NOVI — Thousands gathered in Novi July 23 to celebrate the 38th annual Festival of Chariots, a Hindu cultural festival put on by the Iskcon Temple in Detroit.

OAKLAND COUNTY — Bloomfield Hills resident Pecky D. Lewis Jr., who died at his home July 10 at the age of 94, left his mark on Oakland County through his long service on the county’s Parks and Recreation Commission, as a longtime business owner and as the mayor of Royal Oak in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

News & Notes from the 7/13/23 Novi Note

NOVI — Residents filled the Novi City Council chamber to its 140-person seating capacity, and still more filed in for standing room along the walls, into the media seating area, and into the Civic Center lobby during a Planning Commission hearing June 7 to voice their opposition to and concerns about the construction of a new apartment complex.

NOVI — A district court judge recused himself from a case July 12 as a result of the defendant allegedly making threats against him and his family.

NOVI — Novi senior Alicen Liu is a cornerstone of Novi High School tennis, and she made history in her senior year.

NOVI — In order to avoid a financial shortfall in the 2023-24 school year, the Novi Community School District is having a special election Aug. 8. On the ballot are both the district’s operating millage and its recreational millage.

NOVI — After a six-month, nationwide search and a lengthy executive session, the Novi City Council voted unanimously June 5 to offer the city manager position to Victor Cardenas, who had been serving as the interim city manager.

NOVI — After a 48-hour multistate search, police apprehended a New Hudson man July 7 who allegedly threatened on social media to kill his court-appointed attorney and a Novi district court judge.

News & Notes from the 6/29/23 Novi Note

NOVI — After 12 years as principal of Novi Woods Elementary School and 28 years with the Novi Community School District, David Ascher officially entered retirement, or as he prefers to think of it, “repurposement,”  June 28.

NOVI — Matt Heslop, one of the first students to enter the Novi Adult Transition Center program, which teaches life and employment skills to people ages 18-26 who have various cognitive disabilities, graduated June 8 with a part-time job offer from Chartwells School Dining Services.

NOVI — It’s nearly impossible to follow up the thrill of winning your school’s first ever state championship, but Novi baseball senior Andrew Abler and junior Brendon Bennett continued to add to a historic year.

NOVI — A sea of purple shirts flooded the trail near Rose Senior Living Providence Park at 2 p.m. June 21 as residents, staff and members of the community kicked off the long, hot days of summer with a walk to raise awareness of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

OAKLAND COUNTY — Beginning June 30, a new law will go into effect that is meant to take people’s phones out of their hands while driving their vehicles.

News & Notes from the 6/22/23 Novi Note

NOVI — The Novi Police Department has been able to increase its speed and efficiency in cases where time is of the essence over the last year, thanks to Lt. Keith Wuotinen and his idea to implement drones.

NOVI — It was a historic showing for Novi High School’s doubles flights at the Michigan High School Athletic Association Division 1 State Finals at Hope College June 3.

NOVI — State Rep. Kelly Breen, D-Novi, is working alongside Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard, a Republican, to weed out the wrongful use of the animal tranquilizer xylazine, which is sometimes called “tranq.”

NOVI — Throughout the month of April, Novi sophomore Uli Fernsler had yet to pitch in a regular season game due to a knee injury.