Top Stories June 25th

WBEV-WXRO Children’s Radiothon Goes Over $1M


6/25/10 - The 13th annual WBEV / WXRO Children’s Radiothon raised more than $108,000 for seven agencies within the stations’ listening area, and in doing so went over the $1 million mark in the fundraiser’s history. The Radiothon began at 6 a.m. yesterday and finished up this morning at 9 a.m. Money was raised in a variety of ways including an on-air auction and the 2nd Annual Noel’s Angel Walk. With the totals from this year’s event, the Radiothon has now raised nearly $1.04-million.

Metalcraft Employees to Strike

6/25/10 - After two rejected contract proposals earlier this month, workers at Metalcraft in Mayville plan to go on strike beginning July 1st. Members of the International Association of Machinists Local 2053 voted down a contract proposal on June 5th and again on June 22nd, both by healthy margins. Officials say the major issue with the contract is that insurance deductibles would be four times higher than they currently are. They are also concerned with wages, vacation-time language, and the attendance policy. According to the union, the current contract states that an automatic extension will continue until either party gives a five day termination notice, which the company issued yesterday. IAM Local 2053 represents about 1,000 employees at four companies, including more than 250 at Metalcraft.

Lowell Seeks to Build New Wastewater Facility

6/25/10 - A proposed new wastewater treatment facility in Lowell would cost the average customer 30-dollars more per month. That’s according to the Wisconsin DNR, which is asking for comments from the public regarding the impacts of the proposal. The village is seeking approval for the new facility because, while their current one is meeting present standards, it’s well beyond the intended 20-year design life. The DNR says a new treatment facility is further needed to provide sufficient capacity for the current and future sewage flows from the community, and to ensure compliance with current design code and effluent discharge standards. The new facility would be located on land immediately to the east of the current stabilization pond with the treated discharge still flowing into the Beaver Dam River. The estimated cost for the project is just less than 2.5-million-dollars with annual operation and maintenance cost of about 32-thousand-dollars. The village will apply for a federal grant and low interest loan to help finance the project. The DNR says based on comments received, they may prepare an environmental analysis before making a decision on whether to allow the project to go through. For contact information you can visit our website wbevradio.com.

Falling Concrete Kills One, Injures Two in Milwaukee

6/25/10 - A concrete slab has fallen off part of a parking garage in Milwaukee, killing one person and injuring two others. Police had not released the names of the victims overnight. The collapse happened Thursday afternoon, and involved about a 30-foot block of concrete. It happened at the William F. O'Donnell parking garage, just a few blocks away from Milwaukee's summerfest, which was beginning its 11-day run yesterday. The two victims who were not killed were taken to separate hospitals, but the extent of their injuries wasn't known.

DPI Looking to Revamp State Funding

6/25/10 - The head of the state Department Public Instruction is calling for a broad restructuring of the funding formula used to determine how much state aid schools receive. The proposal unveiled by DPI Superintendent Tony Evers in Madison Thursday calls for a fair and practical change to the framework of school funding, without relying on massive property tax increases, cutting budgets, or eliminating educational programs. A primary component of Evers’ proposal is shifting a $900 million Levy Tax Credit into general school aids. The fund currently goes to property owners, but Evers says the money could be used to replace levy increases passed by many districts each year. Because of revenue controls, he says schools districts would likely need to reduce the size of their levy. Evers also wants to calculate aid based on student poverty, instead of just using property tax values. He says far too many schools in the state have a high number of students who qualify for free and reduced lunches, an indicator used to measure poverty in schools. However, he says many of those same districts receive little or no state aid because property values are too high. He says there should be a minimum level of state aid provided for every student in the state, regardless of where they live.

Obama to Visit Wisconsin Next Week

6/25/10 - President Barack Obama plans to visits the Badger State next week. The President is scheduled to be in southeastern Wiscosnin next Wednesday. The location or time of the visit hasn't been revealed yet. Obama is expected to return to Wisconsin planning to discuss the economy. His last visit to the state was in November when he stopped at a Madison school to talk about education reform. He was in Green Bay last summer to talk about his plans for the health care reform package that passed since then.

Milwaukee County Board Censures Member

6/25/10 - Members of the Milwaukee County Board say they rely on the privacy of closed-session confidentiality to conduct frank discussions and get things done. That's why some board members say they voted to censure Supervisor Lynne De Bruin for disclosing the closed-session comments of a county official. Behavioral health administrator John Chianelli had made controversial comments about mixed-gender wards at the Mental Health Complex. De Bruin revealed he had said housing female patients with aggressive male patients would result in sexual assaults, but at a lower level of violence than was found on all-male wards. He called that a "trade-off." No member of the board has been censured for decades. Supervisor Peggy West said it would be hard to get anything done if what was said in closed session could be breached for what West called "some political gain."

WI Resident’s Money Remains in Washington Mutual Bank

6/25/10 - When the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation closed Washington Mutual Bank two years ago, it deposited about a half-million dollars in the state's unclaimed property account. It belonged to customers who had held accounts in the bank. Much of that money is still sitting there, unclaimed. The state treasurer's office reports there are about 83 hundred accounts belonging to Wisconsin customers. One account holds more than 58 thousand dollars. Treasurer Dawn Marie Sass says she's trying to spread the word about the unclaimed money -- so its rightful owners can step forward.