HOLLAND, MI (WHTC) – What began as an on-air idea on WHTC’s “Talk of the Town” program will become a reality soon.
James Heeringa was listening to the long-running weekday morning program on November 6, 2014, when host Juke Van Oss was chatting about the Holland Civic Center renovation efforts with City Manager Ryan Cotton. Van Oss suggested that, if someone came forward with the money for the effort, Cotton should break the story on his program.
Heeringa and his sister Eileen decided to donate two million dollars in the name of their late parents, Trendway owner and chairman George Heeringa and his wife Lucile, but had asked Cotton and other city officials to remain anonymous until Thursday morning, when Cotton and Mayor Nancy DeBoer made the public announcement of the donation. The Holland Civic Center will be renamed for George and Lucile Heeringa at a ribbon-cutting ceremony tenatively slated for mid-2018.
The Holland Civic Center Place steering committee has been holding a series of meetings over the past few months, looking for various public input as to the direction of buiilding and vicinity renovations. The next meeting is slated for tonight at 7 PM in Holland City Hall.
