ANTRIM
Ellsworth teacher arrested on sex charges
BELLAIRE -- Julie Higbee will be a bit more hesitant before she sends her children off to school.
Michael Henry Peterson, who taught math at Ellsworth Community School for nearly 30 years, faces criminal charges after he allegedly engaged in sexual conduct with a female student in a classroom.
"My jaw's just on the ground right now," said Higbee, an Ellsworth resident whose two children took classes with Peterson. "I'm absolutely floored. I've got the goose bumps." Peterson, 55, of Ellsworth, faces three counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct. Each count is punishable by up to life in prison.
Antrim County sheriff's deputies arrested Peterson at his home on Tuesday after the victim, 15, an Ellsworth student, told authorities they engaged in sexual acts in a classroom and in her house last month. He had sexual contact with the girl on three occasions, according to court records.
He was placed on paid administrative leave Sunday after the school was notified of the pending investigation, said Ellsworth principal/superintendent Lynn Spearing. Peterson also will continue to receive benefits until the disciplinary action is lifted.
Peterson taught at the small K-12 school for 29 years.
GRAND TRAVERSE
All-day, every-day kindergarten sought
TRAVERSE CITY -- A year ago, Rhonda Adams wanted to enroll her son in all-day, every-day kindergarten, and urged administrators in Traverse City's public schools to offer it at Cherry Knoll Elementary.
They did, and Adams said it has had a profound impact on her son, now halfway through his kindergarten year.
"He is spelling things I didn't even know he could spell," she said. "He likes to sit and read, where before he didn't." Adams' younger daughter will attend kindergarten full time at Cherry Knoll next year, and hundreds of students across the district could follow suit as administrators prepare to install the program at the seven of 13 elementary schools currently without it.
The plan hinges on funding, but the idea is to open at least one section in every school and offer alternate- and half-day options at five buildings.
By next fall, the district will operate at least $6 million leaner than it is this year, so new funding isn't available.
But administrators intend to make structural changes to the elementary budget -- moving reading specialists out of the general fund and supporting them with other revenue sources, including state and federal -- to expand kindergarten, said Jame McCall, executive director of elementary and special education.
President seeking $300M for cleanup
TRAVERSE CITY -- A Great Lakes fix-up plan designed to ward off species invasions, cleanse polluted harbors and make other environmental repairs would get $300 million under the budget President Barack Obama released Monday.
The amount is down from the $475 million Congress appropriated for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative last year at Obama's request. Administration officials said the drop-off for the 2011 fiscal year is reasonable, with federal agencies under pressure to cut costs.
It "reflects the difficult economic times while recognizing the president's continued commitment to restoring and protecting this vital environmental and economic treasure," the Environmental Protection Agency said in a statement.
EPA chief Lisa Jackson described the $300 million request as "robust" in a call with reporters, noting that much of the money from last year's appropriation had yet to be spent.
The deadline recently passed to apply for $120 million in restoration project grants under the 2010 budget. The EPA has received more than 1,000 requests from states, Indian tribes, cities, universities and advocacy groups and will award the money in May, a spokeswoman said.
City votes to settle Charter channel suit
TRAVERSE CITY -- Those who see static when tuning in to recently moved public access television channels have a chance at relief.
Traverse City commissioners on Monday voted to settle the city's lawsuit against Charter Communications. Under the settlement agreement, Charter is required to fix interference problems for analog viewers who have trouble watching channels 96 and 97.
Those channels are the new home of Up North 2 and Northwestern Michigan College 13, respectively, and Charter won't charge customers for the tune-up.
"We really are encouraging Charter subscribers to look very carefully at their channels 96 and 97," said Joe VanderMeulen, executive director of Land Information Access Association. "We're encouraging everyone to get to Charter, and get (any problems) fixed now." The city filed a federal lawsuit against Charter last fall in an attempt to halt the company's plan to move the two public access channels. A federal judge denied the city's request for a temporary restraining order on Nov. 30 and Charter moved the channels the next day.
Some customers without digital service reported varying degrees of interference when they tried to view the channels after the switch.
Subscribers with interference complaints have six months to contact Charter after the settlement agreement is finalized in the near future. If Charter can't fix the interference, it will provide a converter box free of cost.
TCAPS cuts focus
on half days, athletics
TRAVERSE CITY -- In four days, Traverse City school board members will cut next year's budget, a decision that could eliminate half days and place a deeper expectation on athletics.
Both items in particular had a majority of board members' support Wednesday, their last meeting before they vote on at least $6 million in reductions for 2010-11.
Monday's decision will cap months of consideration that started with a committee last August and since included suggestions from administrators. The district is facing an estimated $8.7 million deficit out of a roughly $90 million budget.
Several items required no further analysis Wednesday, including transportation and utility usage. The board added some committee suggestions, including half days, to the list it's considering.
A number of board members think athletics cuts should be $25,000 more than the $75,000 administrators identified, a figure carried over after the department only met half of its target last year.
A $75,000 cut would require staffing reductions for junior varsity and sixth-grade intramural sports, Associate Superintendent Jayne Mohr said. Students likely would be asked to pay more out of pocket or raise money to avoid stopping those programs.
Mayor questions Eighth St. redesign plans
TRAVERSE CITY -- Mayor Chris Bzdok can't figure out why bicycle lanes and pedestrian crossings weren't included in plans to reconstruct a busy section of Eighth Street.
Bzdok is an avid bicyclist, but that's not why he's scratching his head. The city's past and current master plans either explicitly or generally call for bike lanes and crossings along Eighth and other city streets, as does a regional planning concept dubbed The Grand Vision, and other documents.
Bzdok wonders why all that seemingly was ignored when City Engineer Tim Lodge crafted an $850,000 redesign of Eighth between Garfield Avenue and Barlow Street, a project set to break ground in April.
Commissioners never received a full report on the project, Bzdok said. They potentially could have learned that reconstruction didn't mesh with planning guidelines.
"Could (commissioners) have at some point started digging into this and found the answers? Yeah," Bzdok said. "But is that really the way it ought to work? Do we need to be constantly on the lookout, or should major topics and decisions be brought to our attention?" Bzdok posted a lengthy entry on his Internet blog late Tuesday that questioned why Lodge didn't incorporate bike lanes and crossings into the plan. He also questioned why commissioners didn't know sooner, especially since Lodge recently told City Manager Ben Bifoss it's too late to change plans.
Comedians aim to be cure for winter blues
TRAVERSE CITY -- Here's a prescription for curing those midwinter blues: Forget jetting off to Florida or the Caribbean. Instead, spend a long weekend in snowbound, frostbitten northern Michigan.
Don't laugh. Well, actually, do laugh -- a lot. That's the point.
The inaugural Traverse City Comedy Arts Festival is scheduled for Feb. 19-21, organized by a couple of celebrities with local ties: filmmaker and political gadfly Michael Moore, and Emmy winner Jeff Garlin of HBO's "Curb Your Enthusiasm." They conceived the festival to bring a few smiles to a state that's a poster child for the economic deep-freeze -- and to create an offseason tourist magnet for Traverse City. The Lake Michigan community 250 miles northwest of Detroit draws thousands of visitors during its sun-splashed summers but is a much less popular destination the rest of the year.
And that's a shame, because -- all kidding aside -- there's much for tourists to enjoy this time of year in a region dotted with lakes, rivers, forests and resort villages. So let's consider how you might fill a few frosty days in northern Michigan this month.
Begin with the comedy fest.
Moore, a native of blue-collar Flint, moved to Traverse City seven years ago and started a summer film festival, at which Garlin has been a frequent guest.
Their humor series will feature acts ranging from A-list (Roseanne Barr) to up-and-comers (Whitney Cummings of "Live! Nude! Comedy!" and Mike Birbiglia of "This American Life").
Independent film pioneer John Waters ("Hairspray," "Pink Flamingos") will present his one-man show "This Filthy World." Garlin himself will perform onstage, as will J.B. Smoove, his co-star on "Curb Your Enthusiasm." The lineup also will feature improv masters TJ & Dave and the two-man sketch group "Teenager of the Year." Moore says most of the comedians are appearing for little or no charge, which will enable the festival to keep ticket prices low. Some events will be free, including a couple of late-night "talk shows" hosted by Garlin.
Judge: Turn off electronic billboard
GRAWN -- Blair Township can pull the plug on an expensive electronic billboard that violates its zoning ordinance.
Thirteenth Circuit Court Judge Thomas Power ruled the nation's largest billboard company must remove its light-emitting diode billboard on U.S. 31 just south of Rennie School Road.
Power said he's not prepared to order the sign's immediate removal, but will issue an order to force Lamar OCI North Corporation to douse its lights.
"Because Lamar has spent, well, multiple hundreds of thousands of dollars on this sign ... I kind of hate to saw it down given the fact that they're likely going to appeal," Power said in a Jan. 22 ruling. "On the other hand, it doesn't seem fair ... to have it operate for the probably years it will take to get this resolved on appeal."
The township sued Lamar OCI North, a division of Lamar Outdoor Advertising, for failing to obtain a township permit when it replaced an existing billboard with the LED sign.
Existing billboards can remain as a legal, non-conforming use, but the township requires signs conform with its ordinance when improvements or repairs exceed 30 percent of value.
The new sign replaced a double billboard that was non-conforming because of its size, height, and proximity to other billboards.
The new sign meets height and size restrictions, but Blair's zoning limits billboards to one every half-mile.
Power upheld the ordinance and found the new sign in violation because Lamar owns six other billboards within a half-mile.
Lamar, in a written statement, said it will appeal Power's ruling.
Lamar attorney Ken Petterson told Power that shutting off the lights would be "quite a harsh remedy."
Coast Guard to get faster helicopters
TRAVERSE CITY -- The U.S. Coast Guard stands to get bigger, quicker and stronger in Traverse City.
Air Station Traverse City is in line to receive four used MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters under President Barack Obama's recently released budget for fiscal year 2011, pending approval from Congress.
Larger helicopters would replace the station's current HH-65 Dolphin helicopters that would be removed from service, said Cmdr. Jonathan Spaner, the station's commanding officer.
"It's an unbelievable enhancement to our capabilities, especially with the winter weather we have here," Spaner said.
Jayhawk helicopters are far larger than the Dolphins -- able to carry more than two times the weight -- and can fly faster, carry four times the number of passengers and isn't bothered by icy and snowy weather conditions around the Great Lakes.
Coast Guard crew members with the station's current helicopter fleet must stop to re-fuel before completing rescue operations in the Chicago area after flying around bad weather, an extra step needed to avoid ice buildup on the aircraft. Jayhawk helicopters carry plenty of fuel and have de-icing abilities that allow responders to fly straight to a scene, hover longer during rescue efforts and move faster to and from missions, Spaner said.
