By Shelby Stewart Staff Writer A Macomb County resident was found competent to stand trial in connection with the death of an Oakland County deputy. On Feb. 12, Christopher Barek was found competent to stand trial by District Court 52-2 Judge Joseph Fabrizo. He was ordered a competency hearing on Dec. 4. Barek was arrested […]
At about 7 p.m., Feb. 6 about 14,000 DTE customers lost power in northern Oakland County including Clarkston, Brandon and Groveland townships. DTE Energy spokesperson Amanda Knaebel said the electrical failure was due to equipment damage during scheduled maintenance on area circuits. The crews were already on site when the outage occurred and resorted power […]
By Shelby Stewart Staff Writer Brandon Twp.- The fire department responded to 1,323 calls in 2017, a new record for the department. “When I started with the department in 1987, we responded to 314 calls,” said Brandon Fire Chief David Kwapis. “That’s a 400 percent increase.” Kwapis gave his 2017 year end report to the […]
By Shelby Stewart Staff Writer Brandon Twp.- The township board will be looking further into purchasing the Belle Ann Elementary school building that has been closed since 2013 due to a decline in enrollment in the Brandon School District. The board gathered at a special meeting on Feb. 1 to discuss the costs associated with […]
By David Fleet Editor On Feb. 1, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources hosted a meeting to discuss the future of the Iron Belle Trail north connecting the Lake Orion and Independence to trails north in Atlas Township. The gathering was at the Orion Center, 1335 Joslyn Road, Lake Orion an included representatives from the […]
By David Fleet Editor The recent Feb. 5 snow day following Super Bowl Sunday marked the sixth for the Brandon and Goodrich School districts. The half dozen days off maxed out the number allowed by the State of Michigan prompting distinct officials to explore some options the next time it snows. “It’s still early February […]
By Shelby Stewart Staff Writer Brandon Twp.- Oakland County Sheriff’s Office Brandon substation commander Lieutenant Greg Glover presented his 2017 year end activity report to the township board on Monday night. The substation has seen an increase in calls—807 more than 2016 to be exact. The substation, which has a staff of 13, is averaging […]
By David Fleet Editor Gary Barns has not had a technical foul in 10 years. “I’ve never been kicked out of a game either,” laughs Barns, reflecting on his career. After 27 years of coaching the Goodrich Martian’s Boys Varsity basketball team Barn’s has reached another pinnacle of the game—400 wins. Goodrich defeated Corunna 44-37 […]
By Shelby Stewart Staff Writer Brandon Twp.- The cable coordinator contract has been revised and renewed with Greg Normand for operation of Ortonville TV. The township board OK’s the contract on Jan. 8. The Ortonville Village Council approved the contract on Jan. 22. In 2015 the board of trustees OK’d a 2-year contract and raise […]
By David Fleet Editor Goodrich- On Jan. 22 the school board of trustees voted 7-0 to move forward with options for a new sports conference for the 2019-20 school years. The move will be necessary following a recent shake up in the Genesee Area Conference. Since 1978 the Martians have been members of the GAC […]