Barge traffic on the Mississippi River is being slowed down by lower water levels. Drought conditions across the region are to blame. The barges are experiencing navigation problems because they could run aground when they hit unexpected sandbars. The U-S Army Corps of Engineers says the problem is especially bad at places like Wacouta, Minnesota where the river goes from a very narrow channel to very wide. Only one barge can pass through the area in either direction. A Corps spokesperson says there have been more groundings there than in the last 10-to-15 years. The northern end of Lake Pepin is one of the main trouble spots.
Coming in July, motorists using Prospect will be detoured downtown as Prospect street will be closed at the intersection of 3rd avenue east as construction crews will be connecting up new sewer and water lines at the intersection. Durand Mayor Patrick Milliren says the only detour was downtown. The detour will be Hwy 10 to Main Street, to 3rd Avenue West, and then back to Prospect Street. The closure is not expected to last very long.
The job of the Equity Steering Committee being formed in the Eau Claire Area School District is to help achieve the commitments in the district’s Equity statement. That statement was adopted by the school board on March 1st. An information session will be held next month so the public can learn more about what is going on. The location for that July 14th session hasn’t been determined yet. Steering committee members will advise the school district on how to fulfill the tenets of the Equity statement. It will also advise if revisions are needed.
A Rochester man will spend 11 years in federal prison for his role in a methamphetamine distribution ring. The U-S Attorney's Office says 34-year-old Jason E. Hoffman was a sub-distributor of meth supplied to him by John Netherton and also collected funds from the sales in the summer of 2019. Hoffman pleaded guilty last August. Netherton is doing 21 years of prison time and four other defendants have also been sentenced in connection with a meth-dealing operation.
A state appeals court is backing a judge’s ruling last April that legislative leaders broke the law when they hired private taxpayer-funded attorneys to represent them in expected legal challenges over redistricting. The Republican leaders wanted Dane County Circuit Judge Stephen Ehlke to put his ruling on hold while they appealed. The court said Wednesday Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu didn’t establish why a stay of the ruling was necessary. The million-dollar contract with two law firms will be voided.
The president of the University of Wisconsin System says its pandemic response played a critical role in slowing the spread of the coronavirus. System President Tommy Thompson released an Op-Ed piece Wednesday. As of last week, nearly one-and-a-quarter-million COVID-19 tests had been administered at U-W System testing sites. Thompson points out that at the height of the pandemic last fall, Wisconsin was the only state that was offering a community testing program allowing thousands of people to get tested for free at its universities. The newest member of the Board of Regents, Doctor Ashkok Rai says, “The System saved the state.”
Animal shelters across Wisconsin are looking for more foster to help get potential companion animals out of shelters and into good homes. Angela Speed with the Wisconsin Humane Society says it's easy to apply to become a foster. While W H S is dealing with their yearly influx of cats and kittens, they're also looking for fosters for adult dogs and also small animals. Find out more online at W I Humane dot Org.
A member of the greatest generation returned home to Durand yesterday. Paul Hilliard was born in Buffalo County and moved to Durand as a child. In 1943, Hilliard hitch-hiked to Milwaukee to join the United States Marine Corps. He flew 45 combat missions as a tail gunner while serving in the Phillippines. After the war, he used the GI Bill to get a Law Degree and had a 70yr career in the Oil Industry in Louisiana. Hilliard recently celebrated his 96th birthday, and the National World War Two Museum in New Orleans is filming a story about his life. Hilliard was a guest of the Pepin County Land Conservation Council and the Durand Improvement Group at last night's music in the park.
A July 1st shutdown at Minnesota state parks will likely be averted after the state Senate passed a compromise funding bill Tuesday night which now goes to the House and then to the governor's desk. Alexandria Republican Bill Ingebrigtsen said, "those weddings that were planned over the summer in the state parks are not gonna have to be canceled. The bottom line is, they're gonna be open, and I know that's very important to Minnesotans." The D-F-L says the G-O-P held the environment funding bill hostage until Governor Tim Walz dropped his push for measures to encourage more Minnesotans to buy electric cars. Minneapolis Senator Patricia (puh-TREE'-see-uh) Torres Ray said, "a lot of the industry people -- people who understand where we are headed with electric cars -- came and complained about it, and say, that's so unreasonable."
The Wisconsin Assembly has approved a bill creating a grant program to help local governments clean up contamination from so-called “forever chemicals.” It was approved Tuesday. The same Republican-backed legislation would ban the governments from suing those responsible for the pollution. The 10-million dollar grant program must also be passed by the Senate, then signed by Democratic Governor Tony Evers before the grants are available.
Governor Tony Evers has signed a number of police reform bills into law. Those bills passed the Legislature last week. Police are no longer allowed to use chokeholds, police departments will have to create use of force policies and make them public, and the Department of Justice will collect data about how police departments are using force. The bills also require parolees who move to Wisconsin to submit their DNA to the state if the Department of Corrections is taking over their supervision.
The next generation of U-S Postal Service delivery trucks will not be made in Wisconsin after all. Oshkosh Defense says will make the new trucks in Spartanburg, South Carolina. President John Bryant says the decision was made after a look at the company’s supply chain and worker needs. Oshkosh Defense has said the contract to make the new mail trucks would mean one- thousand new jobs.
Country Fest returns to western Wisconsin this week. The 2020 edition of the music festival in Chippewa County never happened, due to the coronavirus pandemic. At the time of cancelation, organizers said they'd consider 2020 a wash and make the 2021 festival as safe and successful as possible. The three-day festival at the Country Fest grounds in Cadott starts Thursday. There will be no requirements for masks, or a negative COVID-19 test result or proof of vaccination. Those who've not been vaccinated are recommended to socially distance whenever possible, but no requirements will be made.
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