Top Stories December 2nd

City Officials Discuss Redevelopment Plan

12/02/08 - The Beaver Dam Common Council discussed a new, large-scale redevelopment plan last night. The 4-page document recommends the city borrow $1.5 million next year to acquire and demolish 11 downtown buildings located in the floodway. Alderman John Litscher (right) questioned the city’s offer to purchase the properties at 100% of their current assessed value. Litscher raised concerns about the loss of $51,000 from the tax rolls after the buildings come down and a possible TIF is implemented. Beaver Dam Area Development Corporation Executive Vice President Trent Campbell (left), who drafted the plan, said the positives outweigh the negatives. The council will consider the plan at their December 15 meeting.

Hoeft is Lone Hold-Out

12/02/08 - Of the eleven downtown Beaver Dam properties targeted in the redevelopment plan for acquisition and demolition, the city has already received five signed offers to sell. That’s according to Beaver Dam City Attorney Mary Ann Schacht, who says the lawyer representing the owner of four other properties has indicated the offer to sell will be signed. Schacht says the city also plans to undertake legal procedures to acquire the property at 151 Front Street, which is believed to be abandoned. Jay Hoeft - owner of The Fountain Inn a.k.a. Emotional Rescue, the building located next door to Celestial Coffee – is the lone holdout. Hoeft (left) says he is going to try his best to stay in business because his building is a piece of Beaver Dam history that deserves to go down in honor. The DNR wants to demolish eleven floodway buildings, but they have not set a timeline. Hoeft says once the culverts are fixed and Celestial Coffee is removed, his building should have no problem withstanding a 100-year flood. He also says at one time he thought he’d lose a lot of money, but now he is happy that he will just be “losing less.”

Remaining Room Tax Funds Distributed

12/02/08 - The Beaver Dam city council last night approved a series of resolutions last night awarding most of the remaining money in Diminishing Room Tax Fund. The fund was established to promote tourism and development in the city. In 2003, revenue started to dry-up after a contract change redirected the hotel tax revenue to the Beaver Dam Area Development Corporation and the Chamber. The council approved requests by the Beaverland Must Skis, the Chamber and the Women’s Affiliate. $833 would be left in the Room Tax Fund.

Horicon Woman Charged with Child Abduction

12/02/08 - A Horicon woman accused of abducting her non-custodial child has been formally charged. Lori Eberle faces 12-and-a-half years in prison for allegedly taking the girl to Michigan, where she was apprehended following a missing child alert. The 43-year-old had a signature bond set at $1000 and a preliminary hearing scheduled for December 18.

BD Woman Charged With Jewelry Theft

12/02/08 - A Beaver Dam woman is accused of pawning over $10,000 in stolen jewelry. Nicole Kuhn first told authorities she found the jewelry in a school parking lot, and then later changed her story to implicate a former boyfriend. The items were taken from a Town of Westford home in May. The 29-year-old is charged with Theft of Movable Property and Receiving Stolen Property – both felonies. If convicted, Kuhn could be sentenced to 7 years in prison, plus and additional 4 to 8 years because she is a repeat offender. A signature bond was set at $1000 with a preliminary hearing scheduled for January 22.

Watertown Man Headed to Prison

12/2/08 - A Watertown man has been sentenced to over four years in prison for his role in a large cocaine ring. Federal Judge Barbara Crabb of Madison gave 34-year-old Will Bryant 52 months for conspiring to possess cocaine with the intent to distribute. Authorities said Bryant and others handled hundreds of drug-related calls between July of 2006 and June of this year. Judge Crabb approved wire-taps in February – and four months later, Bryant and eight others were arrested.

BD School Board Discusses Possible Detention Basin

12/2/08 - The Beaver Dam School Board held another discussion about giving the city of Beaver Dam permission to construct a stormwater detention basin near Jefferson Elementary to help improve stormwater flow in that area. Superintendent of Schools Don Childs says by law the stormwater utility must charge people whose water runs-off because they have to treat it before returning it to the watershed. The utility would pay for the construction and maintenance and, in return, the school district would receive a 33 percent credit on its stormwater bill for that property, or a savings of about $860 per year. The board will vote on the plan at their next meeting later this month.

Country in Recession Since December

12/2/08 - The National Bureau of Economic Research now says we’ve been in a recession all year. So does that mean we’re getting out of it soon? Not according to Wisconsin analysts. Michael Knetter, dean of the U-W Madison business school, expects the Gross Domestic Product to move upward again in the middle of next year. And that’s only if the new Obama administration restores confidence for both consumers and the financial markets. Fox Point economist Clare Zempel agrees the economy has been softening all year – but the big drop came in September, when the Lehman Brothers investment house collapsed. A recession is defined as two straight quarters of falling economic activity. The government says we’ve reached that – but the research bureau uses more exact data to conclude that the recession actually started last December. Experts say this could be the longest downturn since the Great Depression. Milwaukee investment officer Sara Walker says investors realize it won’t end quickly, as all three major stock markets dropped another seven-percent yesterday.

Humane Society Still Trying to Place 300 Dogs from Markesan Puppy Mill

12/2/08 - The Wisconsin Humane Society is handling more dogs than expected from a former puppy mill in Markesan. Spokeswoman Angela Speed said many of the initial 12-hundred dogs were pregnant. So after the final dogs from the Puppy Haven kennels arrived last week, the total grew to about 16-hundred. The society already found new homes for about 12-hundred pets. Thirty were euthanized, because they were in poor health and could not be treated. That leaves about 300 still available for adoption. Speed believes there are more folks who want the kennel dogs. The Humane Society bought out Puppy Haven earlier this year. Speed says similar groups have done the same thing in Pennsylvania. But they were operating illegally, while the Markesan kennels did not violate the law. Still, Speed says the case shows that Wisconsin has weak oversight regulations – and state lawmakers should strengthen them in the next session.

Prisoner Van Overturns on Highway 49

12/2/08 - A Milwaukee County Sheriff’s van transporting prisoners was involved in a rollover accident yesterday morning in the Town of Leroy. Dodge County Sheriff Todd Nehls says the van carrying the inmates was traveling on Highway 49 near County Road Y when the Milwaukee County Officers driving the van lost control, left the road, and rolled over. The four prisoners in the van sustained minor injuries. The men were being transported to the Dodge Correctional Institution in Waupun.

Expect a Ticket

12/2/08 - If you lose control of your vehicle while traveling slippery roads this winter expect to get a citation for “Driving Too Fast for Conditions.” Dodge County Sheriff Todd Nehls says if you can’t control your vehicle, you’re simply driving too fast. Nehls says anyone who fails to maintain control of their vehicle and enters a ditch or strikes another vehicle will be given a citation, which carries a fine of more than $180 and four demerit points against your driver’s license.