NEWSPAPERS n o i t i d E l a i c e p S
AUGUST 27, 2025 candgnews.com
Oakland County papers
LEFT: Novi High School senior Natalie Young, 17, decorates her designated parking spot on Aug. 13. BELOW: Freshly painted parking spots, designed and painted by Novi High School seniors, decorate a school parking lot. Photos by Erin Sanchez
Earlier this month, Event Producer Jon Witz announces the musical lineup for this year’s Arts, Beats & Eats festival. Photo provided by Michigan Lottery Arts, Beats & Eats presented by Flagstar Bank
Arts, Beats & Eats announces legendary music lineup FESTIVAL TO RUN AUG. 29 TO SEPT. 1 BY TAYLOR CHRISTENSEN tchristensen@candgnews.com
ROYAL OAK — Michigan Lottery Arts, Beats & Eats presented by Flagstar Bank recently announced the musical lineup for the Aug. 29-Sept. 1 festival. The Arts, Beats & Eats team also revealed the festival’s new logo, which they said pays tribute to the history and urban lifestyle of metro Detroit. The artist, Nick Pizaña, said that the design, created with his signature cartoon style of vibrant colors, “harnesses the passion, creativity and community that merge together at Michigan Lottery Arts, Beats & Eats. Its vintage feel reminds us not only of this year’s coming event, but of the festival’s 28-year legacy and the memories and experiences it has created for Royal Oak and Southeast Michigan,” Pizaña said in a prepared statement. See FESTIVAL on page 10A
Novi High School seniors claim their parking spots with art BY CHARITY MEIER cmeier@candgnews.com
NOVI — For the third year running, Novi High School seniors kicked off their final year of school by claiming and painting their parking spots Aug.11. Despite the intense heat, more than 200 seniors spent the following week decorating their spots with their friends and family. “It’s a really good, like, bonding activity,” said Avrie Antrobius, 17. Antrobius said she was able to work with her friends, and they helped each other decorate their parking spots. The annual event is a fundraiser for the Senior All Night Party, which will take place at the school following graduation on May 17, 2026. The party gives students a safe way to celebrate their graduation with their classmates before they go their separate ways.
Senior Ryan Burr said he chose to participate in the event to help fund the party, but he enjoyed hanging out with friends to work on the project. “It’s nice to kind of reconnect with the people I haven’t seen in a while and still be able to hang out with the people I’ve been with all summer,” said Burr. To participate in the event, students paid $105 for a designated parking spot in one of two student lots: the front lot off 10 Mile Road near the tennis courts and the theater, or the back lot off Taft Road near the football field. Forty-five dollars out of the purchase price goes toward the party. Students choose which lot and whom they park by, while committee members designate which spot they get. Antrobius said that she has been looking forward to participating in the parking spot event since it was initiated during her sophomore year. “It’s just kind of that feeling of knowing you’re See PARKING on page 7A