The acting president’s shutdown of the federal government, now nearly a month old, has furloughed approximately 800,000 workers nationwide. One Leelanau County resident considered an “excepted employee” is an air traffic controller at Cherry Capital Airport in Traverse City. He spoke with the Glen Arbor Sun under the condition of anonymity, citing a government “gag order”.
Leelanau County’s Scandinavian roots shine bright this time of year. The colder, harder months juxtaposed with holiday spirit, lights, and community togetherness give many locals a chance to honor their Nordic ancestors.
After leaving the decrepit lodge and climbing up the mountain, Jeff Katofsky felt better about his prospects to revive Sugar Loaf—once the economic lifeblood and biggest employer in the county but which has been vacant since 2000.
In northern Michigan’s vineyards and orchards, ablaze with fall colors, migrant farmworkers are known to sing corrido ballads and folk songs as they pick grapes and apples from sunrise to sundown. But their voices fell silent this autumn when targeted roadside arrests by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol and workplace visits by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) increased starting in late September.
As they elaborate on their goals and farm structure, I am struck by the planning and intellectual effort that went into the purchase and creation of this new farm. John and Bailey have researched and taken advantage of seemingly every grant and loan available to them as young farmers.
Sarah Landry Ryder has come a long way from the 25-year-old restaurant owner and waitress she used to be. Her company The Redheads, which she and her sisters started in 2004, has taken off as another Leelanau business looking to make delicious food with local sustainable ingredients.
The Leelanau Conservancy has announced that work to expand Palmer Wood’s Forest Reserve’s trail system is slated to begin at the end of this summer. A professional trail-building company will be hired to lead the design and construction of the first new loop added to the existing network of hiking and ski trails.
In Northport, the nonprofit housing development corporation Leelanau REACH project hopes to establish a model for sustainable, quality affordable housing in both physical development and community philosophy.
The large brown American dog tick has been around for years. Although it is not benign to its hosts, there’s a new tick in the neighborhood whose bite can be much worse. The black-legged tick, better known as the “deer tick,” is new to Leelanau County.
The meals, the donations, the hugs kept arriving—from neighbors, from friends, from the community at large. The door never stopped opening and the telephone never stopped ringing for an immigrant family who has lived in Leelanau County for nearly two decades but faced the specter early this spring of being torn apart by the politics of U.S. immigration enforcement.