Local News Archives

The Southwest Michigan Planning Commission is close to wrapping up its report on pedestrian options for Napier Avenue in St. Joseph and Benton Townships, and a meeting will be held this month for the public to offer

The final Adopt a Highway cleanup of the year will be this week. The Michigan Department of Transportation’s Dan Weingarten told WSJM News this summer Adopt a Highway is a program that allows groups of volunteers to

Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are continuing to try to reach an agreement on a new five-year Farm Bill. U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan is the Ranking Member of the Agriculture Committee and co-wrote the Senate version

There is a coordinated effort by law enforcement statewide to get out the “no” vote regarding the ballot proposal to legalize recreational marijuana. Berrien County Prosecutor Mike Sepic says he’s opposed to allowing “another mind-altering drug” to

A case of Eastern equine encephalitis has been found in Allegan County. Michigan Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson Lynn Sutfin tells WSJM News the disease is fairly rare with the last Michigan cases found in

A women’s recruitment seminar is planned by Michigan State Police for next month in southeast Michigan. Michigan State Police Captain Monica Yesh tells WSJM News only about 10% of the force is women, and they’ve been improving

The city of St. Joseph does not currently have a plan to manage deer in the city limits, but it’s clear after a lengthy portion of Monday’s city commission meeting that people feel it’s necessary. The commission

Poverty and lack of health insurance is bad for your health – and bad for public health.  The Berrien County Health Department’s Gillian Conrad says poverty and a range of other socio-economic factors impact public health in

Are there any debates lined up between now and the November election in the 21st District Senate race or the two state House races in Berrien County? That depends on who you ask and your definition of

Andrews University is marking another busy Change Day. Held for the second time ever on Thursday, September 13, Change Day 2018 was a chance for faculty, staff, and students to head out across Berrien and Cass counties

A Niles woman is facing charges of operating while intoxicated causing death and failure to stop at a personal injury accident causing death in a crash that killed a Berrien Springs man this month. The Berrien County

A donation of land for a new storage space has been made to the Three Oaks American Legion by Horizon Bank. The bank tells us it owned about one acre of excess property in Three Oaks for

Coming up next month will be a nationwide test of emergency alert systems, and officials in Berrien County want the public to let them know how it goes. Set for Wednesday, October 3 at 2:20 p.m., the

The Better Business Bureau of Western Michigan is reminding consumers of a new law that could help them protect themselves from identity theft. It says the three nationwide credit reporting agencies in the U.S. — Experian, Equifax,

The Berrien Community Foundation held its annual meeting on Wednesday, saluting its volunteers and organizations that make a difference. Foundation President Lisa Cripps-Downey tells us they also announced the winner of the $50,000 Stephen E. Upton Love

The group backing the initiative to legalize recreational marijuana in Michigan is disputing most of the claims made by law enforcement officials this week that passage of the measure in November would be bad for the state.

Governor Rick Snyder is considering activating the National Guard to finish road projects now that talks between his office and the two sides have collapsed. Operating Engineers Local 324’s Dan McKernan told Michigan News Network there was

A head-on crash on M-51 in Dowagiac has claimed the life of a 35-year-old Decatur man. The Cass County Sheriff’s Department was called to the 54-thousand block of M-51 North around quarter-to-two Friday morning, finding a Dodge

Cornerstone Alliance is the recipient of a Morton House Preservation Award for its work to renovate its new downtown Benton Harbor headquarters. Cornerstone President Rob Cleveland tells WSJM News the organization did nearly $1 million in work

Some deputies with the Berrien County Sheriff’s Department have received Life Saving Awards for their work in the community over the past year. At this week’s Berrien County Board of Commissioners meeting, Undersheriff Chuck Heit saluted Deputy

From the Associated Press — Four Michigan community mental health centers have been selected as Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics and are getting a boost in funding. U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan on Thursday announced the designation

A Berrien County transit study years in the making is soon to be unveiled to the public. Berrien County Commissioner Jim Curran said at this week’s board of commissioners meeting Connect Berrien was put together by transportation

The Lakeshore Chamber of Commerce will hold a giveback event next week with the proceeds benefiting the United Way of Southwest Michigan. Chamber Vice President Regina Ciaravino tells WSJM News the event will be all day next

This Saturday is the Smithsonian Magazine’s 14th annual Museum Day, and the Michigan Maritime Museum in South Haven is joining in by accepting free tickets you can download from their website, good only this Saturday. The museum’s

The latest federal spending plan reached by Congress does not include money for the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository. Congressman Fred Upton tells WSJM News he’d been pushing to get the Yucca Mountain project rolling again, but

High school seniors and their parents are being invited to the annual College Night on the campus of Lake Michigan College on Monday to learn more about dozens of colleges and universities throughout the Midwest. Adults who

Berrien County will again have someone serving as Register of Deeds next month. Lora Freehling of Stevensville has been appointed by a three-member committee of Prosecutor Michael Sepic, Clerk Sharon Tyler and Presiding Probate Judge Mabel Mayfield.

A crash between a vehicle and a bicycle has killed a 50-year-old woman near Edwardsburg in Cass County. According to our partners at WNDU NewsCenter 16, the woman was biking westbound on US-12 near Garver Lake Road

The Berrien County Parks Department is holding a free household chemical and electronics recycling event this Saturday at Silver Beach. Environmental Property Manager Jill Adams tells WSJM News anyone will be able to drop off items including

A business break-in in Niles was thwarted by police overnight Wednesday. The Berrien County Sheriff’s Department tells us deputies on patrol in the area of the 3,000 block of South 11th Street heard loud banging noises coming