Michigan pothole gains local celebrity status

By Julie Dunmire

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    GRAND HAVEN, Michigan (WXMI) — Just off of North Beacon in Grand Haven, there’s a pothole that’s big enough for a chair to fit in. In fact, over the last few days, more than one chair have called the crater home. At first, it was occupied by a leather recliner. Now, a traditional blue chair sits inside the pothole.

It’s also resulted in a sort of “living room scene” sprouting up around the pothole, complete with a Christmas tree, speakers and flooring.

The pothole first rose to fame after Cory Denny, who works near where the pothole can be found, posted to local Facebook group Grand Haven Informed.

“I was on my way to lunch. I saw the original black leather chair, and I thought it was really funny,” Cory said.

Since Cory’s post, the pothole has become quite popular among locals — and people from around the lakeshore. While at the pothole on Monday, FOX 17 met people who came from neighboring Muskegon and Holland for their chance at a photo with the pothole.

A little girl’s Barbies even had a pool party in the pothole.

For Cory, it’s all in good fun.

“The fact that everyone is coming and taking pictures with it and now they have this whole living room setup, it just … it makes me really happy. I never thought that anything like this would’ve happened,” Denny said.

Denny says he hopes the added attention to the problem results in a solution soon.

“At the end of the day, the pothole does need to be fixed. It’s a funny joke, and it’s really cool to see everyone come together on it, but the pothole should probably get fixed,” Denny said.

FOX 17 reached out to the City of Grand Haven Department of Public Works’ street department for more information but has yet to hear back, likely because of the New Year’s Day holiday. It’s also a possibility that due to the location of the pothole, the street is on a privately owned road due to its proximity to a parking lot.

“The major issue is nobody’s taking responsibility for it,” Denny said.

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