News and Notes

As of Feb. 6, 2009 I am officially a resident of St. Joseph, MI. Yeah! Due to a back injury I haven't had a chance to actually get over to St. Joe to visit my new condo yet, but I'm hoping and praying that will happen very soon!

In the mean time, I'm spending time learning about the area. I visited the Berrien County web site and downloaded maps of the county, St. Joseph, and several communities in the area. I've also subscribed to the feeds for the Harold Palladium newspaper. Each day I read the feeds and whenever a location is mentioned I look it up on my maps. Little by little I'm learning about the area.

I've also been doing some online searches to find dog friendly places in the area, grocery stores, home improvement and furniture stores. The area has more to offer than I would have guessed. :-)

Recently, in the Herald Palladium, I found 2 articles of interest. The first article made me sad. It was about the closing of the Great Lakes Home Furnishings store in downtown St Joe. I remember passing by that store on my first visit to St Joe but we didn't stop in. It's really sad to hear about businesses closing, especially one that has been viable in that location even in the present economy. The owner claims that he's never missed a payment. I'm thinking Bank of America is being very greedy to call in the loan under those circumstances.

The second article I was interested in was about a pedestrian walkway being built on Hilltop Rd. from Washington Ave to Cleveland Ave this summer. By 2012 it will be expanded to include the whole distance from Niles Rd to Lakeshore Drive. The walkway will be made of concrete and 10 feet wide. I think it's a great idea! Any time you bring foot traffic to an area it will bring people strolling. Good exercise, good for the shops and restaurants!