The Herald-Palladium from Benton Harbor, Michigan • A1

Index Classi eds B5 Comics B4 Features B3 Local A3 Obituaries A5 Opinion A4 Our Town B6 Puzzles B3 Sports B1 Nation A2 Television B3 Weather A6 Weather High 45 Low 27 To subscribe or report delivery problems, call 429-1396 The Newspaper for Southwest Michigan A SPORTS YEAR WITH FEW FANS Sports, B1 THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2021 HeraldPalladium HeraldPalladium Interior work starting at mall By TONY WITTKOWSKI HP Staff Writer BENTON TOWNSHIP Barricades are up and tenants have been moved around inside The Orchards Mall. Movement inside the Ben- ton Township shopping cen- ter has picked up as planned renovations and construction are set to begin in April. The renovation work will address concrete movement and shrinkage cracks that run down the middle of the building. Mall Administrative Liai- son Christina Castaneda said the mall put up a barricade last week, blocking the cor- ridor that leads to the former JCPenney. She said next work marks the rst of three phases for mall own- redevelopment plan to change the layout of the 527,000 square feet.

The latest rendering calls for the JCPenney space to be turned into a hotel, the Sears building to become a sports complex, and for the closed Carsons store to be- come a storage facility. Inside the mall would be a mix of retail locations and high-end luxury apartments with short-term leases. apartments would be geared more toward the higher-end earners, catering toward Whirlpool people and those from out-of-town for Castaneda said. sports events center is still planned for Sears. going to start gutting the inside of that, also an unused space at the front of the mall, which the rendering has labeled as a potential restaurant with outdoor access.

is the second draw- ing submitted to the Castaneda said. met with them four times now. The township re- sponded with very detailed things that need to be re- viewed on the The last time the two par- ties met was earlier this month, when township Su- pervisor Cathy Yates, Clerk Carolyn Phillips and Build- ing Inspector Chris Fuchs were given a tour of the mall. Fuchs said the property is zoned D-1 commercial, which would allow for a hotel under the current ordi- nance. excited they are talking about repurposing the property.

I plan on do- ing anything I can to support whatever they hope to do from a building department Fuchs said. focused on the building code and functionality. glad to see they are looking to invest money in Fuchs said there are still some items that need to be sorted out regarding rezon- ing issues, speci cally with the proposed storage facility and mixed uses for the prop- erty. needs to be an un- derstanding of what would be stored on the Fuchs said. you talk about adding apartments with retail space, they would have to give us a concept of a zoning change because it mixes multi-family use into a commercial Any zoning change would require a public hearing and township board approval, Fuchs said.

In the meantime, Photos by Don Campbell HP staff Administrative Liaison Christina Castaneda discusses future construction plans at The Orchards Mall in Benton Township. Ambitious redevelopment plan gets underway as a work in progress Walkers stroll inside The Orchards Mall in Benton Township on Wednesday. Construction will soon start on a plan new owners hope will one day make the facility from its cur- rent configuration. Lincoln Twp. to add three police officers By TONY WITTKOWSKI HP Staff Writer STEVENSVILLE Lincoln Township trustees have voted to add three of cers to its police depart- ment as part of next budget.

At Tuesday board meeting, trustees approved the 2021-22 budget that in- cluded several additions to the public safe- ty departments. Clerk Stacy Loar-Porter, who gave a presentation during a public hearing for the budget, said 12 percent of taxes paid by residents will be used locally. About 56 percent of those taxes fund the police department, while another 17 percent funds the re department. Among the biggest changes to the budget in- cludes the addition of three police of cers, $115,000 dedicated to re depart- ment equipment, road re- pairs, plus a 2.9 percent increase in municipal em- ployee payroll. huge.

It will get us back up to the number of police we need for the population and size of the Loar-Porter said. Once the new positions are lled, the township will have 15 of cers. The next scal year, which begins April 1, will also see drain work and paying off a $366,000 loan for a re truck that was bought two years ago. Loar-Porter said the town- ship will save $16,000 in interest by paying it off early. With an estimated 15 per- cent decrease in expenses for the 2021-22 budget, Loar-Porter said the town- ship will be able to add $270,000 to its general fund.

The total fund bal- ance is projected at $2.3 million. are projecting a slight decrease in reve- nue in anticipation of the state revenue share going Loar-Porter said. the change as much as we think it will be, we can always make a budget amendment Year-by-year comparison Compared to the town- last budget, the new scal year will see a sever- al changes throughout each department. New budget projects $270K to be added to general fund Humane Society seeks interim executive director By LOUISE WREGE HP Staff Writer ST. JOSEPH An in- terim executive director is being sought for the Yeager Family Pet Shelter until a permanent one is hired, according to a news release from Ron Klemm, president of the board of directors of the Humane Society of Southwestern Michigan.

People interested in the position can FAX their resumes to the shelter at 408-8262. In the news release, Klemm said the interim di- rector will oversee day-to- day operations of the shel- ter, which reopened this week after a temporary closure for about a week. In addition, he said any- one interested in adopting one of the 60 dogs or 30 cats at the shelter can call 927-3303 to schedule an appointment. Visitors must wear face masks and so- cially distance due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Board of Directors would like to thank all the donors and the gener- al public who continue to support the activities of the Klemm said in the release.

are very grateful to continue to re- ceive donations on a daily basis; our forever friends are depending on you for continued support. Our goal is and has always been the welfare of our animals. We thank you all who con- tinue to support our cats and dogs as they wait for their forever The previous executive director of 13 years, Jill Svoboda, resigned on Feb. 23, with several staff mem- bers also leaving in a show of unity. Svoboda said the board had created a tox- ic environment.

Svoboda said she had asked the ken- nel staff to stay to care for the animals. In a previous statement, Klemm said law enforce- ment was contacted after board members found while try- ing to access the computer systems. Chief Deputy Robert Boyce of the Berrien County Sher- Of ce said he comment because the in- vestigation is ongoing. Meanwhile, online sup- port for Svoboda has continued to grow. A After pandemic year, weary world looks back and forward By MICHELLE R.

SMITH and ANDREW MELDRUM Associated Press No one has been un- touched. Not the Michigan woman who awakened one morn- ing, her wife dead by her side. Not the domestic worker in Mozambique, her livelihood threatened by the virus. Not the North Caroli- na mother who struggled to keep her business and her family going amid rising anti-Asian ugliness. Not the sixth-grader, exiled from the classroom in the blink of an eye.

It happened a year ago. expected to go back af- ter that said Dare- lyn Maldonado, now 12. think that it would take On March 11, 2020, when the World Health Organiza- tion declared a pandemic, few could foresee the long road ahead or the many ways in which they would suffer the deaths and ag- onies of millions, the ruined economies, the disrupted lives and near-universal loneliness and isolation. A year later, some are dreaming of a return to normal, thanks to vaccines that seemed to materialize as if by magic. Others live in places where the mag- ic seems to be reserved for wealthier worlds.

At the same time, people are looking back at where they were when they rst understood how drastically life would change. On March 11, 2020, con- rmed cases of COVID-19 stood at 125,000, and re- ported deaths stood at fewer than 5,000. Today, 117 mil- lion people are con rmed to have been infected, and ac- cording to Johns Hopkins, more than 2.6 million peo- ple have died. On that day, Italy closed shops and restaurants after locking down in the face of 10,000 reported infections. The NBA suspended its sea- son, and Tom Hanks, lm- ing a movie in Australia, announced he was infected.

On that evening, President Donald Trump addressed the nation from the Oval Of ce, announcing restric- tions on travel from Europe that set off a trans-Atlantic See MALL, page A6 See DIRECTOR, page A6 See POLICE, page A6 See ONE YEAR, page A6 Need help paying for tuition or training? We've got your back. Visit miworks.org/funding-opportunities or call us at 800-285-WORKS.