The Suttons Bay Art Festival (August 2nd and 3rd, 2008) is holding a contest to design a poster for this year's festival with a prize of $300. You can use paint, markers, photography, digital art, crayons, chalk - whatever! The winning design will be used for the poster and T-shirts sold at the Art Festival.
Poster entries will be judged by the Suttons Bay Art Festival committee and you can get all the information right here.
Photo credit: Suttons Bay Artfest 2006 by Andy McFarlane
Leelanau's Black Star Farms is enjoying an amazing run of good news.
After being named one of bedandbreakfast.com's Top Ten Eco-Friendly Inns, they were invited to provide a prize for Wheel of Fortune's Green Week. The show will reportedly air tonight (Apr 11) at 7 PM on WPBN TV 7&4, and a contestant did win the prize. More from the Traverse City Business News.
On the heels of that comes news that Wine Enthusiast magazine has selected Black Star Farms, Suttons Bay as one of America's Top 25 tasting rooms in its May issue.
It seems almost an anti-climax to report that this week they added online wine ordering to their web site.
Image courtesy Wheel of Fortune / Sony Pictures.
The Leelanau Trail is a non-motorized trail extending 15 miles, roughly north and south. The trail follows along part of the east side of the Leelanau Peninsula, from Suttons Bay to Traverse City. It follows the early 20th-century railroad beds of what came to be know as the Leelanau Transit Company.
While hiking the Leelanau Trail you can enjoy stunning views of the Grand Traverse Bay's Western Arm, Lake Leelanau, and Suttons Bay. Plus, the fabric-like, undulating hills of the Leelanau Peninsula can satisfy any scenery-starved eye.
For more information on the Leelanau Trail, you can visit this site.
Cool things to do: bike, roller blade, run, walk.
Maple City is nestled in the heart of Leelanau County in a grove of grand maples trees. The countryside around Maple City is hilly with many farms, orchards, and lakes. Many Maple City settlers came to the area because of the Homestead Act of 1862 which "allowed anyone to file for a quarter-section of free land (160 acres)." If the homesteader had "built a house on it, dug a well, broken (plowed) 10 acres, fenced a specified amount, and actually lived there" the land was given to that homesteader. "Additionally, one could claim a quarter-section of land by "timber culture" (commonly called a "tree claim")." A timber culture required that the homesteader "plant and successfully cultivate 10 acres of timber."
Maple City was founded in 1866 and was originally called Peg Town. In 1866 William Parks and J. T. Sturtevent built a shoe peg factory. When the post office was established in March of 1875 the name Maple was chosen, but the name Maple City was the one actually given. In 1890 a Friends Meeting House was built east of Maple City, and in 1916 the meeting house became a Catholic Church. Today Maple City is between Glen Arbor and Traverse City and just south of beautiful Lime Lake.
Wikipedia on Maple City
Suttons Bay is a charming village located on the western shore of Leelanau County. Surrounded by vineyards, orchards, and farms, Suttons Bay's unique charm reflects these surroundings. In 1854 Harry C. Sutton settled in the area with a crew of woodsmen and soon began supplying fuel to the passing wood-burning steamboats. In January of 1866 it was written that "a new village has also sprung into existence near the head of Sutton's Bay, which in honor of Mr. H. C. Sutton… has been christened Suttonsburg… The site of the village is a pleasant one, gradually rising from the bay and extending westward over an even, fertile piece of land." The name Suttonsburg was soon changed into Sutton's Bay.
In 1876 Lars Bahle opened a drygoods and clothing store. The store has been run by the same family for over 125 years and is now known as Bahle's Department Store. In 1903 the Manistee and Northeastern Railroad reached Northport with a stop in Suttons Bay. The railroad connected Northport to Traverse City and brought much trade and many settlers to the area. Sutton's Bay became recognized as the trade center of a considerable agricultural district.
Today Suttons Bay's history can be seen in many of the historic buildings, like the historic The Bay Theater. In 1920 the Bay Theater building was built with wood from the Elmer Peterson Sawmill, at that time it was home to Hansen's Brother's Hardware, which included a blacksmith, next a livery business and Suttons Bay's Fire Department. In 1946 it was transformed into a movie theater. Although the area's fruit production began with orchards, today vineyards are very common around Suttons Bay. Many of The Leelanau Peninsula Vintners Association wineries are around Suttons Bay.
Wikipedia's Northport entry
Suttons Bay Area Chamber of Commerce
Leelanau Peninsula Chamber of Commerce's Suttons Bay page
The Leelanau Enterprise has a pair of articles about theater productions at Leelanau schools this weekend.
Suttons Bay students will stage the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The King and I on Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. They say "The King and I is set in the 1860s around the king’s palace in Bangkok, Siam. Anna is a teacher hired by the king to educate the royal prince and princesses in the palace. "(read more and see a photo)
Meanwhile Glen Lake elementary and middle school students will put on Seussical Jr. – the musical based on Dr. Seuss' beloved stories, Horton Hears a Who and Horton Hatches an Egg at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday (more from the Enterprise article).
Sorry about the late notice. I have to point out to the schools that in the future they can add these, for free to our Leelanau Calendar! I'd also like to add that I had no idea the picture for this would end up as dueling pachyderms.
(updated Thursday, Feb 28)
Glen Lake pulled off a hat trick by beating Suttons Bay for the third time this year with a 56-50 victory on Monday (see Record-Eagle story). Last night against Charlevoix the Lakers lost a 74-73 thriller (story coming soon we hope!).
In Class D action Leland followed up a 72-31 victory over Northport on Monday with a 79-42 defeat of Beaver Island. Lake Leelanau St Mary likewise rolled into Friday's final with a 79-24 victory over Leelanau School on Monday and 69-16 triumph over Grand Traverse Academy.
Our 2008 Tournament coverage continues...
On Valentine's Day (Feb 14), Peter Ostroushko will return to the area with his fiddle and mandolin accompanied by guitarist Danny Gotham. Mr. Ostroushko has been a regular on the radio show, "Prairie Home Companion" for over 25 years. This concert is at the Old Art Building in Leland and will will feature desserts from Adelades, Higher Grounds coffee and chocolates!
The doors open 6:30 PM and tickets are $12 adults/$5 students and available at the door. For more information please call Donna Popke at 271-6950.
The concert benefits Friends of Fine Arts, a group of teachers, staff and parents dedicated to maintaining a quality fine arts program for Suttons Bay students.
In Bluegrass band kicks off FOFA concert series, the Leelanau Enterprise takes a look at the 2008 Friends of the Fine Arts (FOFA) concert series. FOFA provides support for arts activities at Suttons Bay Public Schools, and their 2008 lineup looks spectacular! The series opens this Saturday (Jan 11) with 2006 Telluride Bluegrass Festival band winner Greensky Bluegrass at the Suttons Bay auditorium and continues with:
Peter Ostroushko will bring his fiddle and mandolin for a Feb. 14 performance, accompanied by Danny Gothman. Ostroushko has been a regular on the radio show Prairie Home Companion for more than 25 years. This concert is at the Old Art Building in Leland. In celebration of Valentine's Day, desserts from Adelaides will be served along with Higher Grounds coffee and chocolate.
To finish the series, Patchouli, an acoustic duo from Wisconsin featuring Julie Patchouli and Bruce Hecksel, will take the stage Feb. 29. Patchouli has released seven critically acclaimed compact discs, played more than 1,000 shows and been on radio around the world.
Sounds like a ton of fun for all!
The Enterprise reports that the Bingham Township Planning Commission held a public forum to discuss ideas that may enhance agricultural tourism in the township, including model zoning ordinance language from the State of Michigan. They quote planner Rochelle Rollenhagen on what is being considered:
"The ideas we're exploring involve expanding the types of activities that might be allowed on agricultural land," Rollenhagen explained. "Agritourism involves some land uses that can be pretty commercial in nature; and a broader range of uses could become allowable in the township’s agriculture district if we follow through with some of these ideas," she said.
The point behind expanding opportunities for agritourism in the township would be to allow farmers and the owners of agricultural properties to stay in business and on their farms, Rollenhagen said. Such opportunities might help prevent residential sprawl.
Read Bingham gathers input for boosting 'agritourism' in the Leelanau Enterprise.
Photo: Harvest II by Andy McFarlane (available in wallpaper size)
