10/19/08

Beaver Dam Council Lays the Groundwork for Future Development

10/19/09 - The city of Beaver Dam might be the newest municipality to go green. A proposed Neighborhood Electric Vehicle ordinance will be considered Monday night that would allow for the use of electric vehicles on city streets where the speed limit is 35mph or less. The Common Council will also consider a resolution tomorrow for a professional services agreement with MSA Professionals for assistance in creating a new Tax Increment Finance District. TIF #6 would be located in the downtown redevelopment area and includes the former Weyco Shoe Factory and Thomas Chevrolet property – both parcels have multi-million dollar redevelopment plans in the works. The council tomorrow must also consider the proposed terms related to the redevelopment of the auto-dealer property. The developers are asking the city for $90,000 in grant funding, money the city has designated for low-income housing developments; it comes from the recent Spring Isle settlement. The Beaver Dam Common Council meets tomorrow at 8pm at City Hall.

Cases Stacking Up For Soda Machine Bandits

10/19/08 - One of the suspects in a recent series of soda machine break-ins entered a guilty plea this past week while another was sentenced five months in jail. 18-year-old Ryan Price of Burnett pleaded guilty to 21 misdemeanor counts of Entry Into A Locked Coin Box and had a variety of bail jumping charges dismissed but read into the record. Price has a sentencing hearing set for November 20. Earlier in the week, 21-year-old Alicia Weissenburger was sentenced to five months in jail and three years probation for her role in the break-ins. The two were among a dozen people arrested for causing more than $35,000 worth of damage to 80 soda machines in five counties. Four other accomplices have already been sentenced to between 2 and five months for their roles in the crime wave. Purported ringleader Andrew “Chubs” Poad - who is the only one in the group facing felony charges - has a plea and sentencing hearing scheduled for next Tuesday. Restitution hearings will be scheduled at a later date.

Jail Smugglers Get Jail Time

10/19/08 - Four months in jail for a Milwaukee woman who tried to smuggle drugs to her fiancé in the Fox Lake Correctional Institution. Analuisa Vazquez pleaded “no contest” this week to a felony count of Possession with Intent to Deliver related to the offenses that occurred in September 2007. Officials learned about the operation through telephone conversations and later arrested her with two balloons containing marijuana. 19-year-old Demetrius Combs of Cudahy was with Vazquez and was sentenced to three months in jail and three years probation for trying to bring one balloon into the jail.

Scam Targets Hustisford Bank Customers

10/19/08 - The Hustisford State Bank is not calling its customers asking for personal information. The Dodge County Sheriffs Department has received several reports from Hustisford residents saying the bank would cancel their credit cards unless they provided the information. The calls were traced back to a Florida phone number. Authorities are reminding the public that they should never supply personal or financial information to anyone, especially in unsolicited phone calls.

School Plays Costs Force Changes

10/19/08 - The cost of putting on school plays and musicals has hit home for the Fond du Lac School District. Those who have been provided with complimentary passes will no longer be getting a free pass to the productions for the pass holder and a guest. In a letter School District Interim Superintendent Jim Gryzwa explains that the cost of putting on the productions have increased to the point where they are operating at a loss. So beginning with next month’s “Thoroughly Modern Millie” pass holders will be able to get one free ticket and will have to purchase the second. By the way the musical at the Fond du Lac High School Performing Arts Center will run November 6th through the 9th.

‘Patience’ Urged in Financial Crisis

10/19/08 - From Joe the Plumber to Johnny Wall Street everyone is worried about the economy and how a bailout program can stabilize it, but a Federal Bank official says growth will take time. Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Charles Evans told a gathering at Marian University in Fond du Lac Friday that people will have to have some patience. He says growth will continue to be sluggish the rest of the year and into 2009. Evans says the Treasury’s proposal should be effective and risk prudent. He says the taxpayer money we are injecting into banks will go further toward improving the economy. Evans also remarked about Wisconsin in particular saying innovation in the agricultural industry is promoting increased productivity. He also says manufacturing continues to be a bellwether industry for Wisconsin and for much of the Midwest. We’ll be taking a closer look at the financial crisis with a panel of local bankers on our Community Comment program at 12:35pm this Wednesday.

State/ National Candidates on Community Comment

10/19/08 - We kick-off our local election coverage on Community Comment this week with the candidates vying for the Sixth US Congressional District. On Monday we will be speaking with the Democratic challenger for the seat Roger Kittleson of Lomira. Tuesday, we sit down with incumbent Republican Tom Petri. Among the races we look at next week: the state’s 38th Assembly District, where Republican incumbent Joel Kleefisch squares off against Democratic challenger Dick Pas (poz). We round out our coverage with the candidates in the 39th District: Republican incumbent Jeff Fitzgerald and his Democratic opponent Aaron Onsrud. Community Comment airs weekdays following our noon news block on WBEV 1430AM.