ICE SHOW WILL WARMLY SALUTE PANDEMIC HEROES
Sponsorships available through Jan. 25; visitors asked to wear masks, practice distancing
Visitors to the Mount Clemens Ice Carving Show next month will notice a few things different this year.
And not all of it is related to the pandemic.
The show will have a theme of thanking frontline workers who have worked during the coronavirus crisis. It will also have an expanded space to show off the ice sculptures.
Because COVID-19 has devastating effect on bars and restaurants — businesses that typically sponsor the wintertime show — the Downtown Development Authority is using unused money to pick up the tab.
“We didn’t feel comfortable asking for sponsorships because we know they are suffering right now and didn’t think it was the right thing to do,” said Mayor Laura Kropp.
Ice sculptors from Chef Jeff Wolf, a culinary arts instructor at Macomb Community College’s Culinary Institute and owner of Finesse Cuisine, will present a tribute to police officers, firefighters, nurses, doctors, and teachers.
“Everyone who has been doing an excellent job for the last 12 months,” the mayor said. “We will be honoring them with these beautiful ice sculptures.”
Now in its 16th year, the show will run from Friday, Feb. 5 through Sunday, Feb. 7 in the downtown area. Sculptures will be on display at the Fountain Stage on Macomb Place, Macomb Place, and the Cherry Street Mall area.
An anonymous donor purchased a series of planters that are now in Cherry Street Mall with various greens to make it look “so much fresher and revitalized,” Kropp said.
“We’ll have a Hallway of Heroes in the mall with expressing how grateful we are for the essential workers,” said Michelle Weiss, the DDA’s marketing coordinator. “And we’ll have postcards where you can write a
message to the workers and tape them to the Nest Collaborative.”
Organizers also are hoping the state’s ban on inperson dining is lifted during the first week of February so the restaurants and bars will be opened limited hours for the ice show.
In addition to established favorites such as Bath City Bistro, Your Mothers and Abbibo, the downtown has a number of new places to eat and drink expected to open in the coming months. Those include Black Cat coffee shop, New Age Noodles, Cellar 104 World Varietal Winery, Cake Experience, Cake Experience bake shop and Clementine’s Pastries.
Visitors are asked to be respectful of other guests and wear a mask practice social distancing.
Event sponsors include Theut Products of Chesterfield Township, City of Mount Clemens and the Mount Clemens Downtown Development Authority.
Weiss said the show is accepting other sponsorships — through businesses or individuals — through Jan. 25. She said it’s a great way to market a business, celebrate a special anniversary or birthday, of memorialize a loved one.
For more information, call 866-469-4168 or check out the DDA’s Facebook page at Downtown Mount Clemens.