Business

April’s unemployment rate in St. Joseph County decreased by one-tenth of a percent from March. According to the monthly labor-market analysis by the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget, St. Joseph County’s unemployment rate fell from 3.5 percent in March to 3.4 percent in April. The rate was 5.2 percent 12 months earlier. Meanwhile, Cass County also experienced a …

New vehicles sold in the U.S. will have to average at least 40 miles per gallon of gasoline in 2026, up from about 28 mpg, under new federal rules unveiled Friday that undo a rollback of standards enacted under President Donald Trump. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said its new fuel economy requirements are the strongest to date and the maximum …

St. Joseph County Road Commission Manager John Lindsey said the agency has identified four bridges under its jurisdiction for potential funding from Michigan Department of Transportation. The bridges are in need of upgrades and Lindsey said an application to the state agency as part of its “bridge bundling” program will soon be on its way to Lansing. Lindsey said the …

A Colon business owner is giving a priceless gift to her 10 employees: two weeks of paid vacation. Dawn Furney, owner of Dawn’s Café, said the paid time off was part of a deal she made with her staff. Furney said she adopted a four-days-on, three-days-off work schedule and an hourly pay raise. In exchange, Furney modified the restaurant’s hours …

Michigan’s minimum wage will rise by 22 cents to $9.87 an hour on January 1st. State law requires annual increases in the wage until it reaches $12.05 in a decade. The 22-cent raise was supposed to occur in 2021 but was automatically delayed because of high unemployment early in the coronavirus pandemic. The state announced this past week that the …

The Prince of Sophisticated Soul, Will Downing is bringing his smooth sounds to the historic Kalamazoo State Theatre Saturday, December 18. With a career that spans over 34 years and 24 albums, Will Downing is one of the most versatile and loved voices of our time. His repertoire consists of signature interpretations of R&B classics like “I Go Crazy”, “Wishing …

Clark Logic, a highly regarded logistics and real estate development company in southwest Michigan, recently announced the acquisition of FW Burns, a 47- year-old plus Kalamazoo-based, family-owned mail contracting business. Clark Logic, founded in 1969 in Three Rivers, continues to grow and add more jobs to help support the local economy. “We are very excited about this latest acquisition and …

Apple released a critical software patch to fix a security vulnerability that researchers said could allow hackers to directly infect iPhones and other Apple devices without any user action. Researchers at the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab said the security issue was exploited to plant spyware on a Saudi activist’s iPhone. They said they had high confidence that the world’s …

State Sen. Kim LaSata on Wednesday announced L.A.’s Coffee Cafe in Three Rivers as the next recipient of her Small Business of the Month award. L.A.’s Coffee Cafe was founded in 2000 by Leslie, Jerry and Aimee Robbins. The family opened up shop in an old pump house above the Rocky River, and their business has grown into a staple of the …

Consumers Energy plans to install about 700 solar panels covering 1.5 acres at its natural gas compression station on “A” Road in White Pigeon Township. Company officials said the goal is to save on power cost. The White Pigeon compressor station is one of eight in the Consumers Energy system that helps to transport natural gas throughout the state. Indiana-Michigan Power now …