The City of Durand will apply for an urban forestry grant to help property owners remove dying ash trees from the city boulevards. Durand Mayor Patrick Milliren says if the grant is approved, the city would put together a program that would help residents pay half of the cost of tree removal. The city hopes to know if the grant has been approved by this fall.
The Durand-Arksansaw school board has approved a loyalty stipend for staff. The district would give staff who reach milestone years, 5-10-15 yrs ect a loyalty payment. Durand Arkansaw School Superintendent Greg Doverspike says the payment would be made the next year following the milestone year. The loyalty program is available to all employees of the district.
The Mondovi City Council has approved some changes to the Board of Review policies for the upcoming appeal of re-assessment valuations. The council approved a resolution that would allow residents to request to submit testimony to the board of review via the phone or in writing if they are unable to attend the open book. The council also approved an ordinance that would establish the confidentially of information and income and expense request during the board of review process.
A Menomonie City Council member has been charged with OWI. According to Menomonie police, Lucas Chase was pulled over on August 14 for a brake light being out. Officers smelled alcohol on him and conducted a field sobriety test which showed a blood alcohol level of .162, twice the legal limit. Chase was arrested and refused a blood draw. He will have a court appearance in September.
A federal judge has indicated he will allow voters with disabilities to get help returning their ballots for the November election. U-S District Judge James Peterson says he expects to issue an order in the next week addressing the differences in state and federal laws. The Wisconsin Supreme Court issued an order in July suggesting helping a person return their ballot isn’t allowed. Peterson says he wants his order to be in place ahead of Election Day.
Attorneys for Republican leaders of the Wisconsin Legislature are moving to block a lawsuit that challenges the state’s 173-year-old abortion ban. Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul filed a suit against the ban last month. He argues it is obsolete and conflicts with a 1985 law that prohibits abortions after about 20 weeks. Republican leaders say Kaul’s arguments lack merit. They also say the Wisconsin Department of Justice doesn’t have the standing needed to sue since state agencies can’t have abortions. That means they can’t be harmed by the 1849 law.
Elected officials have been told they are no longer welcome to march in a Middleton parade Sunday. The move comes in response to criticism from candidates taking on those incumbents. The Good Neighbor Festival runs this weekend in the Madison suburb. W-K-O-W/T-V reports Festival President Nancy Vickery says it was decided to ban all political figures after seeing posts on social media calling for protesters to openly carry guns at the parade. Vickery says the event is strictly non-partisan. Democrats had been the only ones marching in the parade because they were the only ones holding public office in Middleton.
A charter bus driver is facing charges after allegedly driving drunk with 35 students aboard. Authorities say 49-year-old Patrick Bullard of Cannon Falls is charged with two counts of D-W-I, along with possessing and drinking from an open bottle. Minnesota State troopers responded Sunday morning to complaints that the bus was driving erratically and performed a traffic stop. Bullard's blood alcohol was later found to be more than six times the legal limit to drive a bus in the state. The students ranged in age from 11 to 14, and two adult chaperones were onboard with them. The group was headed to a camp in northern Minnesota as part of a Y-M-C-A group.
Wisconsin leads 42 states suing the makers of a drug used to treat opioid dependence. Tuesday’s announcement comes after a ruling from a federal court in Pennsylvania saying the lawsuit can proceed. W-M-T-V reports that Indivior Incorporated is accused of making an illegal market shift to preserve its monopoly of the drug. Indivior’s motion for a summary judgment was denied by the federal judge in Philadelphia. Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul says he expects the trial to be held next year.
Organizers expect about eight-thousand people to attend the American Legion national convention this weekend. The 103rd annual gathering gets underway today (Wednesday). With the Republican National Convention coming to Cream City in two years, Milwaukee is becoming something of a convention hot spot. The American Legion is holding its convention here for the fourth time. The first one was in 1941 – the most recent in 2010. Most of the events will be held in the Wisconsin Center although next Monday night at American Family Field will be designated American Legion Family Baseball Night.
The last hold-out homeowners near Wisconsin’s Foxconn campus have reached a deal to sell their property. All their neighbors had sold their homes to make room for Foxconn, but Jim and Kim Mahoney, have been holding out for what they consider a fair price for five years. Tuesday night, the Mount Pleasant village board approved a final sale price of 950-thousand dollars. That’s 750-thousand dollars for the property itself, and nearly 200-thousand dollars to cover the cost of moving the house about five miles away. A village spokesperson says the Mahoneys got what all landowners in that part of Racine County got – 140-percent of the market value.
Milwaukee city officials say the vacant Northridge Mall still isn’t secure after the owners took some preliminary steps. U-S Black Spruce had until last Friday to secure the property or deal with a fine of two-thousand dollars a day. So far, “No Trespassing” signs and some new fencing has gone up in a preliminary effort to comply with the court order. W-T-M-J/T-V reports the city increased the pressure after firefighters responded to four suspected arson fires in less than a month. The mall has been vacant since it closed in 2003. The City of Milwaukee issued a demolition order three years ago but the China-based owners have been fighting that in court.
Officials say they have plans in place to keep this year’s Minnesota State Fair safe from Thursday’s opening through the final day. State Fair Police Chief Ron Knafla says they’ve implemented some new safety procedures, including some that won’t be obvious to fairgoers. They’ll have more officers in trouble spots, plus perimeter patrols to keep people from evading security measures at the gates -- which will also have metal detectors. Guns are banned at the State Fair, and vendors will NOT be selling T-H-C edibles -- at least not this year.
Students at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire will have 15 food-delivering robots to serve them this fall. A spokesperson says the students will download the “Everyday” app onto their phones. W-E-A-U/T-V reports menu will pop up letting them order, then they will pick a location on campus, the food is prepared, then placed inside the robots – and it is delivered. A company called Sodexo is the food service vendor for the university. A spokesperson says the robots will actually help cover staffing shortages and could lead some students to choose U-W-Eau Claire for the service. The so-called Kiwibots go to work September 6th.
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