Saginaw
Students help restore 1957 police patrol car
SAGINAW, Mich. (AP) - Students in Saginaw are working with Michigan State Police and retirees to restore a 1957 Ford patrol car amid plans to mark the agency's 100th anniversary in 2017.
The project is led by state police retiree Del Zimmerman. After obtaining the car, he began working on it with a Saginaw Career Complex auto body class. Plans call for the car to become part of the state police historical fleet and be put on display at events around Michigan.
The car is an "important part of our history," Col. Kriste Kibbey Etue, director of the Michigan State Police, said in a statement.
Businesses are donating parts and services for the work, the state said.
The patrol car had a more-powerful engine, a re-designed body for safety and had seat belts as standard equipment. The state says the model was the last Michigan State Police patrol vehicle to use a flashing light on the roof before changing over to a rotating light.
The 100th anniversary is being marked April 19, 2017. After being displayed around the state, the car will be added to the historical fleet that includes a 1937 Ford, a 1975 Plymouth Fury, a 1991 Chevy Camaro, a 1992 Ford Mustang, a 1995 Chevy Caprice and a 2010 Ford Crown Victoria.
Grand Rapids
City to get first Islamic grade school in area
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) - The former site of a Grand Rapids daycare center is being converted into the first Islamic grade school in the area.
The Islamic Academy is holding an open house Saturday to garner support for the new school. Officials are hoping to provide preschool programming before the school opens next fall for students in kindergarten to fifth grade.
"It's a vision," said Kamal Nuriddin, a member of the school's planning committee. "A big test for us is going to come this week with the open house. We'll see what kind of support we get from that."
The effort is similar to the building of the $1.8 million Islamic Mosque and Religious Institute, the first mosque in the Grand Rapids area, he said.
"I'm really hopeful. Nobody has really seen, except for a handful of people, what is really going on there," Nuriddin said
County records show the Creative Learning Center property was purchased out of foreclosure for $270,000 in April. The Islamic Foundation of West Michigan has since made repairs on the 12,000-square-foot building, The Grand Rapids Press reported.
Tuition at the Islamic Academy will be charged on an income-based sliding scale, but rates have yet to be set.
Monroe
City considers buying property for new library
MONROE, Mich. (AP) - Monroe officials are considering buying and renovating a former Masonic Temple property to open a new library downtown.
The Monroe News reports the city council unanimously approved a purchase option for the property and will hire a firm to conduct an architectural analysis of the building. The council could choose to buy the building for $515,000 by the end of May.
The city would pay for the purchase and renovations through loans and its general fund, as well as with grants and private donations.
Officials say the new library won't replace the Dorsch Memorial or Navarre branch libraries.
The city manager tells the council an expansion of the Dorsch Memorial branch would be too expensive, at around $2 million. He says the Masonic Temple is a better option based on cost and space.
Ann Arbor
Council: Members can't post online during meetings
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) - Ann Arbor City Council has voted to ban its members from posting on social media such as Twitter and Facebook during meetings.
The Ann Arbor News reports that four council members were in favor of allowing use of social media during meetings, but seven voted the other way.
Some council members called such postings rude, improper and distraction.
Kalkaska
Man charged in killings waives parental rights
KALKASKA, Mich. (AP) - A northern Lower Peninsula man accused of fatally shooting his wife and father-in-law has waived parental rights to his four children.
Kalkaska County Court Administrator Mark Holston tells the Traverse City Record-Eagle the update about 40-year-old Keith Ferguson came Tuesday. Holston says the children will remain with their grandmother and likely will be legally adopted by her.
Ferguson faces open murder, firearms and other charges in the deaths of 42-year-old Tiffany Ferguson and 63-year-old James Webber. The Kalkaska man is jailed and undergoing defense-requested competency and criminal responsibility evaluations.
Published: Thu, Dec 04, 2014
