Northern Michigan legislator Ray Franz, who often talked about repealing a Michigan law requiring that 10 percent of the state’s energy come from renewable sources tells the Michigan Land Use Institute he will no longer pursue the matter.
The Sleeping Bear is a low budget indie movie being funded outside any major studios, by RCW Pictures, and by the generosity of contributors who believe in the script, the filmmakers, and the actors involved. Almost the entire cast and crew of The Sleeping Bear met in film school or shortly thereafter, as interns and assistants in Los Angeles, New York, or Michigan.
Filmmaker Jack Cronin filmed this black & white montage at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore over the course of three years. Cronin writes on his website, “the film, which loosely follows the cycle of seasons, is a study of the landscape and an attempt to represent the unique character of this region.” Since 2010, it has been screening all across the Midwest, and earlier this year won awards for the “Best Experimental,” Best Editing-Short,” and “Best Michigan Short Film” at the Detroit Independent Film Festival.
On Sunday, March 13, CBS featured this video of our Glen Arbor gem, Lou Batori, skiing at 100 years old. Journalist Bill Geist caught up with Lou on the slopes of the annual gathering of Midwest chapter of the 70+ ski club in Nubs Nob in northern Michigan and watched as he hit the racecourse.
The first annual Benzie County Water Festival in nearby Frankfort on Saturday, March 19 is a community water celebration designed to engage folks in the stewardship of the Great Lakes, the global freshwater crisis and the cultivation of a vibrant and sustainable local culture.
Eneliko “Liko” Sean Smith, the Las Vegas boxer-turned-businessman who allegedly sought to acquire Sugar Loaf resort last spring — but found he had neither the money, nor the local support, nor the clean business record to open the long-shuttered ski resort in the middle of Leelanau County — has resurfaced.
Courtesy of the Great Lakes Bulletin News Service — A newly elected state representative who says he doesn’t believe in man-made climate change and supports building a nuclear power plant in northern Michigan is standing by his recent claims about wind power, despite fact checking that indicates most of his assertions were incorrect.
Over in Empire, on Saturday, February 19, the crazy among us jumped into a hole carved in South Bar Lake. Word on the street is that those folks will thaw out by Memorial Day, in time for the tourists’ arrival. Here are photos from this year’s Empire Winterfest:
Glen Arbor held its 11th Annual Winterfest on Saturday, February 19, featuring the popular Perch Fishing Contest, and the Chili Cookoff. Last week’s thaw made the fish skittish, so while 54 entered the contest, only about one third of them brought in a perch to be measured.
Local history author Tom Van Zoeren has released a new book titled Boudewijn & Kate DeKorne: An Oral and Photographic History of a Dutch Immigrant Family. The book tells the story of a wood carver who came to America when he was 14, and settled in Grand Rapids. There he met and married a fellow Dutch immigrant.