Hospital Anticipation, Truck Route Compromise and Hiawatha's Empty Seats

THE DECISION IS is getting close.

Duke LifePoint  has been dealing directly with the city of Marquette and Marquette Township for the last couple of weeks regarding the three possible sites for the new hospital.

The township says they've now supplied Duke LifePoint with everything they need on the site behind the Westwood Mall, and everything's in order. The township is just waiting.

The city is still negotiating on its two sites--the Roundhouse property and the golf course--but it's also filed the requested papers.

How much actual back-and-forth bargaining is going on? It's uncertain. Who knows? Maybe it's just starting, even though the original deadline for a decision was about a month ago.

What is certain is that Duke LifePoint is holding most of the cards in this high stakes game. Both the township and the city dearly want the hospital and are willing to accommodate the hospital's demands....up to a point. As one city official put it recently, "How much are we willing to give them to keep them in the city? If we have to spend too much--money we don't have--is it worth it?"

If they had their druthers, most Marquette officials and merchants would love Duke LifePoint to choose the Roundhouse site because it would amount to immediate urban renewal. The neighborhood would be transformed, money would pour in. But the golf course property would be just fine too.

And the township? They're just saying, with full-throated enthusiasm, "Come on down!" They've got their hands on their shovels and their eyes on the prize.
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A COMPROMISE COULD be near on the truck route controversy that has had the city and township exchanging hostile words and glances.

Here's what the compromise would look like: Marquette would pass a truck ordinance that would send all westbound, eastbound and southbound trucks along Wright Street to US 41, but the ordinance wouldn't take effect for a couple of years.

In the meantime, all parties involved--the Road Commission, the city and the township--would work on getting a bypass built that would send truck traffic around the edges of the city and the township.

And once funding and permitting are secured for the bypass, the city would then designate McClellan (over likely vehement protests from residents) as the north-south route through the city.

Bottom line: for now, the big trucks could continue, as they do now, to use all roads in the city for the next couple of years.

With two major exceptions. (This is known in the news business as "burying the lead.") In this proposed compromise, truckers would no longer be able to drive on Lakeshore and Third Street except for local deliveries. That would be a major change that would take effect immediately (and would be cheered by local residents and merchants.)

The township's not exactly embracing the proposal because it still feels, with some justification, that the city is trying to dump its big, lumbering, noisy, polluting truck traffic into the township. But the two municipalities seem to be getting closer.

The long term solution to the problem--the bypass--is, at best, three years away from construction.
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ANOTHER HIAWATHA MUSIC festival is in the books.

Great weather, great crowds, great fun, great music.

Well, about the music. For aficionados, it was wonderful and artistic and eclectic. But did you take a look around during the daylight hours at the seats in front of the main stage?

Most were empty. Performers were playing to a sea of empty seats. Some of the performers even mentioned it. It's got to be dismaying to them. Hiawatha attracts more than 3000 festival-goers, but for some daytime acts, only about 100 people, sometimes fewer, seemed to be actively listening. That's three percent.

The other 97% were elsewhere, at campsites, workshops, at the beach, on the streets, at the food booths. Anywhere but at the main stage where the supposed attractions of this traditional music festival were performing.

Maybe it's just time for us to acknowledge that Hiawatha is more about communalism--the joy of being together with friends and family--than it is about traditional music.

Which is fine. You just feel kinda sad for the performers who were up on stage playing their music for a mute and static crowd of empty chairs and blankets.

Maybe "traditional" music is something that we all respect...but we don't necessarily love.

Maybe we should look into Justin Bieber's availability next July.
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NEXT TUESDAY'S CLIFFS Natural Resources shareholder meeting and election has directors, officials, employees and shareholders sipping their coffee nervously.

Casablanca Capital is attempting a takeover that could affect jobs, salaries, bonuses and share prices, as well as the future direction of the mining company. The impact could be felt here at both the Tilden and Empire mines.

One positive sign in all this, amid the corporate conflict, the declining steel prices and the seemingly imminent closure of the Empire mine (yeah, we've heard that before), is that ArcelorMittal, one of Cliffs' partners, is spending big money to partially reline a huge blast furnace in Indiana.

That's where iron ore pellets from Empire and Tilden are melted into pig iron.

Does that mean ArcelorMittal is anticipating extending the Empire contract beyond 2016? Not necessarily, says one Cliffs official.

But hey, we'll take any good news we can get our hands on.
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ALL'S WELL THAT ends well.

Remember the nasty little spat between the Marquette Farmers Market and Farmer Q's last year and early this year? It ended with Farmer Q's and their downstate produce noisily pulling out of the Farmers Market, telling their friends and customers they were moving downstate, then suddenly reversing course and moving into a new shop in south Marquette.

Some of us were concerned the Farmers Market might suffer because Farmer Q's had offered a wide variety of fruits that simply weren't grown in the UP.

Good news. The Farmers Market crowds have not diminished since last year. They still average about 700 customers every Saturday, the same as 2013, according to the DDA. No serious growth either, but every year, the UP farmers are growing more local produce, and the crowds will likely increase.

And Farmer Q's? Business is great, according to owner Susan Brian. Revenue's up 50% over its old location on Washington Street. More walk-in traffic, more visibility and more parking at its location on US 41.

So everybody wins here--the Farmers Marquette, Farmer Q's, and the customers.
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YOU MAY NOTICE some vaguely familiar young faces on the streets and  beaches and in the bars and restaurants of Marquette the weekend after next.

Nearly a dozen alumni from TV6 and Fox UP are returning to the UP for a reunion.

Among them: Phil DeCastro, Aaron Martin, Nikki Junewicz, Natalie Jovonovich, Mike Bedard, Nikki Davidson, Noel McLaren, Beth Jones, Eric Kane, and Andrew Lacombe.

What's ironic is that many of them, if not most, probably dreaded coming up to the remote, primitive, frozen tundra of the UP when they first got their broadcasting jobs here...Yet, now, a few years later, having thoroughly enjoyed their stay here and the relationships they built, they're returning.

Welcome back.

Last call is at 2 am.

You got news? Email me at briancabell@gmail.com

Mining Journal Legal Threat, TV Ratings, Co-op's New Tenants, and Yooper Wine

 

David versus Goliath. New media versus old media. Marquette Social Scene versus the Mining Journal.

A classic battle is brewing here in Marquette. Or maybe it's more of a skirmish.

In any case, it's got the Mining Journal threatening to take some guerrilla journalists to court.

What started it all was the Mining Journal's recent decision to erect a paywall on its website. If you want to get news online from the Mining Journal, you now have to pay for it.

Not all that unusual. Newspapers across the country are doing it. At a time when hard copy circulation is declining (and the Mining Journal concedes this), it's a way to make money.

Well, Marquette Social Scene, a young, digital upstart that covers news, sports and entertainment, wasn't thrilled with the new paywall. Brice Burge, the owner and editor of Marquette Social Scene, considers it a violation of public trust. He's an idealist. He believes newspapers should be available to everybody so that we can be enlightened about the world around us.

So...(and this is where the skirmish started)...Burge re-published in Marquette Social Scene a posting from a reader on the Mining Journal's Facebook page that told other readers how to work around the paywall.

Talk about irony. The newspaper's own Facebook page was telling readers how to get the news product for free.

When Burge re-published the posting, the Mining Journal wasn't pleased. Publisher Jim Reevs sent Burge a cease-and-desist order, claiming that he was promoting an illegal activity, and threatening legal action if the posting wasn't taken down.

So far Burge isn't budging.

One thing seems eminently clear. The Mining Journal needs to start monitoring its own Facebook page more carefully. Its failure to do so is what created the problem.

Second and more important is this. The new, hyperlocal, digital media--Marquette Social Scene, UP Second Wave, Marquette Magazine, Marquette Music Scene and Word on the Street--are here to stay. Some will die, some will grow, many will evolve, but as a means of gathering and distributing the news, they will play an increasingly vital role in our lives.

And the dinosaurs--the Mining Journal and the TV stations--will have to adapt (with more robust websites and social media involvement) or die. Cease-and-desist orders can only delay the inevitable.
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Speaking of TV stations, the latest Nielsen ratings are out, and they spell  good news for TV6. The longtime news leader here reasserted its overwhelming dominance at 6 pm after a serious drop in ratings last May.

The 11 pm ratings, which depend more heavily on the prime time offerings of the networks, were a little more competitive, with the new WJMN newscast posting decent numbers, but TV6 is still the unquestioned leader.

WJMN debuted its UP newscasts just a couple of months ago. It'll take some time for the station to become truly relevant. You don't overcome 50 years of dominance in just a ratings book or two.

As for ABC10, it keeps plugging along. Underfunded and underresourced, it produces solid newscasts at 5:30 and 10 pm and a substantive website with continual social media interaction. One of the station's most obvious flaws, a news set that looks like it was hastily assembled in someone's back office, will soon thankfully be history. The station is getting a new "virtual" set within a couple of months.

What does "virtual" mean? It means it'll look like things are there on the set when they really aren't. Electronic tricks. Slick. Sportscenter on ESPN employs a virtual set.

Also in from ABC 10: Al Jazeera America has requested that the station send them a long form story on the Bobby Glenn Brown story. Brown, of course, is the local man who recently took part in  a commitment ceremony with his longtime partner, and was subsequently told by St. Michaels Catholic Church he could no longer take part in the ministry of the church.

The story's gotten some national play. Now Al Jazeera America wants to do something with it.
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If you've been wondering what's going to happen at the site of the old Food Co-op, here's a partial answer.

GEI Consultants, a nationwide engineering firm that's currently located on Washington Street, is taking over half of the downstairs space and all of the upstairs space.

Upstairs will house the GEI offices while the downstairs is set aside for a soils and materials lab. A wall has already been erected downstairs, splitting the space. No word yet on who may move into the other half.

GEI works with the mines, government agencies and businesses. They employ 15 people here. The employees should be moving in to their new digs on about July 10th.
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The Marquette Farmers Market has been kind to the St. Charles Winery.

Marquette's only winery moved into the Farmers Market for the first time this season, and sales are already up 30%.

In fact, owner Randy St. Charles says he and his wife Lisa are struggling to keep up with the sudden surge in demand. Production has more than doubled since they took over the winery nine months ago.

They offer between 20 and 30 wines--like watermelon and mandarin orange as well as the more traditional chardonnay and pinot noir--at prices ranging from $13 to $25 a bottle.

Of course, the grapes don't come from the UP. They arrive in concentrate form from Central California and then they're processed, with Lake Superior water and flavoring, by St. Charles at his shop on Washington Street.

It's in a second floor office, next to an insurance agency, across the street from McDonalds. Not exactly the lush, rolling hills of Napa Valley.

But they have a wine-tasting room on site where they welcome individual wine enthusiasts and host small events and parties.

It's a start. And it's classic UP, devoid of pretension and driven by energy and enthusiasm.


You got news? Email me at briancabell@gmail.com

Caggiano's Past, YMCA's Future, Co-op's Move, and Farmers Market Opening

Gabe Caggiano, WJMN's anchor on its brand new 11 pm newscast, is not your typical bright-eyed kid eager to shine in his very first broadcasting job.

He's been around the block a few times. He's worked as an anchor, reporter, writer and columnist. He's been employed by Inside Edition and Al Arabiya. He's moved around from Texas to New England to Maryland to DC. He covered the first Gulf War and the White House.

He was even an actor on TV several years back with credits from Matlock and Radioland Murders.

He's got talent. He's won a few awards.

And he's got a bit of a reputation. A TV columnist in Austin referred to him as "very likely the most hated man in Austin television journalism." To be fair, that was back in the 90s, and God knows, we've all made mistakes and enemies.

But some of the criticism has followed him over the years--hotheadedness, insensitivity, egotism.

Now he's in the UP at WJMN. He does a nice job. Let's hope we see more of the talent and less of the flaws.

By the way, an attempt to interview Caggiano was rebuffed by him until he got corporate approval. Maybe that's a good sign. Discretion.
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Speaking of WJMN, the CBS station has been broadcasting local news for just about three weeks now, and there's not much to criticize.

Cynthia Thompson's team looks professional and energized. The news set, graphics and production values are superb.

In fact, you might say the overall presentation reminds you a lot of TV6, the longtime number one station in Marquette. What WJMN lacks is TV6's storied history, the leadership of Steve Asplund, and perhaps most important...Karl Bohnak.

People love weather in the UP and they love Bohnak who's very possibly the most trusted and popular man in the Upper Peninsula. It's very tough for a 20-something meteorologist to come in and compete with that.

As for Rick Tarsitano's troops at ABC10, they continue, despite a shortage of resources, to put on a remarkably strong newscast, and their website is robust and current with a strong social media presence.

WJMN's website, by contrast, has a strange, minimalist look. Not sure why. Looks like something circa 2003.

In any case, they've joined the fray. The UP now has three legitimate TV news and website sources. We viewers are the winners.
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This may have slipped your mind, but the YMCA, after getting a three million dollar federal loan last year, is getting ready to start a major expansion and renovation at its Marquette facility.

Like doubling its size.

It all starts on June 1st with the resurfacing of its pool deck. That'll take a couple of weeks.

But then comes the exciting stuff: two new basketball and volleyball courts, bleachers, a concession stand, an indoor running track, a gym for gymnastics, a climbing wall, new high-tech machines, an expanded exercise and weight room...and a seniors locker room.

Huh? A separate locker room for oldsters?

Yep, apparently that was the request of some seniors--to dress and shower away from the rabble-rousing young folk.

Seems like the YMCA could find a better use for the money than that.

Still, a lot to celebrate here. Construction will continue through late summer, fall and early winter. Should be done in January.

Meantime in Negaunee, members are getting an entirely new, bigger and better facility. That, too, should be ready in January. (Correction: the Negaunee facility will be open in June.)
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The Marquette Farmers Market is getting ready to open after a tumultuous off season. It's time to forget all the dissension and instead, focus on the food and the crafts

The first Saturday of the season is May 17th.

Forty-three full season vendors will be selling their goods--36 are returnees, 7 are new, and the word is, there are more produce and meat vendors this year than last year. All of them are from the UP. Hoop houses and green houses here have extended the season and the varieties.

No vendors selling produce from downstate applied to sell at the market this year.

As usual, there were many more wannabe vendors than spots available, so about 30 of them will have to settle for daily spaces. The Downtown Development Authority expects to create 3-7 new spaces by mid-summer when the market is re-configured.

All in all, it sounds like local farmers are determined to make farming in the frozen tundra of the UP work.

Which is great for those of us who love local produce and meat.
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And who's not eagerly awaiting the opening of the new Marquette Food Co-op on Washington Street? That's May 22nd.

It'll be triple the size and double the inventory of the charming but cramped store on Baraga Street.

The new store will also feature a meat and seafood counter, a deli, and a little café. With Wifi.

Yikes. We're becoming bigtime.

The Co-op will close down on May 20th and 21st while it makes the move to the new location.
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Now that the snow has finally melted, you've probably noticed with dismay that your spruces and junipers are rust-colored on the outside and on top.

Dead? You can't be certain.

Gardening guru Barb Kelly says the best advice she's heard is that you should wait four to six weeks before lopping off any branches. Give them a chance with warming temperatures to come back.

If you're impatient, break open a branch and see if there's any green left. If it just snaps off easily, it's likely dead.

Yeah, Kelly says, this is the worst winter for plants she's ever seen here. The dwarf Alberta spruces, one of our most popular varieties, were especially hard-hit.


You got news? Email me at briancabell@gmail.com

Farmer Q's Returns, DePetro Mulls a Run, and Lundin Negotiates

A quick about-face for Farmer Q's.

The last we heard, the little store on Washington Street cherished for its fresh downstate produce had closed up shop.

The announced reasons? Co-owner Tom Brian had gotten a good job downstate, and he and his wife Susan said they were fed up with the shoddy treatment they had gotten from some of the local farmers, the Food Co-op and the Downtown Development Authority.

Turns out, there was a little more to the story than that.

Whatever the reason, they ain't leaving town. They've closed on the property now occupied by Cliff's Muffler Shop in south Marquette.

Farmer Q's is coming back to life. It should be open by Mother's Day but they won't be taking part in the Farmers Market.

Which is just as well. They had had a rocky relationship with some of the farmers and the DDA, which runs the Farmers Market. They should stay as far apart from each other as possible.

The new location is little more than a glorified gas station at this point but they'll fix it up. Most important, it's got a large parking lot out front, something the market didn't enjoy on Washington Street.

All in all, it's good news for fruit and vegetable lovers in Marquette.
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The race for the six county commission races is starting to shape up.

Three of the incumbents, Steve Pence, Gerald Corkin and Bruce Heikkila have all filed their papers to run.

And five other candidates have taken out packets, indicating a possible run.
The most notable of the five--former Marquette Mayor and City Commissioner Johnny DePetro.

DePetro says he hasn't decided 100% whether he's running but he's talking to friends and constituents who are encouraging him to run.

If he does, it would set up an interesting race in the First District: the incumbent Pence, one of the UP's sharpest and most respected attorneys, taking on DePetro, one of the city's most likable and folksy politicians.

DePetro says he's got nothing against Pence--he's voted for him in the past--
but he just likes working in government. If he does run, it'll be a race of interesting and sharp contrasts.
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While Lundin Mining and the city of Marquette continue working on an agreement to allow Lundin's trucks to use the city's roads on their way from Eagle Mine to the Humboldt Mill, there's increasing focus on a bypass. The bypass would divert the trucks around the northern edge of the city.

The proposed bypass would take the trucks off of 550 near Sugarloaf Mountain, westward and then south to US-41 around Midway Drive.
The trucks, estimated to be about 90 a day, would therefore miss the most populated and congested parts of Marquette.

Lundin, for its part, says it's concerned right now with finding a tentative route for the trucks. Once that agreement is reached with the City Commission, then it will turn to the bypass.

The good news for Lundin and city officials? So far, environmentalists haven't raised any objections to the bypass. Activist attorney Michelle Halley says that issue is not on her plate, and Save the Wild UP is likewise not involved. At least not yet.

Something's going to have to give. Lundin's Eagle Mine is a reality. It starts up within six months or so, and that means huge trucks, loaded with nickel and copper, will be taking to the roads, past homes and businesses. Ninety a day--that's almost one every 15 minutes.

That's a quality of life issue--something we take very seriously in Marquette.

You got news? Email me at briancabell@gmail.com

Abortion Vigil, DDA Dilemma, Patient Golfers, and Das Steinhaus

 

Over the last week you may have noticed sign-holding demonstrators outside the Planned Parenthood offices on Third Street. They're from Forty Days for Life, an anti-abortion group. They'll be there for another month.

 

No incidents, no problems so far. Just a quiet, heartfelt protest.

 

The demonstrators say they've heard enthusiastic support from honking, passing motorists while also encountering a little opposition from the occasional, opinionated pedestrian. Nothing nasty, though.

 

And inside the clinic, workers say nearly every day, someone comes by with cookies, a salad or flowers to show support for what Planned Parenthood in Marquette does. One businesswoman has even pledged ten dollars a day to the organization for every day that the protest outside continues.

 

So it's a peaceful, respectful standoff between two groups that disagree on an extremely important issue. Kinda nice to see, especially when you consider that such disagreements in other places around the globe--like Iraq, Ukraine, Central Africa and China--frequently result in threats, assaults, jailing and even death.

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Let's hope the Farmers Market fracas that broke out last summer and continued into the winter is over.

A committee considering new rules for the market will present its proposals to the Downtown Development Authority board on Thursday.

Here's what to expect. An increase in the fees for each vendor, but nothing exorbitant. Last year, the fee worked out to less than three dollars per site each Saturday. It'll be more this year and, let's be frank, if you can't afford ten dollars a day for a vendor's fee, you probably don't have a viable business.

Between five and seven more vendors' sites will be opened up this year. That's good. There's been pent-up demand to sell at the market.

The set-up of the market will be different this year, hopefully to facilitate better traffic among the vendors.

Finally, (Controversy alert!!) there will likely be an opportunity for a vendor selling produce from downstate to set up at the market. This was the  issue, of course, that created a nasty dispute between Farmer Q's and local farmers last year and ultimately resulted in Farmer Q's closing up shop.

The DDA is in the difficult position of trying to please both the local farmers, who generally oppose competition from downstate, and local shoppers, who love the fresh produce from downstate.

Sure seems like the best and fairest solution is to allow downstate produce at the market unless and until it competes directly with local produce. Then it has to be pulled. Some local farmers say that's precisely what they'd like to see.

The new regulations should come out Thursday, the 13th. Applications for spots at the market can be submitted on Monday, the 17th.
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If you were hoping that this recent respite from our brutally cold winter was an indication that an early spring was on the way, well, good luck with that.

Weather guru Karl Bohnak says this winter weather pattern--long, frigid periods interrupted by a few days of relief--will likely continue through March into April.

Spring will probably arrive later than usual.

The problem is, the Pacific Ocean just south of Alaska is warm. That keeps Alaska warm, and in turn, keeps us cold. That's just the way it is, and it's going to stay that way.

Wonderful. Can't wait until summer arrives in September.

Something else that's notable. Even though it's been frigid, snowfall is actually down in Marquette County this winter. Like, about 30 inches below average at the Negaunee weather station.

There's still plenty of snow on the ground because the temperatures haven't allowed much melt (at least until Monday), but there hasn't been a serious system snowfall all winter. Just two inches here, five inches there. Nickel and dime stuff, Bohnak calls it. Strange winter.
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And how's the winter affected the Marquette Golf Club?

Surprisingly, it hasn't been too bad.

Craig Moore, the superintendent for the grounds, says they've checked and there appears to be no serious ice accumulation on the course. The heavy snow pack is protecting the grass. That's good news, although winter's not yet over. In past years, significant parts of the Heritage and Greywalls course were damaged because of ice.

When will Heritage open up? Likely in mid-April unless we get another unwelcome visit from the polar vortex. Greywalls will follow a couple weeks later.

As for the persistent and pesky rumors that the MGC is on shaky financial ground, office manager Amy Burdick says absolutely not.

Three straight years of profits, she says, and last year play on the two courses was up 10%, revenue was up 5%.

Membership dues are slow in arriving, as usual. Only 180 have coughed up their money so far; there were 575 paying members last year.

Maybe when we can actually see a blade of grass poking through the snow on the course and the temperature starts hovering above a balmy 40 degrees, we'll start thinking about golf.
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More on the winter theme.

Marquette's new and heralded German restaurant, Das Steinhaus, has made it through the slow season. The entrepreneur and chef Justin Fairbanks concedes there were a couple of dreadfully slow weeks in January, but business through December exceeded expectations, Valentines Day was a record for them, and business has clearly picked up in the last month.

Then, there's this: Das Steinhaus has added a lunch in the last few weeks, their Sunday brunch (sometimes featuring lobster benedict) has exploded in popularity, the staff has increased from 6 to 16 over the last several months, they're now making their own desserts and their creative cocktail selection is becoming legendary.

The NMU influence is substantial here. The staff includes two NMU grads and three current students. Fairbanks, himself, attended  NMU but never graduated when he found himself cooking more than studying. He ended up getting his education at the Institute of Culinary Education in Manhattan.

Oh, one more thing that you can't help but admire. Das Steinhaus offers 60 different beers, all craft beers or imports. You want a Bud Light or Miller Light? Sorry, they don't carry it. They'll steer you to something else.

German food's not for everybody--especially those who love fresh, crisp vegetables and lean, rare cuts of meat--but you can't help rooting for this place. It's local, it's ambitious, and it's different from every other restaurant in town.

You got news? Email me at briancabell@gmail.com

BLP's Baffling Response, Farmers' Market P*ssing Match, and Corkage Confusion

The Bureau of Light and Power has a few people scratching their heads.

Here's the background: Marquette has a fireworks committee charged with trying to fund the city's fireworks display every July 4th. It costs about $30,000. That's a lot of money for a small town, and there's no public funding for it.

That means concerned citizens have to go begging merchants and residents every year to cough up the money needed for the fireworks. It's a tough and tedious job.

Solution! Why not have BLP allow its customers to donate a dollar a month, or even five, to fund the fireworks? A check-off system, a voluntary tax.

Other municipalities do it downstate. It's simple, it's effective, and it eliminates the need for the yearly begging.

Well, the fireworks committee suggested this solution to the BLP board but the utility's executive director, Paul Kitti, responded that the board, without even a formal proposal in hand, had voted no to the idea. Just...no.

No reasons given.

Kitti hasn't responded to a couple of phone calls yet.

Meantime, some concerned citizens are suggesting that the BLP board elections later this year, which would normally draw yawns, may draw considerable interest...and some new candidates...this year.
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The back-and-forth p*ssing match between the local farmers and the backers of Farmer Q's continues unabated. It's a dispute that reflects poorly on both sides.

Jeff Hatfield of Seeds and Spores says he, for one, would have preferred that Farmer Q's stayed and continued its participation in the Farmers Market--if Farmer Q's had agreed not to sell downstate produce that competed directly with produce from the local area.

In other words, cherries and plums from downstate would have been fine at the market, but not carrots and lettuces that were also being grown by the locals.

Seems like it would have been a reasonable solution but because of strong--maybe unreasonable--personalities, it could never be worked out. Too many insults, too many threats, too much bad blood.

Ironically, both sides were convinced that the Downtown Development Authority, which runs the market, was against them.

Oh well. Farmer Q's is gone, along with their appealing bounty of downstate produce. It seems likely that the market crowds--which averaged more than 600 each Saturday--will diminish somewhat without that attraction.

Maybe someone else can step into the breach, with the downstate fruits and vegetables--but without the rancor.

Maybe we can stop the insults and anonymous emails. Maybe we can grow up.
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WJMN, the CBS TV affiliate, is moving ahead with its plans to start up a U.P. newscast.

It's found the site for its studio and offices in a strip mall at the corner of US 41 and Wright Street, just across from the Cenex station. It's leased three units at the mall and combining them into one.

Meantime, the station is seeking an anchor/reporter, a meteorologist, a sports anchor and an engineer, among others, to join news director and anchor Cynthia Thompson.

Station executives had said they wanted to launch the newscast in the first quarter of this year. Seems a little ambitious with only seven weeks to go, but we'll see how quickly they can put it together.
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If you're a wine drinker, you may have heard that the state legislature recently passed a "corkage fee" law which would allow you to bring your own bottle of wine into a restaurant. For a fee imposed by the restaurant.

The idea being, if you've got that special bottle of wine or champagne that you've been saving for that special birthday or anniversary, you can bring it to your favorite restaurant, and the restaurant would simply charge you a "corkage fee" to open it.

The fee might be $25, more or less.

It's a very civilized thing to do.

One problem: the bill was signed into law by the governor in late December but it doesn't take effect until March 14th. There are reports that at least one local restaurant jumped the gun on the law and has already started charging corkage fees for outside wines.

The Liquor Control Commission says that's grounds for a steep fine, or suspension or revocation of a liquor license.

It's probably best to wait until March 14th.


You got news? Email me at briancabell@gmail.com

Farmer Q's Fallout, School Snow Daze, and Beer Bonanza

Fallout continues in the wake of Farmer Q's closing up shop downtown.

The shutdown was precipitated, the owners say, by the persistent opposition to them by local farmers and the Marquette Food Co-op at the Farmers' Market.

Farmer Q's sold produce from downstate. Their fruit and vegetables were  attractive and popular but they weren't technically "local." Foul, cried the local farmers. Unfair!

Well, they won. Farmer Q's has pulled up stakes and abandoned Marquette and the Farmer's Market.

Which means, according to one wag on Facebook, that we'll now have a scintillating selection of cucumbers, zucchinis and handmade soap to choose from at the Farmers' Market. A bit of an exaggeration, perhaps, but there's some truth to it.

Farmer Q's plentiful and colorful fruits and vegetables drew many of us to the market on Saturday mornings. Now, that draw will be gone, the crowds could very well shrink, and the market, which the Downtown Development Authority has turned into a remarkable success, could suffer in the short run.

The question that has to be asked: Who is supposed to benefit from the Farmers Market?

1) The local farmers, who are from outside the city and don't pay city taxes? They pay less than three dollars a day for a booth at the market.

2) The local merchants (like Farmer Q's) who do pay city taxes?

3) Or the customers, who reside mostly within the city?

The answer is probably all three but the emphasis should be on local merchants and customers. They're paying the taxes.

We all love local farms and local produce, but something got out of whack here. We needlessly lost a taxpaying vendor that many of us loved.

And then there's the case of Garden Bouquet, the downtown flower and art store that's noticed a big decline in sales on Saturdays when the Farmers Market is up and running. The store hasn't been able to get a booth yet so it finds itself paying taxes for a market (featuring out-of town-florists) that is actually hurting its business.

Ironic, frustrating, and yes, out of whack.
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We're barely halfway through winter, and already Marquette Area Public Schools have used up eight snow days. They're allotted six for the year.

No reason to panic yet. Last year the district used ten snow days (Was the winter that bad?) and had to extend the school year by three days in June.

This year, the district might be able to squeeze in another school day or two during President's Day weekend in February or on Good Friday. The administration will talk to the union about that.

But otherwise, the school year will just be extended beyond the official last day of June 10th. More snow days to come? If so, just tack them on to the end and hold off on the family vacation.

The recent days off, of course, have been for "cold," not snow. If the National Weather Service predicts a wind chill of minus 25 degrees or colder at the bus stops, that's enough to cancel school, per administration policy. Fifteen minutes outside in that kind of cold can give Junior frostbite.

Better safe than sorry even if it means delaying summer vacation.
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Are you looking for a local business success?

Look no further than the Blackrocks Brewery. The brewery opened three years ago and quickly became a favorite among craft beer afficionados.

Then last September, it began mass producing its Coconut Brown, Grand Rabbits, 51K, and a specialty brew...and the beer was flying off the shelves.
Merchants couldn't keep it in stock.

That early fever has abated somewhat but demand is still outstripping supply. Blackrocks is now distributing to stores from Munising to Bessemer with the expectation that it'll be the entire U.P. within months, and then it's across the bridge to the Lower Peninsula.

The brewery recently acquired some new fermenters so production, which is now at about 20,000 cans a week, will increase to 30,000. Eventually, it expects to reach 50,000.

By the way, Blackrocks will release a new beer, unidentified so far, this summer.

The lesson here: Brew a good beer, market it properly, and people will drink it. By the case.

You got news? Email me at briancabell@gmail.com

Racist Letters at TV6 and the Closing of Farmer Q's

A bizarre, sad and ugly story is unfolding at WLUC-TV.

Seems that prior to her abrupt resignation just over a week ago, news director Regena Robinson, who is African-American, received three racially charged letters signed by bogus names targeting her and other members of the news department.

Ugly, vile stuff.

Robinson turned the letters over to the State Police who have been investigating ever since.

The letters, which were written in cursive, apparently all came from the same person.

A lot of unanswered questions here. A lot of speculation as to who wrote the letters, as well.

Robinson, who's still in town, isn't commenting publicly. State Police visited her home a few days ago looking to get "elimination" fingerprints; in other words, Robinson's prints would be on the letters since she handled them, but were there any other prints?

WLUC so far has made no official comment on the case.
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A sad day, as well, for downtown Marquette. Farmer Q's, the little grocery store specializing in produce, announced that it's closing down.

Two reasons for the shutdown. First, Tom Brian (he and his wife Susan are the owners) was offered another job in the fruit industry downstate. It's reportedly a great opportunity.

And second, the last several months for the store have been "painful," in the words of Ms. Brian.

Farmer Q's, which sells produce grown downstate, has been locked in a continuing, nasty battle with the Marquette Food Co-op and local farmers who don't want the downstate produce sold at the Marquette Farmers' Market.

The two sides exchanged charges and counter-charges, the Downtown Development Authority tried to mediate the dispute but without much success, and everybody emerged from the unseemly mess looking bruised and beaten.

Farmer Q's says it's had enough.  It's shutting its doors within two weeks.
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With the impending closure of Penney's at the Westwood Mall later this year, the inevitable questions arise: Will another store move into the Penney's space? How will the new vacancy affect traffic at the mall? Is the overall viability of the mall threatened?

Let's be honest. The mall first opened back in the 70s and has been expanded a couple of times since then, but it's decidedly dated. It can't possibly complete with the huge, modern malls in Appleton, Green Bay and Detroit...and unfortunately that's where thousands of Yoopers end up doing their shopping.

On the other hand, even with several current vacancies, the mall is more than 90% occupied...at least it will be until Penney's departs. That's not bad.
And at least one more tenant is getting ready to move in.
Another point: You want to criticize the Westwood Mall? Go take a look at the malls in Houghton and Escanaba. By comparison, Westwood seems to be thriving.

A final point that could profoundly impact the future of the Westwood Mall:
The proposed mixed use development--retail, office, hotel, convention center and residential--behind Lowes is scheduled to start up within a couple of years. That will feature big, modern, upscale stores, the kind that have lured shoppers to Appleton, Green Bay and Detroit.

The kind that could eventually spell the end of the Westwood Mall.

The key words for the new development, though, are "proposed" and "scheduled." It's easy to draw up plans with pretty buildings while tossing around impressive dollar figures and getting everybody excited. It's much tougher to bring those plans to reality.

Anybody remember the grandiose plans for the ore dock--the high priced condos, the retail stores, the scenic promenade? How's that working out so far?
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Speaking of closures (seems to be a theme here), it's now been fourteen months since the last function was held at Upfront, one of the premier properties in downtown Marquette.

The former dining, banquet and live music venue, a handsome building overlooking Lake Superior, just sits there silent and unused.

The official word from the office of owner Rhys Mussman is that the building is not for sale and that "something may be in the works" and someone may be interested in leasing the building.

A couple of words about that. Business people will tell you that virtually every business is always for sale...for the right price. And, something is always in the works.

Mussman, who has a vacation home in Big Bay and likes the U.P., won't provide any details about his or anybody else's plans for Upfront. He's simply holding on to the darkened, multi-million dollar building for now. No money coming in.

Wealthy people can afford to do things like that.


You got news? email me at briancabell@gmail.com

Bourgeoisie in the UP

I'll admit it up front--I enjoy gardening. Adore gardening.

Yeah, yeah, I know, it's silly, it can be time-consuming and expensive, it's bourgeois. Who are you trying to impress with your garden? Yourself? Your neighbors? Either way, it's a form of vanity.

Well, I choose to think of it as so much more.

First, it's therapeutic. When I'm in the garden, pulling weeds, or digging holes for shrubs or mowing the lawn, and sweating (during these scorching 59 degree UP spring days), I forget everything except for what's directly in front of me. It demands my attention. Sometimes, I'll admit, my mind does wander, but it's generally good thoughts and it's only momentary because I have to stay focused on the task at hand.

Second, gardening appeals to my aesthetic sense. I and my ladyfriend sit on our porch some mornings or evenings and gaze out at what we've done--the neatly trimmed lilac bush, the sprouting tulips and daffodils, the newly mowed lawn, the trickling waterfall--and a calm comes over us. It's beautiful, astoundingly beautiful.

Finally, it's rewarding in an immediate way. You plant a bush, and that area looks better. You mow and edge the lawn, and your yard looks neat. You yank some ugly, little weeds, and suddenly the flowers and shrubs that had been surrounded by the weeds are enhanced. With so many of our tasks in life, you have to wait for the reward. In your yard, you don't.

Some gardeners don't even regard ornamental gardens as true "gardens". You have to pull produce from your garden, they say, to consider it a true garden. Yeah, okay. Whatever. I appreciate tomatoes and peppers--we grow a few--but as I mentioned, there's something to be said for aesthetics. Function is great, but I can leave that to the farmers--and I see them every week at the Marquette Farmers Market. To me and my ladyfriend sitting on our porch, sipping our wine as the sun eases slowly toward the horizon, we'll take the pretty. We'll make the pretty. It looks good, it smells good, it feels good.

Ornamental gardens, to me, fall midway between farming and art. Not a bad place to be.