Benzie County natives Ethan Przekaza and Meg Doby — the latest in our occasional series on northern Michigan boomerangs — are exceptions to Michigan’s brain drain. Earlier this year they moved back from Colorado, bought a house in nearby Beulah and landed work in March at Matt and Katy Wiesen’s Crystal River Outfitters in Glen Arbor.
Katy and Matt Wiesen’s M-22 Store has doubled in size. The clothing brand homage to the state highway already anchored downtown Glen Arbor if you crossed the Crystal River and entered from the northeast. Now the M-22 Store boasts a second floor and a sleek, galvanized steel and soft, barn wood exterior.
Glen Arbor and the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore area enjoyed an economic and tourism boom in the mid-1990s, and now the businesses borne of that boom are coming of age. Brad Anderson was a youthful 27 years old when he bought Steffens IGA in 1994 from Bill and Jan Heston and renamed it Anderson’s Market. Bit by bit he updated the interior and modernized the inventory, but not until this year did the grocery store in the heart of Glen Arbor get a complete facelift.
The Glen Arbor Sun spoke to Crystal River Outfitters co-owner Katy Wiesen about the impact this early, snowy winter has had on their business. “The key to surviving a Northern Michigan winter is getting out and embracing it. This year’s early winter definitely started winter business off much sooner than expected! Our first cross-country ski and snowshoe rentals went out Thanksgiving weekend. The snowy conditions give visitors even more of a reason to come up north knowing that there are more recreational opportunities.”
Katy and Matt Wiesen, owners of Crystal River Outfitters, the Cyclery and the M-22 Store in Glen Arbor were named among the region’s 40 most influential people under age 40. The honorees were treated to an exclusive fete hosted by Northwestern Michigan College inside its Dennos Museum Center, as reported this morning by the Ticker.
Does Glen Arbor truly embrace bikers? These citizens on two wheels represent a growing share of our tourism pie, as northern Michigan appeals to both recreational and athletic bikers. They represent an active lifestyle that fits our outdoor attractions like a glove; they don’t clog roads or parking lots; they don’t consume fossil fuels and pollute our air, and their leisurely pace makes them ideal targets to visit and financially support our shops, galleries and eateries.
The most beautiful place in America … the second healthiest nationwide, with the best beaches and chocolate … an epicurean and film destination. How about one more feather for the cap? Leelanau County could become a prime bicycle destination too.
We barely had a white Christmas, and now the white was gone. What was happening? The jet stream was still parked up over Canada, blocking the cold air and extending our mild autumn into what is usually deep winter. How was it affecting the town’s businesses?
Ever since Wednesday, August 17, Northern Michiganders have both embraced and grappled with the news that the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and surrounding region are considered the “most beautiful place in America” — at least according to 22 percent of 100,000 voters who participated in the ABC show Good Morning America’s online competition the second week of August.
On Tuesday, July 26, the Glen Arbor Women’s Club hosts the Fifth Annual “Running Bear 5K Run/Walk and ½ Mile Kids’ Run”. This event has become popular with locals and tourists alike who participate. Last year 680 adults and children took part.