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Escanaba council votes to exit retirement system

By ILSA MINOR Daily Press ESCANABA — The city of Escanaba approved resolutions Thursday to exit the Michigan Municipal Employees Retirement System, commonly known as MERS, and self-manage the investments that support the program. At the start of Thursday’s meeting, Tara Langham addressed the council during public comment to present a letter from MERS CEO Kerrie Vanden Bosch. Langham did not read the letter, but shared responses to some of the concerns raised by the council the last time MERS presented to the council on Oct. 5. Specifically, Langham said MERS provided a list ...

Tower test: request for space prompts structural analysis

By GRAHAM JAENIG Daily Mining Gazette EAGLE RIVER — A request for space on the tower at Mt. Horace Greeley by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has prompted Keweenaw County officials to engage a contractor to conduct a structural analysis on the tower before permitting additions to the tower. “There’s a tremendous load on there now,” Commissioner Del Rajala said, particularly after AT&T updated its equipment on the tower this past summer. Commissioner Rob DeMarois said a partial analysis was conducted with AT&T but raised the question of how much weight ...

Teen to stand trial for shooting Lake Linden man

By GARRETT NEESE Daily Mining Gazette PHOENIX — A former Hancock resident who allegedly killed a former Lake Linden resident in Arizona in March was found competent to stand trial and will have hearings over the next three months to set dates for further proceedings. Elliot Bennett, 19, had undergone court-ordered testing to determine if he was mentally competent. After evaluations performed in August, the court found Bennett understood the legal proceedings and was able to assist in his defense. Bennett, now of Lake Havasu City, Arizona, had originally been scheduled to stand ...

Felch OKs permit for Groveland Mine solar power ‘farm’

FELCH TOWNSHIP — A plan to establish a “solar farm” at the former Groveland Mine has gained the final local government authorization needed to move forward in Dickinson County. The Felch Township Planning Commission voted 4-1 on Wednesday to approve Circle Power Renewables’s ...

Housing, retail pot hot issues at voter forum

ESCANABA — The three candidates running for Escanaba’s City Council and one of three candidates seeking election to the Gladstone City Commission were in Escanaba Wednesday to weigh in on the issues during a voter forum sponsored by the American Association of University Women (AAUW) and the League of Women Voters of Delta County (LWV). The evening opened with Brad Mantela, a Gladstone commissioner and the only one of three candidates running for two open commission seats to appear at the forum. Sitting between placeholder name cards for the two other candidates, incumbent Judy ...

Area farmers enjoy profitable harvest

ESCANABA — When compared to the agriculture of eras past, changes in technology, diet trends, politics, transportation and land management have all impacted the way farmers operate. In the Upper Peninsula, hay is widely grown, but this year’s yield suffered due to dry conditions. However, ...