Local News

Water safety is always a concern in the Blue Water Area given the amount of water that surrounds the area. The City of Port Huron Fire Department is taking steps to make sure its first responders are properly trained to handle water emergencies. The fire department now has its own underwater rescue team. Twelve firefighters completed the training, and they were given pins at the Port Huron City Council meeting Monday night by Chief Corey Nicholson. The team is not an underwater dive team, but they are trained to use scuba equipment. The twelve firefighters received 100 hours of training over the past 18 months. Chief Nicholson said the department can now more adequately respond to drowning and near-drowning incidents. Many of the training sessions were attended by firefighters on their own time.

The Great Lake to Lake trail opens this week and will connect the city of South Haven on Lake Michigan to Port Huron. Eighteen separate trails will be connected, and the route will travel through nine counties. The inaugural ride begins Thursday, September 12th in South Haven and concludes a week later in Port Huron. Port Huron City Manager James Freed said the city is excited about the new Great Lake to Lake Trail. There will be construction on the Port Huron trailhead located at Lighthouse Beach. According to Freed, a huge red buoy will note the end of the trail. He said there will be many enhancements in coming years to increase bike lanes and trails in Port Huron. The goal, Freed said, is to create a more bike-friendly community.

With the start of the workweek, here’s the road report from the St. Clair County Road Commission. In Berlin Township, Capac Road between Hough and Tubspring will continue to be closed until the beginning of October for reconstruction. State Road between Myron and Burtch should be opening soon in Burtchville after bridge replacement. China Township will see Indian Trail between Schunk and Remer closed one day this week, and there will also be intermittent closures on St. Clair Highway for crack sealing between Wadhams and Mayer. 

Kilgore Road between Lohr and Yale will be closed until the end of the month for bridge replacement. In Kimball Township, Dove between Ditty and Wadhams will have bridge maintenance for the next two weeks. Also in Kimball, the left lane of westbound I-69 between Talyor and Wales Center will be closed for concrete patching this week. In Wales Township, Wales Center between Morriss and Lapeer will continue to be closed for bridge replacement. That project is slated for completion near the middle to end of October. 

Last Tuesday evening, the St. Clair County Drug Task Force raided a home in the 1700 block of 21st street on the south side of Port Huron. Once inside the home, the task force located and seized $1,300 worth of methamphetamine, paraphernalia, and cash. They took three individuals ages 52, 47, and 42 years old (two men and one woman) into custody. The 52-year-old was arraigned Friday and charged with possession with intent to distribute and resisting and obstructing a police officer. He is being held at the St. Clair County Intervention and Detention Center on a $50,000 bond. A probable cause court date is set for September 17th in front of 72nd District Court Judge John Monaghan. The other two were released to appear at a future date on possession charges. The Port Huron Police K-9 unit assisted at the scene of the search warrant.

In her campaign for the Governor’s office in Michigan, Gretchen Whitmer frequently referred to the poor condition of Michigan’s roads. It has been estimated by many that it will take an additional $2.5 billion annually in revenue to fix the state’s roads and infrastructure. In a joint statement with Senator Mike Shirkey and Representative Lee Chatfield on Monday, Governor Whiter said they agreed to continue conversations about road funding in a meaningful way and have tabled all associated issues for the time being. They said the number one priority is getting a budget passed. Whitmer indicated previously that there would be no budget deal until the road funding was settled. It is still unclear if Whitmer’s 45 cents a gallon tax will be an option going forward. The lawmakers agreed that the best course of action is to immediately begin target-setting with legislative and executive leadership to get a budget passed by October 1st.

Fort Gratiot Township has a new Community Development Director. Sharon Wilton joined the staff at Fort Gratiot Township last week filling the position vacated by Christi Jones who joined the EDA of St. Clair County recently as the Director of Business and Community Development. Fort Gratiot Clerk Robert Buechler said Sharon has a ton of experience with community relations. He went on to say her networking and contacts will be helpful to the township. Sharon said she is thrilled to be in her new position.  She feels the township is an amazing place to work, and she is glad to be making a difference in her local community. Her first task is the planning of Scarecrow Saturday coming up on September 28th. Beyond that Wilton said she will be trained in other areas of township work, and she looks forward to working alongside her peers in Zoning and Ordinance.