Local-Regional News July 11

 

Attendance at the new Tarrant Park pool has been high. The City of Durand says that the 800 free admissions were all used by yesterday. Durand Mayor Patrick Milliren says the city is trying keep the pool open through Labor Day Weekend.  There will be an official ribbon cutting at the Pool on July 18^th at 10:30am.

A western Wisconsin nurse accused of elder abuse is avoiding jail time. Mary Brown of Durand has taken a plea deal that drops two felony charges. She was arrested in 2022 for cutting off the foot of a hospice patient without his permission. Brown has now pleaded no contest to misdemeanor negligent abuse of a patient. She was ordered to pay $443, and adhere to any discipline against her nursing license proposed by the Board of Nursing.

The Dunn County Highway Department will complete the reconstruction of Hwy G from Hwy BB to Hwy D starting on Monday. The project will involve removing and replacing the cross culverts, reconstruction of the roadway and reconstructing the shoulder. Hwy G will be closed during the reconstruction.

There are four finalists for the Eau Claire County administrator position. The list includes County Highway Commissioner Jon Johnson and Director of Human Services Angela Weideman. The outside candidates are Walworth County Public Works Director Richard Hough and Chad Roberts, who's a former Polk County administrator. Eau Claire County is filling the vacancy left by the retiring Kathryn Schauf.

The state is asking for public input on plans to repair the Highway 124 bridge in Chippewa Falls. Built in 1949, the bridge needs a sidewalk, joint replacements and other structural work. The project isn't scheduled to begin until 2030, but traffic will be closed during the project. Residents can leave comments on the wisconsindot.gov website.

The La Crosse Common Council is passing several measures involving development projects and a legal battle. One measure approves over a hundred thousand dollars for security at several city parks. Another would allow rezoning for a pocket park, an apartment complex and a primary care clinic. The council also approved 50 thousand dollars for legal fees associated with the Town of Campbell's incorporation.

A new bill introduced this week seeks to limit balloon releases in Wisconsin. Assembly Bill 352 would prohibit people from releasing ten or more balloons into the air at the same time. Violators would be punished with a 500-dollar fine. If passed, Wisconsin would join California and Florida in banning such balloon releases.

Health experts are reporting an increase in tick bite cases across the state. SSM Health says urgent care clinics saw three times as many cases this June compared to last year. A physician with SSM Health says ticks with black legs are the ones to watch out for. People are advised to wear long sleeves and pants to protect themselves from the pests.

A new report says more Wisconsin students are getting ahead on their higher education. The study shows students are signing up for dual enrollment programs at a higher rate than last decade. The Department of Public Instruction found that dual enrollment leads to higher test scores and improved graduation rates. Nearly 79-thousand students took part in the programs in the 2023-24 school year.

The University of Northern Iowa will begin offering in-state tuition to students from six neighboring states this fall, including Wisconsin and Minnesota. The new "Neighboring State Rate" program was launched after the UNI Foundation provided one-point-five million dollars in seed money. Governor Kim Reynolds had previously line-item vetoed state funding for the initiative. The program allows students from Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wisconsin to pay the same tuition rate as Iowa residents.

Tuition at the Universities of Wisconsin is increasing for resident undergraduate students. UW President Jay Rothman asked for increases up to five-percent earlier this week, and the request was approved during a Board of Regents meeting yesterday. Tuition hikes will take effect during the 2025-2026 school year.

Flags will be at half-staff across Wisconsin today to honor fallen Milwaukee officer Kendall Corder. Corder and his partner were shot by a suspect while responding to reports of shots fired in late June. Corder died from his injuries days later. The other officer, Christopher McCray, is out of the hospital and recovering. The suspect, Tremaine Jones is facing multiple charges, including first-degree intentional homicide. Flags were also lowered to honor Corder earlier this month. Flags at half-staff tomorrow will honor him on the day of his interment in Brookfield.

Former Wisconsin Republican Congressman Sean Duffy has a new job. President Donald Trump on Wednesday appointed Duffy, who is already the US Secretary of Transportation, as the acting administrator of NASA. Trump's previous nomination for the position was American financial businessman Jared Isaacman, an associate of billionaire Elon Musk. His name was withdrawn before the Senate could take it up for a vote.

A Rochester man is accused of being the gunman in a deadly shooting at the Villages at Essex Park. Police say Ibrahim Abukaar Abdi shot and killed a 35-year-old man on July 3rd. The defendant has been charged murder-with-intent, assault with a dangerous weapon, and felon in possession of a firearm. Abdi is held behind bars on a one-million-dollar bail.

A list ranking the nation's coolest art installations includes two Wisconsin attractions. Rivers Wall Art ranked Milwaukee's Bronze Fonz at 105. Dr. Evermor's gigantic Forevertron sits right below at 106. Art lovers were surveyed on sculpture parks, lesser-known installations and displays they'd like to visit. 125 installations were selected for the list.