Top Stories September 12th

Columbus City Hall Renovations Wrapping Up

9/12/10 - Renovation of historic Columbus City Hall is nearing completion. In the past four months rusty furnace units and vents have been replaced, a huge new steel I-Beam has been installed shoring up the ceiling in the remodeled council and court chambers and first floor administrative offices have been updated. The city is waiting for Charter Communications to connect the new chambers’ audio visual center to transmission facilities. The AV system installation and hook-up of the new Emergency Operations Center is planned for completion in the next month. For the past two months the council meetings have been held in the Senior Center. The council is hoping they will be able to return to city hall meetings in the renovated chambers by mid-October.

Construction of Assisted Living Facility in Columbus Underway

9/12/10 - Bulldozers were excavating the foundation sites during groundbreaking ceremonies for “At Home Again Columbus” this week. Construction of the new assisted living home at the edge of the Columbus Country Club golf course is underway. The new 20 unit assisted living facility is scheduled for completion next spring. That’s according to project partner Jerry Connery, who says the initial structure will consist of a 20-bed unit but they are already planning to increase the size of the facility with a 16-bed addition. If completed as planned the facility could bring as many as 20 new jobs to Columbus. “At Home Again” is located a block east of Park Street adjacent to the newly rebuilt tennis courts.

Mental Competency Exam for Wold

9/12/10 - A man accused of hiring a hit-man to kill the mother of his child will get a mental competency exam. Waukesha County Circuit Judge James Kieffer agreed to order the exam Friday at the request of the attorneys for Darren Wold. Anthony Rosario said the 42-year-old Wold had severe depression, and both his mental and physical conditions were becoming a concern. The exam will be conducted in the next two weeks, and the results are scheduled to be reviewed at a court September 29th. Wold is one of three people charged in the slaying of Kimberly Smith of Oconomowoc last October. Prosecutors said Wold was in a bitter custody battle over his son who was four at the time. And Wold and Jack Johnson allegedly conspired to hire Justin Welch – who’s accused of stabbing Smith to death. Welch had briefly escaped custody in Arkansas in early January, as he was being transported back to Wisconsin to face his charges. All three men face charges in the case – and they’re all scheduled to appear in court November 15th when pre-trial requests will be considered.

Researchers Breath Sigh of Relief

9/12/10 - Stem cell researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are relieved by a court ruling that will allow their federal funding to continue temporarily. Researchers had warned that studies on a range of diseases would come to a halt if a federal judge's order blocking the funding stayed in place. An appeals court ruled Thursday the funding can proceed temporarily until the court rules on the Obama administration's position in a lawsuit that calls the research illegal. UW-Madison's federal lobbyist Rhonda Norsetter says the decision is terrific news. But she says the ruling is only temporary, and Congress should change the law to remove any doubt about the studies' legality. She says the goal is to "enable our scientists to continue the groundbreaking research they are conducting."

Food Stamp Usage at Farmers Markets Up

9/12/10 - A growing number of farmers markets in Wisconsin are accepting food stamps. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says 11 farmers markets in the state are participating in the FoodShare program. They're in every corner of the state, from Superior to Janesville to Milwaukee. Ross Cohen manages the Monona Farmer's Market in south central Wisconsin. He says his market began accepting food stamps because vendors can sell more, while customers get healthy food that's locally grown. He says people can use the stamps to buy fruits, vegetables, meat, honey and cheeses. The ongoing recession has led to a surge in food-stamp usage. The USDA says the number of Wisconsin residents using them has increased almost 25 percent compared to last year.

3rd Most Tornadoes Ever for WI in 2010

9/12/10 - 2010 ranks as the third-highest for tornadoes in Wisconsin. The National Weather Service has documented 42 twisters so far. That’s one shy of the 43 recorded in 1980, and 20 short of 2005, which saw 62 tornadoes touchdown in Wisconsin. Meteorologist Rusty Kapela says fortunately no one was killed this year, though there were 18 injuries reported. He says it’s possible a few more tornadoes could happen by year’s end, but as the months of May through August are the prime tornado periods in Wisconsin, it’s less likely.

Federally Backed Mortgage Insurance to See Cost Increase

9/12/10 - The cost of mortgage insurance backed by the federal government is going up this fall. Congress has allowed the Federal Housing Administration to increase its monthly premiums by nearly three times the current amount. An FHA official says the average increase will come to about $40 more a month. A realtor’s group says some Wisconsin homeowners will be affected, but not as many as in other parts of the country. Bill Malkasian of the Wisconsin Realtors Association says roughly a third of the mortgages today that Wisconsin buyers apply for are with a government-backed option, including the FHA program. He says it’s popular because it requires a low down payment and a slightly lower credit score. Malkasian says the increase will probably affect the size of home prospective buyers can afford. To help, the FHA is cutting the initial down payment for insurance to $1,000 on average.

Obama to Stop in Madison

9/12/10 - Later this month President Obama will make his fourth visit to The Badger State since he was elected. Obama will make an appearance at a major Democratic rally in Madison September 28th to help his party’s candidates in the midterm elections. The rally is aimed at young voters, their issues and getting them to go out to the polls.

Union Makes Concession in Madison

9/12/10 - Union workers at Sub-Zero/Wolf give up 20 percent of their paychecks, but keep their jobs. The Madison workers agreed to a deal that will save about 200 jobs. Employees at the home appliance company rejected a similar offer last month. Sub-Zero/Wolf had threatened to move the Wisconsin production line to Kentucky if the concessions weren't approved. A union spokesman says the company reached out last week to make some of the changes more acceptable. Now, the 20 percent cut will be phased in -- as five percent reductions at the start of each quarter.

Judge Sentences Man to More Time than Prosecutors Requested

9/12/10 - In giving convicted con man Jeffrey Stadelmann nine years in prison, Federal Judge Rudoph Randa went even beyond the sentence requested by prosecutors. Stadelman was found guilty of stealing three million dollars from nearly 60 people. Some of them reportedly emptied their life savings and took out second mortgages to invest in the Menomonee Falls man's company. That money, federal prosecutors say, was actually being used by Stadelmann and his girlfriend to build a two million dollar home in Vilas County and run a resort in Boulder Junction. The Ponzi scheme played out over a six-year period starting in 2002.