Gov. Rick Snyder has proposed to increase solid waste tip fees from $0.36 per ton up to $4.44 per ton to provide $24 million a year for future recycling and solid waste management programs. It would add support to local entities to support the tripling of Michigan’s recycling rate for ...

The Trump administration and Republicans in the U.S. Senate are hoping that we’re too distracted to notice their attempt at an extreme political takeover of the U.S. Supreme Court. If the Senate confirms Judge Brett Kavanaugh, there will be a solid majority on the court that supports ...

Dear Editor, Please help. I do not know what to do. Thanks to the #MeToo movement I have summoned the courage to relate what happened to me 50 years ago. I was 15 when I was sexually assaulted by a drunken woman who was about 18. We were at a party when she locked me in a bedroom and ...

What a groovy time I had on the 2018 hippie-themed Grub Crawl. As I kept on truckin’ from place to place, Alpena was filled with good vibrations. When I left the Hotel California, the girls whose boots were made for walking had me dancing to my car. Hope to go on this magic carpet ride ...

This is what is happening in the 106th state House District. The 106th includes Alcona , Alpena, Cheboygan, Presque Isle, and Iosco counties. The Republican-controlled Legislature passed a big tax cut which has not produced the promised wage and job growth in the 106th. Our unemployment is ...

The deaths of Aretha, who taught us to sing, “Respect!”, and John McCain, whose last message was to put country above party and partisanship, woke us up. They collectively called us to remember values that are at the core of what defines us. This is why Trump cannot be tolerated. We can ...

Dear Editor, This is in response to your Sept. 19 posting, “No More Need for Blood Donors.” At Michigan Blood, we believe that blood donors must have an accessible location at which to donate, because the gift of blood is one for which we can only rely on each other. As a leader in ...

To add to Ken Short’s recent letter, Alcona County Board of Commissioner meeting minutes can be reviewed on the Alcona County website. Several meeting minutes contained references to “closed sessions” to discuss union negotiations. After each closed session, the finance committee ...

There will be several proposals on our ballot this November. However, I believe that the most important is Proposal 2, also known as “Voters Not Politicians”. For two centuries, our U.S. House of Representatives districts have been drawn in secret by whichever party is in power. ...

I just finished reading the five-part series on the growth of eight-player football in northern Michigan. I would like to commend James Andersen and Jonny Zawacki for the articles. They were very well-written and very informative to football fans all around. I would also like to commend ...

In the height of our tourism season, I’m acutely aware of the hard-working people of our service industry who fuel this essential economic engine of our region, from Grayling to Copper Harbor and all points in between. I see the college student working a summer job to offset the crushing debt ...

Betrayed. While there are many words to describe the situation at hand, betrayed is the most fitting to describe our sentiments. If you have not read already, a former member of the Alpena County Fair Board has recently been charged with embezzlement. This was an affront on supporters of the ...

When Congress returns to D.C. next week, they must prioritize the health and nutrition of our families by passing protections for SNAP (food stamps) in the Senate’s bipartisan, common-sense Farm Bill. Unlike the House of Representatives’ Farm Bill, the Senate version protects our families ...

Imagine my surprise when I read Sue Allor’s Aug. 8 article in which she was quoted saying Michigan should “shut down Line 5.” She claims she just recently reached this conclusion. That is NOT true. In a 2016 Primary Voter Forum, then-candidate Allor called for the immediate closure of ...

When Theodore Roosevelt was president of the United States, he had a son who was enrolled at an Ivy League university. One day, a fellow student complained to the son about his father’s performance in office. The younger Roosevelt sprang quickly to the president’s defense. “Oh, Dad’s ...

Alcona County’s negative approach to financial crisis should not scare voters into passing a Headlee override. Threats of job loss, reducing this and that, should be replaced with a “Positive $800,000 Plan.” Voters need to be informed of what is or is not happening within Alcona County ...

In response to Mr. Leow’s letter published on Saturday (“The [Alpena] News’ reliance on AP wire makes it fake news”), here’s my opinion. First, many people are sick and tired of hearing those hackneyed expressions “fake news” and “make America great again.” Good bumper ...

Being a resident of Presque Isle County, I am writing in support of the Michigan State Police presence in our county. We need to thank all of our law officers that serve our area. They help to keep it a safe place to live and enjoy our many activities. When you see a police car on the road, ...

The Alpena News followed the Boston Globe’s lead in the Thursday, Aug. 16 editorial in trying to defend the press in this country. The editorial quotes Sen. Debbie Stab-u-now, which pretty much discredits the whole editorial right there. As long as The Alpena News relies on the Associated ...

On Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2018, Alcona Health Center, in cooperation with the Michigan Food Bank, provided fresh produce at no cost to all citizens of Alpena. The event was a huge success, with over 200 people in line to get the best of what our local farmers had to offer. All of the people that ...