George James

Fear not, local homeowners, those leaves will get picked up eventually. Janice Rendflesh of Emterra Environmental USA, spoke to us about the leaf pickup status in the Blue Water Area. Emterra is contracted with Port Huron, Marine City, and Marysville for trash, recycling, and yard waste pickup. She said that the local Operations Team with Emterra is working hard to get to all the leaves. 

They do three passes through the city and they are currently on their third pass. She assured us that they are working hard to get it done and they won’t stop until all the streets are covered. Ms. Rendflesh said the timing of the pickup is dependent upon weather conditions and if you know Michigan, this year has not been ideal. 

As to where all those leaves go, she said Emterra sends them to a composting facility. Compost facilities in Michigan are licensed by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy. Sometimes the leaves and clippings are mixed with other compostable materials and turned into compost that is used in local agriculture. If your leaves are not picked up during this last pass of the season, make sure to call your local municipality to let them know.

Reporting for WGRT, Kelsie Kaczperski.

Marysville Police Officer Reeves and his K-9 partner, Heiko, can’t seem to stay out of the news. The two spent the fall raising awareness for a contest for a new K-9 vehicle. Although they did not win the contest, they still took second place and received a Chevy Tahoe from an anonymous donor. Now, Heiko is in the news for possibly saving the life of a lost hunter. 

With the threat of an ice storm and freezing temperatures looming Saturday night, there was no time to lose when a call came in from a hunter lost in the 6700-acre Port Huron State Game area. A rescue effort was organized with the St. Clair County Sherriff’s Department, Clyde Township Fire Department,  and the Kenockee Twp. Fire Department, and Heiko was called in to assist. It was reported that the four-year-old German Shepherd put his nose to work and found the lost hunter in the woods in Clyde Township. In the cold and dark, Heiko sniffed out the hunter in less than an hour, according to reports, and led the rescuers to him. 

Dogs have about 225 million scent receptors in their noses compared to a human’s mere five million. So Heiko clearly had the advantage when looking for that cold, lonely hunter. Heiko’s training has paid off and he is proving himself to be a great asset for the Marysville Police Department.

Reporting for WGRT, Kelsie Kaczperski.

Today is a big day for supporters of the new skate park in Port Huron. Donations will be matched by an anonymous donor for today only, hopefully giving a big push toward the $250,000 goal.  Donations are being matched until December 31 by both the Tony Hawk Foundation and the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation. So, donors will essentially have their donation quadrupled today. 

To take advantage of this trifecta of matching gift generosity, donors can make their checks payable to the City of Port Huron and be sure to date it December 3rd and write Optimist SkatePark in the memo line. Making a donation through the GoFundMe account also qualifies for the match. 

The Port Huron Recreation Department is cooperating with local skating and skateboard enthusiasts to plan an improved skate park in Optimist Park, off of 10th street on the north side of the city. The park also has a new accessible and modernized playground that was installed last year. 

John Eppley, of Alpine Cycles, and an organizer of the skate park effort, told us they are inching closer to their goal and need at least another $60,000 to get there. Additional money will help with things like drinking fountains, picnic tables, and flowers to complement the park, which is both a neighborhood park and a destination for families and skaters.

You can donate on the GoFund Me page <HERE>.

Reporting for WGRT, Kelsie Kaczperski

Local residents with multiple vehicles and small driveways will need to get creative with parking their cars from now until spring. Both Port Huron and Marysville have snow ordinances in effect from December through April. Residents need to keep their vehicles off the streets overnight to make room for snow plows. The rule is in effect even if the skies are clear and there is no snow.

Captain Marcy Kuehn of the Port Huron Police Department reminds us that vehicles are to be off the street between the hours of 2:30 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. Drivers will get a warning from now until December 5, but after that a $20 ticket will unfortunately be waiting for you in the morning. The ordinance applies to paved streets within the city limits. Marysville has a similar ordinance that starts at 2:00 a.m. and ends at 6:00 a.m. 

In the event of a snow storm, it’s a good idea to keep your car off the street whenever snow is falling to make room for snow plows. Snow isn’t in the forecast for a while, but if you live in the Blue Water Area, you know to be prepared for anything.

Reporting for WGRT, Kelsie Kaczperski

Driving home from work is about to get more festive for Blue Water Area commuters. Those who drive I-94 to and from work or otherwise travel in the area of Busha Highway and Huron Boulevard will be seeing nearly 18,000 lights on the ITC transmission tower. 

ITC will be lighting up one of its 150 foot tall transmission towers tonight with a third of a mile of rope lights. Drivers will also be greeted by a 10 by 15 foot Happy Holidays sign from the huge transmission tower as well. 

ITC Michigan is the nation’s largest independent electricity transmission company with a system of 8,700 circuit miles of transmission lines. It also owns and operates the high-voltage electricity grid in most of the lower peninsula. ITC lights up ten of their high transmission towers throughout Michigan, so it is safe to say they know how to light things up. The tower will be lit up tonight and drivers can enjoy this holiday greeting every evening until January 3rd.

Reporting for WGRT, Kelsie Kaczperski.

Today is Cyber Monday and while there are certainly deals to be had, there are also scams to look out for. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has issued a consumer alert regarding a practice known as drop shipping. She describes it as “a ploy used by self-proclaimed entrepreneurs to skim off the top of holiday must-haves and other goods throughout the year. Sellers set up websites to peddle products they do not keep in stock and send orders placed through their sites to various third parties to fulfill and ship the product directly to the consumer – all while charging markup-ups of up to $50 or more.” 

While the practice is not necessarily illegal, it is not usually necessary because you can typically buy the product yourself. Drop shippers have no control over the inventory because they have none, so the product you ordered may arrive long after your expected delivery date. 

A common drop ship method is to advertise on social media and have pictures of fake products and fake storefronts while they are ordering the products online – just like you would do. 

Attorney General Nessel recommends that consumers “research the product and the seller of the product you want to purchase before you buy it; complete an online image search of the product and other images the seller has posted to their site to see where the product is coming from, how much it really costs, and who else is selling it; and compare prices for the same or similar products from other sellers.” If the price seems too good to be true, it is probably a counterfeit product.

Reporting for WGRT, Kelsie Kaczperski.