Happy Friday, Traverse City. You know the drill – grab your coffee (or whatever you sip in the morning), kick back, and let TC Brief serve up everything you need to know for the weekend ahead.

📰 In the news

Local happenings: School gets a three million dollar overhaul, regional eateries sizzle with global flavors, and a local marine tech startup lands big funding — catch up here.

State-level stories: Michigan workers get 34 million dollars in back unemployment benefits, four star safety flips to Michigan, and an idle nuclear reactor readies for restart — see what else is brewing.

National headlines: 24/7 social security access, dogs detect Parkinson’s, and a new method or reclaiming 98 percent of battery metals — peruse the best of the rest.

Highlights this week

• Tour new conservation hub and goat barn
• Grab free sack lunches with juice
• Get device help from TADL staff
• Discover why Michigan doesn’t need Line 5
• Tour Michigan’s sustainable ecovillages and communities
• iTustCapital offers $0/mo crypto IRA accounts

🫶 We got your back

Drink: Your morning ritual deserves better than gas station swill and drive-thru disappointment. From baristas who remember your “usual” to pastry cases that whisper sweet temptations, these nearby caffeine sanctuaries know great coffee is about way more than just the beans.

Beauty: Ready to level up your self-care game beyond face masks, hope in a jar, and crossing your fingers? These top-rated med spas offer treatments backed by doctors that actually deliver on their promises.

Brunch: Weekend mornings were built for bottomless mimosas and fluffy pancakes, so why settle for bland toast? We’ve rounded up the coziest spots around Traverse City where coffee flows freely and eggs benny never disappoints. Check ’em out here

Family: Looking for creative ways to keep the littles entertained without screens? This guide covers some of the coolest summer outdoor toys and activities for on-the-go kiddos.

👀 Why just read it when you could be in it?

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📆 Around town this weekend

All events are subject to change without notice. This is entirey outside our control. Please check official event pages and social media for the most up to date information.

Today

🎵 The Daylites @ The Little Fleet | Friday (7/18) at 6:00pm – Patio weather calls for The Daylites at The Little Fleet’s outdoor stage, a U-M alumni crew spinning Motown, Classic Rock, disco, and more into a feel-good, high-energy show, guaranteed to make you rethink those weekend chores. BYO dancing shoes and a cold one.

🎤 Let’s Sing Taylor @ Kresge Auditorium | Friday (7/18) at 7:30pm – Grab your glitter boots and head to Interlochen Arts Festival for a DIY Taylor Swift tribute that sounds better after the second chorus. It’s die-hard fans belting every lyric with more enthusiasm than pitch accuracy. Friendship bracelets required, egos optional.

This weekend

🛻 Northern Power Race Park Mud Bogs @ Northern Power Race Park | Saturday (7/19) at 8:00am – Whether you’re piloting a mega truck or just hankering for some four-wheeled chaos, NPRP’s Mud Bogs in Mancelona deliver engine-roaring, rut-deep fun. It’s downright loud, gloriously filthy, and the perfect excuse to swap your air filter for a snorkel. Bring your rig, forget your manicure.

🍝 Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs Kids’ Matinee@ State Theatre | Saturday (7/19) at 10:00am – Catch Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs as a $1 kids’ matinee at the State Theatre, perfect excuse to drag junior out of the house and marvel as spaghetti stones fall. It’s summer in a nutshell, sunny chaos, syrupy sweetness, and nap-friendly leeway for grown-ups.

🛍️ Shopping, Food Trucks, and Family Fun @ Flintfields Horse Park | Saturday (7/19) at 3:00pm – Flintfields Horse Park is serving up high-flying show jumping, fattening bites from food trucks, boutique shopping, and, yes, genuine family fun on the lawn. Bring a blanket or upgrade to a Cabana Box, and relax knowing your ticket pedals in support of Norte Youth Cycling.

🐎 Great Lakes Equestrian Festival III @ Flintfields Horse Park | Sunday (7/20) at 8:00am – When the midsummer humidity makes you question your life choices, local turf transforms into prime show grounds courtesy of B&D Builders. The Great Lakes Equestrian Festival delivers CSI 3\*, a National Grand Prix, hunter derbies, and equitation classes, with horses included, mud optional.

🕺 Disco Queens @ Barrio | Sunday (7/20) at 11:00am – Whether you’re craving a Bloody Maria taco or just need a cure for last night’s regrets, Disco Queens has you covered in Barrio Traverse City. Expect killer drag numbers, disco grooves, and enough breakfast tacos to justify your midday nap.

🎸 Keith Scott Blues @ Shorts Brewery | Sunday (7/20) at 2:00pm – Chicago’s own guitar legend makes a homecoming at our favorite joint, so cancel your nap plans. Keith Scott’s riffs have circled the globe, but he still delivers that smoky, soul-soaked swagger we locals can’t resist.

Next week

🌱 Michigan Ecovillages and Intentional Communities Tour @ Multiple Michigan Locations | Monday (7/21) at 10:00am – Ready for a road trip with real roots? Michigan’s first ecovillages tour kicks off at Interlochen’s art campus and winds through Ann Arbor’s co-housing hotspots, so you can snoop on permaculture plots, off-grid systems. It dips into Detroit’s urban farms and Motown Museum for contrast.

🎶 Live Music @ Bel Lago Winery | Tuesday (7/22) at 5:30pm – Bel Lago is hosting Jim Hawley’s smoothest tracks, perfect for when you’re over backyard chores but under actual vacation. Grab a glass of something crisp, soak up the lakeside vibe, and act surprised when your neighbor shows up, too.

Wanna see more? Browse our full events calendar →

🎶 Live music & entertainment

• 7/18 The Future of Comedy Show @ Union Street Station – 7 pm
• 7/18 Gemini Moon @ Old Mission Distilling – 7:30 pm
• 7/18 NMC Summer Band @ Milliken Auditorium – 7:30 pm
• 7/19 Bryan Poirier @ Bel Lago – 3:30 pm
• 7/19 Slow Tako @ The Little Fleet – 6 pm
• 7/20 Rhett and John @ Dune Bird – 3 pm
• 7/20 Jacob Abraham @ Bel Lago – 3:30 pm
• 7/20 Harbor Summer Concerts @ Edward C. Grace Memorial Harbor – 7 pm
• 7/21 Luke Woltanski @ French Valley – 4 pm
• 7/22 Bachman-Turner Overdrive and more @ Kresge Auditorium – 7 pm

Price is right – Traverse City edition

How it works: We’re going to give you some facts about a home for sale, including a picture of the outside, the kitchen, and one additional room. Your job? Guess how much it’s listed for (preferably before you click to find out).

*This 👇 could be your listing. Hit us up if you’ve got a home (or 12) to sell.

Listed by: Amber Crane (REO-TCFront-233021)

Vaulted ceilings and a wall of windows turn the open-concept living room into a front-row seat for Huellmantel Lake’s best views. The kitchen is a showstopper with custom Wooden Hammer cabinetry, granite counters, and an island big enough for homework, happy hour, and everything in between. Two private offices mean no more Zoom calls from the closet.

Downstairs, the walk-out lower level is ready for movie marathons or lakeside parties, thanks to a sprawling family room and wet bar. A 3-car garage, main-level laundry, and private lake frontage round out the lineup, all tucked into a prime spot just minutes from town.

Make your guess, then (and only then)… see how much it costs →