Sponsored by Pure M Café:

Looking for a coffee stop with a little more calm to it? Pure M Café on the Maranatha campus is open daily, 7 AM to 2 PM, and blends coffee, community, and a bookstore all under one roof. It’s an easy detour if you’re already out near Lake Harbor Road. Plan your stop

FLIP IT OVER

Polls are open today from 7 AM to 8 PM, and if you’re in line by 8, you can vote. Not registered yet? You can still register and vote today at your city or township clerk’s office. Bring proof of where you live.

The top of the ballot has the races for governor, U.S. Senate and U.S. House. There are statewide proposals too, including the question Michigan asks every 16 years: should the state hold a constitutional convention?

Further down are the local questions. Those are the ones that hit your property tax bill.

Muskegon County voters decide on a new 0.5-mill Parks and Trails millage for 10 years, worth about $3.6 million in the first year. The county plans to send about 70% to county parks, trails and places like Heritage Landing, and up to 30% to local parks in its 27 cities, villages and townships. It puts the cost at about $50 a year on a $200,000 home and says it would drop the $7 daily parking fee at county parks starting in 2027.

In the Grand Haven Area Public Schools district, one $98.55 million bond question would pay for major renovations at Ferry, Peach Plains and Rosy Mound elementaries, plus new buses, playgrounds, instruments and tech. The district estimates a new 1.95-mill levy starting in 2027, or about $25 to $30 a month for the average homeowner. Ferrysburg voters also get a question on extending the city’s road millage.

Flip your ballot over before you turn it in. The proposals are usually on the back.

📍 Your precinct, find it at michigan.gov/vote
🗓️ Tue, Nov 3, 7 AM to 8 PM

Enjoy the warm one today. Coats come back out by Saturday.

🎈 = family-friendly

Tuesday
🗳️ Election Day – Polls open 7 AM to 8 PM. Details up top.
🥕 Muskegon Farmers Market – 8 AM to 2 PM.

Wednesday
🎨 Michigan Contemporary closes – Muskegon Museum of Art. Last day for the 97th edition.
⚽ WMC in the state semis – 6 PM. See Local Sports.

Friday
🎈🩰 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs – United European Ballet Company, The Frauenthal, 7 PM. Tickets
🏈 District final – Mona Shores at Caledonia, 7 PM. See Local Sports.

Saturday
🎈⚓ USS Silversides reopens – Tours are back at the submarine museum on the channel.
🎈🥕 Muskegon Farmers Market – 8 AM to 2 PM.
🏈 Norse and Bulldogs on the road – Both kick off at 1 PM. See Local Sports.
🥃 Muskegon Bourbon Fest – Muskegon Museum of History & Science, 430 W Clay Ave. Sessions at 1, 4 and 7 PM. Tickets

Sunday
🎈🎁 Holiday Treasures Flea Market – Muskegon Farmers Market barn, 242 W Western Ave, 10 AM to 3 PM. Free.

Coming up
🏒 Lumberjacks back home – vs. Cedar Rapids, Fri-Sat, Nov 13-14, Trinity Health Arena.
🎸 Teddy Petty & The Refugees – The Frauenthal, Fri, Nov 13.
😂 She Said What?! – The Frauenthal, Sat, Nov 14, 7:30 PM, $30.

⚓ Still Short of Port – The Silversides is home, but the bill isn’t paid off. Late last week the museum was about $215,000 short of covering the $3.5 million project.

🥕 Tuesday Market Countdown – The Muskegon Farmers Market’s Tuesday markets run through Nov 24, 8 AM to 2 PM.

🏛️ Closed Friday – Muskegon City Hall is closed all day Friday, Nov 6. Plan any clerk or water bill trips for earlier in the week.

🌅 Pier Walk Verdict – You picked Muskegon over Grand Haven in last week’s poll. The “whichever has less wind” crowd might have the smartest answer for November, though.

🎄 Holiday Calendar's Up – Muskegon's tree lighting is Saturday, Nov 28 in Hackley Park, and Grand Haven's Jingle Bell Parade rolls Saturday, Dec 5. We put every 2026 tree lighting, parade and Santa visit on both sides of the lakeshore in one spot: the Lowdown holiday guide.

Three of our teams are still alive after a wild opening round. Mona Shores (9-1) trailed Traverse City Central 21-7 and still won 49-42 behind 188 rushing yards from QB Owen Terpstra and two kickoff-return touchdowns from Bryce Muskovin. At North Muskegon (9-1), senior Cullen Bartos scored three times to break Stan Guy’s school record of 55 career touchdowns, which had stood since 1954.

District semifinal results:

District finals this weekend:

Ravenna is chasing its first district title since 2016.

Around the county

⚽ Final Four, Again – Western Michigan Christian plays Kalamazoo Christian in a Division 4 state semifinal Wednesday at 6 PM. The Warriors beat the Comets 3-0 in August, but K-Christian hasn’t lost in 20 games since.

🏐 District Week – Muskegon and Reeths-Puffer opened the Division 1 district Monday at Coopersville. The winner gets Grand Haven Wednesday at 5 PM, Mona Shores plays Coopersville at 7, and the final is Thursday at 6.

🏒 Iowa Swing – The Lumberjacks play two at Dubuque this weekend, Friday and Saturday at 8:05 PM our time.

Tuesday 71 🌡️ 59 | ☁️ | 30% | 💨 S 12-15 kt, gusts to 26
Wednesday 64 🌡️ 52 | 🌧️ | 70% | 💨 SW 10-20 kt
Thursday 55 🌡️ 47 | 🌦️ | 30% | 💨 W 10-20 kt
Friday 51 🌡️ 39 | ☁️ | 20% | 💨 NW 10-15 kt
Saturday 50 🌡️ 38 | ☁️ | 15% | 💨 N 5-15 kt

🌊 Waves 3 to 5 ft Tuesday, 2 to 4 ft Wednesday and Thursday, 1 to 3 ft by the weekend | 💧 Water upper 40s

The verdict: Today tops out near 70, the warmest we’ll see for a while. Any morning showers clear out, but it’s gusty, so hang onto your “I Voted” sticker. Rain moves in overnight and soaks Wednesday. By Friday night’s game in Caledonia, it’s blanket weather.

Short list this week. Kirby House has both weekend nights in Grand Haven, and Bourbon Fest promises live music at all three Saturday sessions. November calendars are still filling in, so expect a longer list soon.

Friday, Nov 6
Kirby House | Nate Holley | 9 PM-12:30 AM

Saturday, Nov 7
Kirby House | The Cheap Dates | 9 PM-12:30 AM

STICK AROUND

In 1947, the Nelson family spent about $600 on a nine-by-seven-foot stand on Harbor Drive and started selling Pronto Pups. The batter-dipped dog on a stick was invented on the Oregon coast by George Boyington, and the Nelsons bought in after hearing his pitch. For years plenty of Grand Haven figured the family invented it, and Chuck Nelson’s son Carl has said so himself. On a busy summer day the little white stand by the channel can sell about 1,500 of them. It’s closed for the season now, so the line on Harbor Drive will have to wait for warmer weather.

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Thanks for reading. The Silversides crossed that same lake this weekend on a tow line and made it home in 15 hours. Go say hi Saturday. See you Friday.