The annual Little Jiggers Fishing Derby held on Quarry Lake in Manistique's Central Park will be held on Saturday February 23rd, 2013. Registration starts at 9:00 AM and the fee is $5.00 per hole with a limit of three holes per person. The holes will be pre drilled and minnows are provided courtesy of Top O' Lake Sport and Gift Shop in Manistique. Come on down, prizes are awarded in several categories. This event is fund raiser for the Manistique Recreation Department.

From all of us here at the City of Manistique ~ Merry Christmas!

Little Bear West Ice Arena has been a busy place these past few months with open skating, after school skates, Emerald skates, men's and women's hockey, and the season is continuing. February has a whole host of days, nights, and weekends available where you can come down, tie on those skates and take a few laps around the rink! See you there!

Construction has been busy this summer, and now layers of blacktop have begun. Garden Avenue and West Elk Street were the first two streets undertaken. On July 8th, West Elk Street was opened and is the detour route for M-94 (Deer Street) which is currently being removed. Garden Avenue is about 85% complete with only sidewalk replacement and a final coat of blacktop to be laid. Other streets involved are in various stages from demolition, to subsurface work to final grading and preparation for blacktop. The work is on schedule and should be completed by November 15th

The Long awaited and anticipated day has come. Construction crews on Garden Avenue and on West Elk Street both began the task of replacing miles of City Water, Sanitary and Storm Sewers. Daily updates on the Construction will be posted on Channel 21 across the bottom of the screen, and here on the website. Please remember that there will be intermittent Road Closures, and Water Service interruption during the entire project. The Streets affected will be West Elk Street and Garden Avenue first. As work progresses on Manistique's West side, First, Second, Third, Fourth, and Deer (M-94) Streets will also be done. Back on the East side, Garden, Manistique, Michigan and Park Ave will be affected. Work will continue throughout the summer and into the fall.

Public Safety Director Ken Golat reminds residents to use extreme caution when burning outside this spring. With the low snow accumulation this winter, the grasses and vegetation are extremely dry and burn rapidly. Even with recent rains, the winds dry out the grasses quickly. Anyone who is planning to burn with in the city limits, is required to first contact Public Safety for a free permit, by calling 341-2133 or 341-2134. Township residnets must contact the DNR for a free permit prior to burning as well at their website: http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/burn permits

Open burning does not include charcoal and gas grills at this time. If you have any questions contact the Public Safety Department at their numbers listed above. Also watch for updated information as weather conditions change.

The City has received word that it's long awaited Water/Sewer replacement and road reconstruction will begin on Monday April 30th. The first street that will be done is West Elk Street as infrastructure is replaced between Chippewa and Fifth Street and the road is redone. It will serve as the official M-94 Detour throughout the rest of the summer when reconstruction of Deer, First, Second, Third and Fourth Streets takes place. Meanwhile on the City's East side, roadwork will be done concurently, on Manistique, Michigan, Garden, and as funds permit, Park Avenues. Removal of existing roadways, subsurface infrastructure replacement as well as construction of roadways will take place throughout the summer. Residents can check the website throughout the summer for road closures, and updated information on construction.

Manistique Public Safety Director Ken Golat issued the following news release on January 4, 2012: At 2:00PM, January 4, 2012, the Manistique Public Safety Department re-opened Quarry Lake located in the Central park of the City of Manistique. Quarry Lake had been closed on December 13, 2011, because of repeated reports of persons on the ice and extremely unsafe ice conditions due to the unseasonably warm weather. The situation became worse as unchaperoned children began to play on the ice, carrying rocks out to the middle of the lake where the ice was very thin. Public Safety Officers tested the ice this date and found that ice thickness now averaged about 8 inches. The officers would warn the public however, that the ice does contain numerous rocks thrown and carried from the shoreline; some of these rocks are not visible as they have melted into the ice and fishermen's augers may be damaged. Ice skating is also not recommended unless an area of ice is inspected before hand. The Public is reminded that Michigan Fishing Laws are in effect on Quarry lake and may be enforced by the Michigan DNR or any Public Safety or police officer. The lake and entire Central park is closed to ORV or snowmobile use. The rock cliffs on the east side of the lake are also closed to the public due to the safety hazard they present. In closing, officers would like to advise the public that they are using Quarry lake at their own risk, that the ice should always be regarded dangerous and that common sense should apply. Citizens are asked to report any dangerous situations or violations to the Manistique Public Safety Department by dialing 911,

Each year the City of Manistique takes a few moments to pause and reflect on the season. Everyone at the City wishes you and yours a Happy and Healthy Holiday Season, and as we look forward to 2012, we thank everyone who helped make this year another successful year. Enjoy the season with your loved ones!

Election day is next Tuesday and there are five candidates vying for three Council seats. Dan Evonich and Rick Hollister, incumbents are running for their 3rd and 2nd terms respectively. Doug "Hawk" Erickson, Jack Hoag, and Rick Pawley are also running for the final seat which is being vacated by Chris Rantanen who chose not to run again. Polls will open at 7:00 AM on Tuesday and will remain open until 8:00PM. Voters are reminded that if they have received a letter from City Clerk Deb Dougovito, they may be voting in a different precinct, as a result of redistricting after the 2010 census. Anyone with questions regarding the redistricting can call City Hall at 341-2290.