MORENCI — Harold and Caroline Hart raised 11 children in their home at 220 W. Locust St. in Morenci. And it was just a few blocks away that their descendants gathered for the 50th anniversary of the annual Hart family reunion on Aug. 9.
The reunion was started in 1975 by Hazel Bear, their oldest daughter, and has been going ever since.
MORENCI — New signs that tell drivers their current speed are due to be installed soon in Morenci.
Last month, the Morenci City Council approved the purchase of two solar-powered speed monitoring signs to be placed on both ends of Main Street. City clerk and superintendent Jeff Bell said they should be in place by the end of September.
MORENCI — The city of Morenci is developing a long-term Urban Forestry Management Plan and is seeking input from residents to help shape it.
MORENCI — A fourth full-time position has been approved for the Morenci Police Department. At their Aug. 11 meeting, council members agreed to move one of the city’s part-time officers, Nathan Adams, to full-time status.
MORENCI — The 2025 Town and Country Festival at Wakefield Park may only be a few months in the past, but work is already underway for next year’s festival.
MORENCI — The city of Morenci plans to apply for a Community Development Block Grant from the Michigan State Housing Development Authority to help low- to moderate-income residents with home repairs.
The application would be for $1.18 million, with $1 million going to repairs and $180,000 being used for program administration.
If the city’s grant application is approved, Mayor Tracy Schell noted at last month’s city council meeting, the funds would only be for owner-occupied, single-family homes, removing concerns that landlords might snap up all the money.
Schell said the grant would help homeowners who have trouble affording necessary repairs.
“This is to help out folks that want to get some stuff done, but they just don’t have it,” she said.
“I think it’s a great opportunity,” council member Kori Christle said. “It’s only going to enhance our city; it’s only going to attract people to our community.”
A public hearing, which is a requirement of applying for the grant, is scheduled for the Sept. 8 city council meeting, which will take place at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 118 Orchard St.
MORENCI — Changes to Morenci City Hall’s office hours were approved at the Aug. 11 city council meeting. Beginning Sept. 8, City Hall will keep its current hours of 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Monday, but will be open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday.
MORENCI — There are plenty of things Laurie Reinke hopes to do in her new job as director of the Morenci Senior Center, but they all come down to this: “I’m hoping to bring smiles to people’s faces.”
Reinke started working at the senior center on June 10 after retiring from a factory job.
“Honestly, this is a job that I’ve been looking at for quite some time,” she said, noting that her daughter works for the Lenawee County Department on Aging so she was already somewhat familiar with its programs.
However, she said, “it just never was the right time — and this time I just said ‘you know what, I think the time is right.’ ”
MORENCI — The city of Morenci is considering a change to the hours that City Hall is open.
City Hall is currently open Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. City clerk and superintendent Jeff Bell said those hours have been in place since 2014.
MORENCI — Morenci may be without a grocery store, but that doesn’t mean there’s no access to fresh fruit and vegetables.
The ProMedica Veggie Mobile comes to the rescue every Thursday morning at two locations. Like a traveling farmer’s market, the Veggie Mobile offers an array of fresh produce to shoppers.