Cedar Tavern

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Folksinger Bill Staines’ music lives on at May 10 show

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In 1994, a tradition began when the Cedar Tavern hosted folk singer Bill Staines. Over the following years, the troubadour became a regular presence in the area, first at the Cedar Tavern and later at Sleder’s in Traverse City. He gained a loyal following, and his concerts became singalongs that heralded the arrival of spring. Staines performed about 200 shows a year, including those local stops. He appeared on A Prairie Home Companion, Mountain Stage and The Good Evening Show. His extensive discography includes more than 20 albums. He died in 2021, but his music lives on. Now many of those loyal concert-goers are resurrecting the songs and the tradition, with “Bill Staines Remembered,” a show featuring his music as a fundraiser for the Benzie Emergency Fund. The concert will take place May 10 from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Mills Community House in Benzonia.

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Celebrating songs of Leelanau: André Villoch’s “Cedar”

Our story series celebrating songs inspired by Leelanau County and the Sleeping Bear Dunes continues with André Villoch’s “Cedar.” “This song was written around 1996,” said Villoch. “I was in college at the time working summers as a dishwasher in the kitchen at a summer camp in Leelanau County. We had a cook’s assistant named Marcus who was quite adventurous—like a big brother who was great about encouraging us out of our comfort zones. A couple of us in the kitchen played guitar and without television or internet, we spent a lot of our evenings teaching each other songs outside our bunkhouse or down on the beach.

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Cedar Tavern builds on its legacy

Icons. Institutions. Whatever you want to call them, most towns have at least one local business that has stood the test of time, weathering the ups and downs of the economy and changing tastes, and continuing to serve customers. The Cedar Tavern is a perfect example. The local watering hole has been part of the scene in Cedar for somewhere around a century, and was owned and operated by the same family—Ron and Joan Alpers, along with their daughter Ellen and her husband Roger Stachnik—for the last 47 years. Last year, Ellen and Roger Stachnik decided it was time for someone else to take the reins and put it up for sale. Earlier this year they found the buyers: Suzie and Jim Greene, and Jim’s aunt and uncle, Nadeen Kieren and Thom Greene.

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Twin Flames, Boat Fire, The Mill opens: Glen Arbor Sun’s top viewed stories of 2023

This year was a banner year for news in Leelanau County. The Glen Arbor Sun’s top viewed stories on our website in 2023 included the strange—a relationship coaching cult in Suttons Bay (“Twin Flames, a Suttons Bay cult, an inferno of controversy” was our fourth most-viewed story of all time); the heroic—a neighborhood effort to rescue boaters from a burning craft; the celebratory—The Mill made its long awaited opening on the Crystal River, and collaboration between the National Lakeshore and Leelanau Conservancy to preserve Glen Lake ridge property; the breaking news—an 18-hole putting course and restaurant planned to open next year in Glen Arbor; the historical—our 12-part series covering Leelanau’s farming families; and the reflective—remembering Horndog Newt Cole. Thanks for your readership, and Happy New Year! Here’s the list of our top 10 stories by online views in 2023.

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Iconic Cedar Tavern for sale

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The iconic Cedar Tavern in the heart of Leelanau County hit the market this week with a listing price of $1.2 million. Owner Ellen Stachnik confirmed the news on Facebook: “Well it’s out there. After a lot of talking we have decided to list the Tavern for sale. We love you all and appreciate your support and kindness over the years. 45 years it’s been a great time!!” In our 2013 feature story about the Cedar Tavern, Stachnik narrated the history of the business and its importance to campers and locals, alike.

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Tackling Cedar and Maple City with youngsters

Tucked away in the hilly heart of Leelanau County are two under-the-radar, off-the-beaten path towns that need to be moved up on your list of destinations. Maple City and Cedar are especially great Leelanau hubs if you’re a family with younger children looking for a more relaxed vibe, but still plenty to do.

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Empire Community Center holds Oct. 29 concert

The Empire Area Community Center will hold a free community concert at the Cedar Tavern from 4-6 p.m. on Oct. 29 to benefit the Empire Area Emergency Fund. Admission is free.

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Making a day of it in Cedar and Maple City

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Thousands of visitors flock to Leelanau County each year, many of them attracted by big draws such as the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. But while nothing compares to the delight of bounding down the Dune Climb after a sweaty trek uphill, or taking in the pristine view of the Manitou Islands from a sugar sand beach, there are plenty of lesser-known places in the county to have fun, too. Two of these places are sister communities Maple City and Cedar.

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Liko-polooza: timeline of a media frenzy over Sugar Loaf

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Neither the Glen Arbor Sun nor any other media outlet in Northern Michigan seems to know exactly if/when Liko Smith will show up to claim Sugar Loaf/allow Leelanau County inspector Steve Haugen to tour the premises. Claims that Smith and Haugen would tour the property today, January 31, and that Smith would meet the public over karaoke tonight at the Cedar Tavern proved incorrect. Liko Smith emailed various media sources today that the inspection will now take place on Friday, February 7. Meanwhile, it remains a mystery as to who actually controls/owns the long-shuttered ski resort, and what their true intentions/motives are. One thing is certain: we journalists are pecking and clawing for every little scrap like vultures in a garbage dump.

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Feeding Leelanau’s locals

It’s cold and dark in the north country, and the cheery onslaught of tourists is many months away. But those of us who stick around through the winter still deserve to eat, and eat well. Thanks to a bevy of deals and discounts offered at local restaurants, we shall not starve.

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