Northern Michigan Journalism Project

Understaffed, untrained, and sometimes even married townships officials control taxpayer dollars in many northern Michigan communities.

Six months after an ice storm hit northern Michigan, people are still clearing debris and repairing homes, tree services remain in high demand and direct financial assistance is limited for individuals.

Northern Michigan’s agriculture industry is feeling the impact of rising costs, supply shortages and less research funding, among other things that benefit farmers.

Cases in Benzie County, the Upper Peninsula and elsewhere demonstrate that small communities are not immune from big theft, and that the betrayal is deeply felt.

In Lake County — population 12,000 — a new ICE facility is opening in a shuttered private prison, promising to create hundreds of jobs in the poorest county in the state. Many residents have doubts about whether the jobs will last.

Some argue baiting helps hunters kill more deer, curbing the spread of disease. Scientists say that's risky.

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore has approximately two-thirds of the seasonal staff it typically needs to welcome more than 1.5 million visitors over the next three busy months.