Power outage news topped this year’s list of The Lake Orion Review’s top 10 stories.
1. Ice and plenty of it hit the area in April. Over 9,000 residents lost power. The fire department responded to over 160 calls and fallen branches caused problems on the roads. Township trustees decided to budget up to $100,000 for emergency brush cleanup.
2. Although Orion and Oxford were mostly untouched by a major power outage in the eastern part of the US in August, M-24 became gridlocked as people from blackout areas came to town searching for gas, food and water.
3. Larry Obrecht resigned in February from the Oakland County Board of Commissioners to accept the position as the county’s animal control director.
4. Two expensive elections took place to select a person to replace Obrecht as county commissioner. Eric Wilson, an Orion Township trustee, and Daniel Myslakowski won the primary in May. Voters picked Wilson in a general election in June.
5. Trustees voted in August to have William Wilshire take over Wilson’s seat on the Orion Township Board.
6. Village officials decided in February to get rid of state building inspectors and look elsewhere. The village manager was told by council members to start negotiations with the township to again have its building inspectors do it.
7. The school district lost close to $400,000 in state funding. In February, the school board made public plans to cut $392,000 in this year’s budget and $3.9 million in the 2004 budget.
8. Gawkers along M-24 were entertained in October with the sinking of an excavator into muck at a construction site at M-24/Church Street. A huge crane was brought in the next day to lift the piece of equipment out.
9. Residents in September were upset with a proposal by a developer to build a topless entertainment club/restaurant on M-24.
10. LOHS Varsity Soccer player Billy Weaver was named Michigan’s Mr. Soccer in November.