Ironwood to recognize Suicide Prevention Week

By ZACHARY MARANO

zmarano@yourdailyglobe.com

Ironwood — The Ironwood City Commission adopted a resolution by Mayor Kim Corcoran that recognizes Sept. 4-10 as National Suicide Prevention Week at their regular meeting on Monday.

“Suicide is the 10th leading cause of all deaths in the United States and the second leading cause for ages 15-24 and second leading cause of death for college students. Whereas Michigan lost over 1,444 lives last year to suicide, Gogebic County has the 12th highest per capita rate of Michigan’s 83 counties,” Corcoran said.

Corcoran read her proclamation in its entirety at Monday’s meeting, stopping for a moment seemingly to hold back tears.

Gogebic Range Suicide Prevention Council President Patrick Gallinagh presented information on suicide to the city commission. City Commissioner Rick Semo asked him for advice on prevention strategies, with Gallinagh responding that people should study the risk factors and how to properly intervene.

“The No. 1 risk factor is a previous suicide attempt. Most people who complete the act of suicide have had multiple attempts. So, once they did that, that puts them high in risk factors. Know the symptoms of depression. One of them is just simply a loss of interest in things you love to do,” Galllinagh said.

“If you’re talking to somebody and intervening with them, let them know that you care about them. Let them know that help is available and that you can help them get that help,” Gallinagh said.

Gallinagh said that resources for people experiencing thoughts of suicide include the new 988 Suicide and Crisis Hotline as well as the Gogebic Community Mental Health Authority in Wakefield. He said that the goals of National Suicide Prevention Week are to raise awareness of these resources and reduce the stigma of using them.

In his update to the commission, City Engineer Scott Erickson reported that six of 10 miles of the Miners Memorial Heritage Park mountain bike trails have been completed, with the trail construction firm Flowtrack Mountain Bike Trails LLC currently working on the western side of the park near Norrie Club and the Hiawatha statue. He said that work will continue for the remainder of the summer.

With work on the mountain bike trails continuing as planned, the city commission authorized a sixth payment to Flowtrack, in the amount of $17,938.05. This payment was made with a combination of Michigan Department of Natural Resources grant funding and local funds.

Semo noted in passing that one of the recently built mountain bike trails is located near the Iron Bull ski jump, an area that he remembers from the 1970s but is not being used today. Semo made an open invitation for anyone with information or photos of the Iron Bull to contact him to help preserve its memory.

The city commission approved a $53,654.58 pay application to Jake’s Excavating and Landscaping LLC for Drinking Water Asset Management Grant project. Erickson said that Jake’s Excavating is inspecting water service lines in the city to verify that they are made of copper or galvanized lead. He said that this project includes checking the lines from the public main and requesting property owners’ permission to inspect the line from inside their homes.

The city commission also approved a $96,004.80 payment to Nasi Construction LLC for a garage siding replacement project for the Department of Public Works building following damage to the northeast side of the building earlier this year.

The commission also approved a change order for the siding replacement project for an increased project cost of $16,016. Interim City Manager Andrew DiGiorgio said that during the project, the construction firm found some wet insulation and further damage. He said they felt the current project was an appropriate time to address these concerns, hence the change order.

The city commission approved two easements with Northern States Power Company for powerline improvements. Semo said that these easements are located on Brogan Street and on Tamarack Street near Tank Hill.

Semo said that Northern States requested a third easement near Miners Memorial Heritage Park, but that he thought that the price of the land in the easement did not reflect the value of the park. He said that a representative from Northern States agreed to adjust the value for this easement and to avoid using herbicides while making improvements there. The city commission agreed to withhold approval on this easement until Northern States makes these changes.

The city commission awarded a $451,125 contract for a sewer lining project to Visu-Sewer Inc. Erickson said that this project will improve the downtown sewer lines and downtown alleyways, restoring them to “as-good-as-new condition” without tearing up the streets.

The city commission also authorized a $9,796 quote from Angelo Luppino Inc. for exterior ramp repair for the east entrance of the Ironwood Memorial Building.

DiGiorgio announced that the city’s fall cleanup day will be held on Sept. 16 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Sept. 17 from 8-11 a.m. behind the Ironwood Public Safety Department building on 123 W. McLeod Ave. He said that this cleanup day will be like previous years, where residents could bring photo identification to dispose of unwanted items.