Business

Adopt-A-Highway cleanup begins

Motorists along state routes are advised to use extra caution, as the second Adopt-A-Highway roadside cleanup event of the year begins Saturday and continues over an eight-day period. Thousands of Adopt-A-Highway volunteers will be back picking up litter along state roadways starting Saturday, as they’ve done each summer since 1990. Every year, Adopt-A-Highway volunteers collect about 70,000 bags of trash, …

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Silver Street bridge construction detours traffic

A detour on a major north-south route in St. Joseph County will remain in effect at least through September while a bridge is replaced. Crews from Hudsonville-based Grand River Construction started work Tuesday on the Silver Street bridge at the Portage River. The job is a full rebuild to replace a bridge that job foreman Dean Stewart said was in …

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Casino says computer system with personal info breached

Thousands of gamblers might have been dealt a bad hand at a southwestern Michigan casino. FireKeepers Casino Hotel says someone got access to the computer system, which held information from 85,000 credit and debit cards used for food, beverage and retail purchases, from September through April. Employees were also affected. In a statement Thursday, FireKeepers says it has no evidence …

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Birthplace of Meijer supercenter gets historical marker

A Michigan historical marker now stands at the original site of the store from Midwest retailer Meijer that pioneered the idea of a shopping supercenter. The marker was unveiled Monday at the site of the store in Grand Rapids. Hank Meijer, co-chairman of Meijer Inc., says it’s “just exciting to have the historical significance of this corner recognized.” Frederik Meijer …

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What power plant ruling means for Michigan

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 Monday in favor of Michigan and other Republican-led states that challenged Environmental Protection Agency rules that would reduce mercury and other air pollution from coal-fired power plants. The regulations, announced in 2011, are different from rules proposed last year to cut carbon dioxide emissions. What the decision means: ___ RULING A Supreme Court majority …

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Michigan unadjusted joblessness 5.9 percent, up 1.1 points

The state says Michigan’s seasonally unadjusted unemployment rate rose 1.1 points to 5.9 percent in May as a large number of people entered the workforce for the summer. The Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget released state and regional employment figures Thursday. The statewide rate is down 1.6 points from 7.5 percent in May 2014. The department says the …

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Deer Forest up for auction

A once-popular family attraction in southwestern Michigan is up for auction after it didn’t open this year. The Kalamazoo Gazette reports the telephone at Deer Forest has been disconnected and later this month a Kalamazoo-based online auction house has scheduled the sale of the 32-acre tourist attraction. Deer Forest included train rides through the trees and the feeding of deer …

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THREE RIVERS HEALTH HAND THERAPIST RECEIVES CERTIFICATION

Three Rivers Health is pleased to announce that our outpatient occupational therapist, Erin Nowak, MS, OTR, has met her credentialing requirements and is now a Certified Hand Therapist. A Certified Hand Therapist (CHT) is an occupational therapist who has a minimum of five years clinical experience, including 4,000 hours or more in direct practice in hand therapy. In addition, the …

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Miller praises budget

State Rep. Aaron Miller last week praised Gov. Rick Snyder for signing a fiscally responsible budget that increases funding for classrooms and continues to build a solid public-safety foundation. Miller, chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State Police, said the 2015-2016 budget pays down debt while prioritizing spending for transportation, education and law enforcement. Miller said the budget, after …

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Maintenance, refueling outage finished at Cook nuclear plant

Operators of southwestern Michigan’s Donald C. Cook Nuclear Plant say that one of its units has returned to service after a 34-day shutdown for refueling. Unit 2 at the plant went back online about 2 a.m. Tuesday. Indiana Michigan Power runs the plant, which is along Lake Michigan in Berrien County’s Lake Township, near Bridgman. The Fort Wayne, Indiana-based company …

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