Glen Arbor Sportsman Shop torn down; rebuild scheduled for 2026
Tim Egeler bites the fish; Captain Bob Smith narrates the action at Boonedocks, next to the Sportsman’s Shop, at the 2022 Glen Arbor Winterfest’s perch fishing contest. Top photo shows Winterfest 2015. Photos by Don Miller
From staff reports
The Sportsman Shop, a popular clothing outfitter and fishing destination next to Boonedocks in the heart of Glen Arbor, was torn down today.
Captain Bob Smith, who owns the business together with his sons Wes and Brad, told the Glen Arbor Sun they plan to rebuild the Sportsman Shop by next spring or summer. The retail outlet will reemerge as a “barndominium” with a southward-facing, 14-foot door that sells everything from jet ski rentals to fishing charters, to clothing, sunglasses, bait and tackle—essentially what customers have long sought at the Sportsman Shop. The north side of the new building, facing Boonedocks, will feature a one-bedroom condominium rented out on VRBO.
Photo by Norm Wheeler
The Smiths decided to tear down the existing structure after countless incidents of flooding after the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) 15 years ago changed the grade of M-22, Bob Smith said.
“Every time it rained two-three inches, the shop flooded. We’d get six inches of water. Probably three-four times a year. The insurance companies wouldn’t cover rain, mold, or mildew. You can’t beat water.”
The plan is for Stanz Dozer Service, which demolished the building today, to import earth and gravel and raise the property by four feet, said Bob. The previous building measured 2,700 square feet; he expects the reincarnated Sportsman Shop to occupy a similar footprint once it is completed sometime next year.
“We want it to look good—something to be proud about,” said Smith. “I want to carry on the tradition of the Sportsman Shop in Glen Arbor. We’ve met so many great people throughout the years. I want to let the boys continue running it.”
The Smiths facilitate the popular perch fishing contest on the (usually) frozen Glen Lakes during Glen Arbor’s annual Winterfest in mid-February. Prizes are awarded next door on the deck at Boonedocks, which also hosts a chili cook-off that weekend.
Carl Oleson, Sr., built the original Sportsman Shop in 1948, according to the book Beautiful Glen Arbor Township. Advertisements that summer in the Leelanau Enterprise read: “The Sportsman’s Shop in Glen Arbor on M-22 will be pleased to furnish you with fishing supplies. We also have miscellaneous sporting goods, hunting supplies and live bait—all kinds.”
Bob Smith acquired the shop from the Fosmores in 1999.
