Marinell Barretta of north-ern Italy died at age 70. That part, with the mortality rate holding steady at 100 per-cent, was not surprising. What followed was.Local authorities found her mummified remains Feb. 4 some two and a half years after…

BY SCOTT SULLIVAN EDITOR A proposed temporary construction road through Cook Park won a cool reception from Saugatuck City Council at its Feb. 9 workshop. Members at their regular meeting five days later OK’d a shorter access largely through Butler…

BY SCOTT SULLIVAN EDITOR Look for murals on the north and west walls of the Lake Vista SuperValu grocery store and under the Blue Star Bridge after Douglas City Council Feb. 7 agreed to share $20,000 worth of costs with…

By WinkKittenFinal FrontierThink you have free-floating angst? The idea of black holes roaming interstellar space has me almost as anxious as my black kitten lying atop my computer keyboard.An international team of researchers say they’ve confirmed that a possible microlensing…

It’s the time of year when aspiring writers get out pens and big legal pads of lined yellow paper. Others find their grandparents’ manual Underwood or Royal type-writer, spray WD-40 on the ribbon to refresh it after dec-ades in the…

There are so many innocent people jailed for crimes they haven’t committed. I worked for a time, helping to expose some that were incarcerated, yet innocent. One of those, a man I truly admire is Julian Assange, and I hope…

By Jason WesseldykSports Editor SAUGATUCK—Playing for the third time in four nights, the Saugatuck girls basketball team dropped a 40-37 decision to visiting Galesburg-Augusta on Friday, Feb. 11.Down 30-26 after three quarters, the Trailblazers had the opportunity to tie the…

Pause global warming and enjoy while we can what comes naturally during Michigan Februaries. The Brown family did as much exploring and sliding on Mt. Baldhead Park/Oval Beach dunes last week. (Photo by Scott Sullivan)

By Scott SullivanEditorSoon there may be five marijuana providers near each other on Blue Star Highway.The Saugatuck Township Planning Commission Jan. 24 approved a special land use application from Be Positive, Best Buds to create a new dispensary on 4.86…

BY SCOTT SULLIVAN EDITOR Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall” has nothing on the ex-Douglas Haworth Plant. Melching Demolition, which in December began razing the 150,300 square-foot ex-factory and two utility buildings above ground at 200 Blue Star Hwy.,…

BY SCOTT SULLIVAN EDITOR Resident and planning commission member Daniel DeFranco has been hired by the Saugatuck Township Board as operations coordinator on a month-to-month basis to fill the staffing gap left when members parted ways suddenly with ex-manager Joe…

BY SCOTT SULLIVAN EDITOR Could the above be Saugatuck Township’s new logo? The board, after close to six months of deliberating, was slated Wednesday, Feb. 9 — too late for this week’s Commercial Record print deadline — to decide. The…

BY SCOTT SULLIVAN EDITOR So little money, so many needs. Douglas City Council, not alone facing said situation, has prioritized a Main Street water main and Felkers water, road and sewer issues tops amongeight projects members  have discussed addressing in…

BY SCOTT SULLIVAN EDITOR Douglas will have a new kayak and stand-up paddleboard rental vendor at Wade’s Bayou after 18 years. Council Monday approved granting St. Joseph-based Third Coast Surf Shop a 3-year lease to operate out of the waterfront…

Sometimes it just doesn’t pay to get out of bed. One of those days was last week, when I boarded anairplane in Orlando to Detroit.Now all I had heard days before is how this once-in-a-decade blizzard was blanketing Michigan. Iassumed…

By Scott SullivanEditorReuleauxThe Washington Football Team formerly known as Redskins and perennially as losers has a new nickname, and I’m offended. As a woke and sensitive soul, the last thing I need is steroid-fed giants wearing pistols and bling pretending…

By G.C. StoppelOn a Saturday morning two somewhat related messages came across my computer.The first was from owners of Shakespeare and Company bookstore in Paris reminding me there would be a reading of James Joyce’s novel “Ulysses” in commemoration of the 100th…

By Scott SullivanEditorDouglas will have a new kayak and stand-up paddleboard rental vendor at Wade’s Bayou after 18 years.Council Monday approved granting St. Joseph-based Third Coast Surf Shop a 3-year lease to operate out of the waterfront park after its…

Sure it’s cold out and nights still seem to last forever. But days have been getting longer — really — for seven weeks now. This father and son took in Oval Beach last week. (Photo by Scott Sullivan)

By Jason WesseldykSports EditorDespite facing a 19-10 deficit at the end of the first quarter against SAC-leading Watervliet on Friday, Jan. 28, Saugatuck boys basketball coach Brian Ward had reason to be pleased.His team shot 50 percent from the field…