Iconic East Lansing festival could make a return

EAST LANSING, Mich. (WILX) - An iconic East Lansing festival hopes to rebrand and reopen after a hiatus of seven years.

'The Great Lakes Folk Festival' ran for 15 years. It included nearly 100 performers on multiple stages throughout Downtown East Lansing.

Community members have been begging to bring it back and now they have that chance.

"I am so excited. I'm like shaking with excitement that this is on the table again because it was so special," said a community member.

On Monday, community members pitched their ideas and concerns to members from the city's Arts Commission and Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission.

The festival once featured music, ethnic crafts and traditional food. While the community hopes to bring that back, they also want to make some changes. They're reconsidering the festival's name to encourage diversity.

"Sometimes the term folk can be really exclusionary," said a community member.

The goal is to have the festival back by August 2025.

East Lansing City Council Member Mark Meadows said before the ball gets rolling, a committee needs to be formed and money needs to be raised.

"We can get it done. We'll try to get it done and I hope people start to scratch on their calendars that the first or second weekend of August of next year they'll be here in downtown East Lansing listening to great music," said Meadows.

Meadows added another meeting will be held in the near future to discuss to festival's revival.