Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Sorted by date Results 2003 - 2027 of 9679
By TOM LAVENTURE [email protected] MERCER, Wis. — Finding a buyer for an old plow truck will bring the town of Mercer more funds than it would have received as trade-in value for a new truck. The town of Mercer Board of Supervisors 5-0 approved the $55,000 sale of a plow truck to Elcho, Wisconsin at its Thursday meeting. The sale is $7,000 more than the $48,000 the town expected to receive as trade-in value toward a new truck that the board approved a $161,787 loan to purchase in April for the town maintenance department. The s...
By CHARITY SMITH [email protected] BESSEMER — The Bessemer Fourth of July fireworks display will begin at 10 p.m. according to a member of the Fourth of July Committee. “I am a firm believer that we need to have a time so that people can be ready,” said Linda Nelson who chairs the committee. The location of the fireworks will not be announced until hours before the show to reduce the potential of a crowd forming, in light of social distancing concerns. “Our goal is to make sure everyone is safe,” said Nelson. “We do not want any so...
By RICHARD JENKINS [email protected] HANCOCK — The Western Upper Peninsula Health Department announced a new positive COVID-19 case in Gogebic County Thursday afternoon — the first positive case locally since mid-May. No additional information was available Friday morning regarding the person who tested positive. Prior to the announcement of the latest case, WUPHD health officer Kate Beer told the Daily Globe her department has to walk a fine line between informing the community and protecting the privacy of those who test pos...
By CHARITY SMITH [email protected] BESSEMER - The Bessemer Area Schools Board of Education held a special meeting on Wednesday to approve a bid for the installation of new windows at Washington Elementary School. The lowest bid was $610,035 from Nasi Construction. Board secretary Beth Steiger said this will leave the district with less than $168,000 for other projects. "What that means ... is that if we approve these windows, which I think we all agreed at our last working session was...
WAKEFIELD — A COVID-19 drive thru test site will be available that will allow the community to be tested from the convenience of their own vehicle, according to a Michigan State Police Wakefield Post press release on Wednesday. The Upper Great Lakes Family Health Center and the Western Upper Peninsula Health Department have coordinated efforts to provide the drive-thru testing from 9:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (CDT) on Tuesday, June 23 at the MSP Wakefield Post, 100 Sunday Lake St. Drive-thru testing will be scheduled on a first-come, first-served b...
By RICHARD JENKINS [email protected] HURLEY — The Iron County Board of Supervisors Finance Committee is hoping a change to the county’s employee handbook will save the county some money as it voted Thursday to recommend the full board consider changing the policy regarding retiree health care. Under the current policy, county employees can choose to pay to stay on the county’s health insurance policy after they retire until they become eligible for Medicare. The committee is recommending the policy be changed so that employees would n...
MARENISCO — At a Monday evening meeting of the Marenisco Board of Trustees, Supervisor Richard Bouvette announced that the pending retirement of Police Chief Bruce Mahler begs the question of whether to replace him. “Yeah!” answered Trustee Kelly Dunbar without hesitation. “Maybe,” said Trustee Dave Hagen, who added later that he would prefer the position to be part time. “What other options do we have?” asked Treasurer Diane Dean. Bouvette, who also chairs the board, said members can hire a replacement for Mahler or can contract services thro...
HURLEY — The Hurley City Council on Monday approved liquor and cigarette licenses in a special meeting. The council approved a class B beer license to Hurley Highlands Gas, LLC, at 510 2nd Ave. N., followed by approval of a cigarette license to the same business. The council then approved the purchase of 75 replacement banners for the decorative lighting poles on Silver Street. The cost is approximately $2,700. Robert Lanctoe, city alderman and member of the public works committee, said the current banners have been up since 2007 and are w...
ONTONAGON — The head of the union for the Ontonagon County Sheriff’s Department told the Ontonagon County Board Tuesday that union members have “serious concerns regarding the safety of our officers and inmates.” Ken Waldrop, union president, said the board at its last meeting voted to rescind the approval of hiring a correctional officer due to financial issues. Waldrop outlined the previous decision of the board to send two desk deputies to the academy for training and certification. He said, that while they were in training the board w...
By CHARITY SMITH [email protected] BESSEMER — The city of Bessemer will have a fireworks display on the Fourth of July. The city council granted the Fourth of July Committee a permit for the show at Monday’s council meeting. According to council member Linda Nelson, who spoke on behalf of the Fourth of July Committee, the exact location of the fireworks will not be disclosed until the evening of the show, as they don’t want a large crowd there because of social distancing. “Our goal is to make sure everyone is safe,” she said. “We do no...
By RICHARD JENKINS [email protected] HURLEY - Work improving the Hurley trailhead between the Montreal River and Second Avenue continues as volunteers were out Monday spreading soil on the site. The top soil was spread around the trailhead in areas with a lot of rocks and is intended to help improve the trailhead's grass cover and "make it more park-like," according to Ian Shackleford, one of the volunteers and a member of Iron County Outdoor Recreation Enthusiasts. "Two or three...
By TOM LAVENTURE [email protected] HURLEY — The next eight weeks will reveal how the Hurley K-12 School will open for the fall semester, according to reports at the Hurley Board of Education meeting on Monday. The recommendation will include expertise from education and health professionals on a 10-member committee that will start meeting next week, Thursday, said Kevin Genisot, school district administrator. The committee will include six education staff, three registered nurses, the county health officer and a physician’s assistan...
By TOM LAVENTURE [email protected] IRONWOOD TOWNSHIP - The runway resurfacing work at the Gogebic-Iron County Airport is on schedule as the new commercial airline released its flight schedules to Chicago and Minneapolis. This is the biggest runway project since the last deep resurfacing in 1992, said Mike Harma, airport manager. The construction, which started in early June and will wrap up by July 15, has gone flawlessly thus far with good weather and skilled crews but the planning...
By CHARITY SMITH [email protected] MERCER, Wis. - The Mercer Area Chamber of Commerce kicked off its summer fun schedule on Saturday with the 14th annual Lupine Junefest, a bike ride through the rural area where lupine wildflowers grow on the side of the roadways. "It's just about being able to promote our area, and get people out and utilizing our trails," said Chamber Director Melissa Biszak. This year, the event consisted of three routes of 10, 15 and 28 miles. Biszak said that they...
By RICHARD JENKINS [email protected] IRONWOOD — Families getting food at the Ironwood Area Schools' weekly distribution got an additional benefit Monday, as the district started adding dairy to its offerings. “We are going to keep doing dairy throughout the summer, as long as the program from the government is still available,” Ironwood Food Service Director Mary Hampston Kusz said, explaining the dairy was received through a program designed to help dairy farmers impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. “We'll do it as long as we can....
By RICHARD JENKINS [email protected] LITTLE GIRL'S POINT - It looks like dredging will continue to be the way the mouth of Oman's Creek is kept open after the Department of Natural Resources announced it was no longer pursuing a project to construct a groin east of the creek's mouth. "The Michigan DNR Parks and Recreation Division will continue to maintain and operate the Oman Creek boating access site," DNR Parks and Recreation Division chief Ron Olson said in a release announcing...
By CHARITY SMITH [email protected] MERCER, Wis. — The Mercer Library will reopen on Monday, following a prolonged closure as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. “It’s a little strange so we’ve done as much research as we can,” said library director Teresa Schmidt on opening the library with COVID-19 precautions. “We’ve made some changes to the library that we hope will keep everybody safe.” Library visitors are asked to enter through the reading room door and return books in the book drop. Only 10 visitors will be permitted in th...
By JAN TUCKER [email protected] ONTONAGON — Senior citizens and handicapped can now watch the beautiful sunsets on Lake Superior at the new Doug’s Sunset Park. The new park is adjacent to the present Ontonagon Township Campground. The park was made possible when the township was able to purchase the property from the estate of the late Doug Filppula. Filppula was a popular teacher with the Ontonagon school system and lived on the property. The house was razed and plans are underway to continue improvements to the park. According to Tow...
By TOM LAVENTURE [email protected] HURLEY - The Iron County Museum will open for the summer season, next week, with a few adjustments for the new normal. The museum will open to visitors beginning Monday, said Kristin Kolesar, board treasurer of the Iron County Museum. The decision to open was made recently made after consultation with the Iron County Health Department regarding requirements for COVID-19 policies and procedures. "We encourage area residents and guests to visit the...
By TOM LAVENTURE [email protected] BESSEMER — The Gogebic County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday approved the rate request for the biannual property tax levy for municipalities, school districts and other taxing units. The board action allows local units to start billing for the summer property tax levy for the cities and school districts, while the townships have the property tax levy in the winter, said Kathy Jo Koval, director of the Gogebic County Equalization Department. Koval said Tuesday that the normal county o...
By CHARITY SMITH [email protected] BESSEMER - The city of Bessemer announced Wednesday that all city parks are open for public use, but the bathrooms and kitchens remain closed because of COIVD-19 guidelines. Park goers are asked to wear a mask when one cannot maintain social distancing of 6 feet, bring hand sanitizer, wash their hands often, and clean up their garbage, according to a press release. The city also asks that park goers not share personal sporting equipment with people...
BESSEMER - One person is dead following a house fire in Bessemer on Tuesday evening, according to the Michigan State Police. Troopers from the Wakefield Post were dispatched to a structure fire at 213 Sellar St. in the city of Bessemer at approximately 9 p.m., according to an MSP press release. Upon arrival the house was fully engulfed in flames. Troopers attempted to enter the residence to locate anyone inside but were unable to due to the intense flames and smoke, according to the press...
HURLEY — The Hurley City Council on Monday unanimously approved a resolution for its wastewater treatment report that received a perfect score. The resolution accepted the compliance maintenance annual report for the city’s wastewater collection system and will accompany the results to be reviewed by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, the permitting entity, said Gary Laguna, city water manager. After a two month review the WDNR will respond to the report and the resolution. The city received a “Grade A” for both the financi...
