News

St. Joseph County Grange Fair is bringing back a popular component from its past. Fair officials said a final-night concert will return in 2021, as it has secured country act Diamond Rio. Fair board member Mindy Timm said the Nashville-based band will perform Sept. 25. Timm said the six-member act was secured to perform in 2020 but the show, like …

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration reported progress Tuesday in the fight against the coronavirus, saying new cases continue to decline and Michigan has seen no spike related to Thanksgiving travel. Officials warned, though, that the case rate remains high. Whitmer, a Democrat, said “hope is on the horizon” now that a vaccine is being distributed. She again urged the Republican-led Legislature …

Residents in Branch, Hillsdale and St. Joseph counties will not receive the earliest doses of COVID- 19 vaccine, according to Rebecca Burns, health officer for the tri-county health agency. Burns last week provided an update regarding the vaccine for the health agency board. She said because rural counties do not have an ultra-cold freezer, they will not be receiving the …

Three Rivers police last week arrested a man following the execution of a search warrant in the 300 block of Middle Street. According to a department media release, officers responded Thursday evening to drug-related activity. Accompanied by members of the Southwest Enforcement Team, troopers from Michigan State Police and deputies from the St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department, Three Rivers officers …

The Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency recently honored three outgoing board members for their service to the tri-county department. The members, who also are county commissioners, are leaving their elected office at the end of the year. Commissioner Bruce Caswell, from Hillsdale County, has served six years on the board of health and as board chairman in his sixth year. …

State police troopers are investigating an arson incident involving a vehicle in St. Joseph County. Authorities were alerted to a road hazard at 6:15 Sunday morning to an area near the intersection of Winding River and North River roads in Constantine Township. A Chrysler sedan was located on the roadway and the vehicle had been burned, investigators said. The car …

Consumers Energy has announced its participation in “Our Town,” an initiative to support Michigan’s small businesses. The agency has partnered with 55 chambers and downtown groups, including Three Rivers, to support the gift-card program. It provides holiday shoppers with a dollar-for-dollar match for gift cards they buy through local chambers of commerce and downtown organizations, doubling the amount they can …

A 54-year-old Sherwood man died after he was involved in a two-vehicle crash Wednesday in Fawn River Township. The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department said deputies were called around 4:30 a.m. to the area of U.S. 12 and Sweet Lake Road. Investigators said Daniel Waring was driving west on U.S. 12 when an eastbound vehicle driven by Alondra Aguilar, 19, …

Sturgis officials announced a traffic roundabout will be built in 2023. The traffic circle will be constructed at what will become the East Lafayette Street- North Franks Avenue intersection. The city recently was awarded a $472,000 highway safety improvement program grant from Michigan Department of Transportation for road-safety improvements. The city received the grant funding to rework the intersection of …

Constantine Village Council members have voted a second time against signing an application for a permit from Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy to relocate water lines under the U.S. 131 Business Route bridge. The relocation is the first step for a proposed Michigan Department of Transportation rehabilitation of the bridge. Council members had voted against signing the …