MORENCI —  Lenawee Independent Media, the locally owned company that publishes the Lenawee Voice, is launching a second monthly newspaper.

The new publication will cover the Morenci area, including the city of Morenci, Morenci Area Schools, and Seneca and Medina townships. It will also include some news from the northwest Ohio communities of Fayette and Lyons. 

The Morenci area has been without a newspaper since the weekly State Line Observer ceased publication in 2020.

“Morenci is the largest Lenawee County community that doesn’t currently have its own newspaper,” said Palmyra Township resident Deborah J. Comstock, who founded Lenawee Independent Media in 2023. “We believe that a strong local newspaper is an essential part of having a strong community. We saw a need, and we’re going to try to meet it.”

Response from the Morenci business community has been tremendous, Comstock added.

The first issue of the new Morenci Advocate was mailed on April 11.

The Advocate will be mailed free of charge to all households and businesses in the 49256 zip code. It will also be distributed at various locations in the Morenci area, including the Stair District Library. People outside the Morenci zip code will be able to sign up for mail delivery at a rate of $35 per year.

The newspaper’s website is at morenciadvocate.com.