Top Stories July 6th

Man Killed in Train Accident

7/6/11 - Washington County authorities say a 51-year-old man was killed late last night after apparently driving his car into a passing train. It happened around 11:20 p-m on County Highway D-W about 2-miles north of Allenton. Officials say the vehicle was traveling westbound when the driver may have intentionally driven into and under a rail car before the car left the road and rolled onto its roof. They say it doesn’t appear the driver slowed down prior to hitting the rail car. The man was pronounced dead at the scene. The incident is still under investigation and the name of the victim has not been released.

Pardeeville Man Succumbs To Injuries In Wreck

7/6/11 - A Pardeeville man has died from injuries sustained in a two vehicle accident on July 4. Columbia County Sheriff Dennis Richards says 57-year-old George Holloway was rear-ended while slowing to turn at the intersection of State Highway 16 and Dunning Road, which is about five miles southeast of Portage. 18-year-old Ashley Scott of Rio was ticketed for Inattentive Driving. She and her passenger were not injured. Holloway initially refused medical treatment at the scene of the crash but was later transported to Divine Savoir Hospital in Portage after complaining of a medical condition related to the crash. He was then transferred to a hospital in Madison where he died of his injuries yesterday (Tues). The accident is under investigation by the Columbia County Sheriffs Department and Medical Examiners Office.

Planning Team BDFD Expansion Blueprints

7/6/11 - Plans to expand the Beaver Dam Fire Department into the space currently occupied by the Police Department are moving ahead at a steady pace. That’s according to Fire Chief Alan Mannel who told the city’s Police and Fire Commission last night that the blueprints are still being tweaked but the planning team is close to finalizing a layout to fit their needs. Mannel says the footprint of the fire station will change dramatically with additional room now for classrooms, meeting rooms, offices and storage space. The public would also find the department’s reception area move into the current city hall lobby. While there would not be much change to the current fire station, upgrades to the heating and cooling system are needed and the living quarters would be modernized to accommodate both male and female personnel. The city hired Bray Architects at a cost of $35,000 draw up the designs. A half million dollars in borrowing that had been in the city’s Capital Improvements Plan was eliminated in a cost saving move earlier this year. City officials asked the planning team to draw up plans with a price tag closer to a quarter million dollars, though budget planning for next year has not yet been discussed in committee. Also last night, Police Chief Ron Smith told the PFC that the city’s new $5.1 million dollar police station on Park Avenue is on time and on budget. Smith says personnel should be ready to move in as planned during the first week of September.

Jaycees Returns To Beaver Dam

7/6/11 - Beaver Dam has a new service organization. A chapter of the Jaycees International has been established in the city. The groups Director of Membership, Erin Broome, helped get it started in her hometown. Broome says the club will allow area professionals in their 20’s and 30’s to give something back. She says they want to be the face of youth in the community by volunteering with existing organizations and also establishing their own signature fundraiser each year. The Beaver Dam chapter of the Jaycees will hold meetings once a month. Those interested in joining can contact Erin Broome at 414-975-1780 or visit: http://www.wijaycees.org/index.html

M & I Under New Ownership

7/6/11 - Wisconsin’s largest home-grown bank is under new ownership as of Tuesday – but it might be awhile before customers notice. The B-M-O Financial Group of Canada has taken over the Milwaukee-based M-and-I Bank. And officials say the M-and-I name will stay around at most branches until the two companies merge their computers and other operations. After that, they’ll get the new name – B-M-O Harris Bank. Harris is based in Chicago, and B-M-O has owned it since 1984. The company’s Paul Deegan says it could be 18 months before the M-and-I name disappears for good. The four-point-one-billion-dollar deal was first announced last December. It’s still not known how the change will affect the company’s employment in Wisconsin. But C-E-O Bill Downe says B-M-O plans to expand the bank’s presence in the state, and not reduce it. M-and-I has 188 branch banks in Wisconsin, including one in Beaver Dam. Harris is around 50 branches. B-M-O has not said how many branches might close. But Deegan says there’s very little overlap between both companies – and they’re “quite complementary.” M-and-I has lost money for 10 straight quarters. B-M-O has eight times as many assets – and it plans to immediately pay back the one-point-seven billion dollars M-and-I owed the federal government in the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

Foreclosures Down in SE Wisconsin

7/6/11 - New home foreclosures in southeast Wisconsin went down by eight-percent in June, compared to the same month a year ago. And for the first six months of the year, the Journal Sentinel counted 53-hundred-85 new foreclosure cases in Milwaukee, Waukesha, Washington, Ozaukee, Racine, Kenosha, and Walworth counties. That’s 13-and-a-half percent fewer than the 62-hundred-24 new cases in the first half of 2010. But the paper said the number of homeowners who failed to keep up with their mortgages were still high, due to a continued weak housing market and high unemployment rates. Foreclosures went up last month in Waukesha and Washington counties.

Recall Election Finance Reports Due Today

7/6/11 - We’ll find out Wednesday how much money the various candidates have been raising for the nine state Senate recall elections in the next month-and-a-half. The first finance reports must be filed by Wednesday with the state Government Accountability Board. Primaries are set for all but one seat. Senate Democrat Dave Hansen of Green Bay will have a general election against Republican Dave VanderLeest on July 19th. The other primary challengers will square off later this month, and the winners will face the incumbents in August. The G-O-P put up fake candidates to make sure the Democratic challengers have primaries – thus giving the Republican incumbents an extra month to campaign. Tomorrow’s reports could give us an indication of whether the fake candidates are doing any campaigning of their own.

BDPD Investigating North University Burglary

7/6/11 - The Beaver Dam Police Department is investigating a burglary that occurred Monday night. Authorities say it occurred on the 100 block of North University while the homeowners were watching fireworks. There were several items reported stolen and extensive damage to a number of doors. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Beaver Dam Police Department.

Teens Accused of Lighting Fireworks In Gas Station

7/6/11 - A Beaver Dam teen was arrested and another was cited on Sunday for allegedly setting off a firecracker inside a gas station. According to authorities, it happened around 6:30pm at the BP on South Spring Street in Beaver Dam. The boys, ages 16 and 18, were charged with Disorderly Conduct and Illegal Discharge of Fireworks. In addition, the older boy was arrested for possessing marijuana.