A Grand Traverse County village is working together to revitalize their downtown, and it seems to be paying off.

The Village Manager Dan Hawkins calls Kingsley “a case study in small town government survival.” With shuttered store fronts just a few years ago, the town is bouncing back. “Over the last 20 years small towns have been, what I call, under the chopping block. They’ve been in a situation where folks have to decide are we going to make it or not.”

Kingsley is one of those small towns where the residents made the decision… to survive. The empty storefronts have started to fill. Hawkins says, “That is a very positive sign. But it doesn’t just happen. We have an average age of 34.2 and there’s a youthful community that doesn’t want to see their town die.”

Chelsea Abshire with Judson Market and Restaurant agrees. “We’re just a very close-knit community. Everyone works together. All the kids know each other, the families know each other. A lot of us have grown up together.” Judson’s is one of the newcomers on the scene: a restaurant offering an option other than driving all the way to Traverse City. “They want to be able to come somewhere close. They don’t want to have to go all the way there to have a nice dinner, a warm drink.”

Andy Caldwell is an investor with Southtown Properties. He’s very happy with Kingsley’s growth – and it’s potential. “I think five years ago there was some vacancies and those are pretty much gone now. We’ve had three new restaurants that have started. There’s one on the way.”

The Village Manager says for growth to happen, people have to be willing to take a risk. But Kingsley is proving to be more of a safe bet. Hawkins says, “The pulse is still beating very strongly in this small town. When investors are willing to come in, invest, take a risk.” Caldwell adds, “We had a significant interest in Kingsley about four years ago. And we’ve been investing in the town ever since.”

K-Fitness is also excited to be open in Kingsley. They started with a gym but are expanding – adding kickboxing, plus martial arts, dance, and gymnastics for the kids. Melissa Reno says, “We are shifting our focus to kids.  We still will offer fitness for adults as well, we have kickboxing, boxing, but we’re also going to offer gymnastics and martial arts for kids. We’re trying to bring all of that right here. I want to see us grow yet still keep that community feel. I think that most business owners here really want that.”

Abshire thinks so too. “Now they’re opening a gym, a dance studio. And we have a restaurant they can come to as a family. It’s really great. There’s a gas station, just a lot more employment in the area.”

And they’re relying on one another to make Kingsley a success. Hawkins says, “We need to encourage everyone to buy local, support local, if we want local to happen.” Caldwell adds, “There’s a pride here that’s always existed. And it’s a smaller town but it’s growing.”

Business owners in Kingsley want to show off their community. And you can check it out on Saturday at “Christmas in Kingsley”.

It is being held this Saturday, Dec. 14th.  Festivities start at 1 PM.

First they’ll draw winners from an Outdoor Christmas Lighting Contest – anyone who lives in Kingsley can simply take a photo of their home with the outdoor lights and submit the photo via Village of Kingsley FB page or email it to kvtreasurer@villageofkingsley.com w/ the name and phone number and they will be entered into the contest.  We will then draw names for winners – we have over $700 worth of prizes to give away.

1-3 PM Reindeer Trail – 21 local businesses are opening their doors to community members for activities.  Pick up a card at the location, get your card punched, participate in the activities (some are doing ornament making, crafts, hot coco, cookies, and many other things) and then head to the next destination.  Then bring the card to the Chili Cookoff later that evening to be entered into a drawing for gift certificates and cash prizes.

5-8 PM Santa arrives at 5 on the fire truck to The Rock of Kingsley.  The Rock will be hosting Santa for pictures, a silent auction, and some activities for children

5-8 PM Across the parking lot at the Village of Kingsley Community Room we are holding our 2nd Annual Chili Cookoff  – again this is a FREE event for contestants and participants.  We have a white chili and red chili category – Trophies will be given for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd of both categories.

8-8:30 PM Kingsley High School Choir is signing Christmas Carols at the Memorial Park

8:30 PM The town Christmas Tree will be lit during out Memorial Tree lighting Ceremony – where we will read the names of loved ones and military service members that lights have been purchased for.