Durand Public Works employees will be working into the evening and weekends over the next few weeks. During last nights Durand City Council meeting, Public Works Director Matt Gillis told the council that the Scada System, which monitors water levels in the water tower and reservoir had failed. Because of the failure, public works employees will have to manually fill the water tower and reservoir three times a day, seven days a week. The new system should arrive and be installed in about three weeks.
A long-time tradition of fireworks during Durand Fun Fest is returning this year. In a social media post, the Durand Fun Fest Committee announced the fireworks show on June 10th after the Chris Kroeze performance. The 60th Annual Durand Fun Fest will be June 9th-11th in Memorial Park in Durand.
Eau Claire's Winter Weather Advisory starts later today, but there's a Winter Storm Warning for folks just to the south. The National Weather Service has Eau Claire under a Winter Weather Advisory from 3 p.m. today til 6 a.m. tomorrow morning. Forecasters expect between three and five inches of snow. The Winter Storm Warning that's posted for just south of Eau Claire could mean as much as six inches of snow with strong wind gusts. Road crews are asking for patience today and into tomorrow.
There were more layoffs at 3M in Menomonie than first announced. The company announced back in January that it planned to layoff 22 workers at the plant. Yesterday, a spokesperson said there were 53 layoffs at the plant. Before the cuts, 3M had 673 employees in Menomonie. The layoffs are part of a global reduction for 3M. The company eliminated 25 hundred jobs in all.
Western Wisconsin's congressman wants to make it clear that milk comes from animals, not plants. Congressman Derrick Van Orden signed on to the Dairy Pride Act. That's the federal plan to classify milk as coming from cows or other animals only. He says Wisconsin dairy farmers work incredibly hard to produce top-quality milk and he doesn't want to see nut-based or vegetable-based products horn in on their success. Wisconsin's dairy groups are all in agreement. The Dairy Pride Act comes not long after the FDA said nut-milk producers can continue to call their products 'milk.'
The Republicans who will write Wisconsin's next state budget are not going to Milwaukee or Madison. The budget-writing Joint Finance Committee yesterday released the schedule for their budget hearings. They will be in Waukesha, Eau Claire, the Dells, and Minocqua next month. The hearings are the beginning of the process to write the next state budget. After the public hearings, lawmakers will begin their work at the Capitol. They hope to have something for the governor to sign sometime in May.
The top Republican in the Wisconsin Assembly says the governor's plan to help with American Family Field is dead. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos told reporters yesterday that he doesn't see a path forward for the governor's proposal to spend nearly 300 million dollars in state money on repairs at American Family Field. Vos said the governor wants to use one-time money for a deal that would keep the Brewers in Milwaukee for just an extra 13 years. Vos says he hopes lawmakers will come up with a different plan to pay for the ballpark and keep the team in Milwaukee long-term.
A fresh warning about the risks of bird flu. The state Ag Department reminds poultry owners of the ongoing threat of highly pathogenic avian influenza. The spring migratory period for wild birds brings an increased risk, so DATCP recommends that poultry owners continue using the strongest biosecurity measures to protect their birds. In Wisconsin last year, 29 domestic flocks in 18 counties were confirmed with bird flu. Nationwide, more than 58.5 million birds have died, in the largest animal disease outbreak in U.S. history
The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is identifying the man killed in a Stillwater officer-involved shooting. Okwan Rahmier Sims died on March 4th from multiple gunshot wounds. The agency says the 21-year-old man died after an "exchange of gunfire" with Stillwater Police. KARE11 is reporting that the BCA hasn't determined who shot first during the incident.
A bill set to address hospital staffing is moving forward in the Minnesota Legislature. The Senate Health and Human Services Committee advanced a bill yesterday that would require nurses and administrators to work together in every hospital to set staffing levels. The measure also sets reporting requirements and penalties if hospitals don't meet agreed-upon levels. Backers say the bill has been brought before the Legislature every year since 2007.
The largest Methodist congregation in Dane County has voted to separate from the United Methodist Church. That split by Asbury United Methodist Church is over disagreements regarding the denomination’s support of gay marriage and gay leadership. The Wisconsin State Journal reports members voted 224-76 Sunday to disaffiliate from UMC. The Madison congregation appears to be in the minority - UMC reports 6.1 percent of its US churches - 1,831 congregations out of 30,000 - have been granted permission to disaffiliate since 2019.
An elections fraud case against a former Town of Newbold supervisor is moving forward. 69-year-old James Staskiewicz is accused of forging signatures on his nomination petitions as he ran for re-election. He waived a preliminary hearing on Tuesday and now faces one count each of election fraud and misconduct in public office. Oneida County Sheriff's investigators say Staskiewicz admitted to the forgeries. If convicted, he could face three years in prison.
A group of Wisconsin business leaders is joining together in an effort to make sure the Brewers stay in Milwaukee. Today the group announced the Home Crew Coalition. Members plan to work together to show community support for the Brewers, find a bipartisan solution to keep the team in Milwaukee and raise awareness of the team's economic impact. The coalition includes Wisconsin developers, attorneys, philanthropists, politicians, and sports leaders, among others. You can join the team online at action-dot-home-crew-coalition-dot-org.
Wisconsin's governor continues to add priorities to his state budget proposal. The governor yesterday said pay raises for prosecutors and prison guards in the state is a must. Governor Evers says low pay is hurting D.A. offices across the state. He wants prison guards in Wisconsin to get a 13 dollar-an-hour raise. The Republicans who will actually write the new state budget say they could agree to a raise, but it won't be anywhere near the 13 dollars extra the governor wants.
The Madison Common Council moves forward with a lawsuit. The council votes unanimously Tuesday to sue automakers Hyundai and Kia following a rash of thefts of those vehicles last year due to a a lack of anti-theft features. Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway, tells WKOW-TV in Madison the matter is about public safety, stating she is ”…making sure that we are tackling this particular problem of stolen cars from every angle." Rhodes-Conway says Madison saw a 270% increase in Kia and Hyundai thefts over the summer. That’s almost half of all cars stolen in Madison during that same time.
Minnesota is exporting a record number of products. The Department of Employment and Economic Development recently announced the state's exports of agricultural, mining and manufactured products reached 27-billion dollars last year. That's a new record high and up 16-percent from 2021. Oil, electrical equipment, and cereals were exported the most.
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