Local John Dickie:’The crowd kept getting bigger and bigger?

The crowds were massive, but the experience, unforgettable. Brandon Township resident John Dickie and his daughter, Alexis, a junior at Brandon High School, attended the inauguration of President Barack Obama on Tuesday in Washington, D.C. ‘It was overwhelming, the number of people there,? John Dickie said. ‘It was an exhausting day and really cold out, […]

Baseball fandom 101: Couple travels to every major league ballpark

Jan and Ed Piorkowski are not your everyday baseball fans. The couple has held partial season tickets to the Detroit Tigers every year since the 90s and have been fans for decades. But they aren’t content to just watch their team at home. The Piorkowskis took their love of the game one step further when […]

Township, village to form sewer committee

After years of intermittent discussion, officials from the village of Ortonville and Brandon Township are once again broaching the subject of sewers. Village Manager Ed Coy and Township Supervisor Kathy Thurman recently decided to create a joint sewer committee, the purpose of which will be to research and plan a joint sewer district and watewater […]

Former Ortonville clerk charged

A former Ortonville clerk/treasurer has been charged with willful neglect of duty by a public officer after money she received from two village taxpayers was never deposited. Mary Elizabeth Clark, 55, was arraigned on the charge, as well as an alternative count of willful neglect of duty by a public officer, on Dec. 22 in […]

Village snow removal reviewed

Ortonville- With more than two months of winter remaining, the weather seems unlikely to change much soon, but how it is handled may. The village council agreed during their Jan. 12 meeting to have a personnel committee review snowplowing procedures after a petition was filed by local business owners requesting a change. ‘A solution will […]

Locals to attend Inauguration Day

When Barack Obama is sworn in as the nation’s 44th president on Tuesday in Washington, D.C., three Brandon Township residents will be amongst the hundreds of thousands of people there to see history in the making. John Dickie, his daughter, Alexis, and Tyson DeLandsheer have scored tickets to the Jan. 20 inauguration, in which they […]

Brandon man arraigned in home invasions

An alert homeowner’s suspicions resulted in the arrest of a Brandon Township man in a series of home invasions. Matthew Thomas Neubeck, 25, was arraigned Jan. 9 at 52-2 District Court on two counts of home invasion, second degree and given a $50,000 personal bond. He was also arraigned on another two counts of home […]

Township crime spree suspect arraigned in 52-2

A 17-year-old Brandon Township man has been charged in connection with a string of thefts from vehicles in the area. Shawn Donald Dinsmore was arraigned Jan. 11 in front of 52-2 District Court Magistrate Holtz on a charge of larceny from an automobile. He was released on a $25,000 personal bond. According to police reports, […]

Area businesses report change in buying habits

The month of December has typically been a good month for area businesses, but for Joe D’Anna of Papa Bella’s, last month was a great one. ‘Kids home from school, families together, people out Christmas shopping’business has been great,? said D’Anna, located at 425 Mill St., Ortonville. ‘Despite the tough economy, people are still spending […]

Snowed in

Ortonville- Frustration with snow piled on sidewalks and curbs has caused several business owners to sign a petition seeking a solution to the problem. The petition, circulated by Robin Mansfield, owner of Glass With Class bead store, requests that the village council change the Department of Public Works plowing procedure by tilting snow blades to […]