazoo; vacant office space growing
Kalamazoo Gazette, February 21, 2011

144-year-old Corporation Hall looks for new leases on life in downtown Kalamazoo
Kalamazoo Gazette, March 5, 2011
 
Addition of downtown Kalamazoo medical school "transformative" with broad economic implications, DKI President says
Kalamazoo Gazette, December 8, 2011
 
Renovation of 100 block of East Michigan Avenue project kicks off with ceremonial brick-breaking
Kalamazoo Gazette, December 14, 2010

Developer picks prime downtown Kalamazoo locale to erect 8-story mixed-use complex
Kalamazoo Gazette, May 26, 2011

 
Downtown Kalamazoo Inc. is pleased with possibilities as Phoenix Properties plans to convert Gazette Building
Kalamazoo Gazette, February 8, 2012