VOLUME 167, No. 21 Thursday, May 27, 2021 PRICE $1.

1

THE

HASTINGS

Devoted to the Interests of Barry County Since 1856

A time to celebrate, to

remember, to commit

See Editorial on Page 4

13 local athletes in D

track and field finals

See Story on Page 15

Hastings DDA reviews

streetscape plan

See Story on Page 2

Thornapple Manor breaks ground on $14 million Harvest Pointe

The group who gathered to mark the groundbreaking for Barry County’s $14 million assisted living facility, Harvest Pointe, are (from left): Richard Tobias; Jennifer Wyatt, with Eckert Wordell; Brad Johnson, Michigan

Department of Health and Human Services board chairman; Sara Tobias, director of Harvest Pointe at Thornapple Manor; Michelle Yoder, dietary manager at Thornapple Manor; Cassie Bailey, director of dietary services,

Thornapple Manor; Tiffany Hagerman, dietary manager, Thornapple Manor; Liz Bishop, director of nursing, Thornapple Manor; Ryan Whilden, director of information technology, Thornapple Manor; John Resseguie, City

of Hastings Mayor pro tem; Jennifer Johnson, nurse educator, Thornapple Manor; Darnell Pacillo, assistant director of nursing, Thornapple Manor; Tara Beach, director of life enrichment, Thornapple Manor; Laura Purdy,

hospital purchasing services; Curt Penny, Eckert Wordell; Nichole Lyke, Barry County Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development; Jennifer Heinzman, president of Barry County Chamber of Commerce and

Economic Development; Kim Martin, Barry County Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development; Renee Beniak, executive director, Michigan Medical Care Facilities Council; Michael Brown, county administrator;

Kim Turcott, Allegan County Medical Care Facility administrator; Chelsey Foster, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services board member; Barry County Commissioner Howard Gibson, Thornapple Manor

Administrator Don Haney, Barry County Commissioner Jon Smelker, Barry County Commission Chairman Ben Geiger, WBCH Radio David McIntyre; Barry County Commissioner Vice Chairwoman Vivian Conner; Steve

Marzolf, chief nursing officer, Spectrum Health Pennock; Tammy Pennington, executive director, Barry County Commission on Aging; Patty Woods, Chamber of Commerce ambassador; Rebecca DeHaan, director of

human resources; Jan DeYoung, former county MDHHS board, Barry County Commissioner Bruce Campbell; Jim DeYoung, former administrator at Thornapple Manor; Bernie Jore, Shectrum Health Pennocck chief

operating officer; Janine Dalman, president of Spectrum Health Pennock Foundation; Kay Sommerfeld; Ryan DeYoung, information technology technician at Thornapple Manor; Lynn Sommerfeld, former Thornapple

Manor administrator; Sharon Haney; Mark Hires, president, CM Contractors; Tom La Pres, president and CEO of HPS; Brenda Edwards, Spectrum Health at Home; Therese Maupin-Moore, director of quality, Thornapple

Manor; Tess Slagstad and Amye David, life enrichment team members. (Photo by Scott Harmsen)

For more about the project, see Page 3.

Mourners watch the procession approach First Baptist Church of Middleville from

a grassy outcropping overlooking the intersection of M-37 with Crane/Finkbeiner

roads. (Photo by Rebecca Pierce)

Tractor tribute stops

traffic in Middleville

Rebecca Pierce

Editor

They began to gather at 9 a.m. Saturday,

engines rumbling, big tires rolling down an

unpaved part of Stimson Road near

Middleville.

Oak trees line that road on both sides,

creating an arch of green dappled with light,

where the tractors – 29 of them – were parked

in preparation for a special procession.

Bill Hirsch of Caledonia had the idea.

Then Todd Peters of Middleville helped

spread the word, and it took off from there.

The tractor tribute they envisioned was to

mark the passing of Keith Kooiman Jr., 69,

whose life was claimed by cancer May 6.

Kooiman was tractor technician. And, by

all accounts, he was an extraordinary man.

“He worked on just about every tractor

here,” Hirsch said proudly, gesturing to the

phalanx of tractors stretching down Stimson.

“That one, the third one, that one was his.”

An American flag, attached to the back of

the tractor, fluttered in the breeze.

Posters mounted on a couple of special

tractors carried the words: “In Loving Memory

of Keith Kooiman Jr. 1951-2021” and photos

of his smiling face, a family portrait, as well

as scenes of Kooiman driving tractors and

working on them.

Kooiman, who graduated from Thornapple

Kellogg High School in 1970, completed a

John Deere certification program after

graduating. He went on to develop an expertise

few have today. He knew tractors down to the

ground, friends said.

He also knew his community and the

people he served.

As they waited for the procession to begin,

Caledonia farmers John Finkbeiner and Butch

Welton shared a few memories.

“He’d look at a tractor and say what was

wrong with it – and that’s what was wrong

with it,” Finkbeiner said. “He could diagnose

City moves ahead with downtown development

Sophie Bates

Staff Writer

A project designed to trigger private invest-

ment in downtown Hastings got a boost from

the Hastings City Council Monday.

After public hearings on plans for residen-

tial and commercial development at 128 N.

Michigan Ave., the city council established a

Commercial Redevelopment District. This

district will allow for a partial abatement on

property taxes for commercial redevelopment

there.

Next to come, after a 60-day notice period,

will be the establishment of a Neighborhood

Enterprise Zone, interim City Manager Gregg

Guetschow said. That designation will allow

a partial tax abatement on residential proper-

ties in that zone.

Both designations will last for 12 years on

the property owned by Hastings Michigan

Ave, LLC: A four-story building and proposed

site for 21 market-rate apartments and

2,630-square-feet of commercial retail space

on the first floor.

Property tax abatement is a financial incen-

tive, Guetschow said in an interview with The

Banner Tuesday.

“What this does is to provide for an abate-

ment on some of the property taxes that would

ordinarily be owed. That’s the primary thing,”

Guetschow said. “It is one of a suite of eco-

nomic development tools that’s available to

the city to encourage a private investment.

“In this particular case, it means they

[Hastings Michigan Ave] are going to have a

lower property tax bill for a period of time.

And that’s to provide them the incentive then

to come in and make that private investment.

And we [the city] will see the benefit in the

long run by the fact that, eventually, that

abatement goes off the books and they start

paying the full amount of the property taxes

that they owe.

“And, more importantly, or equally impor-

tantly, we believe that one project like this

will spur other private investment in the

downtown.”

No one from the public spoke during the

hearings, which preceded the council action

to approve the resolution establishing the

commercial district.

In addition, the council OK’d amending the

real estate agreement between the city and

Hastings Michigan Ave, LLC to extend the

contract. The contract had to be extended due

to timeline complications caused, in part, by

the pandemic.

The council also adopted a Brownfield Plan

Amendment, which makes Hastings Michigan

Ave, LLC eligible for reimbursement for an

environmental site assessment, site prepara-

tion and infrastructure improvements totaling

up to $150,000.

In other business, the council considered a

proposal from Director of Public Services

Travis Tate to extend the city’s contract for

mowing and maintenance services with

Leaping Lizards Landscaping, LLC.

That current contract is set to expire June

30, but Tate asked that it be extended to Dec.

31, 2023. The cost for services would then go

up 4 percent, increasing the current weekly

rate from $2,465 to $2,563.60.

Tate also recommended the city add the

City Hall Grounds Maintenance contract,

which is currently held by Hallifax, to Leaping

Lizards Landscaping, adding $236.75 per

week to their contract while consolidating the

services with one company.

Several council members expressed oppo-

sition to the idea since the work had not been

let out for bids.

“It’s got to be more than one bid on things

and, if there’s not, I want to know the reason

why,” Councilman Don Bowers said. “In this

case, I don’t know if Hallifax even had a

chance to bid on this, which they’ve had the

contract for some time and we’ve been pleased

with it.

“When did we start changing and taking on

just one person rather than asking for bids? I

will not vote for anything like this anymore

• unless we have more than one bid or a rea-
  son why we don’t.”
  Tate said he wanted Leaping Lizards
  Landscaping to take on the grounds mainte-
  nance contract so the city would have one

See DEVELOPMENT, page 6 See TRIBUTE, page 3

COVID outbreak at jail triggers quarantine

Taylor Owens

Staff Writer

Ten inmates at the Barry County Jail tested

positive for COVID-19 over the weekend, the

first outbreak at the facility since the pandem-

ic started in March 2020.

Lt. Peter Nevins of the Barry County

Sheriff’s Office said an inmate reported mild

symptoms of the virus Saturday, and a rapid

test came back positive 15 minutes later. The

office then conducted a round of rapid tests

throughout the rest of the jail, including staff,

and found positive cases among nine other

inmates.

The total jail population is currently 55

inmates, Nevins said.

Nevins said these inmates, some of whom

are experiencing mild, cold-like symptoms,

have been quarantined. The only release from

that group was one inmate whose sentence

was up.

Jail staff will conduct a round of tests every

three days to monitor for further spread of the

virus. As of Wednesday, they were planning a

second round of testing later that day.

Nevins said they have been unable to trace

the cases to a specific source.

When the pandemic started, the jail changed

its policy to house only people accused of

violent felonies. That kept the population

down, and ensured there would be enough

space to quarantine all inmates as they were

admitted and awaiting test results.

But, in the wake of declining COVID-

cases, the jail recently loosened its intake

restrictions. And, as the jail population rose,

they no longer had enough room to automati-

cally quarantine all new inmates.

Nevins said it’s possible the virus was able

to slip through the cracks when the jail took in

a new inmate, or an asymptomatic staff mem-

ber may have unknowingly spread it.

While COVID-19-positive or symptomatic

people have been arrested throughout the pan-

demic, they were not allowed inside the jail.

The outbreak over the weekend represents

the first time the virus has been discovered in

the facility.

Last month, the jail partnered with the

Barry-Eaton District Health Department to

administer vaccines to any inmates who want-

ed them, but only nine of about 50 inmates

chose to get vaccinated.

Nevins said three of those people were in

the section of the jail where the outbreak took

place, and all three of those inmates have

since tested negative for COVID.

When they are sure there are no longer any

positive cases at the jail, Nevins said, the

sheriff’s office will ask BEDHD to return to

provide another round of vaccinations for any

inmates who want them.