Welcome to Mint City Pulse, a weekly email designed to make it easier to know what is happening in our community.

Each Friday, we'll bring together the most important local news, government updates, school information, events, business happenings, and other things worth knowing around St. Johns.

This week, we say goodbye to a restaurant that has served St. Johns for nearly three decades, look back at the Mint Festival's return downtown, get ready for the start of another school year, and look ahead to what's happening around town.

Today marks the end of an era for a familiar St. Johns restaurant.

Dershey's Cafe is closing its doors today, August 14, after nearly 29 years in business.

Roger and Mary Dershem opened the restaurant in 1997. Over the decades that followed, Dershey's became a familiar gathering place for generations of St. Johns residents.

Roger passed away from cancer in 2022. His daughter, Dianne Smith, continued operating the restaurant alongside her mother, Mary.

Dianne told WILX this week that she feels at peace with the decision to close, but after years in the restaurant business, she is simply ready to be done.

Customers have been stopping in this week for final meals and to say goodbye.

Restaurants like Dershey's occupy an interesting place in a small town. They're businesses, but over enough years they become something more. They're where people meet for breakfast, where coworkers grab lunch, and where familiar faces become part of the normal rhythm of life.

Twenty-nine years is a long time to serve a community. We wish the Dershem family well in whatever comes next.

Have a favorite Dershey's memory? Reply to this email and tell us about it. We may share some of your responses in next week's issue.

The St. Johns Mint Festival returned last weekend, but this year's festival looked a little different.

After several years of activities being divided between locations, the August 7–9 festival brought the celebration back into downtown St. Johns.

Organizers hoped the change would create a more connected festival experience while bringing additional visitors and foot traffic to downtown businesses.

The move generated plenty of conversation.

FOX 47 spoke with festival-goers who expressed mixed opinions about the new arrangement. Some enjoyed having the festival back in the heart of downtown and appreciated the atmosphere created by bringing everything together. Others preferred City Park, citing its additional shade, open space, and room for children.

For downtown businesses, however, the return potentially meant thousands of festival attendees walking directly past their doors throughout the weekend.

Now that the festival is over, the bigger question is whether the downtown experiment worked well enough to become the new normal.

We'd like to hear from you: Where would you prefer to see the Mint Festival held in 2027? Reply and tell us: Downtown, City Park, split between locations, or no preference.

The Mint Festival wasn't the only major event bringing visitors to St. Johns this week.

The AgroExpo celebrated its tenth anniversary August 11–12 at the North Central Research Station on Findlay Road.

The annual outdoor agricultural show brought more than 170 exhibitors to the St. Johns area for equipment demonstrations, agricultural technology, educational sessions, speakers, and other programming.

While the event primarily serves farmers and agricultural professionals, its location makes St. Johns a destination for visitors from throughout Michigan's agricultural community.

For an area surrounded by some of Michigan's most productive farmland, the event is also a reminder of how important agriculture remains to the identity and economy of Clinton County.

St. Johns voters went to the polls last week as part of Michigan's August 4 primary election.

Across Clinton County, 23,187 ballots were cast among 65,236 registered voters, putting turnout at approximately 35.5 percent.

In St. Johns Precinct 1, 1,397 of 3,595 registered voters participated, representing turnout of approximately 38.9 percent.

One of the countywide questions on the ballot was the Separate Tax Limitation Proposal. The proposal concerned the maximum allocation of property-tax millage among Clinton County, general-law townships, and the intermediate school district.

According to information published by Clinton County before the election, resetting the rate would cost a St. Johns property with a taxable value of $100,000 approximately $7.42 more per year while restoring an estimated $299,585 in annual county revenue.

Looking ahead, the St. Johns Zoning Board of Appeals is scheduled to meet Wednesday, August 19 at 5:30 p.m.

The next regular St. Johns City Commission meeting is scheduled for Monday, August 24 at 6 p.m.

As The City Gate develops, we'll be keeping a close eye on local government. Our goal isn't simply to tell you when meetings are happening. We want to tell you what your local government is considering, what decisions were made, and why those decisions matter to you.

St. Johns Public Schools students return to class August 31.

The Redwings football program is preparing for its season opener against Grand Ledge.

The US 27 Car Tour rolls into downtown St. Johns next Thursday, August 20.

Summer programming at Briggs District Library is beginning to wind down as families prepare for the new school year.

Briggs District Library Summer Finale
The library wraps up its summer programming with a special finale today.

Downtown Farmers Market
The Downtown St. Johns Farmers Market continues Saturday morning on Maple Street west of the courthouse. The market runs from 8 a.m. to noon.

Briggs District Library Cardio Drumming
The library continues its community programming with Cardio Drumming.

St. Johns Zoning Board of Appeals
5:30 p.m.

US 27 Car Tour
The annual car tour makes its way into downtown St. Johns.

Thursday Thing
Downtown St. Johns' Thursday evening summer series continues. The weekly event runs from 5 to 7 p.m. through August 27.

St. Johns Area Chamber of Commerce August Luncheon
The Chamber's August gathering at Ryan's Roadhouse will focus on retirement plans for small businesses, employee retention, and potential tax benefits.

Family Fun in the Garden
Briggs District Library hosts another family-oriented summer activity.

St. Johns City Commission Meeting
6 p.m.

Annual Free Family Event at the Depot
A free family-oriented community event is scheduled at the Depot and Rotary Park.

Downtown Farmers Market
8 a.m. to noon on Maple Street.

First Day of School
St. Johns Public Schools students return for the 2026–27 school year.

The goal of The Mint City Pulse is simple: if something important or interesting is happening in St. Johns, we want our readers to know about it.

But no amount of searching can uncover everything happening in a community.

That's where you come in.

If your organization is holding an event, your business is opening or expanding, your student accomplished something worth celebrating, your nonprofit needs volunteers, or you simply think there's a story we should know about, reach out and tell us.

We're especially interested in tips about new businesses, construction and development, local government, schools, community organizations, interesting people, and things that aren't getting much attention elsewhere.

And if you found this article useful, forward it to a friend or neighbor and invite them to subscribe.

Thanks for reading the first issue of The Mint City Pulse.

St. Johns is a small enough community that what happens here still matters personally. Businesses open and close. Decisions are made at City Hall. Kids win games. Neighbors build things. Organizations serve people. Traditions continue and new ones begin.

Our job is to help you keep up with all of it.

We'll see you next Friday.