At the end of October 2024, I wrote a column that offered a challenge to readers. I asked that readers consider joining me in noting one thing every day that they like about where they live. I asked anyone up to the challenge to do that daily for the last two months of 2024. I was ...

The holiday season may be over for many, but we here at the Michigan League for Public Policy celebrated the first holiday of our state’s budget season last Friday: CRECfest. CRECfest was our unofficial title for a very official and important meeting convened by our state fiscal agencies ...

The Alpena County Board of Commissioners this week tabled discussion on approving a letter of support for a proposed extension of 3rd Avenue past Thunder Bay Junior High School, News staff writer Steve Schulwitz reported in Wednesday’s edition of The News. The county leaders decided they ...

We live in a world that constantly nudges us to achieve, accomplish, succeed. But when we finally do, isn’t it strange how hard it can be to talk about it? You’d think that after all the effort, we’d be eager to share the news. Instead, many of us hesitate. We don’t want to seem like ...

A perfect storm has struck the poultry industry, and you could pay the price. First, the Legislature passed a law in 2019 requiring large chicken farms to keep their animals cage-free if they want to sell eggs in Michigan. Lawmakers gave farmers five years to come into compliance with the new ...

The Alpena Downtown Development Authority is currently accepting grant applications for money that would help businesses improve their facades, News staff writer Steve Schulwitz reported recently. Businesses have until Jan. 30 to submit a proposal for the facade improvements, cost estimates, ...