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Fischer’s Happy Hour Tavern, the popular destination on M-22 south of Northport, reopened this past November after closing in December 2022 following 51 years in business. Tonight, Fischer’s will host “Live From the Happy Hour”—a private (now sold-out) concert featuring Elizabeth Landry, Joe Wilson and Caul Bluhm. Landry shared what Fischer’s has meant to her over the years, as a community destination and as a music venue.

Peninsula Housing announced this weekend that the affordable housing nonprofit is excited to welcome John and Kelly Kehl as new homeowners of an affordable home in the village of Northport. The Leelanau natives are grateful for the community of support that made this possible, and Kelly stated in a press release, “We were the first applicants to reach the finish line through this program, and I can’t wait to show others it’s possible to buy a home in northern Michigan!” The Kehls purchased their home on Ransom Street for $220,000, according to Peninsula Housing founder and board president Larry Mawby.

The Northport Arts Association along with Willowbrook Mill will host their seventh annual Holiday Arts & Crafts Sale on Nov. 25 from 10 am-4 pm. The Holiday Arts & Crafts Sale started in 2017 in the Village Arts Building. In 2019, Mimi Heberlein offered space for artists at the Willowbrook Mill and the venue expanded to host more talented artists. That year, the Willowbrook Mill was decorated as Harry Potter’s Hogwarts and it was magical. The group looks forward to another magical holiday in the Village of Northport this year. Enjoy adult and kid versions of tasty gourmet hot chocolate and visit Santa at the Willowbrook Mill. Santa will take time from his busy season and arrive about 2 pm.

Leelanau UnCaged is a quintessential Northport take on a daylong, free festival that could only happen in September—after the summer tourism rush subsides. It’s unique and flavored with the profiles of this quirky, joyous town near the tip of the Leelanau peninsula. Founded 10 years ago and inspired by the avant garde artist, composer and philosopher John Cage—who once said, “Get yourself out of whatever cage you find yourself in”—Leelanau UnCaged takes place on Sept. 30.

Northport seems to reinvent itself every couple of years, with new restaurants and bars popping up or changing hands,new boutiques in town, and now even a stylish cannabis shop up the road. Still, a few things have remained constant. First, the people are continuously warm and hospitable, with that eccentric twist that keeps Northport … Northport. Also, it’s still one of the best places for families with small children in the entire region. As a parent, I think about three main keywords when looking to take the family somewhere: Food, playgrounds, easy.

The Leelanau Township Community Foundation is co-hosting an open house with the Northport Arts Association (NAA) and the Northport Performing Arts at 301 N. Mill Street, Northport, on Wednesday, May 11 from 4-6 p.m. The NAA will be showcasing their exciting new ClayWorks studio.

The Clinton F. Woolsey Memorial Airport, located approximately 5 miles north of Northport on County Road 629, will receive a dedication of Michigan Historical Marker on Wednesday, July 14, at noon. The airport is named after Clinton F. Woolsey, who died in an airplane accident in 1927 while on the Pan-American Good Will Flight to South America sponsored by the U.S. government. He was a native of Northport, and his father donated 80 acres of the family farm to Leelanau Township for an airport to honor his son.

Julia Brabenec lives up in Northport, just off M-22, in a stone house that was built by her own hands, her husband’s and their children’s hands. The house sits in an organic orchard beside a vineyard. Petite in stature, eyes large and vibrant inside her heart-shaped face, Julia’s ever-present smile framed in fly-away silver and white, a vibrant shawl of orange and gold gracefully draped over her shoulders. Her voice, whether over the phone or in person, is assured and melodic, liberally embroidered with gracious notes of self-deprecation, gratefulness and humor.

Take a period of unprecedented disturbance, add a cup of communal spirit, a dash of post-retirement creativity, a couple handfuls of craftsmanship and sprinkle on a liberal desire to share and give back: the delicious result would most certainly resemble The Big House Farm Stand, featuring Adelade’s Baked Goods and locally grown produce in Northport.

Newbery award-winning author Lynne Rae Perkins from Suttons Bay will be at Dog Ears Books in Northport on Saturday, Nov. 16, beginning at 2 p.m., to sign her latest children’s book, Wintercake. A few signed copies are available now for people who cannot be present on (or cannot wait until) Nov. 16.