Zeeland Welcome Center finds a natural home with museum

The idea of a Zeeland Welcome Center has been one city leaders have pondered for more than a decade, but it finally came about last year and found a home in the city’s Dekker Huis Museum.

“It was a natural fit for the museum,” says Katelyn Bosch VerMerris, director of the Zeeland Historical Society, which operates the museum. “We have a lot of people come in who are tourists and ask for that sort of information.”

Even before incorporating the Zeeland Welcome Center, the museum already stocked a small supply of the brochures, pamphlets, and maps tourists regularly requested.

Hoogland’s idea

Ten years ago then-Mayor Les Hoogland suggested the museum at 37 E. Main Ave. as a location for a Zeeland welcome center. However, at the time, the museum had minimal hours and zero staff.

It was only three years ago that Bosch VerMerris became the Zeeland Historical Society’s first director and the museum gained a few staff members. 

In the past year, the museum has also developed a driving tour of Veneklasen brick homes and a walking tour of Zeeland with the help of a grant from the Macatawa Area Coordinating Council .

The museum applied for and received a Zeeland Board of Public Works grant to refurbish the gallery space. Zeeland-based Miller Knoll donated the furniture.

“We wanted to put Zeeland’s best foot forward,” Katelyn Bosch VerMerris says. “It’s such a privilege to be in Zeeland right now. There’s so much development and a vision. It’s a great time to be here,”

Admission  to the museum, 37 E. Main Ave., is free. It is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays.