News

Members of the St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners were recognized Tuesday by a representative from the Sturgis Area Chamber of Commerce. Chamber executive director Cathi Abbs said the agency staged its annual meeting a few weeks ago. During that event, the chamber board agreed to support special-recognition awards to commissioners Allen Balog, Don Eaton, Robin Baker, Rick Shaffer and …

A Pennsylvania police department says a black cat was lucky for one of its officers tracking down a fugitive. The Ephrata Police Department posted on its Facebook page that officers were searching for Jonathan Michael Steffy last month over an outstanding bench warrant. They found the 23-year-old in a backyard but he fled. As they searched the area, one officer …

The Constantine Village Council voted Monday to disallow urban chickens to be raised inside the village limits. At several earlier meetings, council members discussed an ordinance allowing urban chickens, following a June 20 discussion with residents Charlie and Beth Cauffman, who approached the board with a request to keep up to six chickens in their yard. At a council meeting …

St. Joseph County Clerk Lindsay Oswald said she and a team of more than two dozen people will head to Dowagiac this morning to begin what she hopes is a one-day task of recounting presidential ballots. Oswald, who is completing her first full calendar year as St. Joseph County clerk, said the recount of 23,967 presidential ballots cast in the …

The contracts of three county employees were renewed for another year Tuesday. County administrator Pat Yoder, human resources director Teresa Doehring and finance director Joni Smith will receive 2 percent pay raises in 2017, when their respective 12-month contracts take effect Jan. 1. The three have operated on one-year contracts since beginning their employment with the county. Yoder, who joined …

Sturgis Area Chamber of Commerce officials said someone claiming to be from Universal Associates is calling local businesses, stating they are creating maps for the chamber and that the chamber will be distributing the maps. The chamber is not affiliated with the company and has not contracted with anyone for such a purpose. Chamber officials said they suspect its name …

Troopers from the Michigan State Police White Pigeon attachment collected non-perishable food items, toys and clothing for St. Joseph County residents this past weekend for the eighth consecutive year. “Stuff A Blue Goose,” the name given to the annual drive, took place outside the Sturgis and Three Rivers Walmart stores. The event took place at the Coldwater Walmart, too. In …

A $20,000 allocation from the estate of a Three Rivers woman was presented Monday to representatives from two local animal-centered agencies. Three Rivers resident Katherine Livingston said $20,000 was left by the late Jean Williams, who instructed the money be used to help control the feral-cat population primarily in the Three Rivers area. Livingston said she has spent more than …

The St. Joseph County Board of Commissioners this afternoon will stage a public hearing on the county’s 2017 budget. Two other matters of new business appear on the agenda for the 5 o’clock meeting: Economic Development Corporation’s annual report and bids for work related to courthouse entry doors. In addition, commissioners are expected to handle a nomination to the county’s …

Alcohol is believed to be a factor in a car-bicycle accident last week in Fabius Township. Sheriff’s officials said 34-year-old James Gould of Three Rivers was bicycling east on Hoffman Road around 6 p.m. Wednesday when his bike was struck from behind by a vehicle driven by 73-year-old Fabius Township resident Larry Campbell, according to investigators. The incident occurred just …