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Debate over large-scale data centers is intensifying across Michigan, with communities and political leaders divided over the industry’s rapid expansion. Several townships, including Howell Township, have paused or proposed moratoriums on new data centers as residents raise concerns about farmland loss, energy use, water consumption, and tax incentives offered to developers. The issue is now shaping Michigan’s gubernatorial race, with candidates split between supporting data centers for jobs and economic growth or calling for tighter regulations, local control, and even statewide bans. Industry leaders say the facilities are critical digital infrastructure, but growing public pushback has already delayed or halted some proposed projects. Bridge Michigan has a detailed look at the issue and a detailed look at where candidates for governor stand on the issue. There are links in today’s script online. Data Center Issues: https://bridgemi.com/michigan-environment-watch/at-least-19-michigan-towns-pause-data-centers-no-one-knows-if-itll-work/ Candidate Positions: https://bridgemi.com/michigan-government/where-michigan-gubernatorial-candidates-stand-on-data-centers/
Michigan’s natural resources budget is expected to take a long-term hit following last year’s devastating ice storm. State officials say the storm damaged about one million acres of forest in the northern Lower Peninsula, including especially valuable red pine stands. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources estimates losing about nine million dollars annually in timber revenue for decades while forests regrow.
Up in the Soo, there’s been a big drop in the number of crossings of the International Bridge there. They are down by almost 24 percent according to the International Bridge Authority. The decline comes amid rising political tensions between the U.S. and Canada, including new tariffs and trade disputes. Canadians are avoiding travel to the U.S., and businesses in Michigan’s Sault Ste. Marie report fewer Canadian visitors and reduced tourism activity.
The Charlevoix-Emmet Intermediate School District’s mobile STEM program has received a $2,500 Education Excellence Award from the SET SEG Foundation. The Char-Em Street STEM trailer serves about 5,000 students each year across Charlevoix, Emmet, and northern Antrim counties…including Beaver Island. Officials say the funding will help keep the program stocked with up-to-date technology while giving kindergarten through eighth-grade students hands-on STEM learning experiences.
The Little Traverse Bay Humane Society is launching a new program to help reunite lost pets with their families. The Lost Pet Recovery Program combines trained staff, volunteer support, and new tools like thermal drone technology that can detect animals even in low visibility. Humane Society leaders told the Petoskey News that quick action and proper guidance can make a major difference when a pet goes missing. Services are offered on a donation basis, primarily serving Emmet County, with help in nearby areas when possible.
On the Island, the Beaver Island Irish Heritage Group’s Callin of the Clans is underway, and just a few days in has reached more than 10% of their 30-thousand-dollar goal. The Greene/Green clan is in the lead. You can help support the annual Irish Feile and other Irish projects by forming a clan to donate. A clan can be any group: family, interest or Island location. There’s more on how to get involved at Irish Feile dot org.
Here’s the current leader board for Calling of the Clans. Image from Beaver Island Irish Heritage Group
The B-I-C-S Sports Boosters are getting ready for the annual Crockpot Cookoff on the 27th of this month. If you’d like to submit an entry…chili, soup or something else cooked in a pot, get in touch with Deb Robert or give the school a call at 2744.
The BIC Center is looking for volunteers as it prepares for a busy year of events and programs in 2026.Volunteers help keep the community connected and welcoming, with opportunities ranging from event support and hospitality to arts programs and behind-the-scenes projects. No experience is required, and schedules are flexible. Those interested can stop by the Front Desk at the BIC Center or send an email to volunteer at BIC Center dot org.
And, finally, some station news about a new show on W-V-B-I. It’s Birdnote with vivid, sound-rich stories about birds and the challenges they face. You can hear it weekdays at 2:30 p.m., weekends at 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. plus Monday, Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m. and Saturdays at 4:30 p.m. Overnight it plays at 1:30 and 5:30 a.m. (just in time for early morning birding). Yesterday’s Beaver Island Perspective has more about the program and winter birding with guests Cherl Kern (who leads Warblers on the Water) and Pam Grassmick (who lead Warblers on the Water for years and was a key leader in the creation of the Beaver Island Birding Trail). You can hear that in the Podcasts section of our website. |
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Now, here’s a look at events happening on your Emerald Isle…
First your meeting planner…
A-A meets Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 6:00 at the Christian Church. Also this week, Peaine Township Planning Commission meets Tuesday evening at 6:00. B-I-C-S Committee of the Whole meets Wednesday at 5:30. That’s it on the meeting front through the end of next week.
On the fun front today…
Tuesday at 10:00, Babes & Toddlers mix it up at the library and there is Pickleball in the Theater at the BIC Center and, at 10:30, there’s Chair Strength Training up in the Hangout. And, in our Dark Skies, a few hours after sunset on this evening, the waning gibbous moon will follow Regulus, the brightest star in Leo the Lion, up from the eastern horizon. There’s more info at dark sky island dot org.
Wednesday, there’s BINGO at the BIC Center at 1:00. At 5:00 it’s Time for Art, also at the BIC Center. That’ll be the second of three sessions on making Madi Gras masks lead by Cindy Ricksgers.
Highlights for the rest of the week include…
Thursday Women’s Bible Study is on at 10:00 at the Christian Church. There’s Pickleball at the BIC Center at 10:00. That’s in the theater. At 10:30 up in the Hangout there’s Chair Strength Training. Thursday evening, you can grab the burger & a beer special at the Shamrock starting at 5:00, and its Euchre Night down at Whiskey Point Brewing. Cards hit the table at 7:00.
Friday, Senior + Vets Coffee & Donuts is at the BIC Center from 9:00 to 11:00. There’s Pickleball at 10:00 and Chair Strength Training at 10:30. Friday afternoon the Islanders basketball squads head up to Maplewood for games Friday evening and Saturday morning. Let’s cheer for good weather so they can make it to the games and win them!
[On the radio, Kick off your weekend with our fantastic Friday lineup! After the 6:00pm news, enjoy “That Thing with Rich Appel” featuring top forty hits from the 70s. At 9:00pm, tune into “The Titus Jennings Experience” offering music from all genres, followed by “The Midnight Special” with Marilyn Rea Beyer at 11:00pm for music, farce comedy, and late-night escape.]
Saturday, the Fiero Code Club is on at the library at 1:00. There’s another planning session for the next Beaver Tales at 2:00 at the library. Beaver Tales shows are comedy about life on the Island. This time the theme is survival in keeping the with the 2025 BIG READ project at the library. You don’t have to be an actor to be part of it…just able to tell a story. There are two movies showing at the BIC Center. The 3:00 show is Tron Ares. Mankind encounters AI beings for the first time when a highly sophisticated program, Ares, leaves the digital world for a dangerous mission in the real world. It’s rated PG-13. At 6:00 it’s the award-winning Nuremberg, a story of the post-WWII trials of Nazis that focuses on the relationship of a psychiatrist tasked with evaluating the defendants who grows obsessed with understanding their evil. It’s rated PG-13. And, remember, Saturdays are Prime Rib Night at the Shamrock.
Celebrate St. Brigid’s Day with special activities at the BIC Center. Image from BIC Center [On the radio, tune in for Country Classics at 5:00 Saturday evening with host Sheri Timsak. At 7:00, Jackson Smith and Steve Girbach are in with Songs from the Trail. Mark Beltaire takes over at 9:00 with Rockin’ the Boat and continues at 10:00 with the Blues Cruise. Cousin Dan wraps up the evening with the Too Good Radio Show starting at 11:00.]
Sunday, there are services at the Christian Church at 10:00 and mass at Holy Cross at 12:15.
Looking ahead to highlights for next week…
Monday Valentine Spirit week starts at school. Monday is Valentine themed P-Js. And, Monday evening is All You Can Eat Pizza and Salad night at the Shamrock.
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TRAFFIC: No delays inbound or outbound to the airports. The Island Beltway is running smoothly and there are no bridge delays. But, hey, let’s be careful out there, especially in the school zone. |
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Today’s BIC Center Name of the Day is Estelle. If that’s your name, come on it to the BIC Center to pick out a free drink of your choice courtesy of the BIC Center and WVBI. |
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On this date in 1959, rock-and-roll stars Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J. P. Richardson are killed when their small plane crashes in a snowstorm in Iowa shortly after takeoff. Just two years earlier Holly rocketed to fame with his number one hit That’ll Be the Day. The tragedy becomes known as The Day the Music Died and marks one of the most devastating losses in early rock-and-roll history. Buddy Holly in a promo picture from his record Company. Photo from Brunswick Records available from Wikimedia Commons |
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Our Merriam Webster Word of the Day is hornswoggle (verb) [HORN-swah-gul]. To hornswoggle someone means to trick, cheat, or deceive them. The word is colorful slang with a bit of mystery around its origins. It likely popped up in the southern United States in the early 1800s, with one of the earliest printed uses appearing in an 1829 glossary of Americanisms. Hornswoggle belongs to a lively group of old-fashioned American slang like absquatulate, skedaddle, and sockdolager. Even though linguists aren’t sure exactly how it formed, hornswoggle remains a playful and expressive way to say someone’s been fooled. |
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Now, to wrap up for this Beaver Island Tuesday… |
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Here’s a thought for the day from physician Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman to earn a medical degree in the U-S, who was born on this day in 1821: “Prejudice is more violent the blinder it is.” |
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On a lighter note… What do call a criminal landing an airplane? Condescending. |
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That’s the W-V-B-I Community Calendar Report for this Beaver Island Tuesday, February 3rd, 2026. I’m Kevin Boyle reporting from W-V-B-I’s Langford Family Studios wishing you a great day and asking: why not go ahead and make it the best day ever? And thanks for listening. |
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Today Scattered snow showers before 1pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 18. Wind chill values as low as -3. North wind around 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%. Tonight Scattered snow showers before 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 7. Wind chill values as low as -2. Northwest wind around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. Wednesday Mostly cloudy, with a high near 20. West wind 5 to 10 mph. Wednesday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 9. Wind chill values as low as zero. West wind around 5 mph. Thursday A 50 percent chance of snow. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 27. Southwest wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Thursday Night A 50 percent chance of snow. Cloudy, with a low around 25. Friday Mostly cloudy, with a high near 29. Blustery. Friday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 2. Saturday Mostly cloudy, with a high near 14. Saturday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 1. Sunday Partly sunny, with a high near 13. Sunday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 4. Monday Mostly cloudy, with a high near 22. |
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Air Quality Index at 7:00 this morning was 0. |
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Radar at 7:00 this morning shows no precip on the island or in Charlevoix. Island Temps were in the mid to high teens. |
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Photos from webcams at wvbi.net and mackinacbridge.org |
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Coming up in our Community Calendar Report…
Debate is heating up across Michigan over massive data center projects, with some communities hitting pause. Plus, Michigan’s forests face decades of lost timber revenue after last year’s destructive ice storm… traffic across the Soo International Bridge drops sharply amid U.S.-Canada tensions… and Char-Em ISD’s mobile STEM program earns new funding that helps students, including those on Beaver Island. Also ahead — a new lost-pet recovery program using thermal drones, Irish F?ile fundraising updates, BICS Crockpot Cookoff plans, BIC Center volunteer opportunities, and details on WVBI’s newest program, BirdNote.
…all of that along with a run-down of local events, birthdays and more after global and national news from F-S-N. [Time check.] |
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Today’s featured image: The Beaver Island Irish Heritage Group is off to a good start with their Calling of the Clans challenge. Image from BIIHG |
