The Milford Township Board of Trustees at its Wednesday, June 15 meeting approved a bid of $527,450.78 from Commerce Construction & Landscaping to make improvements to the intersection of Milford and Dawson roads. Township Supervisor Don Green said that the project should begin after July 4 and should be completed near the end of August, barring weather or any other unforeseen circumstances. The engineer’s original estimated cost of the intersection improvements was $772,437. “I was [...]

The Waterford School District’s employee unions have ratified their contracts set to take effect on July 1. The unions include the Waterford Education Association (WEA) and three Michigan Educational Support Professional Association (MESPA) units — one for secretaries, another for instructional aides and library technicians, and the third for custodians and cafeteria, maintenance and transportation workers. Bill Holbrook, the district’s director of finance and budget, said that all employees were scheduled for a two-percent wage [...]

Huron Valley Milford High School will be welcoming a new assistant principal in the 2011-12 school year, as the Huron Valley Schools Board of Education approved the appointment of Michele Butler to the position at a June 9 board meeting. Butler will be replacing Assistant Principal Joyce Scochin, who is retiring. Butler comes to Huron Valley from Yuma, Ariz., where she served as an assistant principal over the past six years. She earned a bachelor’s [...]

Downtown Milford will soon be turned into an art museum thanks to a campaign by the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA). Ann , director of the Milford Downtown Development Authority (DDA), said that the DDA has been contacted by the DIA about being a participant in the DIA’s “Inside Out” program, which brings reproductions of the museum’s best works to hang in areas across metro Detroit for the public to view. According to Barnette, the [...]

Oakland County Sheriff’s Department Commerce Township Substation deputies were called earlier this month to the 1900 block of Bass Lake Road in response to a dog attack. The victim, a 61-year-old Commerce resident, reportedly was jogging along Benstein Road when he was attacked by two dogs. One of the dogs bit him, puncturing his skin. The victim was able to identify the residence were the dogs reside in the 3000 block of Benstein. He then [...]

Waterford Township firefighters responded to a house fire in the 6800 block of Fox Lane on Tuesday, June 14. The 911 call came in around 11:20 p.m. Upon arrival, firefighters found fire and smoke billowing from the home’s second floor. Firefighters entered the smoke-filled home and quickly extinguished the blaze. Working smoke detectors in the home alerted the occupant and she was able to escape unharmed; however, the family has been displaced due to extensive [...]

An Orchard Lake man foiled a robbery attempt by a car full of perpetrators after he returned home unexpectedly on Thursday, June 16. The man, who resides on Commerce Road near Indian Trail, pulled up to his home around 9:10 p.m. when he saw a pair of black males carrying out his personal belongings. When the suspects spotted the homeowner, they dropped the armload of goods, jumped into a white van and fled. The victim [...]

From Paul Kane, White Lake Township: I just read the book “Seize Freedom” by U.S. Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-Waterford, White Lake, Highland, Milford, Commerce, Wolverine Lake, Walled, Wixom), a quick 200 pages. I remain affected by the authentic honesty in his words. He’s considered a politician, and yet there was zero B.S. He arrives with a law degree and a wealth of knowledge of history, then condenses and clearly articulates how things matter to America’s [...]

In a 1963 speech, the novelist Ralph Ellison once said, “Education is all a matter of building bridges, it seems to me.” It seems that way to us, too, as 13 Republicans and Democrats will work throughout the summer on possible education reforms that may be coming up for consideration as soon as this fall. In no small part because of the political — and far too often partisan — back-and-forth that has been germinated [...]

Kudos to the group of people who procured a 7-foot metal sculpture for public display in Walled Lake and paired it with a newly planted field of sunflowers in a green cultural initiative. The person who spearheaded the endeavor has a greater vision for an eco-friendly cultural effort. It’s an exciting project that we’re anxious to see evolve, and one we’d like to see imitated in other lakes area communities. Downtown Development Authority (DDA) Urban [...]