A new brewery is coming to the west side of Traverse City as Silver Spruce Brewing Company prepares to open a second location near Francisco’s Market & Deli, Fresh Coast Market on North Long Lake Road has been listed for sale, and other businesses are on the move in The Ticker’s latest look at restaurant and retail news.

Silver Spruce Brewing Company/Francisco’s Market & Deli
Silver Spruce Brewing Company and Francisco’s Market & Deli are teaming up to offer a new brewing and dining destination on the west side.

Silver Spruce is leasing space from Francisco’s at the far end of the market’s commercial building on Silver Lake Road to open a new taproom. The project will bring a second Silver Spruce location to Traverse City along with the brewery’s current home on Eighth Street. Silver Spruce co-owner Scott Stuhr says the new venue offers more than 2,000 square feet of bar and tasting room space, plus production capacity. Silver Spruce still plans to keep its primary brewing operations on Eighth Street – where it will produce most of its flagship beers, which will also be for sale on Silver Lake Road – but will have some brewing operations at the new facility, allowing for some special varietals and one-offs there.

“Our business model is in-house – we don’t distribute much, and we’re not trying to grow to be a distribution brewery,” explains Stuhr. “So if we were to expand, this (a new location) is the only way that we’re interested in expanding.”

For Francisco’s Market & Deli co-owner Adam Inman, the partnership offers a chance to expand the market’s menu and potentially reach a new audience. Francisco’s will create a special menu just for Silver Spruce, with customers able to order at either the brewery or Francisco’s for dining in the taproom. That menu will feature salads and pizzas, among other options, with Francisco’s investing in a wood-fired pizza oven to create from-scratch Neapolitan-style pies. A beer garden is also in the works for the future. “We fully plan on turning the back area into a fenced-in outside seating area that’s open for service,” says Inman.

Remodeling and infrastructure work – including a new sewer line running to the property – are planned for this spring, with the potential for an opening as early as June. Stuhr says the taproom will likely be open six days a week from 3pm to 9pm to start, though that could expand into lunch service on weekends if there’s demand.

Real Estate Moves
Owners Dave and Jen Sears have listed Fresh Coast Market for sale on North Long Lake Road for $2.4 million. The listing with Three West Commercial includes the business LLC and the real estate LLC, plus all licenses. The listing boasts a “turn-key investment opportunity” for a company selling more than 200 Michigan-made products, plus plans “for a new 10,000-square-foot flagship store for future expansion and/or future locations.” The owners announced the listing on Facebook with “mixed emotions,” saying they had “no intentions of selling the market anytime soon” but that doing so is “what is best for our family.”

“We brought a world-class specialty grocery store to this special area of Long Lake,” the couple wrote. “It is our absolute desire to find a new buyer that will take the foundation of the amazing business that we have built and will continue to grow the business in a healthy thriving way into the future.”

The Flower Station is under new ownership on West Front Street. After a 25-year run, Margaret and Tom Edgington have sold Traverse City’s oldest flower shop to Meagan Thomas Wells and Dan Rohe. The duo is “poised to lead The Flower Station into its next chapter of growth and innovation,” according to a company release, while continuing “crafting stunning floral arrangements for all occasions, including funerals, corporate events, and special celebrations.”

After filing for bankruptcy last fall, national retailer Rite Aid has closed its Traverse City store at the corner of Fourteenth Street and Division Street. A lease listing for the 12,250-square-foot store offers the space at $14 per square foot (plus $3.25 NNN). “Owner may consider a tenant improvement allowance or dividing the space, but price will increase accordingly,” the listing states, touting the location’s high traffic counts and abundant parking.

As previously reported in The Ticker, Traverse City institution Bardon’s Wonder Freeze has hit the market. The small ice cream shop – a summertime staple since the 1950s – is listed for $1.1 million, which includes both the business and real estate at the corner of Garfield Avenue and East Front Street. Agent Cindy Anderson says the listing has attracted “tons of activity,” much of which is “philanthropic” from interested “Save Bardon’s buyers.”

More updates...
After closing her doors on East Front Street in late 2021 and operating at the Sara Hardy Farmers Market last year, Sweet Tartlette owner Sarah Steele is bringing a retail location back downtown. Steele plans to open at 126 South Union following a buildout of her new space, which she hopes will put her on track for a May opening. “We plan to offer much of the same product as we did at our former location,” she says, including macarons, cupcakes, cookies, and decorated celebration and wedding cakes. 

A beloved downtown breakfast and lunch spot is closing its doors. The Green House Café will close its doors permanently today (Saturday) at 115 East Front Street, according to a Facebook post. The announcement came with “much sadness” from the staff and ownership, according to the post, which concluded: “We want to thank you for all your support and memories throughout the past 24 years.” Owner Michelle Jones declined to comment until after the business vacates its space.

Right next door, Solitude & Wellness Spa is also shutting down. “Four years ago, little did we know a global pandemic would plague our planet just seven weeks after opening our doors,” the company wrote in an email to customers this week. “We pushed forth, endured the multitude of restrictions, and ultimately persevered through those difficult months. We recovered over the next two years, grew our customer base, and added new services. Then, in 2023 we were met with challenging inflation and rising costs. This has carried over into 2024 testing our resolve to continue this journey. Consequently, we have made the difficult decision to close Solitude for good.” The company’s last day is May 19.

Across the street at 118 East Front Street, Brilliant Books launched a GoFundMe campaign and asked for customer support this week in raising funds to pay off a supplier and help get the bookstore back on financial track. “If we can pull that off, we're going to be in a much better place moving forward, but if we can't, we're going to lose a lot of hard-won ground paying down the debts we incurred during the pandemic and, frankly, we're not sure we have the strength to claw our way back up out of that hole again,” according to the post. In addition to the campaign – which has raised more than $18,000 of a $35,000 goal as of Friday – Brilliant Books said preordering books, becoming a member, buying subscriptions, and booking the store for private events can all help sustain operations.

On the other end of East Front Street downtown, cannabis outfitter Dunegrass opened a new Traverse City store this month following an extensive buildout at 440 East Front Street (formerly home to Corporate Settlement Solutions). The company – open 10am-8pm daily – also has locations in Beulah, Grawn, Big Rapids, Cadillac, Gaylord, Manistee, and Marquette.

A new food truck is operating at Right Brain Brewery on Sixteenth Street. Le Metropolitain – owned by former Patisserie Amie owner and chef Eric Fritch – is serving up crepes, sandwiches, pizzas, and other dishes with a French flair on Fridays and Saturdays from 3pm to 8pm outside the brewery. Right Brain Brewery also received city commission approval earlier this month for a small distiller license, which will allow the company to purchase distilled spirits and cut, carbonate, and flavor them – Right Brain’s application mentions natural flavors like cherry – to be canned for takeout and pub consumption.

The Great Lakes Culinary Institute (GLCI) and the Hagerty Center have reached an agreement to optimize the use of teaching restaurant Lobdell’s, according to a memo from Northwestern Michigan College President Nick Nissley. The Hagerty Center will manage Lobdell’s when not in use by GLCI as a “premium rental space,” Nissley wrote. “The premium pricing reflects the quality of the space and the anticipated demand. The added revenue will be shared by GLCI and the Hagerty Center.” Nissley said the agreement is an example of staff working on “revenue diversification possibilities by optimizing and monetizing unproductive real estate – e.g., finding ways to earn money at Lobdell’s when it’s not being used.”

Finally, after a successful inaugural season, rail biking excursion company Wheels on Rail announced it will return for its second season on May 24 – with new changes in store for 2024. In addition to brand-new custom bikes, the company will now offer two routes on top of old railroad tracks in Grawn Township: the Hoosier Valley Hotshot (six miles round-trip, $50) and the M-37 Expedition (three miles round-trip, $45). Wheels on Rails will also have special theme days this year with costume contests and prizes.