The Ironwood township board held a special meeting to workshop the proposed 2022 budget. Supervisor Jay Kangas said there will be an 11.64% increase in the rates for health insurance in 2022, which was higher than he anticipated, and that the health insurance rate was connected with the townships reimbursement arrangement, which is contingent on … Read more
All 32 roadside parks operated by the Michigan Department of Transportation in the Upper Peninsula will be closing for the season this coming Tuesday. All parks close annually in late October and open in late April. In addition, the southbound I-75 rest area just north of St. Ignace will close for the season on December … Read more
November 2nd, Bessemer, Ironwood and Wakefield will choose their city councils and commissions, along with city and countywide ballot proposals in the general election. Township voters must decide whether to pass the county ambulance millage renewal proposal, which would authorize a mill levy to supplement countywide emergency medical care, equipment, training and other related expenses … Read more
An alleged misogynistic comment by County Chairperson Ron de Bruyne has a number of female Vilas County department heads questioning whether de Bruyne can be taken seriously in a leadership position. The seven women are leading an effort within the county to make it a healthy and positive work environment. In August, a letter was … Read more
Iron County is considering joining several other rural Wisconsin counties in taking out an approximately $8 million bond that would allow a privately owned company to provide communication towers and fiber optic lines for broadband. The Iron County board of Commissioners this past Wednesday tentatively approved the issue, deciding to take a couple of weeks … Read more
According to the Western U.P. Health Department, the area has seen it’s highest case count since the department resumed updates at the end of August. There were 273 new COVID-19 cases across the five county area between October 6 and 13th. This includes 12 new cases in Ontonagon, 86 in Gogebic, 127 in Houghton, 38 … Read more
The city of Ironwood now has reminders for visitors and residents to stop and snap a selfie of the natural beauty in the area. Wooden stands with tips on how to get a great selfie are now at the Iron Belle Trail Segment in Depot Park, and another is at the downtown Art Park. The … Read more
The Gogebic County Board is looking for a firm to conduct a long-term feasibility study of rural service operations. Ambulance Committee chair James Lorenson said the study would be conducted by a consulting firm or the Western Upper Peninsula Planning and Development Region office. The study will aid the different governmental units in determining what … Read more
The Bessemer Recreation Committee took a tour of the site of the city’s new Iron Belle trailhead, last week, which is to be located behind city hall. City manager Charly Loper and council member Terry Kryshak marked outlines on the grass where the planned pavilion and bike park should be. The city is still working … Read more
Refinancing a water and sewer bond intended to save the city of Hurley about $2.1 million was approved by the city council earlier in the week. The new interest rate for the bond is almost half of the four water and sewer bonds , and even with the bond insurance fee of $200,000, the city … Read more