BIG CHANGES ON the restaurant scene in Marquette. The latest? The Union Grill on US 41 has been sold to the owners of the Steinhaus, the German restaurant downtown.
Now begins the speculation on who might move into that prime spot.
In the lead, early on, is Costco. That rumor is rampant. Marquette Township officials have heard it but know nothing about it. Costco corporate officials in Washington state are saying nothing about it and wouldn’t say anything, anyway, until they got permits.
It does seem that the ProBuild site might be a little small for a Costco, doesn’t it?
Also in the running on the rumor circuit is a Meijer hyperstore. There are 100 of them downstate. Why not one in Marquette Township?
Oh, there’s also the perennial rumor about the Olive Garden moving in.
And this just in! Saks Fifth Avenue is moving to the ProBuild site! No, wait, it’s Bloomingdale’s!
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YOU MAY HAVE noticed the big tent that’s sprouted up next to Coco’s.
Turns out it’s for a big Halloween party this Saturday night. Everyone’s invited (in costume preferably) and reportedly at least 200 revelers are expected.
Don’t worry, it’ll be fully enclosed, with heaters inside. To say nothing of the body heat that’ll be generated.
More important, perhaps, is that the tent will go up again next spring as a new wedding venue in Marquette. Coco’s management says they already have two weddings booked for the summer.
Coco’s, by the way, had been up for sale for well over a year. No takers at the asking price. Owner Jackie Gonda (with her husband Patrick) took it off the market a few months ago. They’re staying, she insists, and expanding the restaurant’s operations.
Why not? It’s a huge piece of property in an ideal location, across from the beach and just down the block from the Nestledown B&B which should be opening early next summer.
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TV6 HAS ADDED a new face to its 6 pm newscast.
She’s Sophie Erber, fresh out of Florida. Welcome to five months of winter, Sophie, and by “winter” we don’t mean 63 degrees and gloomy skies, we mean 4 degrees, 150 inches of snow, and occasional white-outs.
For now, she’s co-anchoring only the six o’clock newscast with Steve Asplund but plans are for her to possibly co-anchor the 7 pm and 11 pm newscasts, as well.
So far, she comes across as attractive, poised and confident. The chemistry with the other anchors isn’t quite there yet, but she certainly seems to have a future.
Suggestion: Don’t let her be just a pretty face, a news “presenter.” Give her serious reporting responsibilities. Investigative work maybe (something sorely lacking in the UP). Get her fingernails dirty.
TV6 would benefit, and so would she.
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DOWN THE BLOCK, Greg Peterson, the new news director at ABC 10, is trying to inject a greater aggressiveness into his tiny staff of seven.
Peterson, himself, is out on the streets. A few weeks ago, he accosted Congressman Dan Benishek and quizzed him on climate change. The interview lasted for more than a minute, an eternity on local newscasts. Critics might have thought it was embarrassing and inappropriate, but it did get ABC 10 quoted in the Huffington Post.
For better or worse, it’s a new day and a new approach for the UP’s ABC affiliate which has had a remarkably strong web presence but woefully weak ratings for its newscasts.
Suggestion to ABC 10: Trade your $37.50 news set (also known as “Flowers in a Pot next to a Pole”) to Zach Galifianakis for his Between Two Ferns set. Between Two Ferns is decidedly more attractive than what you’ve got now.
If you’ve got news, email me at briancabell@gmail.com
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