News

Battle Creek’s Binder Park Zoo has broken ground on two new exhibits connected by the lives of two young people. The Battle Creek Enquirer reports that the zoo held a groundbreaking ceremony Sunday for a new viewing area for its current group of African wild dogs. The family of a 26-year-old man who died in a 2010 accident donated a …

Glen Oaks Community College’s Board of Trustees voted this week to proceed with the bidding, design and construction of a $6.5 million, 120-bed student housing facility. Subject to final approval on a USDA low-interest loan, the proposed four-story building would begin with a groundbreaking expected to take place in early summer with plans for the facility to open with the …

The Michigan Transportation Asset Management Council has honored the St. Joseph County Road Commission with a 2016 TAMC Organization Award. The award was presented last week during the annual TAMC Spring Conference in Dearborn. Chris Minger, St. Joseph County’s Managing Director, told TAMC that the Centreville-based road commission has spent many hours developing five year plans with various funding balances. …

State Reps. Aaron Miller and Eric Leutheuser recently presented a legislative tribute to the Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency in the Capitol rotunda after the agency was recognized with an award during National Health Week. Miller and Leutheuser presented the tribute to Rebecca Burns, health officer for Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph County, and Jim Cook, emergency preparedness coordinator for the tri-county agency, …

A team of TRHS students spearheaded a safe driving campaign over the course of the last few months. The teens facilitated three events that provided our student body with tips about safe driving during the winter months. At the end of the campaign, a report and powerpoint presentation were submitted to a panel of judges. TRHS won second place and …

“The effect of the current El Niño weather pattern will likely result in a spring that is milder – warmer and drier than normal,” according to Dr. Jeff Andresen, Professor of Geography at Michigan State University and the state climatologist. Dr. Andresen was in Centreville on Tuesday, April 19th to give a presentation on his predictions about the weather for …

Seven individuals were named to the St. Joseph County Remonumentation Peer Review Group this week. The action was taken during Tuesday’s board of commissioners meeting. Group members provide advice on original public land survey corners presented by surveyors before the county accepts the corners for filing under its County Remonumentation Plan. Members of the group will serve for a term …

The reward for finding who was responsible for damage at Oak Lawn Cemetery earlier this month in Sturgis has been raised to $3,000, thanks to donations from a number of area businesses. Police said the vandalism occurred between April 1 and 3. In all, 34 headstones – some dating to the 1800s – were damaged. Other damage included shots from …

A 14-year-old girl shot in the head during a deadly shooting rampage in southwestern Michigan has left a rehabilitation center. Mary Free Bed Hospital spokeswoman Betsy Musolf says Abigail Kopf was released Wednesday. Abigail spent six weeks at the Grand Rapids facility and a couple of weeks in another hospital following the Feb. 20 rampage that killed six people and …

Volkswagen, the U.S. government and private lawyers have reached a deal for the automaker to spend just over $1 billion to compensate owners of about 600,000 diesel-powered cars that cheat on emissions tests, including buyback offers to some owners, according to a person briefed on the matter. The “deal in principle” includes a maximum amount of spending, but the final …