With the cancellation of the 2024 Leland wine and food festival finally a reality, the thought of not being able to raise a glass at this local function is a chink in the armor of summer plans.
For more than 30 years, the Leland Wine and Food Festival served as a pillar of Leelanau County’s wine industry that brings visitors in from far and wide to taste what Leelanau vintages have to offer.
The Leland Chamber of Commerce generates roughly $50,000 from the event, their sole fundraiser for the year, which includes revenue from attendance, vendors, and advertisements. The closing of the festival will undoubtably have a negative impact on the chamber’s ability to maintain the function of its website, social media, and statewide distribution of printed materials about the Leland area. The chamber distributes more than 30,000 brochures across the state that is funded by this festival. The Leland wine and food festival also is a major revenue generator for the Fourth of July fireworks.
The event has been through its ups and downs in recent years after being shutoff due to COVID in 2020 and 2021 and having to move from the Leland Harbor in 2022 and 2023 to the Leland Lodge due to construction in Fishtown. The Lodge can’t accommodate the festival any longer, and the chamber discussed the possibility of shutting down a street for a day that ultimately didn’t gain traction. The Leland Harbor Commission turned down a request to host the event once again.
Restrictions from the Department of Environmental Quality and Waterways Commission won’t allow full use of the Fishtown parking lot, even though the festival was held at the harbor for more than 25-years. The Liquor Control Commission has delayed approving the liquor license application, forcing the Chamber’s hand to make a decision based on the approval uncertainty.
With the announcement of cancellation for the June festival, many are left wondering what is next? And so are we. The iconic wine and food festival will try to go again in 2025, but time will only tell.
The Leland Chamber of Commerce is reaching out to members and the community to step up support for the chamber’s important projects. They also need to hear from the community on how best to move forward with a solution to continue the annual wine and food festival.
If you have ideas and suggestions, and can provide additional support to the chamber, please do so.
This event brought most of the local wineries together and was a popular event for visitors and locals alike. We hope that as a community we can come together to assure the future of the festival.
Leelanau County fast is becoming a well-known and respected wine region. The return of this signature event will help solidify that reputation and continue to bring recognition, and tourists and their dollars, to our area.
