Grosse Pointe Park

Community invited to fifth annual Grosse Pointe Concours d’Elegance

By K. Michelle Moran
C & G Staff Writer

» click to enlarge « File photo by Donna Agusti Bruce and Laura Schofield drive their 1957 Jaguar in the parade that preceded the Grosse Pointe Farms Foundation’s fourth annual Concours d’Elegance last fall. This year’s event is open to residents of all Grosse Pointes and takes place Sept. 23. File photo by Donna Agusti Bruce and Laura Schofield drive their 1957 Jaguar in the parade that preceded the Grosse Pointe Farms Foundation’s fourth annual Concours d’Elegance last fall. This year’s event is open to residents of all Grosse Pointes and takes place Sept. 23.

Pier Park visitors appreciate the timeless beauty that is the view of Lake St. Clair, and on Sept. 23, they’ll be able to see some man-made timeless beauties.

The nonprofit Grosse Pointe Farms Foundation is presenting the fifth annual Grosse Pointe Concours d’Elegance that day. It begins with a parade of classic American and European cars along Kercheval through the Hill business district at 11:30 a.m. Sept. 23. The cars end up at Pier Park, where they’ll be on display from noon-3 p.m.

This year, organizers are opening up this free event to anyone from the Grosse Pointes, not just Farms residents. That means non-residents can attend, bring a vehicle, or both.

“It’s just been very well-received in the past,” Farms Foundation Chair John Park said. “We thought (opening it to non-residents) would generate more cars, which we thought would be a lot of fun, and we thought people would enjoy seeing them. This is one of the many undertakings the Foundation has taken on to enhance the community and for the citizens.”

Park said the event was created to draw visitors to Pier Park to see the many projects sponsored in whole or in part by the Foundation, including a refrigerated ice rink and platform tennis courts, both of which opened at the end of 2008.

“It’s become so popular, we just kept it going,” Park said of the car show.

Daniel Hughes, the marketing manager for the Foundation and the founder of the Concours, said they typically get about 40-80 cars, depending on weather. The event usually draws about 300-400 visitors, he said. Park and Hughes said complimentary hotdogs, chips and beverages will be served.

“It’s an event that’s great for the family,” Park said. “Everyone enjoys looking at classic cars. We have a tremendous amount of classic cars in (the Grosse Pointes).”

Mayor James Farquhar concurred.

“It’s a great event for our community,” he said. “It’s another reason to get your family outside the house and enjoy the park and enjoy the day.”

Hughes said they’ll likely be awarding a best in show again this year. Visitors can also vote for their favorite, he said.

“This is our fifth event, and we hope that it is as successful as the others,” Hughes said by email. “We had a major storm brewing the morning of last year’s event, which kept many cars from coming, but we ended up having a great turnout.”

He said they’re seeing more families with young children at the Grosse Pointe Concours d’Elegance.

“We’re just trying to provide people with a little fun activity on a Sunday,” Hughes said. “Hopefully we’ll have a nice day and people will enjoy seeing some great cars.”

Trucks are welcome, too, he said. Admission and car registration are both free.

Pier Park is located at the foot of Moross and Lake Shore. Anyone wishing to register a vehicle should email Pam Baker at City Hall at pbaker@grossepointefarms.org. For more information, call (313) 343-2405, log onto www.gpconcours.org or visit the Grosse Pointe Chamber of Commerce’s website at www.grossepointechamber.com and click on the Local Events link.

You can reach C & G Staff Writer K. Michelle Moran at kmoran@candgnews.com or at (586)498-1047.