News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Colburn Outfitters employee Tyler Schwartz sets a pair of Detroit Tigers sunglasses on a display at work on Tuesday. Downtown officials say this summer has been good for business in Alpena.

ALPENA — This summer has been busy in downtown Alpena and local officials believe that can continue through the rest of the year.

On most days, you would be hard pressed to find a time where there aren’t people walking up and down the heart of the business district or utilizing the outdoor dining options to enjoy a meal or cocktail.

Large events like the Michigan Brown Trout Festival further add to the foot traffic downtown, and the new Water Street Commons is also attracting more people downtown., said downtown has been busy since spring, and it has remained that way into the summer. She said local festivals and holidays have drawn people downtown and brought more people from outside the area to town.

“The start of the Flower Festival was the biggest sales day, especially for restaurants and bars and it was even bigger than New Year’s Eve,” she said. “Then, I heard that the Fourth of July weekend beat the Flower Festival, so we have seen some really big sales day downtown.”

Gentry said events like the Brown Trout Festival, Alpena County Fair, and the Flower Festival bring people from out of town to Alpena. She said they tend to gravitate downtown to check out the local scene.

“There is a spill over from those types of events because people are always looking for fun activities to do, so the beauty of an event like Brown Trout is people begin an evening out, go to the festival, and then return downtown for more fun,” Gentry said. “They go to dinner and maybe a drink before, go to a concert, and maybe go bar hopping after. More people who attend those types of events definitely spill over to the downtown because of how close it is and what the downtown has to offer.”

The new Water Street Commons outdoor market is also motivating people to come visit downtown businesses, Gentry said.

“The market has been even busier than we thought it would be because people want to check out what is new,” she said. “It has brought people downtown to check them out and explore elsewhere.”

Gentry said she anticipates the downtown will remain busy, as there are many more events in the pipeline. She said the Alpena Downtown sidewalk sales are on Aug. 8 and 9. A party is also planned downtown celebrating the grand opening of the Water Street Commons later in the day on Aug. 8. The Battle of the Paddles and tall ships will be in Alpena from Aug. 15 to 17, and then the fall-themed events will begin.

Gentry said Witches Night Out this year will be on Oct. 17 and Trunk or Treat will be on Oct. 24. The Day of the Dead celebration is slated for Nov. 1 and then the holiday season follows shortly after.

“There are so many great events and they really help drive business downtown,” she said. “We have had a really good summer so far for business and I think that can carry over to later in the year.”

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 or sschulwitz@TheAlpenaNews.com. Follow him on X @ss_alpenanews.com.