THE LATEST TOP HEADLINES

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(CCN) — Burton's Ellen Ellenburg beat two challengers in the Democrat primary to move on to the general election in November in her re-election bid on the Genesee County Board of Commissioners.

She will face Gary Goetzinger who won the Republican primary over Shelly O'Donnell.

Democrat Ellenburg has twice before beaten Goetzinger who is a retired administrator in the Grand Blanc school system.

Ellenburg's 2,880 votes gave her a landslide victory over Drew Marsh and Brian Ashley. Marsh had 860 votes, Ashley 462.

Ellenburg serves residents in Burton and eastern Davison Township. She has been on the county board since 2016 and became the first woman board chairman in more than 30 years in 2023. She was elected as Vice Chairman three times.

She served nine years on the Burton City Council before joining the county board where she is currently the longest serving Commissioner.

PHOTO CAPTION: PIctured above this story is Commissioner Ellen Ellenburg.

(CCN) — A long-time fixture in the Burton business community is back open after a short absence.  Delta Tire & Auto Repair re-opened this week at G-3476 Saginaw Street. 

MLive reported that the business filed for Chapter 11 re-organization in federal bankruptcy court on June 29 of last year and abruptly closed last month after the Chapter 11 was converted to a Chapter 7 liquidation of assets to pay off creditors.

 Court filings showed that Delta Tire had assets valued between $100,000 and $500,000 with liabilities between $500,000 to $1 million.

MLive had reported that the establishment was going out of business but Deta Tire re-opened this week just as abruptly as it had closed.

A social media post on Facebook by the business said: “WE ARE BACK OPEN!!!  If you need TIRES or AUTO REPAIR, we hope you choose our family and we hope to welcome you to the Delta Tire Auto Repair family. We do kindly ask that you do not park immediately at this corner.  It has been voiced that it makes it difficult to see oncoming traffic, so out of respect and safety for the locals, our family, please find alternative parking.  We have a large lot found directly behind the building.  We also own the house directly behind the building, so we would rather you park along the grass there if necessary than any hazard be created. We love and appreciate all of you. Our family cannot thank the community who rallied behind us.  We have been here for 50 years supporting the community and we don’t plan on stopping anytime soon.” 

 BY MIKE KILLBREATH

CCN Executive Editor

(CCN) — Prominent local civil attorney Tom Pabst has announced a $400,000 settlement check for the victim of a racial slur and assault by a former off duty Burton police detective.

Pabst made the announcement immediately after appearing Wednesday (July 24, 2024) on The Morning Gazette Radio Show to reveal that another client of his in a high profile case against the Flint school district had collected more than $600,000 on Monday (July 23, 2024).

"Anita Steward was a rising star in the Flint school system, and they wronged her in a huge way after naming her as Superintendent," Pabst said. "It's one of the top five cases I'm most proud of during my 47 years as an attorney."

Pabst has won some of Genesee County's biggest civil cases, including against many local municipalities.

"I don't want the Anita Steward case to take away from how important the Burton case was, because monetary damages does not begin to make it right what happened to her and give her justice," Pabst added. "Monetary justice is what Anthony Miller got and it was deserved for what he suffered in the City of Burton. What happened to him should not happen to any citizen in this country."

Pabst provided court documents showing the City of Burton agreed in an out-of-court settlement to pay Miller $400,000 as a result of an off duty, then member of the Burton Police Department using a racial slur and slapping Miller in the driveway of his home in February 20230.

Detective Eric Freeman, who is white, was initially suspended, then charged by Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton on a felony for ethnic intimidation and a misdemeanor for assault. Miller is black.

Prosecutor Leyton said at the time that Freeman followed Miller to his home in Burton after a fender bender accident on eastbound I-69. Leyton said Freeman was driving an unmarked police vehicle and Miller fled the scene. Prosecutor Leyton said Freeman confronted Miller in the driveway of Miller's home, told him he had "ran from the wrong individual, I’m a cop" and then called for back-up from Burton officers. When they arrived, Freeman had Miller on the ground when he slapped him and used a racial slur. 

The felony ethnic intimidation charge was eventually dropped when Freeman agreed to a plea bargain deal with Leyton's office. Freeman was sentenced to fines after he pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor assault charge and agreed to surrender his MCOLES certification to act as a law enforcement officer in Michigan.

Burton Mayor Duane Haskins said at the time that the incident was reported by other officers at the scene and also confirmed by bodycam footage.

Freeman was a 16-year veteran of the department that has been rocked by resignations and firings since Haskins was elected in 2019. Haskins is a former 18-year veteran of the Genesee County Sheriff's Department where he served 12 years as the union president for more than 240 deputies. His police chief (Brian Ross) worked in a command   position for former Sheriff Bob Pickell and current Sheriff Chris Swanson.

Both Pickell and Swanson commended Haskins and Ross as the "best of the best" in law enforcement.

"The City of Burton residents are tried of the good old boy politics of our police department, and it's over," Mayor Haskins said after the arrest of Freeman. He predicted then that the incident would "cost the residents" in a potential lawsuit.

PHOTO CAPTION: Pictured above this story is prominent local attorney Tom Pabst.

 (CCN) — A memorial service for Burton's Tim Sneller is planned for 3 pm on Friday, Aug. 16 at UAW Local 659 on VanSlyke Road in Flint.

Sneller was a state representative in Lansing for six years after previously serving more than 30 years as a legislature aide to various state legislators, including former Burton Mayor Charles Smiley when he went to Lansing for six years as a state rep.  (See Related Stories in Today's Metro Section of The Daily Gazette) 

(CCN) — An obituary on the web site of Davison's Allen Funeral Home for TIm Sneller says  in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to a charity of one's choice.

Sneller was born  in Flint, MI on June 20, 1956, son of the late Anthony and Margaret (Geier) Sneller. He was a graduate of Bentley High School Class of 1974. He'ss survived by his sister, Sandi (Donald) Twite; 5 nephews, Joseph (Jessica) Panchula, Ronnie (Diana) Sneller, Tony (Megann) Digenova, Jordon (Joan) Sneller and Justin (Jessica) Sneller; niece, Katelyn (Ryan) Schoenherr; many other loving family members and good friends. He was preceded in death by his parents, Anthony and Margaret Sneller; sister, Carol Bennett and brother, Ronald (Pam) Sneller.

The obituary also noted that the family would like to extend a very sincere thank you to Tim's campaign manager, Drew Marsh. 

 (CCN) — YouTube sensation Mark Crilley will present step-by-step lessons for anyone who loves to draw Thursday at the Genesee County District Library's Burton Memorial branch at the corner of Center Road and Atherton Road.

The event is set for 11 am.

Crilley is an American comic creator, artist and children's book author and illustrator. He's the creator of Miki Falls and Brody's Ghost, but is best known for producing instructional videos on drawing on YouTube in various styles, including manga styles.

Crilley is a former Detroit resident.

 (CCN) — The Burton Police Department is asking for help to find a missing 20-year-old woman.

Monica Latrise Griffin was last seen near N. Belsay Road and Brookwood Drive in the city/

Investigators said she went missing from an AFC home.

Police said Griffin has life-threatening medical issues that require medication that she does not have with her. Police added that Griffin may be suicidal.

Griffin may be wearing a red sweatshirt with white lettering with black and gray sweatpants. Police said she has long braided hair, with a birth mark on her right arm.

Anyone with information on her location is asked to call 911, or the City of Burton Police Department at (810) 742-2542.

 (CCN) — Heavy rains dumped massive floods on parts of the City of Burton.

Residents complained that yards were flooded, basements were full of water and homes had main floor flooding problems across the city.

The National Weather Service reported the July 9-10 rainfall period as follows:

"Tropical moisture, brought up by the remnants of Hurricane Beryl, dropped quite a bit of rain over Southeast Michigan over a 48-hour timeframe.  Rain began across parts of the county warning area (CWA) on Tuesday, July 9th and continued through the day on Wednesday, July 10th.  By the time the remnants of Hurricane Beryl moved off to the east, measured rainfall amounts were in the 2 to 6 inch range, with the highest amount of 7 inches east of Flint in Genesee County.  The center of the post-tropical system tracked just to the south of Southeast Michigan as it made its way off to the northeast.  Winds also accompanied the system, with wind gusts in the 30-35 mph range.

The official climate site at Flint Bishop Airport, broke their daily (24-hour) rainfall total on July 10th with 3.27 inches breaking the previous record of 1.63 inches set back in 1970. This is the first post-tropical system to impact the local area since the remnants of Tropical Storm Cristobal in 2020."

(CCN) — Tekoa Hewitt's Bentley Bulldogs open the 2024 prep football schedule with back-to-back home dates. The Bulldogs host Flint Southwestern in the non-league opener, then host Flint Beecher in their Genesee Area Conference opener.

The Bulldogs are coming off a 7-2 regular season campaign last season when making the state playoffs for the first time since 2008 when finishing 6-3 in the regular season.

The 2008 Bulldogs also lost in the first round of the state playoffs..

Coach Hewitt is hoping for a better ending than a year ago when losing 62-8 to eventual Division 8 state champion Ubly which was a perfect 14-0 in 2023 when winning the Greater Thumb Conference's Eastern Division title.

Bentley was runner-up to Flint Hamady in the GAC after losing 41-6 on its home turf to the Hawks in Week 3 last fall. 

That early loss to Hamady turned out to be the only one last year until running into Ubly.

Bentley goes to Flint Hamady this year in Week 5 on Sept. 20.

Burton's rivalry games involving defending city champion Bentley features the Bulldogs going to Bendle on Sept. 27 and then hosting Atherton on Oct. 18. 

Bentley's 2024 schedule is above this story.

(CCN) — The big story in Burton prep football this coming fall will be Atherton rejoining the city series action with Bentley and Bendle. Coach Randy Young has the Wolverines moving back to Division 7 play after four straight seasons of 8-man football because of poor numbers.

Young's first two teams were 3-6 and 2-7 before getting Atherton to a 4-4 finish last season.

The former assistant coach at Grand Blanc and ex-Head Coach of the University of Michigan-Flint's club team took over the varsity job at Atherton after a winless season in 2020 a year before he arrived.

Atherton has joined city rivals Bentley and Bendle in the Genesee Area Conference with Flint Beecher, Flint International Academy, Flint Hamady, Genesee and Flint New Standard Academy.

Atherton hasn't had a winning season since 2016 under Edward Sterner when going 5-4. Sterner resigned after an 0-9 finish in 2018 was sandwiched around 1-8 campaigns. 

Jared Noel was head coach during the winless season before Young arrived to start turning the program around.

Atherton's 2024 schedule is above this story.

The Wolverines make their return to 11-man play on Thursday, Aug. 29 when hosting Vassar in a non-league contest. They then open GAC play on Friday, Sept. 6 when hosting Bendle in their return to Burton's city series action.

(CCN) — The Bendle Tigers are hoping to get back to the program's winning ways in 2024.

Coach Mike Jerisk has led Bendle to the state playoffs in back-to-back years despite identical 4-5 regular season records. They were 5-4 in his first year at the helm when failing to qualify in 2021.

Bendle opens the 2024 campaign against non-league visitor Otisville LakeVille. The Falcons, who play in the Mid-Michigan Activities Association (MMAA), were 1-8 last season. They've won only 18 games since 2011. The school's last winning season was in 2010 when going 5-4.

The Tigers go to Atherton in Week 2 to welcome their Burton rivals back to 11-man action by opening play in the Genesee Area Conference.

They go to Flint Hamady on Oct. 4 to face the defending GAC champs.

Bendle's 2024 schedule is above this story/

(CCN) — Ted Valley has joined the administration of Mayor Duane Haskins on the City of Burton's administrative team.

He began on Monday (July 1, 2024) as the city's new  Director of Human Resources and Labor Relations.

Valley is best known to residents in Burton (and across the Metro Flint regional area) as the long-time Executive Director and Producer at Vertigo Theatrics. He hosted dinner theater events for many years at the old Masonic Temple in Downtown Flint, as well as various other play productions at other locations across the regional area.

Valley was working as Business Development Manager at Manufacturing Growth Alliance in Benton Harbor. The organization strives to champion, advocate and serve Michigan's small to medium sized manufacturers.

Prior to his job with Manufacturing Growth Alliance, Valley served as President & CEO at the Birch Run Chamber of Commerce.

His other experience includes as an education consultant at Alerus,  Communications Advancement Specialist for the Foundation for Flint's Mott Community College and an event planner/coordinator at Flint's Downtown Development Authority.

PHOTO CAPTION: Pictured above this story is Ted Valley who has joined the city administration under Burton Mayor Duane Haskins.

(CCN) — Burton's Zoning Board of Appeals voted on Thursday (June 20, 2024) to deny an appeal by a resident for an exception to the city's ordinance requiring a half acre parcel to allow her to raise chickens on her property.

Nicole Rex of Robinhill Drive home sits on a .485 acre site.

One resident wrote the city a letter of support, saying her chickens were "well taken care of" and suggesting that neighbors didn't have a problem with allowing her to get an exception to the ordinance requirements.

Two residents spoke against the idea at the meeting which was held at the Council Chambers downstairs at Burton City Hall.

(CCN) — The Superintendent of the Bentley school system has announced that she's opening her office door to community members this fall.

Dr. Kristy Spann has scheduled community conversations over coffee for Sept. 3 and Nov. 5 about bond updates or any other topic residents may be interested in learning information about.

The two meetings will be from 8:30 am until 9:30 am at the Bentley Administration Building which is located at 1170 N. Belsay Road..

Anyone interested in learning more details about joining the community conversation with Superintendent Dr. Spann can call the administration office at Bentley Community Schools. The number is (810) 591-9120.

(CCN) — Burton's next city council meeting is set for Monday, July 15 at  p.m.

Burton City Council meetings are held in the lower level at Burton City Hall which is located at 4303 S. Center Road.

The next Burton Planning Commission is scheduled for Tuesday, July 9 at 5 p.m. It's also at Burton City Hall's lower level Council Chambers.

 The next Burton Parks and Recreation Commission meeting is set for Wednesday, July 10 at 5:30 p.m. at Burton City Hall's lower level Council Chambers.

The next Burton Downtown Development Authority meeting is scheduled for Monday, July 15 at 8:30 a.m. at Burton City Hall's lower level Council Chambers.

The next Burton Economic Development Authority meeting is set for Monday, July 15 at 6:30 p.m. at Burton City Hall's lower level Council Chambers.

Meetings can also be viewed live or on demand by visiting the city's Web Site. 

(CCN) —  No intersections across the Metro Flint regional area made an annual list of the top 20 most dangerous ones in Michigan, but one in the City of Burton cracked Genesee County's top 10.

(See Story in State News of My Am Advantage)

(See Another Related Story in Today's Metro Section of The Daily Gazette)

 Michigan Auto Law of Farmington Hills compiled a top 10 list of the most dangerous intersections in Genesee County based on crash data reported to the Michigan State Police, and found that Corunna Road and I-75 in Flint Township to be No. 1. State Police data showed 55 crashes there in 2023 that resulted in 16 injuries.

No. 9 on the list of most dangerous intersections in Genesee County was at Dort Highway and Maple Road which is located on the border of Grand Blanc Township and the City of Burton.

Date showed 22 crashes there in 2023 resulted in 14 injuries.

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