Local News Archives

If you’re a fan of mermaids, then you’ll want to be in South Haven this Memorial Day weekend. Set for May 25 through May 28 is the first ever Mermaid MegaFest. Organizer Brad Carrier tells WSJM News

The millage rate is locked in. At a Monday meeting, St. Joseph City Commissioners gave their final reading to some millage increases they discussed last week. The street millage is going up by 2.55 mills, or about

Residents in northern Michigan and the U-P should be careful with fire this week as dry, windy conditions are expected to heighten the risk of wildfires. Michigan Department of Natural Resources Fire Prevention Specialist Paul Rogers spoke

The field of candidates in the running for the Republican nomination in the Michigan House in the 79th District includes a Watervliet woman with a long family family history in Bainbridge Township. Pauline Wendzel tells WSJM News

28 Walgreens stores will be part of an expansion into Michigan to provide drug kiosks so customers can get rid of unwanted medications. Spokesman Phil Caruso says millions of pounds of unused drugs have already been collected

The North Berrien History Museum is hosting a program called The German POW Experience in Michigan tomorrow. The program will feature Dr. Howard Poole speaking about the 400,000 German prisoners of war being placed in 32 camps

It looks like there will be a statewide vote of the people in Michigan to decide if recreational marijuana should be legalized. Speaker of the Michigan House Tom Leonard has reaffirming a vote by the people will

A record number of Michigan residents are planning to hit the road for Memorial Day. Triple-A Michigan is projecting nearly 1.3 million of us in the state are planning a trip, up nearly 5% from last year.

There’s a price war at a pair of southwest Michigan gas stations, but it’s not impacting the average in the area according to Triple-A Michigan. The Casey’s General Store and the Shell on M-140 in Watervliet are

State Representative Kim LaSata is among the Michigan lawmakers calling on the Michigan State Waterways Commission to drop plans for a tax on small watercraft like canoes, kayaks, and paddle boards. She tells WSJM News the House

There will be another vendor selling hot dogs at a St. Joseph summer attraction this year. On Monday, the St. Joseph City Commission gave its thumbs up to Myles Hambley to have a hot dog cart at

An effort is underway in the United States Senate to block the FCC from implementing its repeal of net neutrality protections, and Senator Gary Peters of Michigan is a part of it. Speaking on the Senate floor

The North Berrien History Museum is hosting a program called The German POW Experience in Michigan tomorrow. The program will feature Dr. Howard Poole speaking about the 400,000 German prisoners of war being placed in 32 camps

If you’re behind on your taxes, Berrien County Treasurer Bret Witkowski wants you to know a state program to help pay them off is still available. Last year, Witkowski and other treasurers promoted the Step Forward Michigan

Barbecues can be fun, but that can change quickly if someone gets food poisoning. Marianne Gravely with the USDA has some advice that she shared with Michigan News Network. “The Center for Disease Control estimates that 128,000

A group of 20 Andrews University faculty, staff, students, and graduates have returned from a trip to Puerto Rico to help provide mental health services there following Hurricane Maria. Andrews Associate Professor of Psychology Melissa Ponce-Rodas tells

State Representative Beth Griffin of Mattawan is hailing word that Van Buren County has now hired a veterans services officer. She’s been behind legislation to create grant programs for counties to have full-time staff that work to

St. Joseph City Commissioners and the public have been updated by Public Safety Director Brian Uridge on plans to better police the community this summer. Last summer, St. Joe Public Safety changed traffic patterns to reduce congestion

You can expect to see more Michigan State Police troopers on patrol on I-94 this spring and summer, all the way from the Indiana border to Wayne County. As traffic crashes on I-94 went up last year,

The Cass County Sheriff’s Department is investigating a crash involving four vehicles that occurred early Saturday morning. The sheriff’s department tells us the crash happened around 4:15 a.m. on M-60 near Reum Road in Milton Township. A

The Michigan Senate has signed off on the recommended Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund parks grants for the coming year. State Senator John Proos tells WSJM News the trust fund is supported by interest earned on funds

There is still work ahead for leaders at Lakeshore Public Schools after this week’s failure of a bond proposal. Voters rejected the $21 million bond on Tuesday on a vote of 2,300 to 1,907. Lakeshore Superintendent Phil

As people start to spend more time in woodland areas this season, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources has some tips to avoid conflict with bears. Katie Keen with the DNR tells us the agency has to

A check for $50,000 was presented Friday to Kay Manufacturing in St. Joseph by Indiana Michigan Power for Kay’s efforts to become more energy efficient. Kay Manufacturing President Brian Pelke tells WSJM News the company has invested

State Representative Dave Pagel is hosting a senior safety event on Monday. Set to take place at the senior facility, Brentwood at Niles in Niles, the gathering will be held with the help of the Michigan Attorney

Now on display at businesses throughout Berrien County are specially-decorated KitchenAid stand mixers. St. Joseph Today’s Amy Zapal tells us it’s a project called “Stand Mixers on Parade,” intended to thank the appliance maker for its support

Unit 2 at the Cook nuclear power plant is now back up and running. Cook plant spokesperson Bill Schalk tells WSJM News the unit was shut down in March for a regular refueling outage. The 67 day

The OutCenter in Benton Harbor has announced the details of its 2018 Lake Effect Pride event. The annual party is held to recognize the organization’s successes for the year and to celebrate the LGBTQ community. This year’s

372 boxes of cookies are being given to southwest Michigan American Legion posts by a Girl Scout troop as the girls thank veterans for their service. On Friday, Elise Voglewede and Alexandria Smith from Girl Scout Community

A major street reconstruction project is about to get started in St. Joseph. City Engineer Tim Zebell tells WSJM News they’re going to get to work on June 11 not only repaving but also installing new water