The Durand City Council is meeting tonight. Items on the agenda include discussion and possible action on the SRO contract with the Durand-Arkansaw School District, the picnic license for the Pepin County Tavern Leagues Putt-Putt fundraiser, and on the Tarrant Park Pool Season Resolution. Tonight's meeting begins at 6:30 at Durand City Hall and will be live-streamed on the WRDN YouTube Channel at Durand Broadcasting WRDN. Meanwhile, the Durand Safety Committee will be meeting at 5:45 and the only topic on the agenda is the discussion and possible action on the SRO Contract with the Durand Arkansaw School District.
The Durand-Arkansaw School District is expecting an increase in enrollment for the 2021-22 school year, and while in some cases that could lead to a decrease in state funding, Durand-Arkansaw School Superintendent Greg Doverspike says the district will not be hurt. The district is projecting a 39 student increase in enrollment for next year.
The Pepin County Health Department is gearing up to increase the number of vaccinations for covid 19 in the coming weeks. Currently, WI receives approximately 70,000 doses each week. This is expected to increase 115,000 by March 1 and remain stable for at least three weeks. This information allows the department to plan for the new phase to be released on or around March 1, phase 1B, which includes educators, childcare, long-term care MA recipients, and some public-facing essential workers such as those in utility and communications, food chain supply, and transit. The Health Department continues to utilize their COVID-19 Vaccine Waitlist to offer appointments for the vaccine. The scheduling is done “by appointment only” in groups of 30 people every 30 minutes. The clinic flow and throughput have been very effective and efficient thus far. “We plan to continue using this model as long as appropriate,” commented Jessica Schrauth, Public Health Nurse. “We will be aggressive in ordering and distributing the COVID 19 vaccine until our community members are covered.” For more information visit the health department's website.
One person is dead after an early morning accident Monday in Dunn County. According to the Wisconsin State Patrol, troopers responded to the accident in the Westbound lanes of I-94 just east of Hwy 29. Troopers said that 23yr old Raul Chinman-Acre admitted to being the driver of the vehicle and that he didn't have a driver's license. A passenger in that vehicle died at the scene, and Acre was arrested and is being held on a $10,000 cash bond.
A Wisconsin man is jailed on 500-thousand dollars bail for an Anoka County carjacking and chase that left one suspect dead and a police dog injured. Twenty-six-year-old Joseph Heroff of Hammond is charged with first-degree aggravated robbery and fleeing police. Officers say one of the suspects carjacked a vehicle at a Kohls store in Blaine Sunday and they sped off. The chase continued into Isanti County where investigators say the suspects fled on foot and carjacked another vehicle. That truck was disabled and officers say shots were exchanged, wounding a police dog and killing one of the suspects. The man shot to death hasn't been identified. Heroff has his next court date March 15th.
Wisconsin's wolf hunt has already met its quota, just a few days after it started. That hunt opened up on Monday with a total of around 120 wolf tags available to regular hunters, and another 80 ceded to the state's tribal nations. The DNR will be closing the hunts by Wednesday afternoon. The wolf hunt was a matter of contention between Republican lawmakers and the Natural Resources Board, with a court ordering the hunt to take place.
Funding to pay for upgrades to the outdated computer system used for unemployment benefits has made it through the Assembly and is headed for the Wisconsin Senate next. Governor Tony Evers has already said he will sign the legislation. Tuesday’s vote was unanimous. Under the nearly 50-year-old system used now, some employees have to navigate through 100 different screens while processing a claim. They can only fax and use snail mail. The challenges caused major backups for people filing for unemployment during the coronavirus pandemic. It could take three-to-five years to replace the current software system.
A bill that would legalize recreational marijuana has now cleared two Minnesota House committees. Jeremy Sankey with Minnesota Veterans for Cannabis told lawmakers Tuesday it is a quality of life issue. Sankey said, "to those that say, cannabis doesn't help with P-T--S-D, let me tell you: the number of 22 veterans a day who commit suicide would be a lot higher -- a lot higher without cannabis." But Steve Kalina with Minnesota Precision Manufacturing Association warns legalizing recreational marijuana is problematic for the state's numerous high-tech industries. The measure needs to clear a number of committees before a House floor vote.
A lottery player in Port Edwards had two wins worth thousands of dollars in a very short time. Norman Fuller Junior was one of two players to hit a Badger Five jackpot in late January, then matched four white balls and the Powerball in that drawing twelve days later to win that game's third prize. His winnings totaled 171-thousand dollars in less than two weeks. Fuller says he plans to share that with family after taxes are paid. Lottery officials say the odds of someone winning both of those prizes are one in 155 BILLION.
Josh Kaul is one of several attorneys general who has signed a letter to Congress urging the adoption of resolutions that could call upon the president to cancel up to 50-thousand dollars in federal student loan debt. A multistate coalition is indicating its support for Senate Resolution 46 and House Resolution 100 through the letter. It states the existing repayment system for those federal student loans doesn’t offer sufficient opportunity for borrowers to manage their debts. Impacted by the coronavirus pandemic and the current financial crisis, many need immediate relief.
A study of COVID-19 in Wood County schools provides some promising results. The specialist compiled information from 17 schools over a three-month period. Among more than 48-hundred students and 650 staff members, only seven COVID-19 cases were linked to the schools. All those testing positive were students. No cases of the virus among staff members were traced back to being at schools. Teachers in the schools also reported more than 92-percent of the students were diligent about wearing face masks all semester. The study was conducted between August 31st and November 29th.
A federal judge has allowed the lawsuit filed by a photojournalist to proceed against the city of Minneapolis. Police allegedly shot Linda Tirado in the eye with a foam bullet, blinding her, while she was covering the protests following the death of George Floyd. The police union and the city of Minneapolis had tried to convince U-S District Chief Judge John Tunheim to dismiss the lawsuit, but he refused. Tirado has had two eye surgeries and has been told she may need more. She has returned to work and says she would like to come back to Minneapolis, but she fears retaliation or excessive force would be used by police.
A Republican state Senator is proposing changes to absentee voting in Wisconsin. Senator Duey Stroebel of Saukville released a package of bills Monday that would require absentee voters to provide an ID for every election, limit who can automatically receive absentee ballots for every election, and require additional paperwork for people voting early in clerk's offices. The Journal Sentinel reports Stroebel wants to place new limits on when voters are considered indefinitely confined by age or disability. Current law does not require confined voters to show ID to receive absentee ballots, or to regularly reapply for them.
A freshman Republican state senator from Franklin proposes changing how the state treats second offenses by some violent criminals. State Senator Julian Bradley is introducing a bill to stop the state’s prison system from erasing the criminal records of people who commit new crimes while out on parole. Bradley also wants Wisconsin to end early release or parole for anyone convicted of a new crime. Bradley says the state – and convicts – need to take second chances seriously.
Crews will begin pulling the Harbor Seagull tugboat out of the water this morning at the Port of Milwaukee. A port discovered the 50-foot tug had sunk when he reported on the job Monday at 5:30 a-m. It isn’t clear why the boat sank, but the port director says a new tugboat isn’t in the city’s budget. Repairs are expected to cost about 50-thousand dollars. Port workers say they have put booms in place underwater to absorb any oil that might be leaking from the 60-year-old boat. The ice breaker had just been used last weekend.
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