Politics

Constantine Village Manager Mark Honeysett has returned to work following heart bypass surgery. Honeysett came back to work on a limited basis May 23 following the April procedure. During Honeysett’s absence, police chief Jim Bedell served as acting village manager.

The St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners is expected to decide next week whether to support a funding request of about $6,000 for patrol of Cade Lake and Nottawa parks. During a special meeting Tuesday, the St. Joseph County Parks and Recreation Commission agreed to ask for the funding. The money would allow the sheriff’s department to dedicate a part-time …

Gov. Rick Snyder on Tuesday signed into law a legislative package that grants biological fathers parental rights to children they have fathered with a married woman. House Bill 5328, sponsored by state Rep. Matt Lori, allows men who father children with married women a role in how their children are raised. Under the previous law, the husband of the mother …

The St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners had a special guest in attendance at its meeting Tuesday. Tim McGuire, executive director of the Michigan Association of Counties, was on hand for a portion of the meeting. McGuire said he tries to visit as many county commissions as possible and his schedule allowed for him to be in Centreville this week. …

The job of St. Joseph County Drain Commissioner is now a 40-hour-a-week position. Members of the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday approved the increase from 28 hours weekly. Drain Commissioner Jeff Wenzel, who is being contested for the post in the November election, will see no pay raise, as his salary will remain $33,000 a year. Wenzel, …

A number of seasonal positions were filled Tuesday by the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners. The St. Joseph County Sheriff Department’s marine patrol unit will have a roster of seven part-time employees, headed by Sgt. Jeff Terpenning. A Centreville High School teacher, Terpenning will be paid $17 an hour. Joining him as marine patrol officers will be Jaymes MacDonald, …

The Three Rivers City Commission on Tuesday approved a $15,000 bid for a new mower and deck. The low bid was received from Three Rivers-based Fillmore Equipment. City officials said the majority of the cost will be covered by the municipality’s insurance company, as the previous mower caught fire and was damaged beyond repair.

The Three Rivers City Commission has approved a new budget for the 2012-13 fiscal year, which begins July 1. During Tuesday’s meeting, Mayor Tom Lowry and commissioners endorsed a plan that will see more than $4.2 million in budgeted expenditures. A public hearing took place prior to the commission approving the budget. The city plans to levy 20.2562 mills.

            St. Joseph County’s new MSU Extension agriculture agent was introduced Tuesday to the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners.             John Zirkle, an Indiana native, recently graduated from the University of Vermont with a master’s degree in plant soil science. Zirkle’s work will cover a variety of issues, including helping with field trials, pest-management testing and lending a hand …

St. Joseph County plans to levy 4.5482 percent of taxable value in excess of $1.8 billion, following a vote taken by the board of commissioners Tuesday. Money generated from the levy, which is applied to county property owners, accounts for almost two-thirds of the tax dollars the county collects annually, according to county administrator Judy West-Wing. She said money generated …