Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Sorted by date Results 507 - 531 of 9883
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] HURLEY — A reconstruction project for U.S. 51 is aiming to launch in spring 2024, according to an update provided at Tuesday evening’s Hurley City Council meeting. Accordingly, council members voted to approve a related agreement with MSA Professional Services for an estimated fee of $240,000. The action followed a report by Jeff Seamandel, the city’s client liaison with MSA. Seamandel said that bids for the project will go out soon, after which the council can review the applicants. He added that the p...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] WAKEFIELD — Wakefield’s new Park and Recreation Advisory Board is now official with members set to meet for the first time next month. During a Monday evening meeting, City Council members confirmed the new board’s membership, which includes seven members, as well as an alternate and an ex-officio member. City Manager Robert Brown Jr. reported the news by phone on Tuesday evening. Confirmed unanimously by council members as community-at-large members are John Siira, Julie Tibaldo and Danielle Grayson. The...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] WAKEFIELD — At its Tuesday meeting, the Wakefield Planning Commission addressed a written complaint from its chairwoman, Tara Hamilton, regarding problems with streets and roads bearing similar names. City Manager Robert Brown Jr. spoke to the Globe by phone after the meeting. In a Dec. 11 letter to the commission, Hamilton told of a recent emergency call that resulted in confusion. “My mother recently had a fall and we had to call 911 for help,” wrote Hamilton. “After about half an hour, the dispatc...
IRONWOOD - Balmy temperatures resulted in a large crowd at Ironwood's Jack Frost Festival parade Saturday night. "There were lots of people," said Michael Meyer, director of the Ironwood Chamber of Commerce, which sponsored the event. "The crowd of children this year was just amazing." He estimated on Monday that there were twice as many kids attending this year's parade as last year, thanks to this season's 30-degree evening. "Last year, the munchkins were all bundled up," added Meyer, whereas...
BESSEMER - A new K-9 deputy was sworn in last week by Gogebic County Sheriff Ross Solberg, and - doggone it - nobody could stop smiling. Named Debwe, the yellow Labrador sat briefly on a chair in front of the sheriff while the dog's handler, Deputy Cody Smith, repeated the vow for his canine buddy. The men then slipped onto the dog's neck a custom collar denoting his K-9 status in the Sheriff's Office. The good-natured creature quickly bored with the pageantry and wandered off to collect as...
IRONWOOD - The Ironwood Memorial Building's auditorium acted as a competition hall for the Poetry Out Loud competition on Monday morning, with five students from area schools aiming to earn their place in the coming state competition. Event coordinator Rebecca Binkley of the Gogebic-Ontonagon Intermediate School District said the competition is a national competition where high school students select two poems from an anthology to read to judges. Students are judged on accuracy of the reading,...
By LARRY HOLCOMBE [email protected] IRONWOOD — Ironwood moved closer to adopting a new Downtown Development Plan and the creation of a related Tax Incremental Financing (TIF) Plan on Monday as the city commission acknowledged the introduction of an ordinance which would set it all in motion. The commission then called a special meeting that was to be held Wednesday evening (after deadline) for the purpose of adopting the ordinance. The Downtown Ironwood Development Authority has been working on the Downtown Development Plan and T...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] The season's first snowstorm at the start of this week did not bring as many inches as anticipated, but it definitely made winter official. As many as 15 inches were predicted for the western U.P., but the official total for the two-day event measured for National Weather Service at the Gogebic-Iron Wastewater Treatment Facility in Ironwood was 4 inches, as of 7 a.m. Tuesday. That brought the season total to 6.9 inches, compared to 48 inches on the same...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] BESSEMER — Community spirit was as plentiful as food at an annual Thanksgiving dinner at VFW Post 3673 in Bessemer. “We figure we have about 225 people dining inside,” said VFW Quartermaster John Frello to a crowd of folks clapping in response on Nov. 23. “If anybody leaves here hungry, it’s your fault.” Frello added that an additional 200 people were getting takeouts. “Something like this doesn’t happen without a large number of volunteers,” he said. Frello told The Globe that “probably 40 or 50 people...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] WAKEFIELD TOWNSHIP — The interim CEO of Highland Copper Company presented an optimistic outlook last week for the Copperwood Project now advancing in Wakefield Township. Barry O’Shea said that, while a feasibility study predicted a mine life of 11 years, he believes that inferred tonnage may extend the timing to 15 years. Mine construction is expected to start in 2024. O’Shea was speaking in a Nov. 15 virtual session with Copperwood Site Manager Mike Foley. “It’s really only using a portion of the defin...
By MEGAN HUGHES [email protected] IRONWOOD - Ironwood's Jack Frost Festival began last week with the lighting of the community Christmas tree in the Historic Depot Park. A group of locals enjoyed the warm weather on Thursday as chamber officials lit the new lights on the 60 foot tree in the downtown park. The brief lighting ceremony included a performance of singers from the Ironwood high school, and a short speech from mayor Kim Corcoran. People gathered in the depot, which doubles as his...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] IRONWOOD — In action last week, the Ironwood Planning Commission approved a site plan for a pending new apartment complex on Aurora Street downtown. The unanimous vote approved construction plans relating to Cinnaire Solutions, a Lansing-based company that aims to create a 15,000 square foot, three-story building with 45 apartment units and 1,000 square feet of first-floor commercial space. Illustrations of the plan indicate 31 one-bedroom units and 14 two-bedroom units. Before voting, commissioners r...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] WAKEFIELD — According to the latest report from Wakefield City Manager Robert Brown Jr., the city’s master plan is now set for adoption by spring 2024. In a meeting of the Wakefield Planning Commission last week, members received a draft of the plan prepared by the Western U.P. Planning and Development Region in Hancock. “Once the commission has reviewed the draft and made corrections, a final draft will be presented to the Wakefield City Council,” said Brown in a Nov. 17 email. “At that time, the counc...
HURLEY - President John F. Kennedy was assassinated 60 years ago today on Nov. 22, 1963, in Dallas. The 35th president of the United States was shot as he rode through downtown Dallas on what was essentially an early campaign trip for the coming 1964 election, looking to shore up his southern support. A little more than three and a half years before, Kennedy, then a young U.S. Senator from Massachusetts, was running for president and made a campaign stop in downtown Hurley on March 17, 1960. A...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] IRONWOOD - A Nov. 10 Veterans Day program at Luther L. Wright K-12 School in Ironwood was anchored in large part by members of the school's JROTC program. Emcee Cadet/Col. Abigail Lauzon of the JROTC led the program, for which U.S. Air Force Sgt. Colin Clausen - an LLW graduate - was the guest speaker. "Service is not just a word," said Clausen, explaining that it is a way of life. "Service doesn't end when we take off our uniforms," he said. "For many of...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] IRONWOOD — An investigative report on the Sept. 26 fire at the Gogebic County Fairgrounds was released last week by the Gogebic County Courthouse and concludes that the official cause of the fire that destroyed three structures was “accidental.” The report was issued by the Ironwood Public Safety Department and includes statements from two of its employees, Sgt. Brandon Snyder and Lt. Matthew Sterbenz, with reviewing by Sgt. James Chiapuzio. As the fire marshal, Snyder provided the final word. Additional...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] BESSEMER — The Gogebic County Courthouse is the first courthouse in the U.P. to offer self-help computer stations that facilitate free legal aid to any citizen wishing to use them. That news was part of a report shared last week by Judge Michael Pope of the 32nd Circuit Court. He was addressing members of the Gogebic County Board of Commissioners during their Nov. 8 meeting. “We’re the second self-help center in the Upper Peninsula,” said Pope, explaining that Marquette County offers a similar system,...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] IRONWOOD — In a separate committee meeting last week, members of the Gogebic County Board of Commissioners entertained the possibility of considering other county fairground locations. The current location has been in Ironwood for more than 100 years. The issue was addressed in a Nov. 8 meeting of the Economic Development and Capital Improvement Committee after being referred to it by commissioners in their previous Oct. 25 board meeting. At that time, the board had been reacting to an Oct. 17 letter f...
By LARRY HOLCOMBE [email protected] IRONWOOD — Four out of five incumbents were re-elected to the Ironwood City Commission Tuesday. Mayor Kim Corcoran once again earned the most votes among seven names on the ballot with 518 votes. The top five vote getters earned two-year terms. Others elected included incumbent David Andresen with 509 votes, newcomer Lauren Korpi with 496, followed by incumbents Jim Mildren with 441 votes and Rick Semo with 418. Former city commission member Joseph J. Cayer had 400 votes, and current member N...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] BESSEMER - As of Monday, Bessemer has a new city manager on board. He is Christopher Frazer of downstate Imlay. Frazer - who is originally from Detroit - joins Clerk/Treasurer Mandy Lake and Deputy Clerk Samantha Dorr, each of whom also just started their new roles on Oct. 2 and Oct. 26, respectively. The council voted unanimously to offer Frazer the job during a special meeting on Oct. 30. "It feels a little euphoric," Frazer told The Globe on Tuesday....
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] IRONWOOD — Gogebic County Fair Board members discussed Monday how to move toward a 2024 fair that they have been told is cancelled, but that they still hope to resurrect in some fashion. After a Sept. 26 fire destroyed three fairground structures, directly after two others had been demolished, the Gogebic County Board of Commissioners voted on Oct. 11 to close down next year’s fair, along with any other major events, in order to allow for expansive reconstruction and repair plans. Commissioners were met w...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] HURLEY — Members of the Iron County Board of Supervisors passed the county’s 2024 budget on Tuesday evening. Projected expenditures for general government and all other operations total nearly $18 million, with slightly more than $12 million covered by revenues other than property taxes. Hence, the tax levy for 2023 — which will be collected next year — will be $5,656,748. That will result in a 2024 millage rate of $4.32 per every $1,000 of assessed property. Board members Kurt Wolff and Karen Lauer v...
HONOLULU - U.S. Navy Ensign William M. Finnegan, a Bessemer native who died in the attack at Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, was finally laid to rest on Sept. 7 at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu. He was among the 429 sailors aboard the USS Oklahoma who were killed that day, but also among the 388 of those who were left unaccounted for, according to a release from the Bureau of Navy Personnel. The remains of the 388 unidentified personnel were first interred as...
By P.J. GLISSON [email protected] BESSEMER - After announcing the closure of the 2024 Gogebic County Fair earlier this month, members of the county Board of Commissioners were met with another crowd of concerned citizens at their second October meeting last week. Typical board meetings, which are usually held in the 98th District courtroom of the county courthouse, draw only key county officials with few or no members of the public. The two October meetings bucked that trend, with...
