top ten

No, not those kinds of shrooms…morel mushrooms, of course! The 63rd annual National Morel Mushroom Festival returns to Boyne City this weekend, running May 18-21. This beloved event pays homage to northern Michigan’s favorite fungus with morel tastings, a mushroom hunt, seminars, an arts and crafts show, concerts, and more! Signature events include Friday’s Morelfest Wine & Dine dinner at Beach House Restaurant ($95); Saturday’s Taste of Morels ($10 admission with tasting tickets for purchase), where local chefs compete for the top dish as voted by local celebrity judges; and, of course, the Saturday National Competitive Morel Mushroom Hunt ($30). There’s also a carnival that runs from 3-10pm Thursday through Saturday and noon to 5pm Sunday. Festival proceeds go to area high school students for college scholarships entering the fields of biology, natural science, hospitality, or culinary arts. For a full schedule of events, details, and tickets, head to bcmorelfestival.com.

Laughter Through Tears

Magnolias have been blooming around town, so head down to Truvy’s beauty salon in Chinquapin, Louisiana, as the Little Traverse Civic Theatre presents Steel Magnolias, “The funniest play to make you cry.” Choose from a 7pm performance on May 11-13 and May 18-20, or 2pm on May 14, all at Crooked Tree Arts Center in Petoskey. Tickets are $20 for adults; $10 for students 18 & younger. ltct.org/steelmagnolias

We’ll watch anything that stars Stanley Tucci, so tuning into Amazon Prime’s latest spy thriller, Citadel, was a no-brainer. The action-packed first episode sets up the premise for the show: The Citadel, a global spy agency with no national allegiance, has been targeted and destroyed by a rival crime syndicate called Manticore. Manticore is now wreaking havoc across the world, and only the three remaining Citadel agents can stop them: Bernard Orlick, the brains of the operation (Stanley Tucci); former bad-boy and present amnesiac Mason Kane (played by Richard Madden and not Sebastian Stan, despite the striking resemblance between the actors); and MIA ex-agent Nadia Sinh (Priyanka Chopra)…who has also lost her memories from her days in espionage. The early episodes are filled with more questions than answers and plenty of fight scenes to keep the adrenaline pumping, but we’re curious to see how these character arcs turn out as the series unfolds. Now streaming on Amazon Prime.

While we’re all for an extra helping of greens, sometimes they just taste better when they’re doused in sauce and served with some carbs. The team at The New York Restaurant in Harbor Springs get it, which is why their fan-favorite Veal Ravioli is making a seasonal comeback. The brainchild of Chef de Cuisine Chris Bugera, this dish has all our favorite spring veggies and fungi—thin-sliced asparagus, caramelized leeks, and savory morel mushrooms—all sauteed with cream and white wine. Five plump pieces of ravioli are the finishing touch, each made from scratch and packed with rich veal. Pair your plate with a glass of dry red and tuck in, secure in the knowledge that you’ve achieved the ultimate dinner balance. Be sure to get this one while it’s hot—it won’t be here past Memorial Day! Enjoy a bowl of Veal Ravioli for $44 at The New York Restaurant in Harbor Springs (101 State St.). (231) 526-1904, thenewyork.com

6 The History of the Universe

What’s better than stargazing on a spring evening? How about stargazing and getting a fascinating history lesson? Headlands International Dark Sky Park in Mackinaw City will host its “History of the Universe: From the Big Bang to Recent History” talk on Wednesday, May 17, at 8:30pm. The free event will start with a bang (get it?) and then walk attendees through the formations of the very first atoms, stars, and galaxies until we reach our very own Milky Way. From there, you’ll learn about our solar system and planet, right up until 2023. Last but not least, the Headlands and the Northern Michigan Astronomy Club teams will ask the biggest question of all: Where is the universe headed next? Find the park at 15675 Headlands Road in Mackinaw City, and be ready for an educational evening in one of the most beautiful and remote settings in our region. Find more information at midarkskypark.org.

Piping Plover Season

Northern Michigan’s unofficial bird is back and ready to make more of the adorable, stick-legged little avians. May 1 marked the beginning of the mating, incubating, and baby plover season, which means we humans have to be thoughtful about how we explore some of our favorite natural areas. These endangered little birdies are sensitive types and can abandon their nests if we—or our four-legged friends—cause too much of a disturbance to their habitat. The Little Traverse Conservancy recently announced Vermilion Point Preserve will be closed to pets until August 15 to help protect the eggs and fledgling plovers. Similarly, multiple trails and beaches at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore—where about half of the Great Lakes piping plover population makes their summer home—are a no-pet zone. (Get the full list at nps.gov/slbe/planyourvisit/pets.htm.) Fido can come with you for a car ride up the newly reopened Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive, but he can’t explore everywhere!

Stuff We Love: Pawsome Animal Lovers

Earlier this year, AC Paw founders Brian Manley and June McGrath announced their retirement after almost 30 years of incredible work saving cats and dogs across northern Michigan. AC Paw will live on, but as a spay and neuter assistance and educational program rather than as an animal shelter and adoption organization. That left a gap in the shelter needs for pets in our area, and the newly formed TC Paw Cat Rescue has stepped up. The new org was created by AC Paw volunteers who wanted to continue the mission of rescuing, rehabilitating, and fostering cats and kittens until they found their forever homes. The nonprofit received its 501(c)3 status and first batch of fosters—two mama cats and 11 kittens—at the beginning of May, and the all-volunteer team is getting up and running to bring more felines into the program. Learn more about their mission and how to get involved at tcpaw.org.

Bottoms Up

Traverse City Whiskey Company’s Finishing Series

Traverse City Whiskey Co. (TCWC) has a reputation for taking its base rye and bourbon recipes and adding unique twists. Think of the distillery’s best-selling American Cherry Edition whiskey, or last year’s summer-tinged Lakeside Peach bourbon. This year, TCWC has rolled out The Finishing Series, a trio of cask-aged whiskeys that dial into an untapped corner of the whiskey world: wine finishings. For one whiskey, TCWC took its 100 percent straight rye and rested it for a year in cabernet franc barrels from 45 North Vineyard & Winery in Lake Leelanau. For the second, distillers finished TCWC’s traditional bourbon in port wine casks from Portugal. A third took the distillery’s high-rye bourbon and aged it in hand-selected Pedro Ximenez sherry barrels. Each spirit has a distinct flavor profile: The cab franc version carries notes of tart cherries and chocolate, while the sherry delivers a nutty, caramel flavor with a toasty finish. We recommend trying each whiskey as part of a Manhattan. Find the series at 201 E 14th St in Traverse City. tcwhiskey.com

Spectator

By Stephen Tuttle

Traverse City’s Downtown Development Authority (DDA) has created an ambitious agenda for themselves.

There is the third parking deck, the riverfront redevelopment, talk of expanding the area in which they operate, and perhaps even a third tax increment financing (TIF) district. Recently, they’ve also added the possibility, at least in a legal sense, of becoming involved in the development of multi-family housing within their existing TIF districts.

The relative merits of each project are subject to debate, and there are plenty of Traverse Citians, including multiple members of the City Commission, who are very supportive. But there are issues raising concerns for other residents.

The latest suggested changes and additions to the proposed third deck make it seem unusually complex. At an April 24 City Commission study session, the DDA outlined terms for the request for proposal (RFP) for the deck. Among those terms is a “design that will accommodate the ability to repurpose the structure in the future” and “housing opportunities.” The DDA also notes that “planning and designing in this way may have a much higher initial cost but will have longerterm benefits.” How much cost would that design—and possible future retrofitting—add to the already $30-$35 million budget?

The redevelopment of two blocks of the downtown riverfront with a whopping $63.5 million preliminary price tag is a little stickier. We know a sewer line on the south side must be replaced and the retaining wall is being undercut and needs repair or replacement. Those aren’t optional, and there are funding sources other than city taxpayers that will be helpful. Those two blocks, now not especially appealing, will be greatly improved by the preliminary concepts we’ve seen. But it is not clear how many bells and whistles the project needs that take the cost all the way up to $63.5 million. It’s also not clear over how many years such a project can be spread so the cost becomes less of an annual burden.

It’s understandable that the DDA and city planners would like to develop, or sell for development, surface parking lots. They occupy incredibly valuable chunks of land. But what happens if they keep eliminating surface parking and a TIF 97 extension is denied by voters?

The first is cost. The parking deck and river projects alone approach $100 million, though some of that expense would be spread out over a period of years.

More significantly, these projects cannot be undertaken unless the DDA’s TIF 97 is extended well beyond its 2027 expiration. Leaders were told when this was first approved it would not be extended, but times, we are told, have changed.

(A TIF district allows some property tax dollars to be “captured” by the DDA. To put it in the simplest of terms, assume a property in a TIF district paid $1,000 in property taxes when the district was formed. That $1,000 will continue going to the city’s general fund, but property taxes above that, as the property value increases, are “captured” by the DDA. Those properties within the TIF district also pay an additional two mils on their property. TIF 97, which covers all of downtown Traverse City, and the Old Town TIF 2, which covers much of the Union Street business district, now generate several million dollars annually for the DDA.)

The DDA cannot finance the parking deck without extending TIF 97. It is likely the question will somehow find its way onto a 2024 ballot, and even though there is no guarantee it will succeed, they are taking steps that cannot be retraced, especially as it involves downtown parking.

It’s understandable that the DDA and city planners would like to develop, or sell for development, surface parking lots. They occupy incredibly valuable chunks of land. But what happens if they keep eliminating surface parking and a TIF 97 extension is denied by voters?

The need for the third parking deck has always been the subject of some debate. The river redevelopment concept has been less controversial, but the price tag has raised some eyebrows. The real problem is there isn’t sufficient funding or available financing for either without extending a TIF district residents were assured would expire in 2027.

It might not be clear to some voters that either project is worth extending TIF 97 and, in the process, helping to create a DDA with an ever-expanding reach. The city’s general fund could likely use the extra millions. It should be noted some of those captured funds would also return to Grand Traverse County, Northwestern Michigan College, and the Traverse Area District Library.

Traverse City’s planners, meanwhile, want more and more and more density. More little houses in folks’ backyards, more units on empty lots, more multifamily buildings in formerly single-family home neighborhoods, more condos, more impervious surfaces, more pressure on aging infrastructure. Unfortunately, more is not necessarily synonymous with better; sometimes more is less.