Three people were arrested in Pepin County on Drug Charges on Friday. According to the Pepin County Sheriffs Department, the Pierce/Pepin Emergency Response Team, along with members of other law enforcement agencies executed a search warrant at a rural Pepin County Home. The warrant was executed after a year-long investigation by the West Central Drug Task Force and Pepin County Sheriffs Department. Arrested was 32yr old Anthony B. Nelson of Arkansaw, 27yr old Matthew R. Schumacher of Menomonie, and 44yr old Chad J. Marson of Arkansaw. All three were arrested for Delivery of Methamphetamine, Possession of Methamphetamine, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Nelson was also charged with a Felon in Possession of Firearms and Maintaining a Drug Trafficking House. The investigation is continuing and more arrests are expected.
Pepin County is creating a Citizen Participation Plan Committee. The County is moving forward to apply of a Community Development Block Grant and the grant requires a Citizen Participation Plan in place. Members of th committee will be appointed by the County Board Chairman and confirmed by the county board. The Committee will be responsible for the implementation of the Citizen Participation plan as well as offering guidance in the preparation of the grant application.
The President of Chippewa Valley Technical College is retiring. President Bruce Barker announced he would step down from his post as President on July 1st of 2021. Barker has been President of the college for the last 12 years and led the effort to get the public to approve the $48 million referendum in April to construct a new Transportation Education Center along with an expansion of the River Falls Location. The Association of Community College Trustees will assist with a search for the next President.
Students at UW-Stout will not be having a spring break this year. Chancellor Katherine Frank announced the spring break that was scheduled for March 13-21 was being canceled due to the covid-19 pandemic. Classes will continue and because of the cancellation of the break, classes will now end on April 28. UW-Eau Claire and River Falls have either canceled or postponed spring break this year.
The Dunn County Board has sent an open letter to Dunn County Residents asking them to do their part to help slow the spread of Covid-19. The letter was sent and posted to the Dunn County News Website on Friday and is asking residents to stay home as much as possible during the Christmas holidays, wear a mask while out in public, socially distant, limit private gatherings to only members of your immediate family and avoid indoor gatherings of 10 people or more. Currently, there is no order in effect for residents to take the steps mention in the letter, but the board members are asking for the public's help in slowing the spread of covid-19.
The Village of Clayton in western Wisconsin is mourning the loss of its fire chief. The Clayton Fire Department says 55-year-old Chief Don Kittleson had been hospitalized with COVID-19 since early November and had no underlying health conditions. Kittleson was a third-generation firefighter and had served with the Clayton Fire Department for 34 years. A Facebook post-Thursday said, "We lost a hero tonight. You have touched so many. Family, friends, Community and YOUR fire department brothers and sisters mourn a great man. Love you CHIEF DON- you will never be forgotten. We will take it from here Brother."
U-S Senator Amy Klobuchar says quick passage of a coronavirus relief package is important after an agreement was reached Sunday between leaders of both parties. The Minnesota Democrat says “Americans need relief now.” The deal is worth about 900-billion dollars and it includes a second round of stimulus checks, plus an extension of unemployment benefits. A vote is expected this week before members of Congress leave Washington for the holiday break. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell called it a “bipartisan breakthrough the country has needed.” Klobuchar says it includes aid for schools, hospitals, and workers. She says there will be a push for more aid in the New Year.
A group looking to put an end to the Walz administration's shutdown of youth sports was denied an injunction late Friday. Judge Jon Tunheim, who worked in the office of former D-F-L Attorney General Skip Humphrey before being elevated to the bench in 1995, said the motion from "Let Them Play Minnesota" failed to prove the Governor's order violated the First Amendment. In a statement on Saturday, the group promised to appeal the decision. Under Walz's latest orders teams can resume practice on January 4th, but there is no timetable for starting games.
Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway ports and ship operators are hoping for a strong finish to an otherwise tough year. The Chamber of Marine Commerce says seaway cargo totals sit at just over 32-million metric tons through November, down six-point-six percent from last year. Year to date grain shipments on the seaway was up 23 percent and is expected to be strong for the rest of the season.
Governor Tony Evers wants the state to get its fair share of shipments of COVID-19 vaccines. Evers says Wisconsin has only received around 35-thousand doses of the Pfizer vaccine this week, much less than the nearly 50-thousand doses it was supposed to be getting. Evers says Wisconsin needs those vaccines because the state is seeing so many cases of COVID. He also stresses that the vaccines need to make up for the lack of response he's able to make because his office is hampered thanks to ongoing litigation. The F-D-A approved emergency use of the Moderna vaccine on Friday and it begins shipping to states this weekend.
Wisconsin residents will not be getting 12-hundred-dollar stimulus checks thanks in part to Senator Ron Johnson. The Wisconsin Republican blocked an effort by G-O-P Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri today (Friday) that would have given direct payments to working Americans. Hawley told members, "these are the people who right now are missing shifts at work to try to care for kids who are distance learning because of COVID, who are trying to care for a relative who may be sick. These are the people who are always asked to make it work – who are always asked to hold it together." Johnson cited concerns over the federal deficit in blocking the proposal from Hawley and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.
The state is awarding more than 620-thousand dollars in grants to 16 non-profit organizations that serve Wisconsin veterans. The funding can be used to provide financial assistance, job training and other services to military veterans and their families. Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Mary Kolar said, "We must ensure we take care of those who have sacrificed so much in our defense and provide them with the tools and resources they need to prosper.” Nonprofits in Janesville, La Crosse, Green Bay, Appleton, and the Milwaukee area will receive funding through the program.
A Dakota County judge ordered Alibi Drinkery in Lakeville to close for on-premises dining after repeated violations of the emergency COVID order. A court hearing is set for Tuesday morning. Attorney General Keith Ellison says he's gratified the court realizes urgent action is needed to stop the spread of COVID-19. Ellison says the vast majority of Minnesota bars and restaurants are already complying with their responsibility. Senate Republican Leader Paul Gazelka says “instead of targeting businesses that are just trying to survive, state officials should concentrate on ways to help them.”
The sale of a food plant in De Pere could save some jobs. The transaction is part of the final judgment against Dairy Farmers of America. Federal authorities are requiring that organization to divest two plants, including the one in De Pere. The new owners of the facility will be the Borden Dairy Company and Select Milk Producers. The sale price is estimated to be 433-million dollars.
A temporary marker has been placed at the site of a Native American burial ground on the campus at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. University officials say they are taking steps to place a more permanent memorial there. Members of several tribes – including the Ho-Chunk, Menominee, Potawatomi, and Ojibwe – were buried at the site in the 1860s. A died when scarlet fever raged through the city of Stevens Point. University Vice-Chancellor Al Thompson said the marker recognizes the area’s history with the native communities while working to make it stronger in the years to come.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation is seeking creative and interesting names for snowplows in the state's eight districts. MnDOT's Jake Loesch (LOHSH) says they'll share some of the best name ideas and invite the public to vote on their favorites in February. He says MnDOT is accepting submissions through January 22nd for eight plows and go from there. The eight names that get the most votes will then make their way onto a snowplow in each district. Name ideas can be submitted on the MnDOT website.
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