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Stores in Twelve Oaks mall put safety first as customers return

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Zoe Fritz saw customers being thrown out of the store for refusing to wear masks. “It’s been really crazy! You have the people who throw fits that have had to been put out of the mall,” Fritz said. “It’s frustrating to deal with people because they feel like ‘why do I have to do this’.”

Twelve Oaks Mall opened up May 28 after closing because of COVID-19. The mall then updated its rules for shoppers on July 13 from allowing the stores to choose whether they allowed masks, to requiring masks in every store.

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Pickleball at Fish Hatchery among topics discussed at Northville City Council meeting

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During the citizen comments portion of the July 6 Northville City Council meeting, Mayor Brian Turnbull figured he knew what Doris Booth was going to ask about. Nick MaizMayor Turnbull running the July 6 meeting by following the agenda for the day. “I think I know what Doris Booth is going to talk about,” Turnbull said. “Doris, I think you would like to talk about pickleball.”

The July 6 meeting began, as it always does, with citizen comments. And Booth was ready for her turn.

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Disc Golf becomes popular COVID-19 pastime

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Jeremy Cionca hasn’t found time to play disc golf, a sport he once played competitively, because in these past few years he has been busy working and taking care of his family. However, that all changed after the pandemic which gave Cionca an excuse to start playing again. “Lately we have been getting back to the courses because there is nothing to do,” Cionca said. “It has rekindled the fire a little bit. I have a taste for it again.”

Disc golf is a sport where the objective is to throw a disc golf disc into a chain basket from a set distance.

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Lansing workers return to new normal

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Across the Lansing area, workers have faced different challenges since March because of COVID-19. But for recent Mason High School graduate Reagan Bercaw, she said going back to her job at Plato’s Closet made her feel just as at home as she did all quarantine. “For me, coming back (to work) was really nice to finally have something that I actually had to do,” Bercaw said. “I hated sitting at home.”

Bercaw, like many others, was laid off March 23 while Plato’s Closet in East Lansing was closed during Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s stay-at-home order. Some employees resumed work May 14, but Bercaw came back June 1.

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COVID-19 forces restaurants to rethink business model

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Michigan restaurants don’t look as they used to before COVID-19. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s stay-at-home order leaves restaurants with only one option to continue the business, and that is through carry-out orders. 

Without customers at their tables, hundreds of restaurants across the state have placed their employees on furlough. For the remaining few, hours have been shortened. Some have temporarily closed until the order is lifted. Some will never open again. 

Portage, Michigan

At Red Lobster in Portage, Michigan, 17-year-old Sarah Sweers is a hostess who worked part time after school and on the weekends.

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‘Local government is where the rubber hits the road:’ how local governments are responding to COVID-19

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In Michigan, all eyes are on Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to see how she responds to the COVID-19 outbreak. But when it comes to searching for an end to the pandemic, it’s local governments that are on the front lines, said Mason Mayor Russell Whipple.

“This problem will not be solved by the federal government, or the state government, or even the county government,” he said. “It’s going to be solved by local governments, because local governments are going to be the ones that have to actually deal with the day-to-day. We take directions from the state and county health departments. But we’re the ones that make it happen.”

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Sports never stops. At least it never did.

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COVID-19 has sidelined many professions including those in sports. Senior athletes in college and high school are feeling the effects as spring seasons are canceled in response to this crisis.