Jeremy Grossenbacher can’t remember the last outage to his family-owned property in Coopersville that has housed a business for his entire life – more than 40 years.

The most recent family venture is Coopersville Brewery, which sits off Randall Street and is owned and operated by Grossenbacher. Previously, it was a Recreational Vehicle dealership that the family operated for several decades and where Grossenbacher learned how to run a business.

“I think in any business, especially one that is six days a week and is customer-facing, being reliable and being open within that time frame is paramount,” he said. “We don’t make money if our doors aren’t open, and we can’t serve our customers. And in the almost four years we’ve been open we have seen little to no disruption.”

He compares relying on reliable power to an important piece of equipment like a glycol chiller, a refrigeration system that uses a mixture of water and glycol to cool liquids.

“It’s an unsung hero,” he said. “And you take it for granted. Nobody cares until it becomes a problem. But every day we can flip a switch and turn the lights on. And Consumers Energy has helped. They are with us every single day to help us run this business.”

Nearly 90,000 Ottawa County residents and thousands of visitors to the area count on us to power their lives. And that means fewer outages and shorter outage durations.

Lakeshore Advantage values our dedication to providing uninterrupted customer service. As a Michigan economic development organization, they help businesses of all sizes and stages grow in Ottawa and Allegan counties.

“The team at Lakeshore Advantage can always count on Consumers Energy to support businesses big and small in the area,” said Lakeshore Advantage President Jennifer Owens. “Consumers Energy is a vital part of our economic development team, and we know we can count on them to help us in whatever our needs are as it relates to business.”

There is a lot of work that has been done or underway to improve the reliability in Ottawa County, including:

• Moving 1.21 miles of overhead wires to underground on the Pigeon Lake Olive Circuit to improve reliability and resiliency.
• In 2025, we have three reconductoring projects to strengthen the lines and reduce outages in Port Sheldon Township, totaling 3.5 miles. Two Distribution Automation Loops in Hudsonville, and Ottawa Beach will be impacted.
• Fuses will be added to eight circuits in Ottawa County to minimize impact during outages.

Reliability Projects in the I-96 Corridor, include:

• The Dennison Substation has been built to improve the reliability of 1,018 residents.
• The Nunica Substation will be rebuilt with a larger transformer to improve reliability for nearly 1,000 customers.
• The Savidge Substation in the Spring Lake area had equipment replaced in 2024. It will improve reliability for 2,713 customers.

Reliability projects within M-45 Corridor, include:

• The Allendale Substation is being rebuilt with a larger transformer and all new equipment for additional capacity. About 2,500 customers will have their reliability improved.
• The Johnson Substation transformer bank is being replaced for additional capacity. In all, 2,239 customers will have their reliability improved.
• The Bil-Mar Substation is having equipment replaced and a second transformer added for additional capacity. In all, 1,277 customers will have reliability improved.
• The Hager Park Substation is having equipment replaced. About 4,980 customers will have their reliability improved.
• The Northern Fibre Substation is having equipment replaced. About 1,300 customers will have their reliability improved.

Grossenbacher said he would give us an A for the reliability efforts being made to power his daily life.

“We count on Consumers Energy so that we can open our doors every day,” Grossenbacher said. “If we don’t have power, we can’t open our doors. If we don’t have power, we can’t brew and make our beer. If we don’t have power, I can’t turn my fryers on and make delicious dollar wings on Wednesdays, and that’s important to us.”