Project Name: Laker Alley
ABOUT THE APPLICANT
Are you applying as a:
DDA or CID
What is the entity’s name:
Village of Spring Lake Downtown Development Authroity
Website URL
Twitter Handle
@springlakemich
Facebook Handle
https://www.facebook.com/VisitSpringLakeMI/
Instagram Handle
https://www.instagram.com/visitspringlakemi/
What is the name of the primary contact for this entity’s application/project?
Stefanie Herder
What are their preferred pronouns?
She/her/hers
ABOUT THE PROJECT
Where will your project take place? (please include city/village too)
The Alley between Field’s Fabrics (212 W. Savdige) and Mama Mia’s (218 W. Savidge) Spring Lake
Anticipated project launch date
August 18, 2023
Briefly describe your project idea including your role and any project partners.
The alley between Field’s Fabric’s and Mama Mia’s is a small space but has lots of potential. We would like name the alley and have it as a destination in our downtown’s Social District. This could be a great gathering space for drinks, food, art, and local history. Spring Lake is home to the Lakers
How do you plan to spend the $5,000 microgrant? Please list and explain the items, services, fees, expertise, etc. that you plan to purchase.
We would like to name the alley (with help from the two businesses and community) and add signage. We’d purchase decorative signage, planters, garbage cans, lighting, and yard type games for activities. We would work with a local artist, Maggie Bandstra, and pay for her work to be on display and mounted to the huge alley wall. We would also like local history on display in the space since the original building in that space is from the late 1800s. The owner of Fields has done some historical research on the building and we would also work with the Tri-Cities Historical Museum on photos and information. If we have funds remaining, we’d like to add accessible seating. Smoke N Ash’s hopes to have outdoor dining in that space and around their building once they are done with renovations. They would help provide additional seating and help maintain the space. During the holidays, it will be used as a feature of our Village-wide Spring Lake Sparkle holiday lights displays.
Will your project require special permits from the community you are in? For example, anything that requires a street closure or installing a permanent art piece will likely require a special permit from your local governing body or zoning board. If your project is funded, the MML Foundation is happy to help you navigate that process. Please note that all applicants must obtain any necessary permits for their projects, if selected for funding.
Unsure
Rachel’s Notes about the Project
Reviewed 4.20.23. Confirmed member status. Confirmed LOS. Confirmed project location is viable. Confirmed businesses are downtown–one is a chain but we’re allowing that with other applications. Confirmed artist. Artist will be paid.
ABOUT THE COMMUNITY
Why does your community need this project?
With the implementation of the Spring Lake Social District in 2021, we have been working on adding more public gathering areas within the social district. We don’t have a lot of outdoor seating options in the Social District currently. With Smoke N Ash’s taking over and renovating Mama Mia’s, they are bringing a fresh start to that beloved business and will be extending hours and their menu. They will partner with neighboring Stan’s Bar on to-go orders and social district drinks. Field’s Fabrics draws in quilting and sewing fans from all over the state. Many times the quilter will travel with someone who’s not a fan of hanging out in a fabric store. Instead of waiting in their car, they could come and hang out in the alley, maybe grab a drink or something to eat, read a book, or just simply sit and take in the artwork and local history. It could be a nice family dining option too. Parents could get food from Smoke N Ash’s and social drinks from one of the bars/restaurants. The family could take it to the alley to dine and have family friendly time. We have a need for more family dining experiences in the Village.
How will you engage your community in this project?
We’d like their help with picking the name of the alley. We would have a naming competition on our social media and more. We will reach out to local media to promote the project and how you can suggest a name. We would also share constant progress updates on all of our social channels and website.
What do you hope to achieve through this project?
Having people gather outside! We think this would be a nice amenity for the Village as a whole and goes along with our placemaking efforts. It would provide added value and use of the social district since we don’t have a dedicated gathering spot with the needed amenities currently. Our vision is to see folks come down for lunch and dinner during the warmer months. They can bring their own dinner or they can order from one of the restaurants in the district. This would benefit many businesses in the social district and the rest of the Village. We could even see folks working on their laptops outside on nice days in the alley.
How will the project celebrate the community’s diversity? Diversity can include different ages, races, cultures, socio-economic statuses, abilities, and more.
This would be a welcoming place for all. Food and drinks bring people together. Any seating we would add to the space would be accessible for all. For the artwork and local history, we could have QR codes that offer audio explanations of the art and history. As said previously, we could see this being used a lot by families during lunch and the early evening hours. In the evening, we could see adults gathering in the space for social drinks, food, and playing games.
What resources do you already have to make this project successful? Resources could include things like time, partners, expertise, donated goods/materials/space, matching funds, and more. Please approximate the in-kind value if possible.
The DDA Director would put in most of the legwork for the planning and implementation of the space. Smoke N Ash’s has offered to help maintain the space and is interested in adding seating to the space. We have an Art in the Park program and committee that we will use to select the pieces of art.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Artist First and Last Name:
Maggie Bandstra
Artist Website (If Applicable):
https://www.maggiebandstra.com/
Artist Facebook Handle
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100028107534931
Artist Instagram Handle
https://www.instagram.com/maggiebandstra/
Describe the artist’s or artists’ work. This is not about credentials—what do they do as an artist?
Maggie paints gorgeous scenes of colorful flowers, forests, and more. She can do small scale and large scale paintings. We’ve been wanting to work with her for some time now.
How will the artist be involved in this project?
We would have their artwork mounted in the Alley. It could be current art that she has or it could be new. We would leave that up to the artist, our Art in the Park committee, and the building owner (Field’s Fabrics).
ABOUT THE PARTNERS
Business 1: Business Name:
Field’s Fabrics
Business 1: Business Type:
Retail
Business 1: Business Owner First and Last Name:
Jack Veldman
Business 1: Physical Location Address
212 W. Savidge, Spring Lake
Business 1: Facebook Page Link (If Applicable)
https://www.facebook.com/fieldsfabricsspringlake
How will this partner be involved in the project?
They own the property the alley is at. They have agreed to let us enhance the space. Fields will work on an agreement with the owners of Smoke N Ash’s to allow them to put out seating as well as have them maintain the space (plants, trash, etc).
Business 2: Business Name:
Smoke N Ash’s (Formerly Mama Mia’s)
Business 2: Business Type:
Restaurant
Business 2: Business Owner First and Last Name:
Brad & Alex Ashcraft
Business 2: Business Physical Location Address:
218 W. Savidge, Spring Lake
Business 2: Facebook Page Link (If Applicable)
https://www.facebook.com/smokenashs
How will this second partner be involved in the project?
Smoke N Ash’s is a food truck that started during the pandemic. This is their first brick-and-mortar location. Fields will work on an agreement with the owners of Smoke N Ash’s to allow them to put out seating as well as have them maintain the space (plants, trash, etc). They will be able to serve their food in the alley with seating purchased with the grant money and seating that they provide. They are a young couple who have lots of fun ideas of what else we could add to this space.
Do you have additional partners (business, non-profit, etc.)?
No
What are their names?
What role(s) will they have in the project?
Are they located within the same downtown or business district as the project?
Will your local municipal government be involved in the project? If so, how?
Through the DDA. The DDA Director will be the project manager and will work on purchasing items for the space, coordinating art, design of the new signage, and more. We will also plan a ribbon cutting for the alley.
Please upload a letter of support on letterhead for your project from your local governing body (mayor, city/village manager, city/village council member).
https://mmlfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/formidable/19/MML-Foundation-Micro-Grant-Letter-of-Support-Spring-Lake.pdf
IMAGE UPLOADS
Image Caption 1 (if any): Street front view from M-104/Savidge. Field’s Fabric is to the left and Smoke N Ash’s is to the right. The alley is approximately 10 feet wide and 70 feet long. 96 feet if you go from curb to curb. These two locations are on M-104/Savidge and have 20,000+ cars that pass by every day. A decorative sign could catch attention and get people to stop in the Village to check it out.
Image 1 (if any):
Image Caption 2 (if any): Backside of the alley which connects to a public parking lot. Smoke N Ash’s is on the left and Field’s Fabric is on the right.
Image 2 (if any):
Image Caption 3 (if any): Smoke N Ash’s is currently renovating the former Mama Mia’s building. They will be looking to do a Facade grant and could possibly use some of those funds to help add even more to this alley project.
Image 3 (if any):
Image Caption 4 (if any): Another look while inside the alley
Image 4 (if any):
Image Caption 5 (if any): View looking from Alley to M-104/Savidge.
Image 5 (if any):
