This year will mark the 60th annual Durand Fun Fest, and organizers have told city leaders that the event will feature fireworks on June 10th. Durand Mayor Patrick Milliren says fireworks were a common event in past years of Fun Fest. Durand Fun Fest is scheduled for June 9th through 11th.
The Dunn County Board will consider creating the Tainter Lake Rehabilitation District at a meeting scheduled for January 18. A lake district is a specialized unit of government established to manage a lake. The district has the ability to levy taxes and is operated by a board of commissioners made up of residents of the district or property owners and local government officials. On July 14, 2022, the county received a petition to establish the lake district. The petition contained signatures from 53.76 percent of the landowners within the proposed district, comprising 508 owners of the 773 parcels. State law requires at least 51 percent of the landowners in the proposed district sign the petition.
The two suspects in custody for last September's shooting in Altoona have both entered not-guilty pleas. Michael Purnell entered his plea yesterday. Xavier Thompson pleaded not guilty on Monday. S third suspect in the case, Kemone Golden, remains on the run.
Eau Claire's Boys and Girls Club is getting a million dollars. The money is coming from Washington, D.C., and is earmarked for the Teen Program Center. Boys and Girls Club managers say they'll use the money to update the center, which was first built in the 1940s. The plan is to focus on workforce development and give young people a chance at some new opportunities.
The salt you use on your sidewalk and driveway will eventually end up in Wisconsin's waters. The state's Department of Natural Resources yesterday asked people to be aware of just how much salt they are using. The DNR says people can help keep the state's freshwater lakes, rivers, and streams fresh by using less salt. DNR's tips include shoveling more, spreading the salt over a larger area, and switching to sand for traction when the temperatures drop below 15 degrees.
One of the biggest supporters of marijuana at the Wisconsin Capitol says she won't support a medical-only program. Madison State Senate Melissa Agard, who is the top Democrat in the State Senate, yesterday said she is not going to stop being an advocate for full marijuana legalization in the state. Republican leaders at the Capitol are talking about a strict medical-only program, and insist they are not going to budge on full legalization. Agard did say she's more than willing to help create a 'comprehensive' medical marijuana program for Wisconsin.
Wisconsin is on the list of states with a TikTok ban. Governor Tony Evers yesterday banned the app from state-owned phones, tablets, and computers. The fear is that TikTok's Chinese owners can track American users and access their data. The governor says he made the decision after talking with the FBI, Homeland Security, and cybersecurity experts. Republicans at the Wisconsin Capitol have been pushing for a TikTok ban for the state for weeks.
It could be a while before Waukesha's Christmas Parade Memorial becomes a reality. Planners yesterday said they are over a million dollars short of their fundraising goal so far. They want to raise a million-and-a-half dollars for a permanent memorial but have raised just 250 thousand dollars so far. The hope was to have the memorial built in time for the second anniversary of the attack this November, but the lack of money means that's not likely to happen.
The official start date of the 2023 tax filing season is Jan. 23, when the IRS will begin accepting and processing 2022 returns, the agency announced Thursday. The National Taxpayer Advocate reported Wednesday that the IRS watchdog is seeing “a light at the end of the tunnel” of the IRS’ customer service struggles, thanks to the hiring of thousands of new workers and tens of billions of dollars in new funding. The filing deadline for most taxpayers to submit their 2022 tax returns, file extensions, and pay money owed is April 18. That is because the normal filing date of April 15 falls on a weekend and the District of Columbia’s Emancipation Day holiday falls on April 17. Taxpayers requesting an extension will have until Oct. 16 to file.
A new round of federal funding is set to boost workforce development in southern Minnesota. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith announced yesterday that they had secured nearly two million dollars from the federal budget to support job training programs at Riverland Community College. The Minnesota Democrats say the money will go toward the college's Learn and Earn scholarship program. The initiative gives students the chance to prepare for high-skilled jobs in the manufacturing and transportation fields.
Vaccination rates among Minnesota's children are dropping as parents voice concerns about the safety of shots. Health officials say parental hesitancy surrounding the COVID-19 vaccination has moved into concern about other common immunizations. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported yesterday that measles, mumps, and rubella vaccinations among Minnesota kindergarteners hit a decade low in the 2021-2022 school year. Officials with the American Academy of Pediatrics are cautioning parents that weaker vaccination numbers are leading to more measles outbreaks in Minnesota and other states.
Gov. Tony Evers today announced he has appointed longtime dairy farmer of Viroqua, Paul Buhr, to the Wisconsin Natural Resources Board (NRB). Buhr’s appointment is effective Jan. 20, 2023, filling the vacancy created by William Bruins’ resignation, which was effective at the end of 2022. “I am honored to represent the farmers of Wisconsin on the DNR Board,” said Buhr. “Preserving our natural resources while producing our food is a challenge and a goal of everyone in agriculture.” Buhr graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville with a Bachelor of Science in Animal Science. Buhr previously owned and operated Rabur Holsteins, an elite breeding herd of Registered Holstein cattle, for 45 years. For 37 years, the herd received the prestigious Holstein USA Progressive Breeders Award.
A member of the Wisconsin Elections Commission is facing scrutiny. The website Urban Milwaukee reported this week that WEC commissioner Bob Spindell, a Republican, bragged in an email sent to Republicans in the 4th Congressional District that 37,000 fewer votes were cast in the 2020 election than in 2018, with the major reduction happening in Black and Hispanic areas. Spindell called that the result of a “well thought out multi-faceted plan.” In a comment posted to Twitter, fellow commissioner Mark Thomsen, a Democrat, said Spindell has shown he cannot be fair and should resign. Spindell was one of 10 false electors who met at the Capitol in Madison after Donald Trump lost Wisconsin in 2020.
Crews from WE Energies and Wisconsin Public Service are in California to provide relief for Pacific Gas and Electric crews that have been working non-stop following heavy rains and flooding. Amy Plato with WE Energies says the California crews are exhausted and those from Wisconsin are eager to get to work and have been welcomed by residents. More than a dozen people have died from the storms, which have brought months’ worth of precipitation to some areas in a matter of days.
Minnesota Lawmakers are considering a proposal for a passenger railway. The Northern Lights Express would run between Duluth and the Twin Cities. Supporters say it's a more equitable form of transportation than vehicles, the bus, or flying. Opponents say the project is a waste of resources.
The top three priorities for Wisconsin's largest group of dairy farmers all have to do with the water or the land. The Dairy Business Association yesterday updated its priorities for Wisconsin lawmakers this year. The first is a focus on clean water initiatives. The DBA says the state needs investments in water quality, and they want farmers to have a say in those projects. The dairymen also want to see a better permitting process for large dairy farms, with a focus on maintaining water quality. The group's third priority for state lawmakers is to preserve farmland and conservation land across Wisconsin.
The University of Minnesota desires to regain ownership of its teaching hospital in Minneapolis and build a new medical center on campus. University officials say they are seeking government funding to complete the plan. They also want control of medical facilities on the west bank campus, including Masonic Children's Hospital and a large clinic and surgery center on the east bank.
Wisconsin's newest Fairest of the Fairs is from Green Lake County. 22-year-old Sharlene Swedlund took that title this week after judging at the annual Wisconsin Association of Fairs convention. Swedlund is a Manufacturing student at Blackhawk Technical College and works at Kuhn North American. She'll be tasked with promoting Wisconsin's county fairs, as well as leading the ceremonies at the Wisconsin State Fair this summer.
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