Macomb Township Chronicle

Published December 14, 2016

Former teacher found guilty of criminal sexual conduct

CLINTON TOWNSHIP — A Macomb County Circuit Court judge recently sentenced a former Chippewa Valley High School teacher found guilty of four counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct.

On Nov. 17, Judge Jennifer Faunce sentenced Christopher David Cowles, 25, of Clinton Township, to at least five years and up to 15 years in prison.

Cowles was arrested and charged Feb. 19, 2015, by Clinton Township police after having sexual contact with a female student who was 17 years old at the time of Cowles’ arrest, but 16 years old at the time of the incident.

Published December 10, 2016

C & G Newspapers 2016 Holiday Cookie Recipe Cookbook

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Published December 8, 2016

Hackel: ‘The state of Macomb County is strong’

MACOMB COUNTY — During his Dec. 7 State of the County address, Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel touted the ongoing momentum that’s continually bringing new life into the area.

He noted how the Make Macomb Your Home initiative has birthed a vitality in the county that was once considered lagging.

Published December 7, 2016

County approves 2017 budget

MACOMB COUNTY — After three months of discussions and fine-tuning, the Macomb County Board of Commissioners approved the 2017 fiscal year budget for the county Dec. 1.

The total budget amounts to $233,394,750 in the general fund and $725,026,067 total.

The budget review process began in early September, and the board participated in nearly 30 hours of public meetings to identify just seven changes from the originally proposed budget. Those changes reduced the budget by nearly $8.7 million.

Published December 7, 2016

Dakota sophomore earns Eagle status

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — A new bench that sits on the playground of Cheyenne Elementary School is the product of a Dakota High School sophomore who recently earned Eagle Scout status.

Alec DeMaria recently earned the prestigious honor upon completion of his community service project, which wound up being a “buddy bench” for Cheyenne in Macomb Township.

Published December 7, 2016

Committee formed to review waste hauler contract negotiations

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — A three-person committee has been formed to review the circumstances which led up to the approval of Rizzo Environmental being selected as the Macomb Township waste hauler.

During the supervisor comments section of the Nov. 21 Board of Trustees meeting, Supervisor Janet Dunn requested to form a committee made up of members who had no involvement in the 2015 waste hauling contract negotiations.

Township Treasurer Karen Goodhue, Trustee Nancy Nevers and newly-elected Trustee Tim Bussineau will make up the committee.

Published December 7, 2016

Local student to host Christmas party for special needs students

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — A local girl is planning a party for a cause close to her heart.

Liza Lucaj, a Macomb Township resident and a senior at Austin Catholic High School in Chesterfield Township, plans to host a Christmas party for students with special needs Dec. 17.

Lucaj’s little sister Gina, 13, sustained a brain injury prior to being born when her mother was in a car crash during pregnancy.

Gina has battled cerebral palsy and a host of other health challenges early in her life, but has been an inspiration for her older sister.

Published December 7, 2016

Retiring teachers recognized

CLINTON TOWNSHIP/MACOMB TOWNSHIP — The work of three retiring teachers with more than 70 combined years of elementary school teaching experience in the Chippewa Valley Schools district was recognized during a Board of Education meeting Nov. 21.

Jeanne Forbes, Wesley Fishwick and Patricia O’Reilly were recognized by the board, as all of them plan to retire at the end of this school year.

Forbes, who started teaching in 1986, spent all of her 31 years in the district as a fourth-grade teacher at Huron Elementary.

Published November 30, 2016

Food service personnel shortage discussed

CLINTON TOWNSHIP/MACOMB TOWNSHIP — Due to a changing economic climate locally, the Chippewa Valley school district is facing a shortage of food service and custodial personnel.

During a Nov. 14 Board of Education meeting, Mary Ann Reed-Panchenko, a food service employee at Miami Elementary, expressed her frustration with the lack of help in her building and elsewhere throughout the district.

Published November 30, 2016

Library workshop brings families together

CLINTON TOWNSHIP — Growing up isn’t always easy, for both children and parents.

The Clinton-Macomb Public Library has joined 400 libraries in 27 states by offering “Grow, Play, Learn” — a program that is part of the Family Place initiative, which emphasizes that literacy begins at birth.

Published November 29, 2016

Heydenreich Road speed study moves forward

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — After a meeting between Macomb County, Macomb Township and Chippewa Valley Schools officials during the early morning of Nov. 16, a speed study that has already begun is the first of several potential steps to address safety concerns for students who walk to school near the intersection of Heydenreich Road and 21 Mile Road.

Plans for the study began shortly after the death of a Dakota High School student Nov. 4.

Published November 29, 2016

New clerk takes office

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — New Macomb Township Clerk Kristi Pozzi officially began her role Nov. 21.

Without a challenge from a Democratic candidate, Pozzi’s victory in a three-person primary election Aug. 2 allowed her to cruise through the general election Nov. 8.

Pozzi, 44, previously worked as a medical program specialist for the Macomb County Circuit Court, and she has been a member of the Macomb Township Zoning Board of Appeals.

Published November 23, 2016

Planning department staff increasing as township grows

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — As Macomb Township continues to grow, so does the workload for employees in the township’s planning and engineering departments.

To accommodate those increases, Supervisor Janet Dunn requested to add three positions to the staff during a Board of Trustees meeting Nov. 9.

One of the positions, a planning director, will be filled by Patrick Meagher, who has already been serving as the township planning consultant on a part-time basis for the past three years.

Published November 22, 2016

Kim Mathers avoids jail time in drunken driving case

SHELBY TOWNSHIP — Kim Mathers will not receive jail time after pleading no contest to a charge of operating a vehicle while visibly impaired.

Mathers, the ex-wife of rapper Eminem, received a sentence of 12 months of reporting probation, as well as a fine of $900, after she crashed her 2009 Cadillac Escalade in an admitted suicide attempt Oct. 7, 2015 on Card Road near 23 Mile Road in Macomb Township.

She was in 41-A District Court of Shelby Township to receive her sentence Nov. 22.

Published November 22, 2016

Petition spurs discussion of Heydenreich Road dangers

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — Following the death of a Dakota High School student Nov. 4, a group of concerned parents sparked discussion for how to make Heydenreich Road safer.

The student was struck by a vehicle around 7 a.m. Nov. 4 while she was crossing Heydenreich near Vine Drive, which is in between 21 Mile and 22 Mile roads.

Citing poor lighting, a lack of connecting sidewalks and a high speed limit, Rebecca Jones, a parent to five children in Chippewa Valley Schools, started an online petition for a safer road near the high school.

Published November 21, 2016

School officials respond to reports of bullying, harassment

HARRISON TOWNSHIP/MACOMB TOWNSHIP — In the wake of the tumultuous 2016 presidential election, both local and state education officials are reaching out to parents in regard to concerns of discontent among students.

State Superintendent Brian Whiston confirmed in a letter that since the Nov. 8 election, “there have been a number of reported incidents in Michigan schools of students harassing, bullying, intimidating and using hateful speech toward other students.”

Published November 19, 2016

Don’t bring your ballot to the table

METRO DETROIT — You managed to stay cool on social media during the entire political season. You didn’t once snap at Uncle Bruce’s relentless posts bashing your candidate, and now that the election is over you can take a deep breath and relax.

But wait.

Thanksgiving is this week, and even more holidays are just around the corner.

You’ll have to see family members on either side of the aisle, and face it, there just isn’t enough pie to bring them all together.

You’re not alone.

Published November 16, 2016

Alumni band returns to Chippewa Valley

CLINTON TOWNSHIP/MACOMB TOWNSHIP — Turning 50 years old gave Anjan Shah a chance to reflect on his past experiences in life.

Shah, a Chippewa Valley High School graduate who now lives in Baltimore, said one of those experiences he reflected on was his time as a member of the Chippewa band during his high school years.

He soon reached out to some of his former bandmates and eventually got 20 people on the same conference call to hatch the idea of creating a reunion band.

Published November 14, 2016

Yaroch, Marino win state House seats

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — A Richmond City Council member has been elected to the state House of Representatives District 33 seat.

Jeff Yaroch, a Republican, won with 70 percent of the vote in the Nov. 8 general election against Democrat Yani Warda.

“Ever since I started campaigning, I’ve been out talking to residents door-to-door, hearing what their concerns were, and I’ve been committed to working on those issues,” Yaroch said. “My priority is taking care of the people in this district.”

Published November 9, 2016

Supervisor Dunn retains seat

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — Macomb Township Supervisor Janet Dunn was re-elected to her position for the next four years.

In the general election Nov. 8, Dunn, a Republican who was facing no official opposition from a Democrat, received 29,182 votes. Although the number of write-in votes cast for Mark Grabow was not known at press time, the number of total votes cast in the township was just less than 45,000.

“The goal is to get the township up and running again now that this election is over, and get to the business at hand,” Dunn said.