The Home Builders Association of Greater Grand Rapids says the 2013 Spring Parade of Homes is seeing record traffic.

The organization says more than 50,000 people have toured homes so far.  The Spring Parade of Homes runs through June 8.  Remodeled homes will be open for touring June 7 and June 8 from 1 p.m.

ROCKFORD, Mich.—Voted one of America’s best small-town farmers markets, the Rockford Farm Market is getting ready to open for the season.

The open-air farm market’s opening day is June 1, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.  Visitors to Rogue Valley Towers parking lot can sift through a variety of Michigan grown produce.  The Rockford Farm Market runs through the last Saturday in October.

Rogue Valley Towers is located at 59 S. Main St. in Rockford.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.— Grand Rapids is getting another tribute to the men behind Meijer Stores.

On May 8, the Michigan Historical Commission approved a marker to honor Hendrik and Fred Meijer, who in 1962 became the first grocers to combine two popular retail models—discount department stores and supermarkets—into a single store on 28th Street, called “Thrifty Acres.”  The Meijers then took their model to Holland and Muskegon. 

Meijer now has nearly 200 stores across the Midwest, including Kalamazoo, Walker, Wyoming, Jenison, Rockford, Plainfield Township, Forest Hills, Lowell, Grandville, Kentwood, Grand Haven and Greenville, where Hendrik Meijer opened his very first store in the 1930s.

The new historical marker will be added to more than 1,700 green and gold signs found across the state, that chronicle the people, places and events that make Michigan’s heritage unique and unforgettable.  The historical markers are nominated by spons