The Pepin County Board was updated on a sale of county property in the town of Peru. In 2019, the county purchased the property that includes a sandpit the highway department uses. The county is now selling the remaining property which includes a home and 19 acres of land. As of last week, the Wisconsin Surplus Auction website listed the leading bid at $140,913. That auction ends on Wednesday at 10am.
A proposal currently in Congress would allow schools to serve free meals to all students regardless of income. Durand-Arkansaw School Superintendent Greg Doverspike says that while student tracking might increase, there would be reduced paperwork for food service staff. USDA has extended the free school lunch program through the end of June, and families wishing to sign up should contact the Durand-Arkansaw School District.
A Menomonie man has been bound over for trial on a charge of first-degree reckless homicide. Twenty-eight-year-old Jonathon Lucas is accused of causing the death of his six-week-old son. Police say they arrived at his apartment last March and saw a baby lying motionless on the kitchen counter. The child died later at a hospital. An autopsy found that Daemyn Lucas died of head injuries caused by a physical assault. The father is scheduled to be arraigned next month in Dunn County Circuit Court.
While Eau Claire’s city attorney tries to have the courts force a hotel to close, it has been put up for sale. Described as an “excellent opportunity,” and “located in a high-visibility area of Eau Claire,” the price tag is one-point-six-million dollars. Criminal activity at the Regency Inn and Suites was why the city wants it shut down. Officials say efforts to work with the owners of the property to deal with the crime have failed. Police said it was commonplace for drug trafficking, drug use, human trafficking, assault and other forms of violence to be carried out there.
A semi-truck driver led police on a chase from Dunn County to Altoona Saturday night. According to Wisconsin State Patrol, the driver would not pull over for officers in Dunn County, leading police on a chase on backroads to Altoona, ending in a residential neighborhood. The truck was stopped and the driver was taken into custody in the city of Altoona on Bartlett Avenue with the use of spike strips. That incident remains under investigation.
Motorists are advised to be on the lookout for painting crews on area highways as the Wisconsin Department of Transportation is replacing the highway paint. Crews will be working on centerlines and fog lines on Hwy 25 in Pepin and Buffalo Counites, Hwys 10,35,37 and 88 in Buffalo County, and Hwys 25 and 128 in Pierce County. None of the roads will be closed during painting, and some busier highways will be painted at night.
A lot more people are going to have to get the coronavirus vaccine if Wisconsin is going to hit herd immunity by the Fourth of July. Department of Health Services Deputy Secretary Julie Willems Van Dijk [[ van dike ]] last week said it's unlikely that the state will hit herd immunity this summer. She says it's more likely to be October. As of yesterday, just under 41 percent of people in the state are fully vaccinated. Willems Van Dijk says herd immunity will happen once 70 percent of people are vaccinated.
More people will be allowed into Wisconsin's state parks soon. The Department of Natural Resources announced changes to restrictions on parks put in place in reaction to COVID-19. Officials say large-scale groups as big as 350 people will now be allowed to take part in events. That includes private events and those hosted by the D-N-R. The D-N-R is also opening selected park facilities including drive-up windows, outdoor concession areas, and restrooms. Main facilities and nature centers remain closed to the public.
The owners of tourism businesses across the state are worried that they won't have enough employees this summer because of issues with student visas. Many businesses like hotels and resorts have traditionally relied on international students who visit the US on what is called J-1 visas to fill their staff in the summer, but those applications were restricted through most of last year and into March because of COVID-19. Now, there's reluctance on the part of many people to travel to the US for work, leaving employers in the lurch. Some hotels and resorts have said they may have to cut availability or hours in order to accommodate.
Turkey growers in Minnesota are reportedly struggling to make money as feed costs climb to multi-year highs. The Minnesota Turkey Growers Association says there is concern feed could cost as much as twenty percent more by the end of the year. Many farmers are trying to find options to diversify their feed supply beyond corn and soybeans, but options are limited. Minnesota is the top turkey-producing state in the U-S.
Seventeen bills passed by the Wisconsin Legislature are now law after a signing Friday by Governor Tony Evers. Under the new state laws, homeschooled students can act as election inspectors, out-of-state doctors and nurses can serve as medical staff for summer camps, and the State Fair will handle its own alcohol licenses. There were also changes in child custody laws. Evers vetoed a bill that would have allowed paddleboard raffles due to violation of gaming compacts with Wisconsin's Tribes.
Dairyland Power Cooperate says the Blaske Boat Landing and its facilities will stay open to the public after the Genoa power plant is shut down. The access to the Mississippi River and restroom facilities at the boat landing next to the plant aren’t closing. Dairyland says that site is the most-used boat landing in Pool Nine on the river. The cooperative says it will support the facility’s upkeep. The power plant is scheduled to cease operations next Tuesday. It went online in 1969 and the closing was announced in January of last year.
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development head does not believe the 300-dollar federal unemployment payment is discouraging people from re-entering the workforce. DEED Commissioner Steve Grove said, "no one is getting rich off of unemployment insurance, it pays half of your normal salary, and even with that 300-dollar plus up, it's still not much." Grove says we know that the folks who are more likely to be on unemployment insurance long-term are the lowest of low-wage workers. Minnesota gained 11-thousand-300 jobs in April and the unemployment rate dropped a tenth to four-point-one percent.
Wisconsin’s governor says he’d rather direct federal COVID-19 relief funding to the state’s struggling businesses than run another lottery. Three states are offering the chance to win big if people will simply come in and be vaccinated for COVID-19. Ohio is offering five prizes of one million dollars. New York state is telling residents there they could win five million. Governor Tony Evers says there are businesses all across this state that have suffered during the pandemic and they are owed an opportunity to recover. Instead of a lottery as an incentive, the governor says Wisconsin just needs to be better at delivering the vaccine to its people.
The mask mandate at most state government buildings is going away soon. Governor Evers’ administration says people will no longer be required to wear a mask at the state capitol, or other state offices, starting June 1st. The administration says most state workers can return to their offices in July. Many state employees have been working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison will lead the prosecution of former Brooklyn Center police officer Kim Potter in the fatal shooting of Daunte Wright. Ellison's office is taking over the case at the request of Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman and Washington County Attorney Pete Orput. Ellison said, "I did not seek this prosecution and do not accept it lightly" and adds "no one... should expect this case will be easy to prosecute." Governor Tim Walz says he's glad Ellison is taking the case, and the governor says he's heard the Wright family's desire to have the strongest legal team possible. There were protests outside Orput's Stillwater home when he filed second-degree manslaughter charges against Potter.
The S-S Badger car ferry arrived in Manitowoc at about noon Thursday, then took off across Lake Michigan for the return trip to Ludington three hours later. It was a big event, with high school band students welcoming the ferry by playing a song dedicated to Manitowoc’s 150th anniversary. The ferry is under new management this summer. A one-way ticket on the ferry costs 69 dollars for adults. Its capacity is 600 passengers and the 62-mile trip takes about four hours.
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