Real estate office makes short move, big updates

Ribbon-cutting at Re/Max Resort Properties.

Boyne City locals and frequent tourists alike may find themselves asking, “Why did the RE/MAX cross the road?” After 22 years in business, RE/MAX Resort Properties, the Boyne City affiliate of real estate giant RE/MAX, has moved to 104 S. Lake St., opposite its original site. The migration was short, but big changes are afoot. “We have changed the concept here in the office,” says Gary Deters, one of the owners of RE/MAX Resort Properties. Deters and fellow owner Jeff Wellman aim to bring new innovations to buying real estate and, in turn, streamline the process for individuals seeking to purchase property in the region. Having been encumbered by small offices spaces in their original location, Wellman and Deters wanted to create a more comfortable environment for prospective buyers. In the process of moving, they have consolidated the offices of their staff and created three large conference rooms for the purpose of showcasing property listings. “Every conference room has a big-screen TV and an iPad,” Wellman said, “so the agents can leave their office when clients walk in the door and take them to a conference room.” When agents use an iPad to work on a contract or view properties with a client, the visuals can be transmitted to the television so that anyone in the room can view them. The new atmosphere that Wellman and Deters are trying to create in the office complements these features. They describe the approach as emulating a coffee bar, importing the idea from a RE/MAX location in Boston that has had success in its implementation. Full story from Petoskey News-Review.

New hotel planned for Walloon Lake waterfront

Aiming to continue with efforts to revitalize Walloon Lake village's business district, members of the Borisch family broke ground Wednesday for a new 32-room waterfront hotel. "The hotel, which we have tentatively named Hotel Walloon, is expected to be a high-service, top-of-the-line hotel, where our guests will start the relaxation process from the time they walk through the door, and that will continue as long as our staff can make it continue," said Matt Borisch, the hotel's operator-to-be and son of primary project investor Jon Borisch. Plans call for the hotel to open this winter along M-75. "One of the more exciting parts of this for my dad and me is to see the economy, that has started to grow in the village, continue to grow," Matt said. The Borisch-owned Walloon Village Marina and Barrel Back restaurant are located just south of the hotel site, where a small condominium building recently was demolished to make way for the new construction. Full story from Petoskey News-Review.

Boyne City students produce video promoting careers in manufacturing

The Boyne City/Char-Em ISD team from Boyne City High School produced the video "Northern Michigan Manufacturing" for the Northwest Michigan Education Advisory Group's Student Video Challenge. The teams in the competition were asked to create videos to educate fellow students about careers in manufacturing and show what it's really like to work in manufacturing. Boyne City students produced this video on careers in Northern Michigan Manufacturing.

> Click here to see the video, and click "Like" to help promote it.

Boyne City Main Street offers local facade grant program

The Boyne City Main Street Program is accepting applications from property owners for its newly established Façade Improvement Grant Program. The purpose of the program is to encourage private investment through the rehabilitation and improvement of facades within the Boyne City Main Street District, to encourage good design and to preserve the architectural character that is distinctive to Boyne City, said Main Street board chair Rob Swartz. By improving the appearance of building facades, the program hopes to boost the economic vitality of the Main Street district, which includes all of downtown Boyne City and the properties on North Lake Street from Water Street just past the Glen's shopping plaza, Swartz said. "We have been very fortunate in recent years, receiving façade grants through the State of Michigan, which have had an enormously positive impact on our community," said Main Street program manager Hugh Conklin. "We will continue to work with property owners to secure these grants but our goal through this local program is to provide assistance for many important projects that may not qualify for state incentives. 
HOW IT WORKS - The façade improvement program provides a matching grant for façade improvements within the Main Street District. For every dollar awarded, the applicant must spend an equal amount. Individual grant amounts will be up to 50 percent of project cost. Recommendations for funding grant applications will be made by the Main Street Design Committee to the Main Street Board, which will make all final grant-funding decisions. There is no set minimum or maximum number of projects per year. Funding for the façade grant program comes from money raised through Main Street's involvement in Boyne Thunder. For the current budget year, $10,000 has been allocated for the program. The application deadline for this round of funding is April 30.
> Information and applications for the Façade Improvement Grant Program. Questions? Contact the Main Street Office, 231-582-9009, mainstreet@boynecity.com.

The "secret sauce" that makes Boyne City special

Randy Flinn

The following are remarks made by Randy Flinn, the owner of KorthaseFlinn Insurance and Financial Services, to a crowd of nearly 300 people at the Boyne Chamber Annual Meeting on Jan. 16, 2014:

It is an honor to stand before you and welcome you to the Boyne Area Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting. Tonight represents the 11th year in which I have had the privilege to act as the lead sponsor of what is truly my favorite event of this kind each year.

As the evening unfolds we will recognize countless examples of individuals and organizations that are making a positive difference in Boyne City. We will hear about entrepreneurs, volunteers, businesses, visionaries, non-profits, investors, worker bees, and others. There will be much to applaud and much for which to give thanks. We will all feel good tonight, there is no doubt.

However, as we listen to these stories, I would submit that the acts of individuals and businesses are but one ingredient of the recipe that makes Boyne City what it is. There are great businesses in every city. There are volunteers and entrepreneurs hard at work in every city. There are investors, non-profits, and worker bees in every city.

I believe that the primary ingredient to the “secret sauce” that makes Boyne City special is the shared mission and commitment of our stakeholders, including local governments, schools, businesses, non-profits, and individuals. The City of Boyne City Mission Statement reads as follows: “The people of Boyne City are the reason we are here. We are therefore committed to working with the community so that everyone can enjoy the benefits of living and working in Boyne City.”

While this is the stated mission of our City Government, it is clearly the underlying philosophy of all those in this room and many others in our community. And through this belief in a greater purpose than simply our own self-interests, we all benefit and our community thrives.

In a way, we are all bit players in a community that includes thousands of individuals and hundreds of organizations. Some of our roles may be larger than others, but we are all bit players. But as bit players sharing an underlying philosophy and commitment, we become a TEAM. We become a group of people:

1. Operating with a high degree of interdependence.
2. Sharing authority and responsibility.
3. Feeling accountable for the collective performance, and
4. Working toward a common goal and shared rewards.

“A team becomes more than just a collection of people when a strong sense of mutual commitment creates synergy, thus generating performance greater than the sum of the performances of its individual members.” The stakeholders of Boyne City are truly a team…

So as we appreciate and applaud the success stories that will be told tonight, we should all remember that isolated stories like these happen everywhere. It is our shared mission and commitment to our community that makes Boyne City special, and makes the kinds of successes that we recognize tonight not just possible, but truly commonplace.

Thank you for coming tonight and for your commitment to Boyne City. Have fun and be safe!

Food truck phenomenon comes to Boyne City with Happy's Tacos

There's a new Mexican-inspired eating establishment in Boyne City, but you won't fit it in a downtown storefront. Northwestern Michigan natives Drake Nagel and Drue Wright of the newly-launched Happy's Taco Shop are embracing the nascent food truck trend and bringing their culinary creations to wherever their fans may be. Although it's only been serving fresh, handmade tacos for a couple weeks, it's apparent Happy's has the hallmark of any successful business - a clear vision. After meeting at Northern Michigan University, its young owners sought a way to give back to their home region without compromising their principles. Full story from Northwest Michigan's Second Wave.

inspired living opens balanced living yoga & fusion studio

inspired living is excited to announce the opening of their new balanced living yoga and fusion studio. The studio opened Sept. 9, 2013 and offers daily yoga and meditation classes. Owner Leslie Neilson, who also owns the inspired living store in Boyne City, hopes to add other classes such as pilates, Tai Chi and whatever community feedback indicates. balanced living is located at 101 River St., the front section of the Huntington Bank building. The studio is a long time dream of co-owner Leslie Neilson, who has been working on it for 5+ years, sharing her vision with anyone who would listen to her. Neilson explains: "The mission of balanced living is to provide a place where not only yoga, but other modalities based on mind, body and spirit can be practiced. The goal of the studio is to support the health and well-being of our local community with affordable classes taught by qualified teachers, and to further support our local community with regular fundraising events for charitable causes. We also aim to provide a place for all religions, races and ages, a sacred space in which practitioners may practice and share their unique talents and healing arts."> For information on classes and pricing, like them on Facebook at balanced living. Passes and class schedules are available and can be purchased at inspired living. Petoskey News-Review story.