Local News Archives

Labor, civil rights, and health groups, along with seven states, have made their final arguments in court challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision not to ban a pesticide that they say is dangerous. The EPA had proposed to ban chlorpyrifos, but former chief Scott Pruitt reversed course. Hector Sanchez with the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement says Pruitt’s announcement came not long after he met with the head of Michigan-based Dow Chemical, which sells the pesticide.. ...Read Full Story

The South Haven Board of Education has voted to accept the resignation of Superintendent Dr. Robert Herrera as he assumes a similar role at Benton Harbor Area Schools. Dr. Herrera’s resignation is effective on July 17. The board appointed a short-term interim superintendent this week. Board Secretary Becca Teunissen tells us they picked Carey Frost, the principal at North Shore Elementary.. ...Read Full Story

The new buyer of the Orchards Mall in Benton Township intends to keep it as a mall property. That’s according to a realtor who helped sell the mall in an online auction last month. Steve Silverman of Farmington Hills-based Friedman Integrated Real Estate Solutions tells us that sale remains in process with a goal of having it completed by the end of the summer. Although he won’t tell us who the mall’s buyer is, he will say it’s a national real estate investor who owns multiple properties in Michigan. The buyer is not locally-based. Silverman tells us the buyer intends to keep the Orchards Mall as a mall with some significant capital investment and an aggressive strategy to pursue new retailers. He also says stores currently in the mall should know all leases will be honored by the new owner. The mall sold in auction last month for $2.1 million, just shy of the owner’s hoped-for $2.5 million.. ...Read Full Story

From the Associated Press — Michigan regulators will take public comments on a proposal for more anchor supports in the Straits of Mackinac to bolster twin oil pipelines. Enbridge Inc. is asking the Department of Environmental Quality to allow
installation of 48 additional supports for its Line 5 pipes. They would be attached to the pipes and screwed into the lakebed.
A public hearing is scheduled for Wednesday in Mackinaw City. Line 5 extends from Superior, Wisconsin, to Sarnia, Ontario. A nearly 5-mile section runs beneath the straits, where Lake Huron and Lake Michigan converge. The company has made several requests to install supports after gaps were discovered beneath the pipes. The DEQ granted a permit for 22 earlier this year.
Environmental groups want Line 5 decommissioned and say the supports wouldn’t necessarily make it safer.. ...Read Full Story

If you haven’t visited the Michigan Maritime Museum in South Haven, this could be a great weekend to stop by. The museum is having its annual Fish Boil Fundraiser this Saturday. The museum’s Ashley Demming tells WSJM News she appreciates all the items donated for the fundraiser.. ...Read Full Story

Michigan businesses and cities are being invited to become part of a global vision for a cleaner future. The Zero Emissions Vehicle Challenge, announced on Tuesday, is encouraging companies and communities to use their purchasing power and policy influence to speed up the adoption of electric vehicles. Ann Arbor Mayor Christopher Taylor tells us it’s time to dispel the myths about hybrid and electric vehicles.. ...Read Full Story

A former officer with the Benton Harbor Department of Public Safety has been charged for actions during a police chase in May.. ...Read Full Story

Frpm the Associated Press — A former western Michigan day care provider has been ordered to pay $1.8 million after pleading guilty to child neglect in the death of a toddler by an 8-year-old girl. The Muskegon Chronicle reports Muskegon County Circuit Judge William Marietti also sentenced 52-year-old Keysha Collins on Wednesday to five years’ probation and 6 months’ jail afterward. He says some or all the sentence could be suspended. Marietti adds Collins has shown remorse and taken responsibility. Authorities say the girl, also cared for in Collins’ home, killed 14-month-old Korey Landon Brown in April 2017. Prosecutors have said she won’t be charged because state law doesn’t allow it for children under 10. Documents say Korey’s death was ruled a homicide. Collins was accused of failing to adequately supervise children in her care.. ...Read Full Story

In Grand Rapids, they’re waiting for a bad smelling, rare corpse flower to bloom. Senior horticulture manager at Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park, Wendy Overbeck, told Michigan News Network they’ve had the flower for 18 years, but this will be the first year it blooms. She says it’s over four-and-a-half feet tall.. ...Read Full Story

The Michigan Department of Transportation will hold an open house next week in Niles to talk about its plans to reconstruct the US-12-M-51 interchange. MDOT spokesperson Nick Schirripa tells WSJM News the $25 to $30 million project is still a ways off.. ...Read Full Story