The Strega Nonna Experience, Upfront Rumors, the Housing Boom?, Vajda’s Return, Rotations’ Departure
The Latest from Marquette, MI by Brian Cabell
IT’S NOT THE kind of restaurant where you order a plate of spaghetti with meat sauce, some butter-soaked garlic bread, maybe a tiny side salad, and a glass of Chianti…and 60 minutes later, you walk out the door, having paid $62 dollars for your party of two…No, Stregga Nonna, the new arrival on Negaunee’s dining scene, is different—you’ll likely order the ever-changing four course meal, served family-style, you’ll try things you’ve never tasted before, you’ll spend at least two, maybe three hours enjoying your meal…and you’ll walk out of there with a dinner tab likely between $120 and $180 for your party of two.
But you will have had fun, you will have had an experience unlike any other in Marquette County… “It’s kind of like going to Grandma’s house and eating whatever she’s cooking,” says owner and chef Rachael Grossman, who occasionally serves the meals herself, and flits from table to table, chatting up diners when she’s not busy in the kitchen…A convivial atmosphere, colorful surroundings…
Can it work in Negaunee? Our waitress told us most of the diners were coming from Marquette, but Grossman insists Strega Nonna has created genuine excitement in Negaunee, and the locals are supporting the restaurant…We’ll see…Currently, Strega Nonna is open just Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings…Sundays may be added in the summer.
WE’RE HEARING FIRST-HAND reports that Upfront owner Rhys Mussman has been in town recently and has mentioned plans to reopen the restaurant/bar under a different name, likely this year…Our attempts to contact Mussman directly have failed so far…Upfront, at one time a prominent musical venue in Marquette, has been closed since 2012.
FINALLY, SOME PROGRESS on the critical housing shortage in Marquette? Maybe… “We’re keeping a close watch on the projects in the works,” says city manager Karen Kovacs, “but we believe, conservatively, that close to 500 housing units will be built in Marquette and the surrounding area in the next 5-7 years.”…That may be a conservative estimate when you add up all the projects: Veridea is planning a major housing development on the old hospital property—maybe 300 units in the next decade…and will start building a 60 unit development at Hemlock Park this year…In addition, Longyear is planning a 240-unit development out by Forestville, another developer is planning a 160 unit apartment complex out toward the ski hill…Yet another developer is proceeding with plans to build 96 upscale condos near Clark’s Park…and we recently learned about a 50-unit complex planned near the old Shopko location…
That’s a lot of housing…Will those plans come to fruition? Maybe. Hopefully, most of them…Will many of them be designed for people with normal incomes? Ahhh, well, that’s another question.
HAVE YOU DRIVEN in the YMCA parking lot lately? Pothole-city…The holes are everywhere and many are deep…The Y is actually situated on city property (the Y pays the city $1 a year on its lease) and normally, you might expect the city to fix the vast lot…However… “That would be a very pricey fix,” says Kovacs, the city manager, “and right now, with our priorities, we don’t have the money for it.” She suggests that maybe with some financial assistance—from the Y, itself?—they could try to remedy the problem…Talk to YMCA CEO Jenna Zdunek, and you’ll hear the same story… “We don’t have the money for it,” she says. “There’s nothing in the budget.” At the very least, she’s hoping maybe the city could fill the potholes…
ROTATIONS, THE LITTLE deli downtown, is no more. Owner Cliff Jacobson, who arguably made the best sandwiches in town, has called it quits… “I’ve been living my dream of owning a restaurant for the last four years,” he says, “but now I’m done with the dream. It’s time to move on. No more cooking for a while…” What’s left unsaid is that running a one-person restaurant, while maintaining top quality, is exhausting…Jacobson says he plans to go into the trades.
FORMER CITY MANAGER Bill Vajda is back in town as the new director of the Upper Peninsula Cyber Security Institute…Actually, he never truly left town but he took big government jobs in Alaska, Washington DC, and Wyoming while maintaining his home here…A serious health issue, now resolved, and a desire to lead a calmer, closer-to-home lifestyle, brought him back to Marquette… “I’ve spent most of my career as a technology executive,” Vajda says in explaining why the cyber security job is a good fit for him…The Upper Peninsula Cyber Security Institute opened four years ago. It provides education and training for NMU students and non-students in the increasingly important field of cyber security.
PUBLIC DEFENDERS IN Marquette County need a pay raise…So says Chief Public Defender Patrick Crowley who claims that, under state guidelines which consider caseload and experience, his attorneys should be making considerably more in salary… “Hiring and retention of attorneys here is very difficult,” he says, suggesting a pay raise would help solve the problem…Public defenders are county employees, but most of their pay comes from the state.
Here's the dilemma: if public defenders get a pay boost, then so should the attorneys in the Prosecutor’s office, to maintain parity…That could take a big bite out of the county budget…County Administrator Scott Erbisch is aware of the apparent problem at the Defender’s office. “There’s a minimum standard (for paying the Defenders) and we’re pretty close on most employees,” he says. “We’re reviewing it right now.”…He expects the county to make a decision on the pay raises by the end of the month.
HERE'S SOMETHING YOU won’t find at most high schools: a Cheese Club, newly formed at Marquette Senior High School… “We’re just big food fanatics,” says Lily Dixon, one of the club’s cofounders. “There’s a whole world of cheese that kids have never been introduced to.” The first meeting of the club drew nine students, the second one attracted 19, with guest speaker Charlie Klecha, the cheese monger at Everyday Wines…And yes, he was taken aback by the response. “It was totally surprising,” he says. “In the other metropolitan areas where I’ve worked, I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s amazing.”
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Hello Brian, I am one of the Kiwanis Fourth of July parade, directors, and want to announce that the Kiwanis club has selected Nheena Ittner as parade Marshall for this Fourth of July parade, and Marquette in honor of her incredible service to the Hupy children’s Museum