George James

Lawrence Jewelers’ location in Birchwood Mall has closed. According to owners Dion Schlager and Jon Askew, the closure is strategic. After opening a brand new 6,000 square foot facility in the Fort Gratiot Flag Plaza last March, the Birchwood location’s closure, says Askew, is “in preparation for the future as we continue to grow and expand.” The former Lawrence storefront, which closed after business Saturday, had been in the mall for 15 years. 

Since opening in March 2019 at 4023 24th Avenue, Lawrence had shifted sales in the Birchwood location to an outlet format. Askew said the outlet process will now be continued through the company’s website and social media platforms. 

In the new space, Lawrence has expanded its offerings to include bigger brands such as Shinola and Hearts on Fire while also hiring a second jeweler for custom design work.

Reporting for WGRT, Karly Hurley.

MIPassion, a women’s clothing and gift shop in downtown Port Huron, is moving down the block to a bigger storefront. Anita Varty, owner of MIPassion, currently at 217 Huron Street, said that since opening in June of 2019, she has outgrown her small storefront. The boutique will be moving down the street to the former Port Huron Chiropractic space at 229 Huron. The chiropractic office is moving to Marysville.

MIPassion’s new location is in a large historic space that is connected to Kate’s Downtown, a popular café. Varty said that she didn’t want her store to start looking cluttered, with her growing inventory, and jumped at the chance to expand into a bigger space on the “perfect block” downtown with the opportunity to collaborate with Kate’s- an added bonus.

Varty has started the renovation and hopes to be into the new space by March 1. She is looking forward to adding more accessories to her current stock of women’s clothing in sizes small to 3X and her Michigan-made home goods and gifts. Michigan artists are also a prominent feature in the store. The possibility of offering classes such as necklace making in the future also comes with the larger space, according to Varty.

Reporting for WGRT, Karly Hurley.

A group of volunteers who call themselves the “Friends of the Fort Gratiot Light” started work this weekend to restore and renovate the retired United States Coast Guard Station Building to its original 1930’s state. It is estimated that the effort will cost approximately $500,000 and take several years to complete.

The group originally gathered to get a scope of the project earlier in January where they unveiled a mural that was discovered as paneling was taken down in what will be restored as a radio room. It is intended that the mural, a 44-foot motor lifeboat 44330 on a rescue mission in rough seas on the lake, will be preserved. One of the participants in the evening, Rudy Sloup, retired from the Coast Guard, and actually served on the boat when stationed in Port Huron.

The restoration group championing the project first assembled with a focus to financially support restoration on the oldest lighthouse in Michigan, the Fort Gratiot Lighthouse. Once that goal was met, the focus shifted to the other historic buildings and the grounds of the park. This created a growing opportunity for volunteers to fulfill their passion by continuing fundraising along with supplying physical labor and guidance in the restoration effort.

The Friends of the Fort Gratiot Light will be holding work parties at the building on Saturdays to complete the work on the former Coast Guard building. More information can be found on the Friends website at Fortgratiotlight.org.

Reporting for WGRT, Karly Hurley.

A new assisted living facility will break ground this week in Port Huron. The 43,000 square foot Bridgewater Terrace Assisted Living project will be located near Lake Huron Medical Center’s campus and cost upwards of $9.5 million featuring 44 units.

The proposed development by Leisure Living Management came shortly after a visit to tour the city that was initiated by Port Huron’s City Manager James Freed. The company filed an application of proposed site plans with the city in July 2019. The Grand Rapids-based Leisure Living Management owns assisted living and memory care homes throughout the state. The slated Port Huron site is just under seven acres and will be located at 1403 Catherine McAuley Drive. 

Freed said the city has a focus on attracting young people, but also realizes the need for “retaining the elderly population is just as important because they are economic drivers.” He said, “This development will allow folks to age in place, in the neighborhood they love.”

A ceremonial groundbreaking on the project will be held by the Blue Water Area Chamber of Commerce Tuesday, January 28 beginning at 11:30 a.m., with a formal program taking place at 12 p.m. Freed said the project should be completed in 12-15 months.

Reporting for WGRT, Karly Hurley.

A Rochester Police dashcam caught quite the surprise guests while monitoring runners at the Chill at the Mills 5k last weekend. Dashcam footage shows runners jogging by in a residential area when a deer suddenly jumps into frame springing over a road barricade and the patrol car. 

The video, that was posted on Facebook last Sunday, has garnered over 58,000 views. The department commented on the video of the apparent group of deer that “one went right over the hood. We are just sorry they missed the turn with their fellow runners.” 

Rochester is a small community with a population of about 13,000 people approximately one-hour southwest of Port Huron. The downtown area is known best for its Christmas lights display.

A Marine City business, The Sweet Tooth, celebrated its 10th anniversary this week, and it all started in 2009 with a layoff.

Seventh generation Marine City resident Todd May found himself without a job in 2009 and made the decision to open The Sweet Tooth. The first storefront for the business was only 1,000 square feet (including storage) according to May. The Sweet Tooth has now moved to a location more than double the size, right across the road from the original space in Downtown Marine City.

The sweet shop is known for its handmade items like clusters and truffles, the buy-in bulk wall, and unique candy offerings, that originate as far back as the late 1800s.

Todd credits the store’s success to the recent growth of Downtown Marine City as well as loyal customers he has served throughout the years. Presently, The Sweet Tooth is working on a new line of cookies as well as their new treat, the Chocolate High Heel.

Take a look inside the store and hear more about Todd’s story in this ebw.tv feature.