The Pepin County Health Department is announcing a nitrate mitigation reverse osmosis project. This project provides funding to eligible landowners or renters to install mitigation systems that remove nitrate from the private well water supply by using a reverse osmosis treatment process. For more information visit the Pepin County Health Department Website.
The Durand-Arkansaw School Board is meeting tonight. Items on the agenda include a closed session to discuss a request by Margo and Bryce Purgett to detach a small parcel of land from the Durand-Arkansaw School District to the Eau Claire School District, the board will also go into a closed session to discuss the sale of the Hanson Park Property and will have reports from the District Administrator and Building Administrators. Tonight's meeting begins at 6pm in the Board Room at Durand-Arkansaw High School.
Businesses in Pepin, Pierce, Dunn, and Buffalo Counties are now eligible for a federal disaster loan program if they have suffered losses due to this year’s unusually mild winter, which lacked Wisconsin’s typical snowfall in many areas of the state. The SBA has confirmed that they will consider business loss from recent low snowfalls over the winter months to be related to the drought and eligible for assistance. The lack of snow has impacted travel and recreation businesses that depend on it for activities such as downhill and cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and snowmobiling. Application deadlines are April 29th for Buffalo County, and May 6 for Pepin, Pierce, and Dunn Counties. Businesses may submit applications and find additional disaster assistance information at https://lending.sba.gov.
The investigation into Chippewa County's sheriff is over, and the county says it has no confidence in him going forward. The county board last night issued a vote of "no confidence" in Sheriff Travis Hakes. The board also voted to send the 500-page investigation into his behavior to the D,A.'s office. Hakes reportedly refused to cooperate with the investigation, he called it a political smear job. Investigators looked into how Hakes behaved toward a female dispatcher, as well as his side jobs. Hales has not been charged with any crimes and has claimed he is innocent throughout.
Crashes are down twenty-percent in Chippewa County, according to new 2023 traffic statistics. Sheriff Travis Hakes credits the drop to safe-driving campaigns and programs that help lower the number of repeat drunk drivers. Crashes involving impaired drivers are down 33-percent last year in Chippewa County.
Wisconsin lawmakers have okayed 15 million-dollars for emergency rooms in the Chippewa Valley. The State Senate yesterday approved the emergency funding package. The money was earmarked for HSHS hospital but is being redirected now that HSHS has said it will be closing its hospitals in Eau Claire and Chippewa Falls in April. Altoona Senator Jesse James says the money is a 'short term bridge' for folks in the Chippewa Valley. State Senator Jeff Smith says because the money can only be used for emergency room capital improvements and not other issues like mental health services, the bill would actually make things worse. The State Assembly will vote on the plan next.
More people will be coming into the La Crosse Airport. In a Facebook post, the airport announced American Airlines is adding another daily flight from Chicago to La Crosse this week. The airline will also be increasing the size of planes coming into La Crosse to make it easier to handle increased traffic. The move comes after Delta Airlines pulled service from the airport last summer. Airport officials say they're happy to see more flights and more connectivity for western Wisconsin.
Chippewa County's suitcase murder suspect is headed to trial, but no one is saying when. A judge yesterday said there is enough evidence to take Jose Dominguez-Garcia to trial for the murder of his girlfriend back in 2020. Investigators say the girlfriend, 25-year-old Rosaly Rodriguez, went missing in July of 2020. Her body was found in a suitcase in October of 2020 on an abandoned farm along County Highway T in the Town of Wheaton. While Dominguez-Garcia is headed to trial, the court has yet to schedule a date, or the date of his next hearing.
Lawmakers at the Capitol in Madison are set to vote on a cursive requirement later today. The State Assembly has included the plan on its agenda. Supporters say kids need to know how to read and write cursive in order to better understand U.S. history and to be able to do something as simple as sign their names. If approved and signed by Governor Evers, kids in Wisconsin would have to be able to both read and write cursive by the end of fifth grade.
Governor Evers will have to decide about the latest tax cut plan from Republican lawmakers. The Wisconsin Senate yesterday approved a two billion-dollar tax cut that means families making under 150 thousand-dollars would pay less. The plan also includes tax credits for married couples, child care, and retirees. Republicans say retirement would essentially be tax-free for most people in Wisconsin. There is worry though, Republicans aren't sure that Governor Evers will sign the plan. He's scuttled the last couple of tax cut packages as too generous to millionaires.
There's now a state law that guarantees a spot at the University of Wisconsin for Wisconsin's best high schoolers. Governor Tony Evers signed the law yesterday, guaranteeing kids who graduate in the top five-percent of their class a spot at UW-Madison. Those who fall in the top ten-percent can be admitted at any other UW campus. The governor says this should keep Wisconsin's best and brightest in the state. The new law is part of the agreement that saw the UW get money for pay raises and university buildings, but also agree to limit some of its diversity efforts.
An official fund has been set up to help the families of two fallen Burnsville police officers and a paramedic. Officers Paul Elmstrand and Matthew Ruge, and firefighter-paramedic Adam Finseth were gunned down Sunday after responding to a domestic call at an area home. Authorities previously warned that scam artists were using fake funds to make money in the victims' names. Anyone donating to the account set up by Law Enforcement Labor Services can be assured that the money raised will be delivered directly to the families. For more information go to lels.org.
A former Winona high school teacher and track coach is accused of having sex with three women when they were teenage students. Eric Birth is charged with third-degree criminal sexual conduct using coercion and third-degree criminal sexual conduct while in a prohibited occupational relationship. The 29-year-old defendant was placed on administrative leave on January 3. Birth is back in court on February 22 and if convicted of both charges he could face up to 30 years in prison.
Republican Eric Hovde is announcing a run for the U.S Senate in 2024, challenging Democrat Tammy Baldwin. According to Hovde's website, his top campaign issues include the cost of living, immigration, foreign policy, and healthcare. Hovde is the CEO of Sunwest Bank, Hovde Capital and Private Equity, and CEO and co-owner of Hovde Properties. There are four other candidates running for the Wisconsin U.S. Senate seat, including Baldwin who has served in the U.S. Senate since 2013.
A plan to demolish the Mifflin Arcade off Capitol Square is being developed as the Wisconsin Historical Society looks to build a state historical center. A demolition proposal to raze the Mifflin Arcade is expected at the Madison Planning Commission meeting next week. A development company has applied for a permit to demolish the five one-story buildings on the property. If approved, the demolition would be done this spring, making room for the new historical center, plus retail and residential development.
Though ice fishing conditions have been iffy around Wisconsin this winter, the Department of Natural Resources reminds anglers about deadlines for removing permanent ice shanties. The agency says the deadlines depend on the region between now and St. Patrick’s Day, or March 17th. DNR officials also note that though permanent ice shanties must be removed by a prescribed date, anglers can continue to use portable ice shanties as long as they are removed from the ice when not actively in use and at the end of each day. Full information can be found by hitting the “NEWS” tab on the DNR website.
The Lake Superior Railroad Museum is planning to offer rides on a restored steam engine several times this year. The Duluth, Misable, and Iron Range steam engine made successful test runs in November. That has led the museum to schedule another test run on May 11th. Round trips to Palmers are scheduled for June 8th and 9th, while a fall color run on the North Shore Scenic Railroad is set for September 26th and 27th. Another round trip to Palmers is set for October 26th and 27th. Tickets for the June, September and October trips are available online at duluth-trains-dot-com.
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