Top Stories October 26th

BDAC Tackles 2012 Budget

10/26/11 - The Beaver Dam Administrative Committee got to work last night crunching the numbers in the 2012 budget. Officials went into the meeting having to trim $174,000 and after speaking with each department individually over the course of the four-and-a-half hour meeting, they were able to cut around $38,000. The committee rejected around $25,000 in purchase requests from the police department for new laptops and a solar-powered upgrade to their speed trailer. Another $10,000 in projected labor attorney expenses was trimmed and Beaver Dam Lake Days will only get $7000 for fireworks this year instead of $8000. Committee Chair Don Neuert says the city only has so many options. Layoffs do not appear likely and most purchase requests were approved last night. Neuert says the committee is considering pushing off $140,000 in debt payments next year but that would cost an additional $88,000 in interest. The final, and most likely, option would be to save money on health insurance by increasing the deductible on police and fire personnel, something allowed for the first time because of recent changes in Madison. Neuert says, in his opinion, that appears to be the most likely to be approved. As far as the rest of the budget, the fire department may be getting a part-time clerk while the Community Activities and Services Department could see a part-time position increased to full time. The mayor’s salary is also proposed to increase $5000 to $60,000 beginning after the April election. The total proposed budget is $13.7 million dollars, of which the city plans to levy for $8.4 million, that’s an increase of four-and-a-quarter-percent (4.25%) or roughly $342,000 higher than the current budget. No word yet on the proposed mill rate. The Administrative Committee is expected to advance the budget during their regular meeting on Monday.

Horicon Sticking With City Clerk/Treasurer

10/26/11 - Horicon will be sticking with a city clerk/treasurer form of government. With the retirement of longtime clerk/treasurer Dave Pasewald earlier this year, the council discussed the possibility of moving to a city administrator form of government, which is used in some cities where there is a part-time mayor. The biggest difference between the two positions is that an administrator supervises the entire operation while a clerk/treasurer manages the city functions without having a supervisory role. Mayor Jim Grigg says there are positives and negatives to each position but the council felt they shouldn’t try and change what isn’t broken. Since Pasewald’s retirement, Deputy Clerk/Treasurer Kristin Jacobson has been handling most of the duties, though Pasewald has helped out on a part-time basis. Grigg says the city will be taking a look at possible full-time replacements in December.

Big Response for Columbus Facilities Committee

10/26/11 - The Columbus School community responded quickly to an invitation to join the District “Facilities Team.” The Team will be studying the current state and future prospects for School District buildings and grounds over the next six months. Thirty-four community members have agreed to volunteer for the committee. The team will discuss an architect’s assessment of the schools, a study on student population trends, and a report on District finances. The Team will be asked to draft recommendations for the District’s future by next April.

Democrats Rally in Madison

10/26/11 - Three Democrats who might run in a possible recall election against Governor Scott Walker spoke at a rally in Madison last night. Over 100 Democrats and union supporters attended – and they also got training for getting petition signatures for the recall effort. Former Congressman Dave Obey of Wausau, former Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk, and state Senate Democrat Jon Erpenbach of Waunakee said the damage caused by the Republican Walker was so severe, voters have no choice but to seek a recall. Erpenbach said Walker’s bill to virtually end collective bargaining for most public employees has pitted relatives and neighbors against each other. The state Democratic Party organized last night’s event – and they plan to hold similar rallies and training sessions. In response to last night’s event, state Republican Chairman Brad Courtney praised Walker’s effort to balance the state budget without raising taxes, and creating a better environment for job creators. Courtney also labeled the Democrats’ efforts as “false momentum.”

Ritter Sentenced to Jail

10/26/11 - The former Treasurer of the Lowell-Reeseville First Responders was sentenced Tuesday to 20 days in jail for embezzling money from the organization. 40-year-old Sheri Ritter of Reeseville pleaded “no contest” to reduced misdemeanor Theft charges. According to the criminal complaint, a report uncovered irregularities in the group’s financial records and Ritter admitted the thefts on the record during a subsequent meeting. Nearly $3000 from the First Responders business account was used for Ritter’s personal finances, to pay for car loans, cable bills and phone bills. The offenses date back to last October with the most recent occurring in March of this year. Ritter was also ordered to pay $1400 in restitution.

Gov. Walker Unveils New State Employee Pay Plan

10/26/11 - Governor Scott Walker’s new pay plan for state employees would end a unique overtime benefit for Wisconsin prison workers. For years, guards who called in sick and then worked the next shift got regular pay for one shift and time-and-a-half for the other. The Walker pay plan, announced yesterday, would grant regular pay for both shifts. And any overtime would be spread evenly throughout the entire corrections’ workforce, instead of being offered to the most senior employees first. State employment relations’ director Greg Gracz said it would save the Corrections’ Department five-million-dollars a year. The changes are part of the administration’s first pay plan after union employees lost most of their collective bargaining privileges earlier this year. Republican Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald said most state workers would see few changes. But Assembly Democratic Leader Peter Barca calls the plan a power grab that strips away the rights of middle-class workers. The changes would take effect January first, after approval by a legislative panel.

Liquor Stores Could Open Earlier

10/26/11 - Wisconsin liquor stores could open earlier under a bill passed by the state Assembly yesterday. Local governments can allow beer-and-liquor retailers to open at six a-m instead of eight. Beer sales would still have to end at midnight, and bottles of the hard-stuff could still not be sold in stores after nine p-m. Supporters of the bill said it would let overnight workers buy a six-pack on their way home, but opponents feared it would send the wrong message about alcohol abuse. But the Assembly didn’t need a roll-call vote to pass it, and the measure now goes to the Senate.

Baby Whooping Cranes Begin Migration

10/26/11 - Eight more Wisconsin baby whooping cranes have just started a journey to Florida, as part of an annual migration project. The endangered birds were released Sunday from the Horicon Marsh in Dodge County, where they joined older cranes which have taken the trip south. Meanwhile, 10 other baby cranes have still not left Wisconsin. They took off from a marsh in Marquette and Green Lake counties over two weeks ago with the help of an ultra-light pilot. Windy weather has held them up – and according to the Operation Migration Web site, one of those 10 birds went missing and is still being sought. The Wisconsin part of the project used to be centered at the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge – but it split up this year. Ninety-six birds have survived since the migration project began in 2001. It’s part of a long-running effort to reintroduce the endangered whooping crane to the eastern U-S.

Curbside Brush Pickup to End

10/26/11 - The Beaver Dam Department of Public Works Department says curbside brush pick-up will be suspended for the season after the first week of November. Director of Facilities David Stoiser says residents need to have shrubbery cuttings and neatly piled loose tree limbs up to seven inches in thickness and eight feet in length in the terrace area at the street’s edge for pick-up by 7am during their first solid waste collection day of the month. Waste cannot be placed out any sooner than 24 hours before the scheduled collection day. Yard materials can also be dropped off at the Public Works Garage Yard Waste Drop-off Site at 640 South Center Street, Monday through Friday from 7am to 3:30pm. Collection begins next Tuesday. The service will start up again next April.

Brett Favre Becoming Even More of a Distant Memory

10/26/11 - It’s another sign that Brett Favre is becoming a distant memory in Wisconsin. Patti Schroeder of Fremont has removed Favre’s Number-Four from her popular red barn along Highway 10-45 in Waupaca County. For years, the barn sang Favre’s praises as surveys named him as one of Wisconsin’s most beloved figures when he quarterback the Packers to the Super Bowl-31 title 15 seasons ago. When Favre was traded to the New York Jets in 2008, Schroeder’s barn read “4-Ever in Our Heart.” A year later, when arch-rival Minnesota signed him, the heart was split in two. Aaron Rodgers then started getting better numbers than the three-time M-V-P. And Schroeder’s barn reflected that with the message that “Number-12 is Three-Times Number-Four.” That message struck such a chord that E-S-P-N featured it a couple times. Last week, the Worldwide Leader in Sports was on hand to see Favre’s number deleted altogether. The message now reads simply, “Number-12 is Number-One.”