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07/06/2007Traverse City businesses gear up for festival week
The “No Vacancy” sign was on Thursday at the Beach Haus Resort in Traverse City, two days before the start of the National Cherry Festival. TRAVERSE CITY — Wilson Antiques doesn't shut its doors very often, but manager Jane Strauser makes an exception for the last day of the National Cherry Festival. "It's one of the few days in the year that we're closed,” Strauser said. "There's just too many people.” Downtown businesses, including Wilson Antiques on South Union Street, experience a rush of customers streaming through their doors as downtown streets teem with crowds generated by the National Cherry Festival, set for Saturday through July 14. The festival remains a headache for some, a bonanza for others. Many area hotels are sold out, including Holiday Inn West Bay. Its 179 rooms were booked by June with most reservations made a year in advance, and Bayshore Resort has only a few rooms available for the festival weekends. Strauser expects the festival to lure hotel-bound tourists to her store. She usually sees heavy traffic the entire week, with the biggest crowds in the afternoons. Other downtown businesses, like Harbor Wear and Evergreen Gallery and Floral, also are gearing up for a week of booming business. Nora Wiser, Harbor Wear's owner, extends her store's hours to cater to souvenir hunters. She stays open until 10 p.m. instead of closing at 9 p.m. Evergreen Gallery and Floral can't wait for the crowds, after moving several blocks east to a spot near the corner of Front and Union Street. "The traffic through our store has already been beyond expectations,” co-owner Charles Thayer said. "We expect to be swamped.”
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