George James

Detours in Store for Drivers as Road Work Ramps Up

Lapeer Road between Wadhams and Allen Roads is going to be closed to westbound traffic starting today, according to the St. Clair County Road Commission. The closure is in effect for 50 days.

The work includes milling the existing asphalt and rubblizing the underlying concrete. The work also includes widening the road for a left turn lane and paving a portion of the shoulder of the road. There will also be drainage improvements, new pavement markings, and site restoration. The work is being done by Boddy Construction.

The Lapeer Road work will completely close the westbound lanes, but the eastbound traffic will be maintained. The posted detour is Allen Road to Griswold Road to Wadhams Road. Local access to homes and businesses will be maintained also with access for emergency vehicles. 

The road work has been budgeted to cost $750,000 and is being paid for with St. Clair County Road Commission Funds.

Smaller projects in the county include painting of the Masters Road bridge over the Belle River between Riley Center Road and Eagling Road, which is taking place between May 6th and June 5th.

At the north end of the county, the Fisher Road Bridge over Burtch Creek, between State Road and M-25, will be getting a new coat of paint from today until June 2nd.

Detour routes are posted for traffic in both directions for both of the bridge painting projects.

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Private Wells Are Focus of this Year’s Drinking Water Awareness Week

It’s Drinking Water Awareness Week. With over 20% of the world’s fresh water in the Great Lakes, keeping water clean is a priority for the state and is vital to the Blue Water Area.

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy’s Clean Water Public Advocate, Ninah Sasy, said, “Regardless of whether your water comes from a municipal supply or private well, there are still things you can do to make sure you’re serving our families healthy drinking water.”

Those steps to ensure clean water will be highlighted through virtual events and public service messages to connect people to water resources.

For Michigan, PFAS contamination, along with the not-so-distant memory of Flint’s lead contamination, has put the state in the spotlight for water resource management. Residential wells are also a focus this year, with Tuesday being “Private Residential Well Awareness Day”. One-quarter of Michigan residents have residential wells.

Sasy said, “Proper well maintenance and testing are critical to ensuring that your family has healthy drinking water.”

Links to Drinking Water Awareness Resources:

https://www.michigan.gov/cleanwater/0,9779,7-411-106430_106431_106434—,00.html

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

House Bill Addresses Unclaimed Bottle Return Money

The amount of unredeemed deposits on bottles and cans is huge this year, with millions of dollars worth of eligible deposit returns sitting in basements, garages, and likely landfills. What to do with the unclaimed money has prompted action that has been called both “commonsense” and “misguided”, depending on who is talking.

The Michigan House passed house bills 4443 and 4444 that would put more money from unclaimed bottle returns into updates for equipment that processes the returns. The bill would allocate more money for the bottling industry and less for the Cleanup and Redevelopment Trust Fund which currently gets 75% of the money.

Spencer Nevins of the Michigan Beer and Wine Wholesalers praised the legislation, saying, “Our members have spent millions of dollars to purchase large, expensive equipment — which takes up valuable warehouse space — to process returnables without seeing a dime from the state.”

Environmentalists are less impressed. Nick Occhipinti, government affairs director for the Michigan League of Conservation Voters, argued that more money is needed to “fight contamination in our drinking water, rivers, streams, lakes, and land” and he urged lawmakers to “oppose this misguided legislation.”

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Huron Lightship to Remain Rust-free Thanks to City Funding

Port Huron, MI — The Port Huron Museum always makes the best of whatever surprises are thrown at it and managing a freak natural disaster is no exception. When a meteotsunami hit Lake Huron in July of 2020, the Huron Lightship sustained serious damage. The sudden and devastating erosion destroyed the mechanical systems and caused an unwelcome moat to appear.

Andrew Kercher, Manager of Community Engagement for Port Huron Museums, said that the City of Port Huron is helping the Museum with the restoration of the cathodic system that was exposed with the storm. The system is a series of cathodes that attract rust away from the ship, allowing it to remain intact while being buried partially underground for the past half-century.

If there was any silver lining to the unexpected excavation, it’s that the cathodic system, which needed eventual replacement anyway, was able to be accessed. Further work will be needed to shore up the erosion and stabilize the buried ship. Kercher said he is grateful for the partnership with the City of Port Huron.

The Huron Lightship, which celebrates its 100th birthday this year, is planned to be open for visitors after Memorial Day. Full schedules can be found at phmuseum.org.

Reporting for WGRT -Jennie McClelland

Michigan Loses Congressional Seat after Census Apportionment

Results of the 2020 United States Census regarding Congressional Apportionment have been finalized and published. Michigan joined six other states in losing a seat in the United States House of Representatives once the seats were apportioned to balance the 435 seats. The newly apportioned congressional seats will be realized in January 2023.

Michigan currently has 14 congressional seats but will go down to 13, as well as losing a vote in the electoral college, which decides presidential elections.

Getting Michigan residents to fill out the census during a pandemic was a major effort in 2020, with that congressional seat and electoral college votes seat on the line. Michigan came up just short of the needed population count, relative to other states, to keep the seat and the vote.

Michigan’s population grew by about 2% over the past decade, making it one of the slowest growing states in the nation. Utah, Idaho, and Texas saw the highest growth rates.

Michigan’s population is counted at just over 10 million people.

Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said “The American public deserves a big thank you for its overwhelming response to the 2020 Census. Despite many challenges, our nation completed a census for the 24th time.”

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

MDOT Plans M-136 Bridge Construction

The bridge over the Black River in Beard Hills is going to get a facelift and it will cause some disruption to a popular route for commuters from the rural parts of northern St. Clair County and for those who enjoy a scenic drive.

The Michigan Department of Transportation has announced that improvements to M-136 in Clyde Township will start on May 3rd and will continue into August of 2021.

The entire project is a $1.3 million investment by MDOT. The work includes resurfacing, joint replacements, railing replacements, concrete patching, and repairs to the bridge approach. The work is expected to complete structural improvements to the bridge, improve the driving surface, and extend the life of the roadway.

MDOT reports that traffic will be maintained throughout the work period, except for two weekends, where the road will be completely closed. A temporary signal will be in place, but the bridge will need to be closed in each direction in late May and late June, just during a weekend. The closures will be announced in advance.

A link to a map of the project can be found at:

https://mdotjboss.state.mi.us/MiDrive/map?constZone=true&lat=43.05166125334461&lon=-82.59658074378936&zoom=14

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland