Maybe you’ve heard about a place like this, a place where kids can still bike to the corner grocer for ice cream cones and where there are still family-owned hardware and book stores downtown, with retailers so exceptional they prosper even in the face of bigger competition.
It’s a place where “going green” isn’t the newest trend; appreciating nature has always been a way of life.
This is Emmet County, Michigan.
Maybe you’ve traveled here as a child to summer or ski, remembering how life just felt different north of the 45th parallel. Maybe you’ve longed for a log cabin on a lake. Or perhaps the appeal of living here year ‘round has always been in the back of your mind.
There is no better time to live the Emmet County lifestyle than now.
While economic fluctuations are changing the face of towns around the country, Emmet County finds itself in a comfortable, stable position. Our diverse economy, world-class medical care, unmatched natural amenities, thousands of acres of county parkland and enduring resort communities make this one place where the chaos disappears and where life is lived to the fullest each season of the year.
In today’s wired world, it’s possible more than ever to choose where you want to live instead of where you have to work. This philosophy is evident in the number of small local start-ups that have gone national, and by looking at the resumes of the influential leaders who call Emmet County home while conducting business internationally.
They’re writing the continuing chapters of this community that is steeped in rich history, the place where Ernest Hemingway spent his summers, the land of L’Arbre Croche (the Crooked Tree) and the place where the Bay View Association’s famed Victorian “gingerbread” cottages have stood since 1875, many within the same families.
As we look back at our history with deference to those founders and philanthropists who came before, we move ahead progressively with providence. I am proud to have served as administrator of this county for 26 years, during which time the area has experienced significant growth and also kept its core values. We invite you for a visit, and even more so, to stay. Become part of Emmet County. We have a tremendous amount of assets to offer you, your family and your business.
This is truly that place you’ve heard about, where quality of life is everything
Lyn Johnson
EMMET COUNTY CONTROLLER
Accolades
RAVE REVIEWS FOR EMMET COUNTY
We love it when they love us! Rarely a year goes by without several publications and their writers discovering all the wonderful things about Emmet County. Some of the top honors and recognitions bestowed upon this area include:
- Midwest Living magazine ranked Petoskey No. 2 among the Best Small-Town Getaways in 2008.
- Petoskey has made the lists of “The 100 Best Small Towns in America,” “The Great Towns of America,” and “America’s 100 Best Places to Retire.”
- Outdoor Life magazine, summer 2009, listed Petoskey among its “Top 200 Towns for Sportsmen,” (No. 80) citing access to hunting and fishing opportunities, combined with local quality-of-life indicators.
- Petoskey is featured in “101 Best Outdoor Towns,” a book by Sarah Tuff and Greg Melville released in May 2009. “The Caribbean has nothing over the view from town as the sun extinguishes into Lake Michigan behind the Creamsicle horizon,” reads the Petoskey entry. “Couple that with the back-in-time feel of the artsy downtown Gaslight District, the long beach walks and the views of Little Traverse Bay from the top of sandy Old Baldy, and you’ve got one of the most romantic spots in the Midwest.”
- Travel journalist Patricia Schultz’s book “1,000 Places to See in the U.S.A. and Canada Before You Die,” includes an entry for the Little Traverse Bay area.
- Boyne Highlands boasts the Donald Ross Memorial course and the Heather designed by Robert Trent Jones, named No. 55 in the “Top 100 Courses you can Play” by Golf Magazine.
- Petoskey was included with seven other towns in the January/February 2009 issue of “Where to Retire” magazine, in the article, “8 Terrific Low-Tax Towns.” ,
- Emmet County was ranked sixth for access to health care in the “Best Places to Live in Rural America,” by Progressive Farmer in 2007; the listing was based on a health density ratio of resources to number of people.
- The high-end resort and year-round community of Bay Harbor, just east of Petoskey, garners considerable attention, including Top 50 “Best Resort Courses” by Conde Nast Traveler; the Urban Land Institute’s Award for Excellence; and the No. 20 ranking in America’s “Top 75 Golf Resorts” by GOLF Magazine.
The Wall Street Journal has also named Bay Harbor among the top five places to retire in the U.S. at age 50. In 2009, CNBC awarded Bay Harbor the International Property Award for Best Residential Development. - The Inn at Bay Harbor - A Renaissance Golf Resort, recognized by Travel + Leisure magazine as one of The World’s Best Hotels.