NEGATIVES OF CHERRY FESTIVAL

Along with the many positive aspects of the the National Cherry Festival comes a few downfalls of the festival on Traverse City, Michigan. Jodi Brady, a resident of Traverse City for 27 years, says she becomes frustrated with the large of abundance of tourists that this festival brings, especially while driving and shopping. She says her daily 15-minute drive to work usually turns into a 30 to 40-minute drive. Another resident, Jessie Black, also says she doesn’t like how the National Cherry Festival leaves a mess downtown. She says, “Many tourists don’t respect this city during the Cherry Festival. It makes me upset that when I go to the beaches or downtown, there is trash everywhere on the ground. Not cool.”