Photo Illustration by Justin A. Hinkley This photo illustration shows former Alpena Public Schools teacher Heather Winfield at her trial in September, Alpena resident Naomi Kirschne receiving an at-home vaccination in March, 1st Lt. John Grimshaw, commander of the Michigan State Police-Alpena Post, announcing in September police had discovered the body of missing Alpena teen Brynn Bills, and the crowd at an Alpena Public Schools town hall in August.

ALPENA — Well, folks, we’ve had another rough year.

The coronavirus continued to send people to the hospital, overwhelming the emergency room at MyMichigan Medical Center Alpena, which – like many businesses throughout the U.S. – is short-staffed.

The virus also dragged on the economy, causing supply chain issues and staffing shortages that caused big inflation on key products.

After an unusually violent 2020 in Northeast Michigan, 2021 was no better, with the suspected killing of two Alpena women whose bodies were found in Alpena Township this fall.

Political controversy continued to rile the region, especially at Alpena Public Schools.

The year gave us some good news, especially on the economic development front, but, by and large, it’s likely most Northeast Michiganders are as happy to put 2021 to bed as they were 2020.

Here’s a look back at some of the biggest stories of the year.

A VIOLENT YEAR FOLLOWS A VIOLENT YEAR

In late September, police found the body of missing 17-year-old Brynn Bills buried in the back yard of Alpena Township resident Joshua Wirgau.

Less than a month later, they found the body of Alpena woman Abby Hill, a Facebook friend of Bills’ whom police had also declared missing.

No charges have yet been filed in either woman’s death, but court officials have labeled Wirgau and another man, Brad Srebnik, as suspects, and police have turned their investigatory reports over to the Alpena County Prosecutor’s Office for review.

This year’s two deaths follow two murder-suicides in 2020. If police determined someone murdered Bills and Hill, that would make four murder investigations in a 12-month span, something Northeast Michigan hasn’t seen since 2010.

COVID-19 LINGERS

Following the December 2020 U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorization of the first COVID-19 vaccination, 2021 was supposed to be a year of hope for ending our war with the virus.

It wasn’t.

As of Dec. 14, 57% of Northeast Michigan residents 5 and older had been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus.

Nonetheless, this year, more than 6,000 Northeast Michiganders were infected with COVID-19 and nearly 180 died after being infected as the delta variant of the virus spread rapidly throughout our community.

An influx of COVID-19 patients collided with an influx of patients with other ailments and a short-staffed Alpena hospital to create backlogs and room shortages here. Earlier this month, the hospital was near capacity.

Public health experts have said we need to hit 70% inoculation before we might consider the war with the coronavirus won.

SCHOOLS HAMMERED

As the dynamics of the COVID-19 pandemic changed, some schools instituted mask mandates for students and staff to help limit the number of infections, but those moves were not well-received by some very vocal residents.

Some parents threatened to remove their children from school if the district forced kids to wear masks, and several parents discussed forming a new homeschool cooperative. Despite the ruckus over the summer and early fall, enrollment at many area schools actually increased in the fall headcount.

Public comment at Alpena Public Schools school board meetings often became heated. At a town hall on Aug. 3, a brief physical confrontation among two residents broke out.

This fall, a group calling itself Freedom to Breathe sued APS to try to end its facemask mandate. That suit remains pending.

Parents also voiced concerns about critical race theory curriculum, though that is a college-level course not taught in Northeast Michigan schools, and about transgender issues in schools and the teaching of climate change, among other issues.

DOWNTOWN REMODEL

Downtown Alpena saw a lot of good news in 2021, the biggest being that local developer Jeff Konczak had purchased the Royal Knight and State theaters and the former Vaughn department store on 2nd Avenue, which most recently housed an antique mall.

Koncak said he plans to remodel the State Theater so it mirrors the old Maltz Opera House that operated in that building as a popular live performance venue in the early 1900s.

Konczak plans to renovate the former Royal Knight movie theater with updated amenities and an exterior that fits the aesthetic of downtown.

Konczak said he is in the planning process for the old Vaughn building.

Meanwhile, several small businesses opened downtown, including new retail operations such as Cedar and Threads and Sweet Baby James and others, such as the Style Wherehouse, that moved downtown after manufacturing hub I2P purchased the Alpena Mall.

Downtown officials believe those projects will lure more people downtown, which could mean parking becomes an issue. The city and the Alpena Downtown Development Authority are considering paid parking for premium downtown parking stalls.

MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS ANNOUNCED

Outside of downtown, several new projects either broke ground, neared completion, or were announced in 2021.

Renovation to Van Lare Hall at Alpena Community College, the construction of a new headquarters for Northland Area Federal Credit Union, the renovation of the Alpena County Library, and a new ACE Hardware wrapped up this year, while construction of a new patient tower at MyMichigan Medical Center Alpena has entered its final stages.

Meanwhile, ground broke on a new Starbucks and urgent care clinic in front of Meijer on M-32.

Officials announced a new Fairfield Inn and Suites proposed for downtown Alpena on the Thunder Bay River, while Alpena Public Schools and a developer continue to work toward the sale of the school system’s bus garage on M-32 so the developer can build an Aldi.

The same developer has also expressed interest in building a Marshalls between Walgreens and the Alpena Alcona Area Credit Union on Bagley Street near the entrance to Meijer.

WINFIELD GUILTY ON 1 COUNT

After a three-week trial in September, a jury found former APS teacher Heather Winfield guilty of accosting a minor for immoral purposes. She was acquitted on more serious sex assault charges.

A former student in Winfield’s special education classroom at Thunder Bay Junior High School accused her in 2018 of sexually assaulting him repeatedly between the summers of 2016 and 2018, when he was between 11 and 13 years old.

Winfield, who developed a relationship with the troubled student outside the classroom and included him in family activities, denied the accusations, saying the student threatened to tell police she had abused him if she forbade him from visiting her home.

A judge sentenced Winfield to nine months in the Alpena County Jail on the accosting charge. She must register as a sex offender for 25 years.

The top 10 most-read stories of the year at TheAlpenaNews.com

* Stories on the investigation into the deaths of Brynn Bills, Abby Hill

* “Adult autism: Relief upon diagnosis, which can be hard to come by”

* “Residents want wolf hunt”

* “UFOs over Northeast Michigan skies”

* “Former Alpena judge jailed for drunk driving”

* “Fuel transport truck collides with motor home on U.S.-23 North”

* “Doctor says she quit over unsafe conditions at Alpena hospital”

* “First-ever military exercise turns M-32 into runway”

* “Michigan sheriff dies after accident at his Upper Peninsula home”

* “Stamas: No Whitmer nominations until reopening”