Leelanau Gets New Coworking/Child Care Hybrid; Locals Lake Leelanau Opens; Other Business News

Leelanau County is getting a hybrid child care and coworking space this summer – something founder Kendall Rose says is a first-of-its-kind for northern Michigan. The Leelanau Ticker has the scoop, as well as details about the opening of Locals Lake Leelanau, the reemergence of several local seasonal restaurants, and various other tidbits from around the county.

The Aspen House eyes June opening

Last February, the Leelanau Ticker reported on The Aspen House, a new hybrid child care and coworking space that Cedar-based parent, wedding planner, and business owner Kendall Rose was looking to bring the county. Now, that concept is close to coming to fruition: Pending a few remaining formalities with county government, Rose tells The Ticker The Aspen House should open its doors next month.

“A lot of people are familiar with the concept of a coworking space, with the rise in remote and hybrid work, and with local options like Grove and 20Fathoms,” Rose says. “And then people are also obviously familiar with daycares and preschools. But they’re not always sure how the two fit together in one building and under one business model. The concept is fairly new; across the United States, there are maybe 15-20 of these businesses. There’s only one other one in Michigan right now, down in Ann Arbor.”

Speaking to the Leelanau Ticker last winter, Rose said she realized that many of her friends were also “moms that are small business owners,” and that many were “driving to Traverse City and the YMCA, because the Y offers two hours of complimentary child care with your membership, for parents to utilize while they’re using YMCA facilities.” Rather than using that child care time to hit the gym, Rose said she and many fellow moms were dropping their kids off “and then sitting on the computer in the lounge trying to get some work done.”

That experience inspired Rose to start The Aspen House, a coworking space with a flexible drop-in child care option under the same roof. In April, the business took up residence in the former ATI Physical Therapy space at Hansen’s Plaza in Suttons Bay (pictured). Now, pending some final steps with the Leelanau County Building Safety Department, Rose is planning to open The Aspen House in June.

Renovations are underway in the building, which includes 3,000 square feet of “flexible use space” for coworking, including areas Rose plans to use as a lounge, a meeting/conference room, a “hot desk” room, a private call room, and a communal kitchen. The building will also include “a large multi-age children’s play space,” which will be able to accommodate up to 16 kids aged six months to five years.

The Aspen House is not a licensed child care facility. “With this business model, we are license-exempt, because parents are on site working,” Rose explains. Despite the non-daycare, non-preschool model, The Aspen House has a three-person child care team, whose backgrounds range from local preschools to maternal infant healthcare. For those workers, Rose says one of her priorities was to offer a living wage.

“We started at $24 an hour for our staff, which is $2 higher than even the highest paid child care workers in our area tend to be making, and $5 to $7 more an hour than most local child care facilities,” Rose says. “We wanted to show that these people are professionals; they’re the backbone of our economy, and they deserve to be compensated accordingly.”

The Aspen House is booking out seasonal memberships, with options available for recurring, flexible, hourly, or drop-in child care. More details are available here. Rose will also host a membership information night and open house from 4-7pm on Wednesday, May 21.

Locals Lake Leelanau to open this weekend

Locals Lake Leelanau, the new restaurant and retail shop opening in the space formerly occupied by Northern Latitudes Distillery, will open for business tomorrow, Saturday, May 10. Owner Tony West announced the news this week in an emotional video on the business’s Facebook page.

“May 10, 1871, the village of Provemont was incorporated,” West said in the video, referring to the first post office ever opened in Lake Leelanau. The post office and the town carried the name Provemont until 1924, when both were renamed Lake Leelanau. “ As we begin to set the table and look at what a fun date would be to get the doors open here at Locals, we thought, let’s go for it. May 10, 2025 is the date,” West continued.

Locals will operate from noon to 9pm on Saturday and Sunday. “We’re going to regroup Monday-Tuesday, make sure everything’s still working properly, safe, ready to rock and roll,” West said. “Then, next Wednesday, we start seven days a week, full time.”

“We hope it’s packed. Can’t wait to see you,” he added.

Other business news:

>Nittolo’s Little Italy, the brand-new Traverse City satellite location of the popular Lake Leelanau Italian restaurant, opened its doors in downtown TC’s Warehouse District yesterday.

>The Leelanau Ticker reported last month that the Leland Building, home to Trish’s Dishes, had hit the market for $1.99 million. Despite the listing, Trish Kropp says the restaurant plans on staying put, and that her lease is “secured for the next five years.”

>VI Grill in Suttons Bay is bringing back breakfast service for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The breakfast concept, dubbed “Café VI,” will open next Monday, May 12. Café seating will occupy a space between the VI Grill’s patio and tavern space. Hours are 7-11am Fridays through Tuesdays.

>Cedar’s Blue Moon Ice Cream Shop kicked off its 2025 season on Saturday, April 26.

>Speaking of Leelanau County ice cream spots, Dalzell Dairy in Suttons Bay marked its opening day last Thursday, May 1.

>Also up and running for the 2025 season is Northport restaurant Fingers Crossed, which came back online for the year on Thursday, April 17.

>Staying on the taco theme, Taqueria Las Lagunas has brought its food truck back to Barrels and Barrels in Suttons Bay. The truck had its season opener last weekend and will be open Friday through Sunday from 11am to 8pm for the foreseeable future.

>Owners of Bay Burrito in Suttons Bay tell the Leelanau Ticker that they’ll be reopening the restaurant for the season next Saturday, May 17.

>The Cedar-based plant nursey CountySide Gardens will reopen for the season at 9am Mother’s Day. The business is under new ownership, with husband-and-wife team Andrew and Chloe Near taking over for former owners Sheila and Ozzy Osburn, who started CountrySide Gardens in 1987.

>Lake Leelanau hot dog joint Capital Dog has announced on its website that it will reopen on Wednesday, May 14.