River House Condominiums facts for kids

Quick facts for kids River House Condominiums
General information
Type	Residential
Location	335 Bridge Street NW Grand Rapids, Michigan United States
Coordinates	42°58′15″N 85°40′37″W / 42.9708°N 85.6769°W / 42.9708; -85.6769
Completed	2008
Height
Roof	406 ft (124 m)
Top floor	397 ft (121 m)
Technical details
Floor count	34
Lifts/elevators	3
Design and construction
Architect	Lucien Lagrange Architects, DTS & Winkelmann Architects
Developer	Robert Grooters Development Co.

The River House Condominiums is a very tall building, also known as a skyscraper, located in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan. It sits right next to the Grand River. This building is special because it's the tallest one in Grand Rapids! It's also the tallest building in Michigan that is only used for homes, and the tallest building in the state outside of Detroit. Sometimes, people confuse it with a nearby building called Bridgewater Place.

What's Inside River House?

This tall building has a big parking garage right next to it. The parking garage has seven floors above the ground. It's shared with another building called Bridgewater Place. The main elevators in River House can take you to all seven floors of this parking garage.

How River House Was Built

Selling the Homes

The very first people moved into their new homes at River House in November 2008. Before the building was even finished, many of the 207 apartments (called condos or penthouses) were already planned to be sold.

However, some people who planned to buy homes later changed their minds. This meant the developer, the company building River House, had to take those homes back. To sell the remaining homes, the developer lowered prices and offered special deals. By December 2011, most of the homes were sold. This allowed the people who lived there to take full control of managing the building. By the end of 2012, 198 homes were sold. Because some buyers combined smaller homes into bigger ones, the total number of homes ended up being 205 instead of 207.

Fun Events at River House

Before the building was completely finished, some exciting events happened there.

• Rappelling Fun: During an event called "Celebration on the Grand," people had the chance to rappel, or slide down a rope, from the front of the building! This was done to raise money for Michigan Community Blood Centers. It happened again in 2009 but hasn't happened since.
• Concerts and Parties: Some of the larger homes that hadn't been sold yet were used for small concerts. Famous bands sometimes played there before their bigger shows at places like Van Andel Arena. There were also "American Idol" listening parties with special guests like Jason Castro and Allison Iraheta.
• Movie Scene: The famous rapper and actor 50 Cent (whose real name is Curtis Jackson) even filmed a scene for his movie "The Gun" in one of the penthouses at River House!

See also

In Spanish: River House Condominiums para niños