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  • Blight, payments on commission agenda

    Ralph Ansami|Jul 13, 2015

    IRONWOOD — Some blight issues and major payments will be considered by the Ironwood City Commission this evening. The meeting will begin at 5:20 p.m. with a public hearing on a blight violation at 225 Frenchtown Road. During the regular agenda, the commission will consider rejecting a demolition bid for blighted property at 206 Southwest St. and may seek a rebid. The following partial and final payments will be acted on: —A partial payment to Ross Peterson Construction, Hurley, of $21,896 for construction of the Art Park on Aurora Street. —A...

  • Turn of last century postcard finds its way back to Ironwood

    Ralph Ansami|Jul 11, 2015

    IRONWOOD - Ironwood Mayor Kim Corcoran doesn't know Lowell Joerg, a retired insurance salesman from California. It seems he knows a little bit about Ironwood, however. Corcoran was opening her city mail a few months ago when she received a "redistribution of happiness" letter from Joerg that contained a postcard of an 1899 blizzard in Ironwood. "He has a hobby of returning bits of history back to the cities of origin," Corcoran said. She researched social media and found numerous examples of...

  • Kimball resident denies involvement in blast

    Ralph Ansami|Jul 9, 2015

    By RALPH ANSAMI [email protected] IRONWOOD - A elderly Kimball, Wis., man Wednesday described how his house was raided Monday by federal and county law enforcement officers in a continuing investigation of the Fourth of July blast at the nearby Northwoods Paving quarry. Robert "Barrel Bob" Gollubske walked into the Daily Globe offices to complain about damages at his home he said were caused in the Monday raid. Gollubske said he was handcuffed and questioned for about two hours before...

  • Brecke charged in heroin death

    Ralph Ansami|Jul 9, 2015

    BESSEMER — A 32-year-old Ironwood man has been arraigned in Gogebic County District Court on a charge of delivery of heroin, causing death. Martin Henry Brecke, of 114 Flink St., appeared in court in Bessemer, charged in the death of Patrick Mullen, 32, of Iron Belt, Wis., according to the Ironwood Public Safety Department. The IPSD received a 911 call around 1:55 a.m. Tuesday, saying there was an unresponsive 32-year-old man at 610 E. Oak St. Mullen had been dropped off there by Brecke, according to the report. IPSD officers, along with B...

  • Man jailed in heroin death

    Ralph Ansami|Jul 8, 2015

    IRONWOOD — A suspect is incarcerated in the Gogebic County Jail at Bessemer for delivery of heroin, causing death, in Ironwood. According to Ironwood Public Safety Department Director Andrew DiGiorgio, a 911 call was received around 1:55 a.m. Tuesday, saying there was an unresponsive 32-year-old man at 610 E. Oak St. IPSD officers, along with Beacon Ambulance personnel, responded, and first aid and CPR were administered to the unidentified 32-year-old man until ambulance personnel arrived. The suspect who allegedly dropped the victim off at t...

  • Fire, explosions at asphalt plant in Kimball probed

    Ralph Ansami|Jul 6, 2015

    KIMBALL, Wis. - An early Saturday fire that caused a series of explosions at a blacktop company's quarry in Kimball is under investigation by the Iron County Sheriff's Department. The state fire marshal's office was called in to the investigation of the fire at the Northwoods Paving site, according to Lt. Paul Samardich, an investigator with the Iron County Sheriff's Department. Samardich said on Saturday afternoon that the fire of unknown origin produced a series of explosions that could be...

  • Aspirus Grand View plans $16 million clinic project

    Ralph Ansami|Jul 2, 2015

    IRONWOOD - Aspirus Grand View Hospital on Wednesday announced plans for a $16 million, 43,600-square-foot family medicine, cancer and specialty care clinic. Hospital spokesman David Sim said the clinic will be attached to the current hospital, in front of the current clinic, which will stay open until the new facility is constructed. When the new clinic is completed, the current clinic will be torn down and the space will be used for parking. Sim said the project will take around 14 months....

  • Man receives jail time for running over friend twice

    Ralph Ansami|Jul 1, 2015

    HURLEY - A 58-year-old former Manitowish Waters, Wis., resident was sentenced to 90 days in the Iron County Jail Tuesday for running over a companion with his vehicle. James Heller, 58, of Duluth, Ga., was sentenced to two years in prison and three years of extended supervision by Iron County Judge Patrick Madden, but the prison sentence was then stayed. After spending the three months in jail, Heller will be placed on probation for five years. He must pay $30,000 in restitution. The incident...

  • Warm weather predicted for Fourth of July across region

    Ralph Ansami|Jul 1, 2015

    IRONWOOD — Monday afternoon’s severe thunderstorms throughout the Gogebic Range caused sporadic power outages, a few downed trees and heavy downpours. Streets that are under construction in Ironwood flooded around mid-afternoon as the sky turned pitch black and car lights came on amid the deluge. A broken six-inch water line downtown near Lowell Street added water to the rain-flooded streets. The Ironwood Public Safety Department received a 1:45 p.m. Monday complaint that the area in front of the Fabric Patch store at the Lowell Str...

  • 2 Ironwood men face coyote torture charges

    Ralph Ansami|Jun 30, 2015

    BESSEMER — Two Ironwood men will be arraigned in Gogebic County Circuit Court on July 7 on charges relating to the alleged torture of a coyote. Jason Charles Roberts, 34, and Dale Scott Allen, 45, were bound over to circuit court for trial by 98th District Court Judge Joel Massie. The two hunters are charged with urging hunting dogs to attack a wounded coyote that was struck by a truck and then videotaping the incident. They also allegedly videotaped the mauling of a coyote that one of them had shot. A young boy is seen watching the attacks in...

  • One-eyed hawk star of Mercer Lupine Junefest

    Ralph Ansami|Jun 15, 2015

    MERCER, Wis. - Mercer's annual Lupine Junefest went to the birds on Saturday. It was the ninth celebration of the colorful lupine plants, but first year of the bird festival at the Loon Capital of Wisconsin. Mercer was named one of Wisconsin's Bird Cities and Saturday featured a large tent devoted to birds and building wooden houses for them. The star at the bird tent was 3-year-old Ruby, a red-tailed hawk that resides at the Wild Instincts Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Rhinelander. Ruby...

  • Michigan court system videoconferencing cuts costs, adds safety factor

    Ralph Ansami|Jun 13, 2015

    BESSEMER — When two people suspected of dealing heroin in an Ironwood motel were arraigned in court this week, it was accomplished by videoconferencing, even though the Gogebic County Jail is only a short walk from the county courthouse in Bessemer. There are many reasons videoconferencing is working effectively in courtrooms throughout Michigan. Michigan Supreme Court Justice David F. Viviano reported this week expanded use of videoconferencing technology to create "virtual" courtrooms has saved the Michigan Department of Corrections nearly $5...

  • County board signs papers for summer airport project

    Ralph Ansami|Jun 11, 2015

    BESSEMER — The Gogebic County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday approved signing paperwork for the $1,176,000 summer airport taxiway project. The west end of the parallel taxiway will be constructed, the second half of the project at the Gogebic-Iron Airport. Commissioners agreed to sign the contract with the Michigan Department of Transportation and Federal Aviation Administration. It is hoped the project will begin by July 6. The FAA is paying the bulk of the project’s cost, at $1,116,250. MDOT’s share will be $29,375 and the local share...

  • Camp 911 kicks off at IPSD headquarters

    Ralph Ansami|Jun 9, 2015

    IRONWOOD - The first day of Camp 911 kicked off Monday at the Ironwood Public Safety Department, with 41 youngsters participating. The camp, for children aged 8 to 12, is designed to teach youngsters about fire and bicycle safety, drug prevention and first aid, among other safety topics. "This is the first time we've done this. We planned for 50 kids, but 41 is a good turnout," said IPSD Director Andrew DiGiorgio. Xcel Energy officials were to address the children today about safety with...

  • Ironwood budget shows minor increase in taxes

    Ralph Ansami|Jun 5, 2015

    IRONWOOD — The 2015-’16 budget the Ironwood City Commission will consider Monday includes a small increase in city property taxes. According to the proposed budget resolution, property taxes of $1,777,000 are projected, compared to the $1,675,000 approved a year ago, or less than a 1 percent increase. The city’s fiscal year runs through June. The total general fund budget to be considered Monday by city commissioners is $3,168,000, up $41,000 from a year ago. The total of all expenditures in the city for the upcoming fiscal year, inclu...

  • Alternative school graduates thankful for varied support

    Ralph Ansami|May 30, 2015

    IRONWOOD - "Most of you don't know how important this school is to us," Trystam MacPherson said Friday at Gogebic County Community School graduation ceremonies. "Many of us were told we wouldn't graduate, but here we are," he said. MacPherson and 15 other students graduated, bringing the combined total receiving diplomas through the adult and alternative high school completion program to 790. "Thank you for not kicking me out of school," fellow graduate Kristian Popko said. The Sleight School...

  • Wakefield comes out best in sewer-water comparison

    Ralph Ansami|May 30, 2015

    By RALPH ANSAMI [email protected] As the Ironwood City Commission was reviewing utility increases this week, a rate comparison chart of area communities was presented. It shows Wakefield customers pay the lowest sewer-water bills on the Gogebic Range, while Ironwood Township is on the high end. Ironwood utilities director Bob Tervonen presented the 2015 comparisons that show Wakefield at $75 per month, by far the lowest rate locally. Second was Ramsay at $99, followed by Ironwood at $100, Bessemer, $107; Hurley, $112, and Ironwood...

  • Ironwood moves ahead with Aurora plat project

    Ralph Ansami|May 28, 2015

    IRONWOOD — The Ironwood City Commission decided Tuesday to move ahead with an Aurora land platting project. City officials had budgeted $20,600 for platting residences in the Aurora neighborhood that are currently under the ownership of the Aurora Land Association, but the commission instead agreed to pay half the total costs, which could amount to $17,500. The residents now own their homes, but not the properties. A formal resolution regarding the assessor’s plat project will be brought before the commission at its next meeting. During pub...

  • Ironwood graduating class honored by 50-year reunion

    Ralph Ansami|May 26, 2015

    IRONWOOD - While the Luther L. Wright High School graduating Class of 1965 was more than three times bigger than this year's graduating class, the two classes face common challenges. "Life is going to come at you fast. You will make mistakes, but don't dwell on them, and move on," Judy Holst, a member of the Class of 1965, said in addressing 2015 graduates on Sunday. "Fifty years later, they want to come back," Principal Michelle Kanipes said in introducing Holst and her classmates who reunited...

  • Gogebic County resolution backs state wolf control

    Ralph Ansami|May 16, 2015

    BESSEMER — A resolution in support of the state of Michigan controlling the wolf population in the Upper Peninsula was approved by the Gogebic County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday. Denny Ellos, secretary of the Western U.P. Citizens on Wolf Management, offered the resolution to the board. “The efforts of all of us in the western U.P., especially Gogebic County, to get help with the increasing number of wolf conflicts in our cities, towns, townships and county continues to be the major concern,” Ellos wrote in a letter submitted with...

  • Winter exited mildly in April in Ironwood

    Ralph Ansami|May 15, 2015

    After a raucous start to winter 2014-’15, April in Ironwood bowed out rather mildly. In fact, the average temperature of 39.8 degrees was just above the 110-year average of 39.3 and the 13 inches of snow was just 1.6 inches more than normal. April precipitation of 2.43 inches was .21 inch below average, according to monthly statistics released by Kevin Crupi of the National Weather Service office in Marquette. The high temperature for the month in Ironwood was 71 on April 12, while the low dipped down to 16 on April 23. No new daily or m...

  • Gogebic County 911 surcharge increased by 30 cents per month

    Ralph Ansami|May 14, 2015

    BESSEMER — The Gogebic County Board of Commissioners agreed Wednesday to increase a special 9-1-1 monthly surcharge by 30 cents per telephone or mobile device. The present charge is $1 per phone or device, but county voters authorized charging up to $1.65 in the November election. Gogebic County Emergency Management Coordinator Jim Loeper, who proposed the increase at the last county board meeting, offered a long list of reasons the increase is needed . He said the number of devices that fall under the surcharge are decreasing, bringing in l...

  • Downtown activities planned around 'Grease' HIT sing-along

    Ralph Ansami|May 13, 2015

    IRONWOOD — Downtown Ironwood will revert to the 1950s for a day on Saturday, June 20. Aurora Street will be closed from 2 to 10 p.m. between Lowell and Suffolk for a Historic Ironwood Theatre “Grease” sing-along retro celebration that will also include a Klassic Kruisers antique auto show. The city commission on Monday gave its approval for closure of the street. Bruce Greenhill, managing director of HIT, appeared before the commission to request the closure. Commissioner Dave Sim said it was an “awesome” idea that will give the small dow...

  • GCC graduates urged to 'Go bold'

    Ralph Ansami|May 9, 2015

    IRONWOOD - Graduates were encouraged to "Go Bold" at Gogebic Community College's 81st commencement exercises on Friday evening. The "Go" theme stands for both Gogebic and setting forth in the future. College president James Lorenson thanked guest speaker Ken Bowman not only for his service to GCC as a teacher, but also for serving his country in the Air Force. It all started for Bowman, a creative writer and also former English teacher at Luther L. Wright High School, in a one-room schoolhouse...

  • MDOT highway projects in U.P. getting under way

    Ralph Ansami|May 8, 2015

    Highway projects are gearing up in the Upper Peninsula with the warmer weather. The Michigan Department of Transportation said a mammoth three-part M-28 resurfacing project, including from near Wakefield to Bergland, will begin on Monday and run through July 31. The 23.8 miles of work will be on M-28 from Tula to Bergland, from Ewen to Bruce Crossing, and from Sidnaw to the Houghton County line. The work will also include gravel shoulders, concrete curb, gutter, sidewalk and ramps, and pavement marking. The project will begin with concrete...

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