County Information

Members of the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners appear to have a quick meeting before them this evening. Just one item of new business – the annual equalization report presented by Tony Meyaard and Josh Simmons – appears on the agenda. The meeting takes place at 6 p.m. in the third-floor commissioners’ room at the county courthouse.

A Three Rivers teen was injured after falling off his moped last weekend in Cass County’s Penn Township. Sheriff’s deputies said they responded at 6:30 p.m. Saturday to a report of a personal-injury accident on Dutch Settlement Road near Goff Lake Road. Seventeen-year-old Edwin Stevens was injured after he lost control of his eastbound moped while crossing a set of …

A matter of business related to the Three Rivers Youth Sports Complex highlights this evening’s Three Rivers City Commission meeting. Mayor Tom Lowry and commissioners will consider authorizing more than $320,000 to Virdis Design Group to proceed with the design, bidding and construction engineering for the proposed facility. Also, the commission will consider authorizing city staff to execute any necessary …

Cass County Sheriff’s Department deputies responded to a single-vehicle accident last week in Howard Township. According to Sheriff Richard Behnke, deputies were called at 1:30 a.m. Thursday to a location on Anderson Road, just south of Allen Road. Deputies found the driver unconscious but still breathing. Investigators said it appears the driver was traveling north on Anderson Road and lost …

Centreville municipal officials have taken steps to establish an ordinance regarding the use of golf carts on village streets. During last week’s village council meeting, trustees agreed to a procedure that requires golf-cart owners to register their cart and provide proof of insurance. The process will result in the issuance of a permit specific to the operation of a golf …

New downtown Sturgis businesses and the addition of residential housing units have prompted the city to create new parking designations in municipal lots. The policy creates open parking, short-term parking, designated overnight parking and permitted parking where residents or businesses may rent spaces in certain areas for $12 per month or $ 120 per year. Rental parking spaces would be …

Valley Family Church has started a new program in Centreville, where free food is available for distribution once a month. The “FridayGroceries” Food Pantry staged its “MobileGroceries” event last week at Centreville Elementary School. The outreach initiative offers supplemental groceries to area residents 10 to 11 a.m. the second Saturday of the month. Event organizers said about 200 people took …

Members of a state panel Wednesday sided with the city of Three Rivers in its attempt to annex a 77-acre parcel of land from Lockport Township. By a 3-to-2 vote, the five-member State Boundary Commission recommended in favor of the city following a public proceeding at the commission’s office in Lansing. At stake is the prospective development of a $4.1 …

St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department officials have identified the two people involved in a fatal accident Sunday at the Branch-St. Joseph county line. Thirty-eight-year-old Shawn Shook of Sherwood was driving west on Wattles Road Sunday afternoon when he lost control of his vehicle near Stowell Road. The vehicle went off the roadway and struck 53-year-old Jody Clipfell of Sherwood Township …

A new chief financial officer was named during last week’s Community Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services of St. Joseph County board meeting. Board members extended the offer to Jill Brindley, who came highly recommended by board member Rick Shaffer. Shaffer, however, abstained from the vote when Brindley was appointed. Brindley assumes the part-time position from outgoing finance director Randy …