News

Construction of a 9.8-megawatt battery storage facility near a solar farm on Bogan Road in Sturgis Township could save Sturgis electric customers collectively more than $1.1 million per year. The estimate, by Prism Energy, is based on 15-year projections presented recently to the Michigan Public Service Commission. Jeremy Jones, a partner in Prism – which built the Bogan Road solar …

Citywide brush pickup in Sturgis began this week. Department of Public Services employees are overseeing the process, which started Monday. Pick-up commenced at the north end of the city and crews will work their way south until the job has been completed. A schedule is not in place, as the pace of work is contingent on weather and the quantity …

Michigan Department of Transportation’s Chris Jacobs has issued an update regarding the second phase of US-131 construction. The project, which started April 15, is concentrated to an area that includes the village of Schoolcraft and an area north to Shaver Road. According to Jacobs, recently completed work includes installation of curbs, driveways and sidewalks; signal work was completed at Shaver …

Troopers from Michigan State Police are investigating a hit-and-run incident that occurred over the weekend in Calhoun County’s Sheridan Township. Investigators said the incident occurred between 4 and 6 a.m. Saturday in the 13000 block of 27 Mile Road. Authorities said the victim was walking south on 27 Mile Road when a vehicle struck the man and left the scene. …

Sturgis Department of Public Safety is continuing its investigation into a shed fire last week. According to a department media release, firefighters were called at 10:45 a.m. Thursday to a report of a structure fire in the 500 block of North Lakeview Avenue. First-arriving units found a backyard shed on fire, and flames dangerously close to a nearby garage and …

St. Joseph County Road Commission this week will continue its work on a project in Nottawa Township. Agency officials said paving on North Angling Road starts today. It will cover a stretch from Centreville village limits to Butler Road. Paving will continue from Butler Road to Nottawa Road. Workers have already pulverized the original roadway in advance of this week’s …

Here’s a look at October’s Fresh Food Distributions in St. Joseph County. Seventh-Day Adventist Church, east of Centreville on M-86, hosts the first distribution. It starts at 4 p.m. Tuesday. Meanwhile, First Presbyterian Church on Lakeview Avenue in Sturgis will oversee the following distribution. It is scheduled for 4 p.m. Thursday. Railroad Park in Burr Oak hosts the next event. …

A veteran teacher at Congress School in Sturgis was named the recipient of the 2024 John E. Oster Award for Excellence in Teaching. Presented by the Sturgis Area Community Foundation, the award went to Lesley Starkey. Starkey, a Title I special-education teacher, was nominated by her peers. Nominees were reviewed by a committee comprised of community members and Sturgis Public …

Last week’s twice-a-year collection of household hazardous waste and electronics recycling was on par with the quantity of items collected in previous years. Pat Kulikowski, secretary of the St. Joseph County Solid Waste Committee, said Wednesday’s event generated the collection of 1,267 tires, about 10,000 pounds of household hazardous waste, more than 14,000 pounds of electronics, 3,000 pounds of paint …

St. Joseph County’s new county clerk was sworn in earlier this week. With the September resignation of nine-year clerk Lindsay Oswald, clerk-elect Gina Everson was sworn-in by Circuit Court Judge Paul Stutesman during a brief ceremony Monday morning. Everson, a lifelong Mendon-area resident, was uncontested in the August primary. By virtue of winning that election, Everson was in line to …