Government

Authorities say a 64-year-old man has been killed in an early morning fire at his Kalamazoo home.  The Kalamazoo public safety department says in a news release that officers arrive at 1:30 a.m. Saturday and found the house engulfed in flames.  It was extinguished several hours later, and the man’s body was found.  No one else lived in the house. …

Fire officials from the Michigan State Police are continuing to investigate the cause of a fire Tuesday that destroyed the Trilium building, in the 26000 block of West U.S. 12. Located in unincorporated Sturgis Township, the building was fully engulfed in flames as personnel from the Tri-Township and city of Sturgis fire departments arrived shortly after 8 p.m. The fire …

The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department responded this week to a report of a breaking-and-entering incident in Burr Oak Township. Investigators said a vacant residence in the 64000 block of Sycamore Road was entered between March 17 and April 17. Copper wire was stripped from the residence, investigators said. The sheriff’s department is asking the public for any information known …

Concrete repairs will close a lane of southbound U.S. 131 in Kalamazoo and St. Joseph counties next week. The Michigan Department of Transportation announced the work will begin around South Street in Schoolcraft and continue south to Flowerfield Road. The work is slated to start at 6 a.m. Monday and continue for two weeks, ending May 11.

The first of nine weekends for motorcycle-safety training takes place Friday at Sturgis High School. Offered through Glen Oaks Community College and overseen by state-certified trainer Robin Bordner, the program is partially funded by the Michigan Department of State. Cost per participant is $25 and classes are limited to 12 students per session. Though the program is offered nine different …

The Michigan Department of Transportation is expected to perform maintenance work today in Three Rivers. As a result, the agency has announced a single-lane closure on eastbound M-60 between Wood and Washington streets from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. MDOT officials said traffic will be maintained with a flagging operation.

Sturgis firefighters were dispatched to the James and Lorene Eldridge residence on South Lakeview Street Tuesday morning. The fire was located in a hidden attic space across the rear of the home. Heavy fire, smoke, and water damage was sustained by the entire home. Firefighters were on scene for five hours.

St. Joseph County Commissioner Gerald Loudenslager announced Monday he will not be seeking re-election after his current term expires at the end of the year. The 67-year-old Loudenslager said with the county commission dropping from seven members to five in 2013, he does not wish to run against Rick Shaffer to represent a newly redrawn district that consolidates portions of …

The St. Joseph County Bar Association has bestowed its annual Liberty Bell Award to Eva Sylvester. The Three Rivers resident has a 45-year history serving as a legal secretary. She has spent 22 of those years working in St. Joseph County Probate Court under Judge Thomas Shumaker. District Court Judge Jeff Middleton announced Sylvester as the recipient of the 28th …

Schoolcraft Police Chief Bryan Campbell is urging people to be aware of a scam that was carried out against a victim this week. The larceny of money and jewelry is being investigated following an incident Wednesday in the 500 block of Osterhout Street. A 79-year-old female told police she was approached outside her residence by a trio of men who …