LAURIUM – The Village of Laurium held its April regular meeting on Tuesday. A number of the points discussed involved initiatives to continue offering expected and essential services to Laurium residents.

Early in the meeting, the Aspirus Laurium Clinic ER ICU Nursing Supervisor and Trauma Coordinator Christina Verran gave an update on the helicopter transportation now available to patients who require urgent treatment at out-of-area hospitals. The program was initiated by Verran in the fall but relies on assistance from local law enforcement and fire departments.

“Everything has gone very well since we started the process. We’ve had 10 successful transfers,” Verran reporting during the meeting’s public comment period. “I really want to thank the Laurium fire department and police department for all their help.”

The clinic is planning a community drill soon and hopes to have another public information event.

The council is also moving forward on replacing one of a full-time police officer amid the ongoing area-wide shortage of law enforcement personnel. The village was awarded a grant to pay for a new recruit to attend police academy. The timeframe for the grant closed before an applicant enrolled, but the village was granted an extension because the only police academy in the U.P. only operates seasonally.

A recruit has since come forward and is in the final stages of enrolling in the academy for the next term to return to Laurium for duty this summer. The recruit’s name is not being released until she passes the academy and is officially hired by the village.

“She has gone to get her drug test for the academy, so she will be joining them in May and come back here in August when she passes the academy,” explained Village Manager Ian Lewis.

The village has also secured a fellowship grant through the Community Economic Development Association of Michigan, which will pay a college student to work with Lewis including in writing grants for the village and in community outreach initiatives. The village has extended an offer to one applicant, who would begin the five-month fellowship in May. Her name is not being released at this time.

“She’s very excited to get up here and start putting her time into Laurium,” said Village President John Sullivan. Sullivan also mentioned an ongoing drive to maintain information on projects from the village that do not receive funding to make it easier for the village to apply for future opportunities. The master plan, which is nearing completion, will also help to these ends.

“The next step would be for the council to review the master plan and then make a motion for the plan to be released to other communities for review,” explained Planning Commission Chair Kalen Carlson. The draft that is released for review in the near future should be very near a final draft. “Once it goes out, we wouldn’t want to make too many changes.”

The village can’t pay for everything with grants, and an amendment to the state constitution that automatically reduces the money that they can take in from taxes has led to financial difficulties. An upcoming ballot item, the Headlee Override, would allow the village to set its own millages again, which would help to secure necessary operating costs.

A public information session to help residents understand the proposed Headlee Override is scheduled for April 27 at 6 p.m. at village hall, and pamphlets explaining the proposal can be found at village hall, on the village website, and at some Laurium stores.