Delta-Waverly

Humane Society helps control big Mill Pond Village cat population 

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The Capital Area Humane Society building in Lansing where some of the fixed cats from Mill Pond Village are taken to be adopted. 

Capturing wild cats in an effort to combat overpopulation has been a cooperative venture between the Capital Area Humane Society and Mill Pond Village residents. Since July, the shelter has seen approximately 90 Mill Pond Village cats go through its spay and neuter clinic. 

“When we got in here a few months ago, we realized that there is a huge cat problem,” Jade Storball, the Mill Pond Village community assistant, said. “I can’t even make an estimate. I’d say around 100 or 150 [cats].” 

With so many cats roaming the mobile home park, Mill Pond Village staff turned to the Capital Area Humane Society for help, which oversees the Community Cat Program, aiming to limit cat overpopulation issues by providing a resource for members of the community to consult to get the cats fixed. 

“We went in, we trapped them, we fixed them, vaccinated [them], and returned them to where they were,” said Holly Thoms, director of the Capital Area Humane Society Spay and Neuter Clinic. 

“We did take a few over to the shelter that we were able to verify were not owned pets, because we don’t want to go into the trailer park and take people’s pets away,” Thoms said. Once the cats are ready to be released, they each have an ear clipped to show they have been fixed. 

“We’ll also be working with residents in the trailer park to spay and neuter their pets because we believe a large majority of the cats that are running around are people’s indoor-outdoor cats,” Thoms said. 

The shelter will be providing the procedures to the pets of Mill Pond residents for a discounted price. 

“Some [residents] are really happy about it, just because it got so bad.

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Eaton County Public Safety hears dept. updates, progress

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The Eaton County Public Safety Committee recently met to discuss the recertification of problem-solving courts in the area, in addition to hearing updates from central dispatch and the emergency manager.  

Deputy of Community Corrections, Melanie Achenbach, spoke on the recertification of Eaton County’s problem-solving courts (PSCs) for drug/sobriety, mental health and veterans treatment that serve to rehabilitate people with criminal offenses so that they can live better lives outside the prison system. 

Every four years, the Eaton County PSCs have to undergo a recertification process to ensure that the courts are fulfilling their purpose. 

In Nov. 2021, the Michigan Supreme Court approved a grant of $250,000, intended to be split among the three courts within the Eaton County PSCs. 

“It’s a pretty intensive process for each program,” Achenbach said. “They review all of our documents, attend a staffing session, review hearings, and interview various team members… who work together to accomplish the goals…through these programs.”

Kelly Cunningham, central dispatch director for Eaton County, gave an update on the replacement of the Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) System.

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Delta Township District Library hosts monthly escape rooms

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Each month, the Delta Township District Library hosts their Euphorigen Investigation, an adult escape room designed to combat misinformation in the media. 

The Euphorigen Investigation escape room came from a research project at the University of Washington as a way to combat online misinformation. According to the University of Washington’s Information School website, the escape room is intended to teach participants about how to skeptically navigate information from the Internet. 

“We created an online escape room to mimic the psychological and emotional responses elicited by real-life interactions with digital misinformation,” the research group wrote. “The escape room aims to equip players with the necessary skills to identify misinformation online and become savvy, skeptical digital citizens.” 

The game employs charts, videos, puzzles, manipulated media, hidden codes and much more, to create a world in which participants must complete an investigation vital to the safety of the community. 

Players are tasked with investigating Euphorigen, a supplement for the water supply that allegedly aids brain function. Under a time limit, investigators have to determine whether or not Euphorigen is safe to consume. 

Rebecca Hruscik, Head of Adult Services at Delta Township District Library, first heard of the Euphorigen Investigation in 2020, and brought it to the library. “[Misinformation] is something that libraries […] try to help people with, because people trust us.

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Phase Three of Delta Crossings plagued by lawsuits, setbacks

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Progress is yet to be seen on phase three of Delta Crossings shopping center located off West Saginaw Highway. Originally expected to be finished within five years, a lawsuit among multiple construction partners has halted most of the development on the project, leaving an official deadline up in the air. 

Nestled between Interstate 96 and Broadbent Road in an empty, square plot of land sits Delta Crossings, a small strip mall with big intentions for the northwestern chunk of Delta Township. Approved by the board in 2019, the $200 million project was intended to draw traffic from Lansing and East Lansing toward Delta. 

“It’s long been in the plans to develop that property near the freeway. So it’s brought some excitement and some new stores which were not here,” said Delta Township Manager Brian Reed. 

“The corridor is definitely busier which is good for all businesses. We have seen an uptick of property values along the Saginaw corridor.

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Q&A with Delta Charter Township Clerk Mary Clark

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With the Nov. 3 election on the horizon, clerks across the state of Michigan are preparing to make the voting process as smooth as possible. On top of executing her regular duties, Delta Charter Township Clerk Mary Clark has been raising awareness about the election process and the disinformation often surrounding it.