The Hopkins community is puzzled about a report of a shooting in the village Thursday morning on Maple Street.

Some authorities indicated the incident had something to do with a dispute at a residence. Allegan County Sheriff’s authorities were on the scene for some time in this usually quiet village.

The incident has caused some people on Facebook to call for a return to a local police force. Officer Rachel Sadowski was the last to serve in that capacity, but she left when the grant funding for her position was eliminated. Since then, the village has been handled by the Sheriff’s Department.

Hopkins Village Councilman John Vanderwal, in a Facebook post today, wrote”

“The Village Council is aware of a situation that happened this morning regarding a shooting on Maple Street. Police responded to this incident and remained in town for investigation and for the safety of the residents and the schools.

“Hopkins Public Schools, at the advisement of law enforcement officials, went into a “soft lockdown” (shelter-in-place) for a time. This has since been lifted.

“Many of you have voiced your concerns regarding this and ongoing issues with this Maple Street residence. We will be communicating with our lawyers regarding any action we can take to help remedy this situation.

“Most enforceable things are taken care of through the Allegan County Sherriff and through PCI currently.

“The Hopkins Village Council will next be meeting on (Monday) March 8 at 7:30 p.m. This meeting will either take place at the Village Hall or via ZOOM if current COVID precautions are still in place.

“The public is always welcome at our meetings and we welcome comments and feedback regarding matters of village concern.

“If you would like to send us a message regarding your concern, you are welcome to send it through Facebook or to villageofhopkinsclerk@gmail.com. Please be sure to include your name and contact information so that we are able to respond if necessary.”