The Hastings City Council met Monday night and approved the American Legion Post #45 request to hold the annual Memorial Day Parade at 9:30am on Memorial Day following the traditional parade route. 

Also was approved was the Legion’s request to accept donations at Thornapple Plaza from 6:30 to 9:30pm on Friday, May 23^rd, kicking off the Memorial Day weekend with special entertainment by Greg Whalen and the Ramblers,  a local folk music group. Donations will benefit the Happiness for Veterans program and American Legion Post 45.

Mayor David Tossava declared May 9^th & 10^th as American Legion Auxiliary Poppy Days in Hastings and made a presentation to Darlene Hopkins, VP of the American Legion Auxiliary. The annual Poppy Drive supports projects that benefit active-duty servicemen, veterans and their families.

In other business the City Council:

-Set a workshop for 6:00 pm on Monday, May 12, 2025 to interview candidates for the vacant 1^st Ward seat on the Hastings City Council.

-Scheduled public hearings on Budget and Millage Rates for 2025-2026 and for the downtown parking Special Assessment Role.

-Approved $18,300 for professional services for the upcoming Police Department Office Renovation project.

The annual Vermontville Maple Syrup Festival, considered the “granddaddy” of them all, is this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. It is the original maple syrup festival in Michigan and came about in 1940, when local syrup producers gathered in a barber shop to discuss a way to sell their product.

Friday evening the Grand Opening ceremony begins at 6pm.  The Maple Valley Band Boosters will serve hot Pancakes and Real Maple Syrup all weekend.  Friday featurs a   talent Show, carnival rides and fireworks! 

On Saturday the 5K Run and Walk gets underway at 8.  There will be an arts and craft show at Maplewood School,  a Vendor Market on Main Street,  Lion’s Club Chicken Dinner at 11am, plus a variety of entertainment, the Grand Parade at 3 and Little Miss Syrup Pageant at 6. 

The fun continues all day on Sunday til around 5pm. 

Find the complete schedule  at   Syrupfest.org  

The Thornapple Arts Council will host the Annual Jazz Festival in Hastings, April 24th-26th!   Schools from across the state will send students to participate in the 3 day Jazz Festival and clinics, and they'll perform at venues throughout the city.   Evenings will feature Headline Jazz Performances. 

Enjoy the free performances by student groups, combos and adult groups.

For the Jazz Festival Schedule visit  Thornapplearts.org

During the Barry County Commissioners Committee-of-the-Whole meeting on April 15^th, Village Manager Craig Stolsonburg gave an update on projects and progress in Middleville.

The MidVilla Flats affordable housing development is under construction with the first building expected to be completed and occupied this fall.

McDonald’s is also beginning construction of a new location on M-37 Highway on the former Middle Villa Inn parcel. Middleville’s Director of Community and Economic Development, Douglas Powers, told WBCH that McDonald’s in Middleville should be opening in around six months.

Other projects include rebuilding of Irving Road within the village limits and the planned repaving of the Paul Henry Trail between McCann Road and downtown Middleville. Fundraising efforts and grant applications to pay for the Paul Henry Trail project are underway.

During the next few weeks the city of Hastings will have visitors in town from the Northview Senior Citizens groups. 

Northview, northeast of Grand Rapids, has a program called “Off the Beaten Path” where they invite groups of their senior population to visit communities all over Michigan.

Steve Hoke, the Arts and Events coordinator for the city says there may be approximately 30 of them coming down to spend 3 hours visiting, shopping, and eating in Hastings.

These are the dates that they will be coming to town:

Fri., Apr. 18th

Mon., Apr. 21

Tue., Apr. 22

Mon., Apr. 28

Thu., May 1

If you see any of these great Northview seniors, please welcome them and thank them for visiting Hastings. 

On Wednesday,  WBCH Radio and Barlow Florist of Hastings delivered blooming potted tulips to 418 residents of Carveth Village, Woodlawn Meadows, Clearstream Nursing & Rehab Center, and Thornapple Manor.  The Easter flowers were made possible through the generosity of 33 area businesses.

Each resident of the four facilities received their own tulips to enjoy for Easter and spring.  At Thornapple Manor, the largest of the locations, local 4-H youth volunteered to help distribute the flowers to residents' rooms at their campus.

The Barry County Chamber of Commerce will hold its' 4^th Annual Business & Community Expo this Saturday, April 19^th at Hastings High School from 10am to 1pm.

The Barry County Chamber & Economic Development Alliance, along with the Earth Day Committee, have teamed up to shine a spotlight on many amazing Barry County businesses.  It’s also the perfect way to kick off Earth Week and learn more about sustainability, recycling, and how you can make a difference in our community.

From interactive exhibits to fun activities, there's something for everyone! And since it’s the day before Easter there will be even more fun with an Easter Egg Hunt. 

Admission is free. 

The City of Hastings Compost Site opens for the season on Monday, April 14, 2025. City, residents with State issued ID as proof of residency, are eligible to use the dropoff site to dispose of  compostable waste generated within the City limits including:

• Grass clippings
• Leaves and sticks
• Paper compostable bags
• Branches less than 3” in diameter and shorter than 4’ in length

Location:
1303 W. State Rd. Hastings, MI 49058

Hours of Operation (starting Monday, April 14):
Mondays 3 PM – 6 PM
Saturdays 9 AM – 2 PM

The Department of Public Services will begin spring yard debris collection the week of April 14, 2025. Updates will be communicated online via the City of Hastings Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/hastingsmi.org. For more information, call City Hall at (269) 945-2468.

Curbside cleanup rules:

DO:

• Pile sticks and branches separately from leaves, weeds, etcetera.

• Pile materials in the yard just behind the curb

• Begin piling materials at curb two (2) weeks prior to cleanup.

DON’T:

• Pile materials in the street or gutter.

• Pile materials so they block a sidewalk.

• Pile materials that restrict the vision of motorists and pedestrians.

• Pile materials after DPS crews have completed cleanup.

• Place cement/ brick/ stones/ patio block/ landscape blocks/ landscape timbers.

• Place materials generated by commercial contractors.

• Place branches larger than 3” in diameter and longer than 4’ in length.

Drivers who frequently travel M-37 to and from Grand Rapids will need to find alternate routes throughout the spring, summer, and fall construction season. The construction will also make it more difficult to get to the Gerald Ford International Airport.

The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDO)T is investing approximately $12 million to rebuild M-37 (Broadmoor Avenue) from north of 44th Street to north of 60th Street in the city of Kentwood. The project also includes signal upgrades and extending the existing outside lane on southbound M-37 from Patterson Avenue’s north junction to 60th Street to increase safety. 

Lane closures will be in effect throughout the project. Northbound M-37 will be closed at M-6 from mid-April to mid-July. Southbound M-37 is scheduled to close at 44th Street from mid-July through mid-October. Traffic will be detoured using M-6, I-96 and M-11 (28th Street).

Intersection closures will also be in effect between 44th and 60th streets.

Despite a vote on Monday night of 2-2 by the Odessa Township Board rejecting an application permit to operate a test tower facility, Cordelia Energy is expected to circumvent the township’s wind energy ordinance in order to move forward on an eventual wind turbine project near Lake Odessa.  

Cordelia Energy’s testing tower is apparently one of three that are already built and operational in Ionia County, gathering data that is required before any actual wind turbine project can be constructed. The testing facility in Odessa Township was approved by the Ionia County building department without a permit from the township.

At the Board meeting numerous members of the public commented, mostly in strong opposition to allowing wind turbines in the area due to noise pollution and environmental concerns, and interfering with the natural beauty of the countryside.

Cordelia Energy is now expected to go directly to the Michigan Public Service Commission to get the permit the company needs to operate the test facility, voiding the local wind ordinance and effectively cutting out local oversight by the township.

One of the world’s most popular gravel races and event, attracting over 5500 cyclists,The Barry Roubaix, returns this weekend to Hastings..  The Barry Roubaix is a challenging bicycle race traversing the rolling and scenic gravel roads throughout Barry County.  Friday April 11th Participants start picking up there race packet at Hastings Ace Hardware…with cyclists group rides Friday afternoon, Sponsor Expo,  bonfire & beverages.

Saturday April 12^th is Race day!  The Start/finish chute is at Church Street and Center Street in downtown Hastings.  There will be some street closures within the City of Hastings sections of Green St., and Cook Rd.  Parking will be available in City Lots and neighborhood side streets.   Expect traffic to be re-routed around the downtown race start/finish chute and event spaces. The Race Schedule:

 7:00am    100 Mile race

10:00am   36 Mile race

11:00am   62 Mile race

11:15am   18 Mile race

  1:30pm-5pm   Blackrocks Brewery and food vendors inside the Awards party.

Consumers Energy’s storm restoration work has entered the homestretch for customers affected by severe ice and thunderstorms that battered northern and southern portions of Michigan throughout the past week.

About 900 crews have helped restore power for customers who lost power over the weekend in the first series of storms that brought historic ice accumulation to northern Michigan and nine confirmed tornadoes to southern Michigan. Some 47,000 additional customers lost power on Wednesday afternoon and evening given high winds cultivated by a second storm system.

While changing conditions and the complexity of the damage has impacted restoration efforts, crews will continue to work around the clock so that almost all the 370,000 customers impacted will be restored by the end of the day tomorrow.

“We expect to continue making good progress thanks to more favorable weather conditions across Michigan,” said Norm Kapala, one of Consumers Energy’s Officers in Charge of restoration. “We thank our customers for their continued patience as we work safely around the clock to fully restore all customers as quickly and safely as possible.”