Local News Archives

Congressman Fred Upton is planning to hold a tele-town hall meeting next week. That’s as protesters demand he hold a physical town hall, which he has declined to do. Upton’s tele-town hall is set for Tuesday at 5

Less snow this winter has meant savings for some municipalities in southwest Michigan. Tom MacDonald is the director of public works for the city of St. Joseph, and tells WSJM News no snow means time and money

Warm weather this winter is harming Michigan’s maple syrup industry. Kirk Hedding, President of the Michigan Maple Syrup Association, tells WSJM News the length of the sap season will be greatly affected if the temperatures don’t drop,

Another symposium on Japanese knotweed is planned for St. Joseph next month. The Van Buren Conservation District’s Eleanor Serocki tells WSJM News this is the second such meeting they’ve held to educate the public about the invasive

Legislation making its way through the Michigan House would allow drivers to leave their cars running on private property to warm them up. Leaving a car unattended while it’s running could currently get you a ticket in

The real estate market in southwest Michigan is showing no signs of slowing down. Phil Amodeo, executive with the Southwest Michigan Association of Realtors, tells WSJM News the number of homes sold in January was up 9% over

The Michigan Supreme Court has recognized the Van Buren County court system for its efforts to improve efficiency and customer service. Court Administrator Frank Hardester tells WSJM News that’s as the state pushes courts to re-engineer several processes.

Five Benton Harbor High School students have recognized by the Veterans of Foreign Wars for their essays on American democracy. Each year, the VFW holds the essay contest nationally, and this year, some Benton Harbor High School Library

Berrien County Treasurer Bret Witkowski is holding another meeting this weekend for residents who are behind on their property taxes to come and speak with him about getting on a payment plan. Witkowski tells us he’d rather

It was once one of the largest department store chains in the country, but now JC Penney is shrinking its retail footprint, and thousands of employees are being asked to retire early. Michigan News Network Business Editor

Benton Harbor Area Schools Superintendent Dr. Shelly Walker is pleased with Governor Rick Snyder’s move this week to delay the Michigan School Reform Office’s decision on possible school closures statewide. She tells us the governor’s delay of

The Orchards Mall in Benton Township is a little more than a month away from foreclosure. The Berrien County Treasurer’s office tells WSJM News the mall still hasn’t paid its property taxes, and they’re due on March

State Representative Kim LaSata is praising Governor Rick Snyder’s action to delay the Michigan School Reform Office’s decision on possible school closures across the state. This week, the governor gave the SRO until the end of May

From the Associated Press — A few dozen people staged a protest against the potential closings of up to 38 underperforming schools across the state. The group marched from a Lansing church to the state Capitol complex where

15-year-old Abigail Kopf continues her recovery from last year’s shooting spree in Kalamazoo. Abigail was shot in the head in the rampage that ultimately killed six, and has since then undergone two surgeries to replace part of

Up to 24 years in prison await a 54-year-old Benton Harbor man for a double shooting at his home in September. A Berrien County jury found Timothy Young, Jr. guilty on two lesser charges of assault with

The Democratic National Committee will elect a new chairman on Saturday. The most high profile names nationally up for the job are former U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez and Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison, but South Bend Mayor

There is a reprieve for Benton Harbor Area Schools as three of the district’s schools face closure. Governor Snyder has given Michigan’s School Reform Office more time before deciding which of 38 chronically underperforming schools will be

Several southwest Michigan lawmakers will be in Bridgman Friday to honor Vietnam veterans. At 3 p.m. they’ll be at the American Legion for a ceremony to hand out commemorative lapel pins about 100 vets who served from

With the scarcity of snow this winter, we thought we’d check out how busy Berrien County Parks have been, and it turns out attendance hasn’t been down all that much. County Parks Director Brian Bailey tells WSJM News

Work is underway at Celebration Cinema in Benton Harbor to refurbish the auditoriums and add new luxury seating. They started ripping out the old seats form three of the auditoriums this month, and Celebration’s Steve Van Wagoner

Southwestern Michigan College is planning to expand its Nursing and Health Education Building so more programs can be offered and more students trained. SMC President Dr. David Mathews tells WSJM News the $9.6 million project is intended

A plan to stop health insurance companies from denying coverage to patients due to pre-existing conditions once the Affordable Care Act is repealed has been introduced in the U.S. House, co-sponsored by Congressman Fred Upton. Upton says

State Representative Dave Pagel, one of 12 Republicans in the Michigan House to vote no on a proposed income tax cut Thursday morning, says the plan just wan’t handled right. He tells WSJM News there were too

A Niles man is facing charges over a crash this week that killed a man in Indiana. According to our reporting partners at NewsCenter 16 WNDU, the St. Joseph County, Indiana Prosecutor’s office has charged 39-year-old James

Police are looking for a suspect who led them on a chase through Hartford on Wednesday. The Van Buren County Sheriff’s Department tells us it all started shortly after 5 p.m. when they got a call about

Officials from New Buffalo will break ground Friday on a major initiative to improve the downtown area. They’ll be gathering at 1 p.m. for a ceremony to mark the start of a $5 million renovation project set

From the Associated Press — Governor Rick Snyder has given Michigan’s School Reform Office more time before deciding which of 38 chronically underperforming schools will be closed. Snyder said Thursday that he’s asked the reform office and state education

Legislation now under consideration by a Michigan House committee would make it a felony for an inmate or detainee at a jail to try to expose officers to bodily fluids or human waste. Among the plan’s supporters

The Republican-led Michigan House has defeated legislation to lower the state’s income tax. The bill that fell three votes short of passage early Thursday would lower the 4.25% tax to 4.05% by 2019 and then to 3.9%