Business

Smoother roads will be appearing in Sturgis over the next decade, as voters Tuesday supported a 3-mill increase dedicated to street improvements and sidewalk repairs. The 10-year millage is expected to generate about $6.7 million in all, thanks to voter support of the proposal, which passed by a 3-to-2 margin. Mayor Ken Malone said the 3 mills will appear on …

A 65-year-old Kalamazoo woman was treated for injuries she suffered last week following a one-car crash in Flowerfield Township. Officials from the St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department said Donna Rees was driving west on M-216 when she said she swerved to avoid striking a small animal and drove off the roadway east of Bent Road. Witnesses told investigators they observed …

The March unemployment rate in St. Joseph County decreased by half a percent compared to a month earlier. The monthly labor-market analysis by the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget showed St. Joseph County’s 7.3 percent March unemployment rate was less than February’s 7.8 percent. Furthermore, the March unemployment rate was 1.9 percent less than the same month one …

A biosolids foam-over event from the Autoheated Thermophilic Aerobic Digestion system Wednesday morning was contained within the newly constructed containment area at the Three Rivers Wastewater Treatment Plant, according to James Baker, plant superintendent. The containment area was constructed to serve as a final protective barrier to prevent biosolids foam from entering Lincoln Street and the city’s storm-sewer system. The …

Electric-transmission company ITC Holdings has made a financial contribution to the village of Colon to help with the restoration of a row of businesses destroyed by fire nearly two months ago. The $10,000 donation was presented this week to village president Tom Tenney. ITC officials hand-delivered the check to Tenney, who expressed his gratitude for the funds. A Prudential real …

The sanitary sewer overflow into the St. Joseph River that began last week has been stopped, according to the city of Three Rivers Department of Public Services and its Waste Water Treatment Plant. City crews were able to access the location Monday morning to make the confirmation. Pipe-flow capacity analysis and discharge estimates are still being calculated, but currently indicate …

Three Colon teens were among five people injured in a single-vehicle crash over the weekend in Colon Township. Investigators said it appears alcohol and excessive speeding were potential factors contributing to the 4 a.m. Sunday crash on Wattles Road. A department media release indicated the vehicle was being driven west on Wattles Road when it veered off the roadway and …

The Day Reporting Center was announced as the recipient of the 2013 Liberty Bell Award, an honor bestowed annually since 1985 by the St. Joseph County Bar Association. Its program director, Anthony Callaway, and the agency’s five-member staff will be recognized during a ceremony at 9 a.m. Wednesday at the St. Joseph County Courthouse. The Liberty Bell Award is presented …

Cass County Sheriff Joe Underwood Jr. said his deputies handled a two-car, personal-injury crash on Calvin Center Road, near Chain Lake Street in Calvin Township over the weekend. The incident occurred around 7 p.m. Saturday, when a vehicle driven by 57-year-old Wayne Barber Jr., of Cassopolis, was traveling north on Calvin Center Road and a southbound vehicle driven by 52-year-old …

A trio of men who fled from police in Three Rivers earlier this week were arraigned in district court Wednesday. William Powell, 23, Antonio Hearn, 20, and Charles Hearn, 21, face a variety of charges following the Monday night incident in which one of the men held his 6-month-old son while fleeing from police. All three men, originally from Ohio, …