Tom Wdowik is relieved these days by waves of vacationers visiting cabins, restaurants and hotels along Lake Huron, despite worries that high gas and food prices this year could stall tourism.
The region relies heavily on travel, and Wdowik wonders if he’d have less anxiety if the state spent more to diversify the economy on the sunrise side of Michigan.
“We’re often the overlooked corner of the state,” said Wdowik, who owns Sandcastle Beach Resort in Oscoda.
Indeed, Michigan has spent $6 billion since 2022 on business support and attraction through its Michigan Economic Development Corp. — and a Bridge Michigan analysis found a wide disparity in spending.
In the northeast Lower Peninsula from Grayling and Oscoda to Cheboyan and Alpena, the state spent $71 per resident during that time on programs from business subsidy grants and small business support to increasing entrepreneurship and capital access.
