Top Stories April 10th

Columbus Moving Forward With Referendum

4/10/12 - The Columbus School Board took two giant steps toward development of a $42 million dollar referendum last night. The board accepted the “two-building” recommendation from the district facilities committee and signed off on the purchase of land for a new building. Spokesperson Linda Parpart said the volunteer 35-person committee recommended building a new School building for grades 6 to 12 and renovating either the current elementary or high School for grades K through 5th. The board also approved an agreement with Eugene and Carol Niehoff to purchase 68 acres of land on the northwestern edge of the city along Highway 16. Superintendent Bryan Davis said that the land purchase was a necessary part of building a new facility. The board will be using the next six months to educate district taxpayers on the positives and negatives of the facility upgrades.

Beaver Dam Assembling Street Repair Policy

4/10/12 - City officials in Beaver Dam are in the process of drafting a policy that governs street maintenance. Beaver Dam Mayor Tom Kennedy told the city’s Operations Committee last night that the proposed Street Maintenance Program outlines the guidelines for city officials to follow when assembling a timeline for street reconstruction and related borrowing. Kennedy says the policy was prompted by the proposed Lake Shore Drive project that was delayed as the result of backlash from neighborhood residents. While not discussed specifically last night, Lake Shore Drive has a low quality rating, known as a Paser Rating, of between a 2 and 4 on a scale of ten with ten being great condition. The draft presented includes Lake Shore on a tentative list for 2020. Unlike some streets which could see complete concrete reconstruction, Lake Shore is tentatively listed for only street rehabilitation. One of the sticking points with Lake Shore residents was a plan to install sidewalks. Kennedy says the draft policy allows flexibility for those neighborhoods that might not want sidewalks. The Street Maintenance policy is expected to be revisited at future Operations Committee meetings and while it does not require council approval, the policy will be given to the city’s other standing committee – the Administrative Committee – for input.

North Carolina Pair Charged In Attempted Coin Box Theft

4/10/12 - Two North Carolina men are accused of trying to break into the coin box at a Beaver Dam car wash over the weekend. 30-year-olds Steven Ellis and Tommy Holden of Lexington, North Carolina are charged with felony Possession of Burglary Tools and misdemeanor Attempted Theft and Criminal Damage to Property. Authorities say officers were dispatched to the Shell Travel Mart at 821 Park Avenue at 1:15am Sunday morning after the clerk saw two men trying to pry open the coin box in the car wash. The two were reportedly found in possession of crowbars, screwdrivers and a pillowcase filled with $369.73 in loose change. They also found an atlas with dozens of locations listed in several states with notations by cities that said “difficult” and “easy.” Deputy Police Chief Dan Schubert says their investigation continues with several other police agencies in Wisconsin that had similar thefts and break-ins at carwashes. If convicted, the charges carry a maximum penalty of nearly five years in prison. Ellis, who is accused of serving as lookout, had a cash bond set at $10,000 yesterday while Holden, the reported driver, had a cash bond set at $7500. Preliminary hearings are on the calendar later this month.

Crane Hunt Draws Discussion

4/10/12 - Around 200 hundred people packed into an auditorium at the Horicon Marsh International Education Center last night for the annual Conservation Congress meeting. And as expected, the topic of a sandhill crane hunt drew discussion. Assembly Republican Joel Kleefisch of Oconomowoc proposed a bill late in the recent legislative session to allow a crane hunt. But bird lovers objected, and the proposal went nowhere. The state’s sandhill crane population has grown to about 25-thousand, after the bird was nearly hunted to extinction in the early 20th century. That led one person at the meeting to say it would be contradictory to have a hunting season for it. But most of the people at the meeting were for implementing a season for the crane, saying it’s a species management issue. Those in attendance voted on more than 90-advisory questions, including the possibility of a crane hunt but the results weren’t immediately available. They’ll be compiled and used for input on future legislation and rule-making. The Conservation Congress acts as a citizen advisory group for the DNR.

Power Outage in Beaver Dam

4/10/12 - More than 630-customers were without power on the south side of Beaver Dam yesterday morning after a tree limb fell on power lines in the 11 o’clock hour. The outage affected Roller Avenue, South Center Street, South Spring Street and Lombardi Lane. Alliant Energy crews were able to have power restored to everyone within about two hours.

BDUSD Holds First Open House on Building Projects

4/10/12 - Attendance was light at the first of several open houses being hosted by the Beaver Dam School District. The events are being held to discuss upcoming building projects and the possible closure of an elementary school. The school board is expected to vote later this month on a resolution that would authorize, but not commit them to borrowing up to $6-million for the projects, which could include closing Trenton and/or South Beaver Dam Elementary and see them adding on to another elementary school. Board President Marge Jorgensen said the small turnout may have to do with the fact the projects won’t result in a tax increase. The second open house will be held next Monday at 6pm at the Educational Service Center.

Inmate Labor Saves Waupun School District $12K

4/10/12 - Using inmate labor in rehabilitating the old Fox Lake Elementary saved county taxpayers more than $12,000. That’s according to Sheriff Todd Nehls, who says inmates spent nearly 2,600 hours from January until the end of March doing minor maintenance along with painting and cleaning. The Huber inmates from the Dodge County Detention Facility earned a total of 162-days credit off their sentences. Nehls says the project is good for the inmates, as they’re able to give back to the community they harmed. The former elementary school is being reopened this fall as the SAGES Charter School.

Van Hollen Changes Stance on Collecting DNA Samples

4/10/12 - Governor Scott Walker and Attorney General J-B Van Hollen both came out yesterday in favor of taking D-N-A samples from felony suspects when they’re arrested, and not wait until they’re convicted. Van Hollen opposed the idea when it was first came up in 2009. But he said he’s had time to develop a plan that would be constitutional, and could be run effectively by police. Walker and Van Hollen – both Republicans – said their plan would be more limited than the original one. It would apply only to certain felony suspects and more serious sex offenses. They planned to have details ready for next year’s state budget. Van Hollen said the measure would put more D-N-A samples of criminal suspects into a state database, thus making it easier for police to solve crimes. But back in 2009, the Republican attorney general expressed concerns about the impact on civil liberties – something the American Civil Liberties Union repeated yesterday. Stacy Harbaugh of Wisconsin’s A-C-L-U said those not convicted of crimes should not have to give police their D-N-A because of all the personal health information it contains. And she brought up racial concerns, saying minorities have much more contact with law enforcement than whites. A group called D-N-A Saves says 26 states allow D-N-A to be taken from at least some criminal suspects before they’re convicted. They say it saves lives because many violent crimes are committed by repeat offenders – and having their D-N-A on file means they can be arrested sooner.

Primary Races Kicking Into High Gear

4/10/12 - The Democratic primary for Wisconsin governor is four weeks from today. Former Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk will become the first candidate to run her own statewide ad today. Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett plans to file his nomination papers in Madison this morning. And he announced a key endorsement yesterday from former Congressman Dave Obey, who had said he would run if Barrett or retiring U-S Senator Herb Kohl didn’t. G-O-P state Senate leader Scott Fitzgerald said Republicans might vote for Falk in the May eighth Democratic primary, because she doesn’t do as well as Barrett in head-to-head polls against Governor Scott Walker. Wisconsin has open primaries in which voters don’t have to declare their parties, and Fitzgerald said quote, “There’s nothing to keep the Republicans from messing around.” The state G-O-P also put up Gladys Huber to run as a fake Democrat for governor. Spokesman Ben Sparks says it’s an insurance policy to make sure the Democrats don’t coalesce behind one candidate to try and push the general election up to May eighth – which would happen if there’s not a primary. Republicans also put up fake Democrats for lieutenant governor and all four Senate contests, to make sure the general elections all take place on June fifth. Democratic attorney Jeremy Levinson said last week the fake Democrats violate election laws, because candidates must declare that they’re representing a particular party. But yesterday, state Attorney General J-B Van Hollen said there’s no law against putting up fake candidates.