County Information

St. Joseph County’s Board of Commissioners last week approved a revised Community Mental Health resolution originally authorized during its Jan. 6 meeting. County administrator Pat Yoder said the county on Jan. 6 made its annual appropriation to the county’s Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. The amount was more than $257,000. Yoder said an additional $90,000 to rectify a previous …

Deputies from the St Joseph County Sheriff’s Department were called last week to investigate a complaint related to a larceny of a motor vehicle. Deputies responded at 4:30 a.m. Thursday to the 14000 block of M-60 in Fabius Township, where a 14-foot U-Haul box truck was stolen two hours earlier. The vehicle, which was taken with its key, was last …

Fire heavily damaged a garage and caused minor damage to a home early Saturday in Constantine Township. Firefighters were called to the 64000 block of Youngs Prairie Road about 12:30 a.m. They arrived to find flames coming from the garage. Firefighters quickly brought the fire under control and began protecting the home, located about 10 feet away. No injuries were …

A police dog from the Three Rivers Police Department played a major role in the arrest of two burglary suspects last week. Three Rivers Police responded early Friday morning to an active burglary alarm at Triple Creek Convenience Store on South Main Street. Officers arrived and found a broken window. As the investigation continued, Three Rivers K-9 Hondo was brought …

Saturday’s second annual Winter Adventure at Camp Fort Hill provided a break from the winter doldrums, as about 100 people participated in a variety of outdoor and back-to-nature activities. Expanding on the inaugural event in 2014, the list of attractions included a hay ride, snow shoeing and a cross-buck-sawing competition. Organizers hoped to offer cross-country skiing, but the activity wound …

The Three Rivers Downtown Development Authority/Main Street program plans to launch its inaugural “100 Friends of Downtown Three Rivers” campaign in February. The campaign is designed to hit on three of the four goals of the DDA/Main Street program: Building Relationships, Communication, and Education and Awareness, according to Brian Persky, Three Rivers DDA/Main Street executive director. All new members of …

Pat Yoder, who holds St. Joseph County’s highest, non-elected position, was given a $10,000 raise last week. Two weeks after commissioners agreed to renew Yoder’s contract for 2015, his salary for the 12-month period was set at $115,000. He is also given a vehicle allowance of $6,000 annually. The matter was addressed during last week’s county commission meeting. Yoder, who …

State Rep. Aaron Miller was joined Tuesday on the House floor by Cass County Prosecuting Attorney Victor Fitz for Gov. Rick Snyder’s State of the State address in Lansing. The governor outlined his plans for his second term during the speech. Lawmakers are allowed one floor guest during the annual speech. Fitz is also president of the Michigan Prosecuting Attorneys …

A few personnel matters were approved during last week’s St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners meeting. Erin Goff was hired as community corrections coordinator at more than $18 an hour, while Travis Balk was hired as a part-time corrections officer at a rate of more than $16 an hour. Also, a pay increase of 29 cents per hour was approved …

State Rep. Aaron Miller has announced contact information for residents of the 59th House District who wish to reach him. Miller will continue to use former Rep. Matt Lori’s office phone number at 517-373-0832. Residents may also contact him at Box 30014, Lansing 48909, or by e-mail at AaronMiller@house.mi.gov. Miller said he wants to make it simple for people to …