2020-09-09

After a two-week adjournment, a Lansing man who caused the death of a construction worker on I-96 near Portland was sentenced to from 14 months to the statutory maximum of 15 years with the Michigan Department of Corrections.

Patrick Rolon II, 27, appeared in Ionia County Circuit Court on Tuesday for sentencing before Judge Ronald Schafer.

A Cedar Springs man who was set to go to trial this month entered a plea to causing a car accident that killed a Howard City teenager and her infant niece and seriously injured two others more than a year and a half ago.

Brian Wayne Johnson, 29, pleaded no contest on Sept. 3 in Montcalm County District Court to one count of moving violation causing the death of two individuals, a misdemeanor with a maximum sentence of one year in jail and/or a $2,000 fine.

As this community’s historic downtown district continues to change and grow, so too may a dependency on safety and security.

When it approved its revised tax increment financing (TIF) plan nearly three years ago, members of the Greenville Downtown Development Authority (DDA) put within that plan several goals and priorities it would like to focus on with funding now secured through Dec. 31, 2043.

As skaters young and old have taken to the new skate park in town, hitting up ramps and rails from sunrise to sunset, there’s one place where the target has frequently been missed — the trash can. 

As Veterans Park has long welcomed guests for a variety of activities, from sand volleyball and basketball to picnic gatherings and trips to the playground, the newest element — the skate park — has attracted an influx of new visitors to the park. 

The Belding City Council will likely have to address an issue sooner rather than later regarding algae and sludge on the lagoons at its wastewater treatment facility.

During last week’s meeting, City Manager John Niemela informed the City Council that the lagoons at the wastewater treatment facility off of Wells Road have recently been blossoming with algae due to summer weather conditions.

Having temporarily shifted its focus away from standard school supplies and onto personal protection equipment (PPE), United Way Montcalm-Ionia Counties is doing its best to help keep the coronavirus pandemic from entering local schools. 

After several weeks of collecting and distributing donations, United Way Montcalm-Ionia Executive Director Terri Legg has been impressed and humbled by the amount of items it has received thus far.