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Howell boasts many boutiques, restaurants and historic buildings

Published  June 23, 2017 11:24am EDT
FOX 2 Detroit

HOWELL, Mich. (WJBK) - Did you know downtown Howell was nominated by USA Today for having one of the ten best main streets in America? That's a pretty big honor, and something Howell's Downtown Development Authority is pretty proud of.

"Howell has a celebration of our past with our rural roots, our agricultural roots, and has the eye on its future with a lot of new development and smart growth happening. We are known for unique, boutique-type shopping experiences. We also have year-round events that attract our 9,600 residents as well as thousands of visitors from across the state," says Cathleen Edgerly, the DDA director.

Part of the draw here is Howell's historic downtown. Many of the buildings have not been changed since the city was incorporated back in 1863.

"You have to look at the architecture of the buildings along Grand River; it's all high Victorian architecture and extremely attractive. So it has an appeal to everybody. Some of these small towns don't have any distinguishing factors but this definitely does here," says Sharon Fisher, from the Howell Opera House.

Howell is home or, rather, the "seat" for the historical Livingston County Courthouse. This beautiful building was constructed in 1889 and was designed by the famed Detroit architect Albert E. French.

While Howell is small enough to get to know in a day, its charm will make you want to stay for a long time.

"We've lived in Howell for about 20 years now and we just love this city, we love this town. In fact, so much, we live six minutes from our business. We live right here in downtown," says Sandy Vyletel of Howell's Main Street Winery.

"I really like the downtown area. I like that we live close to town, we can walk. There's always some sort of festival going on. The library has great stuff for kids," says Mary Braun.

"Lots of fun for the whole family. Our kids love it here; we love the school systems. We love the people," says James Hannah.

Howell may have that cozy, small town feel but, as mentioned, it sure goes big when it comes to festivals. You can read more about all of Howell's annual festivals here.