Local News

This year Port Huron Museums offered free admission to its visitors, and the effects of that decision has seen them hit record numbers of visitors at all three of their sites. 

Port Huron Museums began their free admission in April, allowing visitors access to The Carnegie, HURON Lightship, and the Edison Depot. The numbers totaled as of September are as follows: 

• The Edison Depot has seen almost triple its usual number of guests with 14,500, a 381% increase. 
• HURON Lightship has seen an astounding 755% increase in visitors with approximately 22,700. 
• The Carnegie, which also features Discovery City, has seen 19,500 visitors with 14,800 being visitors to Discovery City.

The free admission was due in part to a large grant by the City of Port Huron as well as corporate sponsors. Admission will be free until March 2023.

For more details about the sites and special programs visit: porthuronmuseums.com.

Reporting for WGRT – Choze Powell

State Rep. Andrew Beeler today decried vote-switching by House Democrats who voted for the state’s bipartisan budget but changed their votes and opposed funding for maternal health and adoption services after the governor removed it from the budget.

The change came as representatives voted whether to override several budget line items that previously passed with supermajorities but failed to achieve the two-thirds vote necessary to override Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s veto due to the Democrats’ changed votes.

“When we first considered these proposals in the House of Representatives, the budget earned solid bipartisan support,” said Beeler, R-Port Huron. “Then Gov. Whitmer vetoed funding to provide maternal care and support adoption, and her Democratic allies nonsensically changed their minds and opposed the very same proposals they previously approved.

“This pandering to the governor is indefensible. Legislators must have the courage to follow our convictions and stand for our constituents. The founders never imagined such partisan loyalty overriding intellectual honesty.”

Beeler and his colleagues attempted to overturn the governor’s veto of multiple line-items from the budget to support maternal health and adoption: a $4 million maternity home program to help pregnant women in need of safe housing and prenatal care; $1.5 million for pregnancy resource centers; $10 million to promote the adoption of infants in need of a home and provide information about adoption as an alternative to abortion; and $2 million to offer tax credits to adoptive parents. The budget passed the House in July by a 97-9 vote. The overrides failed by votes of 52-44 and 53-43.

Submitted by Rep. Beeler’s Office

A new user-friendly website was launched to help raise awareness about health data in St. Clair County along with a new campaign to reach those who may be unaware of its existence. The data provided is collected from the St. Clair County Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA), with the St. Clair County Health Department playing a key role in overseeing the process.

The website, Healthy St. Clair County (healthyscc.org), highlights the 2021 CHNA, featuring information such as addressing childhood trauma, as well as the Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) which provides the community with action steps when addressing priority health areas.

The CHIP process takes place every five years to stay updated on overall health changes seen in the community. Local residents may see billboard advertisements, or receive information in the mail, as well as other methods of spreading awareness of the new data.

The goal is to improve the health of St. Clair County residents by providing a one-stop-shop to the latest data provided by CHNA.

Reporting for WGRT – Choze Powell