Buyer’s Guides for the upcoming May 26-28 Community-wide Garage Sale Weekend in Dowagiac and at Sister Lakes will be available to the public Thursday afternoon, May 19.

Hosted by Greater Dowagiac Chamber of Commerce and the Dowagiac Downtown Development Authority (DDA) the shopping blitz is entering its third year, as organizers have also expanded the event from two to three days.

Buyer’s Guides, priced at $1 each, will go on sale Thursday afternoon to the public and can be purchased at the Chamber of Commerce, located in the Dowagiac train depot; and at eight distribution sites downtown including Beeson Street Bar and Grill, Caruso’s Candy Kitchen, The Gift of Namaste, The Hairitage, Hope’s Door Thrift Shop, Laurie Anne’s, Oh My and The Red Raven.

Next week, Buyers’ Guides will also be available from the hosts of residential sales.

Vickie Phillipson, program director for the Chamber of Commerce and DDA, said the guide is being sold for $1 to help the organization cover expenses related to the promotion.

The May 26-28 Community-wide Garage Sale, which includes 76 sites in and adjacent to the city, and at Sister Lakes, opens Thursday, May 26, at 8 a.m.

While the shopping blitz is being publicized as a three-day event, the day and hours of operation may vary from site to site.

The five-page Buyer’s Guide provides patrons with information on central business district specialty shops and restaurants that are participating in the promotion with indoor and outdoor sidewalk sales, as well as detailed information on the type of merchandise each residential sale will feature, along with their hours of operation.

For those sales held at Sister Lakes, the Buyer’s Guide also provides driving instructions to those locations.

Should patrons and day-visitors wish to navigate by a map, the Buyer’s Guide also contains a street map that identifies the location of each sale.

Phillipson said several sites represent multi-family and estate sales, while three of the host sites are dual residential and business sales, such as the Jerz family and Jerz Machine Tool Corp. sale on Louise Street.