tourists go home!!!

Idea Maker wrote:

seymore, you seem to be fixated on bashing me. yes, i get the message: i get on your nerves. what ELSE do you have to say?

Actually, you don't get on my nerves. I find your idiocy entertaining and far from frustrating. You stand out as a moron above morons. Sort of a Family Guy of this forum. The humor is you pal. Kind of like someone who doesn't know their zipper is open or there is a trail of toilet paper hanging out their pants. What's funny is how you just don't get it and are so out of touch with reality.

Seymore wrote:

<quoted text>
Actually, you don't get on my nerves. I find your idiocy entertaining and far from frustrating. You stand out as a moron above morons. Sort of a Family Guy of this forum. The humor is you pal. Kind of like someone who doesn't know their zipper is open or there is a trail of toilet paper hanging out their pants. What's funny is how you just don't get it and are so out of touch with reality.

right on Seymore!

well a lot of nice comments about good old south haven well i would like to say i was raised there but moved to northcarolina 30 years ago and we want you folks to know we welcome you tourist, anytime i live close to harrahs cherokee casino in the great smokey mountains and i see a lot of cars from michigan and you dont here us saying go home cause we like your money it makes our state rich and not dieing in poverty

windlaughter nc wrote:

well a lot of nice comments about good old south haven well i would like to say i was raised there but moved to northcarolina 30 years ago and we want you folks to know we welcome you tourist, anytime i live close to harrahs cherokee casino in the great smokey mountains and i see a lot of cars from michigan and you dont here us saying go home cause we like your money it makes our state rich and not dieing in poverty

Well said! You take the opportunities you are given and you make something with it. SH has the most beautiful beaches and Lake anywhere - a reason for people to come. We should be proud of what we have and want to show it off, to share it and to benefit from it financially.

Water, beaches, and natural areas are South Haven's greatest assets. You SH people should preserve it well and make it work for you. With a little creativity and long-term thinking and investment could turn that whole state around. The auto industry isn't going to come back any time soon. So work with what you have, preserve it, see the value, and welcome those tourist dollars. You've got to make those tourist dollars work for the betterment of your community, not just a few real estate developers. Anyone who owns property in SH should have to pay taxes regardless of whether or not they are there for only a short (nice) season. Redistribute the wealth for the betterment of the whole community, not just a few yuppies who don't really "mingle" with the natives.

south haven has too many condos popping up. too many homes that us locals can't afford. the extra money from those who by the condos isn't worth it.

the condos in this town sit empry.there are swaths of homes for rent, with no takers. there are huge subdivisions with no buyers. there are foreclosed homes everywhere.
quit worrying. the recession will and is ending the condomania.
I doubt we will see any building of condos anytime soon.

Idea Maker,
There are a lot of great places you can afford in south haven. I've seen houses for $30k. You could own a house for under $300 a month. South Haven is trying very hard to make South Haven locals and visitors happy.
As you can probably guess I own Sharkless downtown. yea we do a little bit of items our visitors would like. But we also work very hard for locals, but we also do kiteboarding, skateboarding, wakeboarding, skimboarding. If you can think of something we don't do we would love to try to bring it in. Right now we just brought in Snowboards, Iceskates, Northface clothing. These are things for locals we wont see many visitors until next May. We won't be closing for winter. We are year round! This is a tourist town yes! Like most shops downtown we make 2/3 of our total revenue during June through August. This town lives on our visitors with out them, this town would be a ghost town. South Haven needs growth. I found visitors and locals are treated fairly with our local police. Everything is on how you approach anyone. If you approach with an attitude your going to get attitude.
Our town is awesome! You just have to be open minded. You sound like your maybe late teens early 20's. There are a lot of things to do. If you don't what your looking for well then start it. This town is very open to new things.
I'm sorry Shdweller you just seem negative in general. I read some of your other posts and I just want to get you a latte and say it's going to get better.
Before I started what I do now, I spent 10 years working in the IT field in Benton Harbor. One day I realized I don't like having to leave South Haven everyday and return to it at night. Now I get to stay here all the time and Love it!

Chris at Sharkless wrote:

Idea Maker,
There are a lot of great places you can afford in south haven. I've seen houses for $30k. You could own a house for under $300 a month. South Haven is trying very hard to make South Haven locals and visitors happy.
As you can probably guess I own Sharkless downtown. yea we do a little bit of items our visitors would like. But we also work very hard for locals, but we also do kiteboarding, skateboarding, wakeboarding, skimboarding. If you can think of something we don't do we would love to try to bring it in. Right now we just brought in Snowboards, Iceskates, Northface clothing. These are things for locals we wont see many visitors until next May. We won't be closing for winter. We are year round! This is a tourist town yes! Like most shops downtown we make 2/3 of our total revenue during June through August. This town lives on our visitors with out them, this town would be a ghost town. South Haven needs growth. I found visitors and locals are treated fairly with our local police. Everything is on how you approach anyone. If you approach with an attitude your going to get attitude.
Our town is awesome! You just have to be open minded. You sound like your maybe late teens early 20's. There are a lot of things to do. If you don't what your looking for well then start it. This town is very open to new things.
I'm sorry Shdweller you just seem negative in general. I read some of your other posts and I just want to get you a latte and say it's going to get better.
Before I started what I do now, I spent 10 years working in the IT field in Benton Harbor. One day I realized I don't like having to leave South Haven everyday and return to it at night. Now I get to stay here all the time and Love it!

Chris,

Good for you for posting. Thank you for all you are doing to keep your business open all year and open to everyone. There are a lot of armchair complainers who post here. It's the tourist who help keep your business open, help you pay your rent/taxes and help support the entire community. Why do folks think that only tourists participate in sporting activities? I'm sure plenty of locals are your customers, too.

I know it's tough running a business in SH during these times. Stick it out - it will get better. The local businesses have weathered these storms over the years. Thanks to business owners like you, the town usually comes back stronger and more vibrant than ever!

Thanks!!!

Kilwins will be opening soon in South Haven. Chocolates, ice cream , candies. this will put some pressure on the current ice cream and chocolate shoppes already here, but it might also create some competition with prices. I hope they all survive each other.

SH Native wrote:

<quoted text>
Chris,
Good for you for posting. Thank you for all you are doing to keep your business open all year and open to everyone. There are a lot of armchair complainers who post here. It's the tourist who help keep your business open, help you pay your rent/taxes and help support the entire community. Why do folks think that only tourists participate in sporting activities? I'm sure plenty of locals are your customers, too.
I know it's tough running a business in SH during these times. Stick it out - it will get better. The local businesses have weathered these storms over the years. Thanks to business owners like you, the town usually comes back stronger and more vibrant than ever!
Thanks!!!

Im not so much negative as I am realistic. there are not a lot of well paid jobs in south haven, and there is an ever shrinking middle class. I am mostly concerned that we are losing our infrastructure of middle class local people.
I do not blame the south haven city council for this, or south haven in general. I blame the multinational corporations for their outsourcing of jobs to other countries, and the lack of regulations that allow large companies to send jobs overseas. I blame NAFTA and free trade agreements that do not protect american workers.
I am 60 yrs old, I have seen this country going downhill since the Reagan era. I have had enough lattes, thanks anyway.

I hope your business does well, and good luck.

shdweller wrote:

Kilwins will be opening soon in South Haven. Chocolates, ice cream , candies. this will put some pressure on the current ice cream and chocolate shoppes already here, but it might also create some competition with prices. I hope they all survive each other.

This is a bold move. Kilwin's is good but you will never get me to switch from Sherman's and their chocolate malt supreme! I'll visit them when I'm in saugatuck.

Sherman's IS South Haven!

Chris at Sharkless wrote:

But we also work very hard for locals, but we also do kiteboarding, skateboarding, wakeboarding, skimboarding. If you can think of something we don't do we would love to try to bring it in. Right now we just brought in Snowboards, Iceskates, Northface clothing. These are things for locals we wont see many visitors until next May. We won't be closing for winter. We are year round!

good 4 u!:-)

shdweller wrote:

<quoted text>there are not a lot of well paid jobs in south haven...ever shrinking middle class...losing our infrastructure of middle class local people...multinational corporations...outsourcing of jobs to other countries...lack of regulations that allow large companies to send jobs overseas....NAFTA and free trade agreements that do not protect american workers.

ain't that the truth.

the latest local gossip is that a "Debt Relief" loan agency is moving into the old Edward Jones office downtown . I find that ironic , if it is true.

The sharks are circling....

KyObserver wrote:

The sharks are circling....

well said!