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The Three Rivers City Commission will meet Tuesday, May 5 at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 333 W. Michigan Ave. Commissioners are set to consider more than $1 million in road work, a roughly $28,500 motor pool funding request, and hold a public hearing on proposed changes to the city’s massage licensing ordinance. Watershed Voice livestreams all Three Rivers City Commission meetings on its Facebook page and uploads them to YouTube after.

One of Anna Barnhart’s guiding principles as an artist is to try new things, no matter how ridiculous they might seem. She uses nontraditional tools like Saran Wrap, bubble wrap, spatulas, and even frosting to create textures impossible with a traditional artist’s toolkit. “I’m looking at shapes in general and thinking of new ways of making marks,” Barnhart said. “It’s more about what the subject demands. Bubble wrap is probably really good for dotty things like pebbles or flowers. I look at the general shape, make the mark first, play around with that, and then figure out what might work later.”

Chief Executive Officer William B. Horne said the project is expected to create more than 500 jobs over the next three years, including robotics engineers, AI data specialists, infrastructure personnel and operations staff. The company did not specify how many of those positions would be based in Dowagiac or when hiring would begin.  Some critics of data center expansion projects say promised employment benefits can be overstated, arguing that many permanent positions require specialized expertise while the most immediate local jobs are often construction-related and temporary.

Mick Kolassa, a blues musician, recently retired from a career in the pharmaceutical industry. He attended Glen Oaks on the GI Bill after serving in the U.S. Army. He later earned a bachelor’s degree and a Master of Business Administration from Eastern Washington University, followed by a doctorate in pharmaceutical marketing and economics from the University of Mississippi. In the early 1980s, while working at The Upjohn Company in Kalamazoo, Kolassa also taught classes at Glen Oaks. His career later took him across the country in roles within the pharmaceutical industry, including work in pricing and economic policy and as a vice president at a consulting firm.

The funding would come through a bond proposal, which is the mechanism public school districts use to ask voters for authorization to borrow money for large capital investments. If approved, the district would work with a financial institution to sell bonds in multiple series, according to Superintendent Arthur Ebert. The first bond sale would be for a little more than $30 million in 2027, with the remaining amount issued in 2029. In practical terms, district officials say the proposal is not expected to create a higher school bond tax rate than what property owners are currently paying. 

The Sturgis Area Community Foundation (SACF) has announced its transition to a county-wide foundation with a Board of Trustees serving all of St. Joseph County, marking a significant step in the organization’s continued growth and expanding role in regional philanthropy and community leadership.  Over the past several years, SACF has grown from $34 million to $54 million in assets through community support and strategic partnerships. A major milestone in that growth was the 2025 merger with the Three Rivers Area Community Foundation, which broadened collaboration and strengthened SACF’s reach across the county.