The Grand Rapids Press

🔗: https://l.mlive.com/6rvdjl The 12th annual Saturday Slip ‘N Slide event sent kids and adults speeding down four giant 20-foot-by-100-foot Slip ‘N Slides in Jenison, MI over the weekend. 🎥: Charlie Nick | MLive #slipnslide #summerfun #michigansummer

Lego fans! Looking for a Millennium Falcon? Or maybe the Eiffel Tower? A new Lego store opened at Woodland Mall in Grand Rapids on Friday, August 16, 2024. The store is just the second official Lego store in Michigan. 🎥: Neil Blake | MLive.com #lego #legostarwars #legofan #grandrapids

A contentious short-term rental ban is looming over one of Michigan’s most popular beach towns. Park Township, home to Holland State Park beach, is still in litigation over enforcing a ban on short-term rentals. As it lingers in court, current rental owners are wary of the future of their investments. 🎥: Lindsay Moore | MLive.com

This is the inaugural season for Calvin University football. Tuesday, players saw their newly built locker room for the first time. Their game helmets and jerseys were also unveiled at the event. (Neil Blake/MLive.com)

🔗: https://l.mlive.com/azzert Rose Martin was lucky enough to capture video of Perseid meteors streaking across the sky during a stunning Northern Lights display Sunday night from Cascade Township Park in Grand Rapids, as seen in this looping video. The rare combination of Northern Lights and the peak of the Perseid meteor shower delighted skywatchers across Michigan and other northern states. (Video provided by Rose Martin)

🔗: https://l.mlive.com/17o2up Jim Dreyer began his attempt to swim 83 miles solo across Lake Michigan from Grand Haven last Tuesday. But he says he lost GPS navigation, fought wild hallucinations and spent a night essentially swimming in circles before abandoning the attempt on Thursday. (Patrick Shea/MLive.com)

🔗:https://l.mlive.com/isrij1 A drone and fireworks show lit up the sky above Grand Haven over the weekend for the centennial celebration of the Coast Guard Festival. The festival began in 1924 when Grand Haven became the first city marked by the U.S. Congress as Coast Guard City, USA. 🎥: Joel Bissell | MLive #fireworks #coastguard #droneshow

🔗: https://l.mlive.com/4gcott A new exhibit at John Ball Zoo in Grand Rapids features 22 life-size robotic dinosaurs. The large and scientifically accurate dinosaurs display real behaviors, such as mothering, feeding, preying and more, according to the zoo. The Dino Adventures exhibit is included with the cost of admission to the zoo and runs until November. (Joel Bissell/MLive.com)

🔗: https://l.mlive.com/loq6cs Thousands of people welcomed U.S. Coast Guard vessels into port at Grand Haven - “Coast Guard City USA” - on Monday for the 100th anniversary of the Coast Guard Festival. (Joel Bissell/MLive.com)

Daughter of man killed in double homicide tells judge he died on his birthday

🔗:https://l.mlive.com/r5qgai Toniya Crump and her sister wore red shirts to court with "Daddy's Girl" printed on the back. Toniya described her father as a, "girl dad, long before it was popular." Their father, Tony Dwayne Vaughn, was shot and killed on June 23, 2022 in Grand Rapids.

🔗: https://l.mlive.com/g3vo52 If you’re looking for a workout before diving into Lake Michigan, then consider one of Saugatuck’s iconic trails: Mount Baldhead. It's 303 steps to the top. From there, it’s a sandy sprint down to the lakeshore at Oval Beach. (Joel Bissell/MLive.com)

🔗: https://l.mlive.com/llfqey Ludington State Park has unveiled a new water trail that navigates a scenic two-mile route along the shorelines of two inland lakes. (Justine Lofton/MLive.com)

Great Lakes whitefish threatened by climate change, invasive species

🔗: https://l.mlive.com/418p5u Whitefish are a commercial mainstay on the Great Lakes and are culturally significant to Michigan's indigenous tribes. The fish are already threatened by invasive species. Now evidence indicates whitefish, which lay eggs on shallow reefs that rely on winter ice cover, are also being squeezed by shifting temperatures.

🔗:https://l.mlive.com/1rtlk3 Artist Reb Roberts was inspired while riding past the plain concrete wall near The Rapid Central Station. He thought something could be done there to brighten the day of people commuting around the city. 🎥: Rebecca Particka | MLive #publicart #muralist

🔗:https://l.mlive.com/44savu Take a break on this 50 arce lake! Versluis Park in Plainfield Township is a free beach, swimming, boating and fishing area near Grand Rapids. 🎥: Joel Bissell | MLive #LakeLife #summertimevibes #grandrapids

🔗: https://l.mlive.com/k5e9o3 Day three of the Beer City Open pickleball tournament brought out the competition between women’s doubles teams. The Grand Rapids tournament continues through Sunday, July 14. 🎥: Rebecca Particka | MLive #pickleball #grandrapids #pickleballtournament

Early morning thunderstorms battered West Michigan with winds reaching 70+ mph near Muskegon. In Norton Shores, roads were closed due to down powerlines and tree debris. 🎥: Kayla Tucker | MLive #severeweather #thunderstorm #highwinds

🔗: https://l.mlive.com/7qli5f Hudsonville's Ava Snip make the final pitch of the game, securing the 5-0 shutout victory over Lake Orion in the MHSAA Division 1 softball state championship game. Photos: https://l.mlive.com/pbual7

🔗: https://l.mlive.com/gy8l2g A 24-inch cast iron pipe split down the middle around 3 a.m. Thursday in a Grand Rapid's Southeast Side neighborhood. The significant break flooded basements and vehicles in the area of Adams Street SE and Philadelphia Avenue, causing another section of road to collapse downhill from the main break. (Joel Bissell/MLive.com)

🔗:https://l.mlive.com/mww4no An Alger Middle School student was hospitalized after suffering a gunshot wound to his face, according to Grand Rapids police Chief Eric Winstrom. His injuries were not life-threatening. The police chief said detectives are working to determine how the gun got in the hands of children. The adult responsible for the gun could face criminal prosecution. 🎥: Becky Particka | MLive.com