GRAND LEDGE, Mich. — Local businesses in downtown Grand Ledge are coming together to support the reopening of Ledge Craft Lane, a community art space where neighbors can connect and create.
- The over 50-year-old nonprofit temporarily closed in December due to a failing heating system
- Local businesses including Arms and Embers, Pam's Pantry, The Collective and Rebel Mimi are collecting donations
- The goal is to reopen in spring with plans for free art programs for kids
"I love Ledge Craft Lane, it's two blocks from my house, I'm there all the time," Josh Wyatt said.
WATCH: Community rallies to help reopen Grand Ledge's Ledge Craft Lane stronger
Wyatt has gone from a customer to a vendor and now serves on the board at Ledge Craft Lane in Grand Ledge.
"I think it's a really key cornerstone to the city, it's been here for 52 years now I think is the number," Wyatt said.
In December, the nonprofit temporarily closed due to a failing heat system. Efforts to raise enough money to fix the system fell short, but local businesses and neighbors are stepping in to help.
Oriana Ferrara and Chris Kinne are co-owners of Arms and Embers in downtown Grand Ledge. For just over a year now, they've been turning a pole in their restaurant into a donation pole.
"It's called the ugly pole because it's the ugly thing in the middle of the restaurant," Kinne said.
This month they're collecting donations for Ledge Craft Lane.
"We decided to put it up on the pole for the month and see what we could do to help out in any way we could," Ferrara said.
Pam's Pantry, The Collective and Rebel Mimi are also been collecting donations as part of the effort.
Stephanie Lapp, president of the nonprofit Ledge Craft Lane, says the support is appreciated.
"The contributions from the other businesses in town have been wonderful," Lapp said.
As of now, the fundraising is still not enough to start work on the boiler to fix the heating system. Even so, inside the shop, efforts to renovate and find solutions to their heat problem have been moving full speed ahead.
"It's actually been quite fruitful around here, we've been able to get things done that haven't been done in 50 years," Lapp said.
The goal is to be back open in the spring.
"The plan is to do free art for kids in the future, to have a space here for people to come and do art all year long," Lapp said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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