Local News

AAA expects fireworks to start the summer travel season in Michigan. Last year suffered from COVID-19 restrictions, with fewer than 700,000 people on the state’s roadways for Memorial Day weekend. Forecasts have that ballooning back above one million, a 53 percent jump. The increase is even more dramatic for airports. …

The winner of the Michigan SkillsUSA automotive service competition is beginning to reap the rewards of his hard work. Calumet High School’s Zander Worm has received a scholarship and prize package after being the national winner of the TechForce Foundation’s FutureTech Rock Awards. The applicant pool initially totaled over 400. …

Bequests are common in the area, whether it be to charities or our two universities. Houghton County is working on setting up a similar program that would go towards local government. Administrator Ben Larson says the creation of an Enduring Gifts Fund has been sanctioned since before he took over …

A week removed from a special session to address the new pier, Houghton’s City Council looked at a different kind of water infrastructure Wednesday night. Improvements for both the water system and sewer system passed unanimously. The bills total a little over $1.5 million. City Manager Eric Waara says the …

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service has released a modified plan for renovations of the Huron Island Lighthouse and surrounding structures. This comes after weighing four potential courses of action and receiving public input. Refuge Manager Sara Siekierski says the agency has opted for a Cultural Resources Management Plan …

Tuesday’s Calumet Village Council meeting lasted around an hour, with extensive public comment dominating the session. Many residents asked for more information regarding the recent theatre decision to temporarily close and perform a slew of maintenance improvements over the next two months. The announcement was paired with the termination of …

At Tuesday’s Houghton County Board of Commissioners meeting, Tom Tikkanen commended State Representative Greg Markkanen and Senator Ed McBroom for bringing up a contingent of lawmakers from downstate to personally tour damage that remains from the Father’s Day flood. While the Department of Natural Resources has begun work on a …

The waters surrounding Isle Royale will be busier than normal this week. The United States Coast Guard is conducting a routine test of its Area Contingency Plan. The exercise is designed to measure the preparedness of state, local, and federal agencies if an accident were to happen on Lake Superior …

A package of bills in the State House is drawing the ire of the Michigan Association of the Registers of Deeds. House bills 4729-4732 would change the fee structure that county officials can charge for property record requests. The current rate is one dollar per page, in many cases below …

Tomorrow’s virtual breakfast presented by the Keweenaw Chamber of Commerce and the Keweenaw Economic Development Alliance will feature presentations by the city managers of Houghton and Hancock, as well as the Michigan Department of Transportation. The main thrust of each will be on construction. US-41, Sharon Avenue, and M-203 will …