The NODE gets the nod as Michigan’s Best Outdoor Dining in Kalamazoo and SW Michigan
Updated Feb 17, 2021;
NILES, MI It’s not every day you get a “Thank You” note from the mayor of Small Town America.
But that’s what happened when we announced our search for Michigan’s Best Outdoor Dining last month.
The note came in the form of an email from Nick Shelton, the Mayor of Niles, a small town of about 12,000 residents in Southwestern Michigan, and only a few miles from the Michigan-Indiana border.
In the email he said:
“First, thank you for your efforts in the promotion of outdoor dining. We all know that our restaurants need all the help they can get, and this shines a huge spotlight on the importance of thinking outside the box in the face of giant obstacles. Thank you.
nhawthorne@tribtoday.com
NILES Niles City Council decided in a 7-0 vote Monday to dismiss a case that questioned 4th Ward Councilman Al Cantola’s residency.
The decision during a hearing comes after an inquiry over several months into Cantola’s Vienna Avenue residency.
“That was the right decision for council to dismiss this issue. I’ve stated on the record that’s where I live. That’s all it’s ever been,” Cantola said.
“This has been a fishing expedition for months now for the city, and I’m sure a couple thousand-dollar bill for the city and the taxpayers that should have never been put on the table,” he continued. “Our city has much bigger things going on than to worry about a councilman’s residence, whose home burnt and who put his wife in a safe place. This has been a shame.”