Top Stories, October 13th

Waupun Looking to Keep Tax Levy the Same


10/13/10 - Taxpayers in Waupun could see a decrease in their mill rate for 2011. That was the word from City Administrator Kyle Clark who says he’s been directed to put together a budget with a zero-percent increase to the tax levy. City Council members got their first look at the budget last night, and Clark says keeping the levy right around $2 million is doable. The total operating budget is around $7 million, which is up about $200,000 over this year. Clark says if there is no increase to the tax levy he anticipates residents mill rates would actually go down.

Tax Rates in Columbus Up Slightly

10/13/10 - A reduction in the tax levy for Columbus residents is likely. That was the word last night as the city council got their first look at the 2011 budget. The preliminary figures show a tax levy of $3,015,000, or about $43,000 less than this years. Officials say the decrease is based, in part, on a $6-million drop in property values. While the tax levy may go down, the current numbers indicate a small increase in the mill rate. City Administrator Boyd Kraemer says they expect a rate of $8.22 per thousand, a two-cent jump from this year. More work on the budget is expected in the next six weeks prior to the public hearing, and the subsequent vote on its approval.

Gun Hunt in CWD Zones Begins Tomorrow

10/13/10 - A four-day gun hunt begins tomorrow in much of southern Wisconsin, in places where chronic wasting disease was found. It’s an antlerless-only hunt. The state D-N-R is trying to stop the spread of C-W-D by reducing the number of does in the infected areas – where hunters must take antlerless deer before they can shoot bucks. By taking a doe now, officials say a hunter can qualify early to take a buck in the regular seasons later this fall. This applies to about nine-thousand square miles in the C-W-D-zone in the southern part of the state.

Governors Unveil Job Creation Plans

10/13/10 - The fall elections are three weeks from yesterday – and the candidates for Wisconsin governor are zeroing in on their plans to create jobs. Republican Scott Walker is scheduled to speak to female leaders today, where he’ll explain his plan to create a quarter-million jobs in the Badger State and cut taxes on small businesses. Meanwhile, Democrat Tom Barrett will visit south central Wisconsin including Janesville. His campaign said Barrett would take about his plan to replace the 180-thousand jobs the state lost during the economic downturn, and cutting state spending by a billion dollars. Walker and Barrett still have two more debates. The next one is on Friday night in Milwaukee.

Career Resource Center Open To Community

10/13/10 - There is a free service in Beaver Dam for job seekers who need more help in finding employment. The Beaver Dam School District’s Community Career Resource Center is open to the public after school. Resource Specialist Laurel Lunde (lund) says there has been no increase in usage of the center since the economy went south, so she wants to get the word out about the program. Lunde says there are a wide variety of resources available for the public to help in a transition to a new job. There are 25 computer terminals with internet access, resume-building software, videos, self-assessment surveys, searchable information databases and a library of resources on career choices, and post-secondary education. The Community Career Resource Center is open to the public Monday through Thursday from 3:30pm to 7pm. It is located on the first floor of the Beaver Dam High School.

One Injured In Two-Vehicle Wreck

10/13/10 - One injury was reported following a two-vehicle accident in Beaver Dam yesterday (Tue) afternoon. It happened just after 3pm at the intersection of West Mill and South Center streets near the Kraft Foods Plant. A 67-year-old Beaver Dam woman was transported from the scene to the Beaver Dam Community Hospital.

Esten Memorial This Weekend

10/13/10 - A memorial service for the former president of Wayland Academy will be held this weekend at the school. Robert Esten, who stepped down in July after more than 8-years on the job, died early Monday at UW-Hospital in Madison surrounded by his family. A 1964 graduate of Wayland himself, Esten served as President and Chief Operating Officer of the Fox River Paper Company and was a senior partner with the Phoenix Consulting Associates before returning to Wayland in 2002. In an interview with us this spring, Esten said that during his time as President he was most proud of a new writing program he initiated that he felt gave students an upper hand when entering college. Under his leadership, the population of Wayland Academy jumped dramatically going from 153 students to 240, while the school’s endowment tripled. In a press release, the Chair of Wayland’s Board of Trustees, Susan Peterson, said (quote) “Bob’s passion for the Academy was unparalleled – especially against the background of generations of the Esten family devoted to Wayland.” A memorial service for Esten will be held this Saturday at Wayland Academy starting at 11am. Esten was 64.

Man Charged In 2005 Burglary

10/13/10 - A Beaver Dam man has been implicated in a burglary from 2005. The 20-year-old would have been a juvenile when the Elm Street break-in occurred. Blood found at the scene was connected to the suspect after a routine search of the DNA Data Bank at the State Crime Lab. His DNA was collected following a recent felony conviction for Fleeing and Eluding Police. According to the criminal complaint, the suspect broke into the garage of the home in Beaver Dam and stole a wallet with cash and credit cards. He is charged with a felony count of Burglary and misdemeanor Theft and Criminal Damage To Property. A signature bond was set at $1000 and a preliminary hearing is scheduled for late next month. If convicted, the charges carry a maximum 14-year prison term.

Another Car Crashes Into Lake Winnebago

10/13/10 - An 85-year-old woman died Tuesday morning, after being the third person in the last week to drive her car into Lake Winnebago in Neenah. A passer-by saw the car floating in the water about 4:15 a-m. Rescue divers pulled the Neenah woman from her vehicle as soon as they got there. She did not have a pulse, and rescuers tried to revive her with C-P-R – but she died after arriving at a Neenah hospital. Her name was not immediately released. Neenah Police Chief Kevin Wilkinson said it would have been very difficult for the woman to drive into the lake on purpose. He said car jumped a curb, missed a utility pole and a park bench, drove between two wood pilings six-feet apart toward a boardwalk, and then plunged into the water. Wilkinson said the woman was apparently going 20-to-25-miles-an-hour at the time. The chief also said he didn’t know what to think about the recent rash of crashes into Lake Winnebago at Neenah. A driver was fleeing police in the first incident, and a 34-year-old man died in the second incident. Officials have not said whether the man’s death was an accident or a suicide.

DNR Seeks Water Quality Feedback

10/13/10 - The state D-N-R is looking for help in gathering data about Wisconsin’s water quality. Officials want information that state residents have about rivers, lakes, and streams as it prepares its next water quality report for the federal government. The D-N-R says it would like all types of data, but it’s especially interested in newer information collected since 2005. Officials say about two-thousand volunteers take part in monitoring efforts for Wisconsin streams – and one-thousand other people monitor the state’s lakes. Local governments and universities also collect water quality data. To learn more about how to help, you can go to the D-N-R’s Web site, accessible at Wisconsin-Dot-Gov.

Absentee Ballot Information

10/13/10 - Groups that mail personalized absentee ballot applications to voters should not include the voters’ phone numbers and birth dates. That’s what state elections’ administrator Kevin Kennedy said yesterday, when it was learned the Republican Governors’ Association sent out applications with personal data all filled in. The voters were told to just drop off the documents at their clerk’s offices and vote early. And they were given a sales pitch that attacked Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Barrett. Kennedy said the mailings are legal but they provide, quote, “no end of consternation to voters and elected officials.” About 25 voters and clerks complained to the state’s Government Accountability Board that the Republicans were getting a little too personal. Kennedy says there’s no law that requires a phone number or a birth date on an absentee ballot application – so it’s okay to leave those off. It wasn’t too many years ago when those things were public records. But that was before the identity theft era. And the accountability board now releases voters’ data without birth dates, phone numbers, and other personal info. But groups have no trouble buying those from commercial data firms.

Mugger Helps Victim Find Glasses

10/13/10 - La Crosse Police said an alleged mugger asked his victim if it was a bad idea to rob him – and he ran off and robbed somebody else. It happened last Wednesday night. According to police, a student at Viterbo University was punched by a man who was following him. And the attacker tried to jump on the victim’s back and asked quote, “Is this a bad idea?” The student told the attacker to answer his own question, asked the suspect his name, and told him go get some sleep. But a short time later, police said the suspect grabbed a backpack from a 25-year-old man. The victim refused to give up cash and his I-Pod, and he was pinned to the ground and had his I-Pod stolen. But before running away, the attacker apologized to the victim – and he stayed around to help the man find his eyeglasses that were knocked off. Police apparently got an excellent description. They picked up the man two nights later while he was out walking. He’s due in court tomorrow on possible charges of disorderly conduct and robbery.

Screech Faces Foreclosure Again

10/13/10 - For a third time in the last four years, actor Dustin Diamond is having a property foreclosed. Diamond played the character “Screech” in the 1980s situation comedy “Saved by the Bell.” TMZ-dot-com is reporting Wells Fargo Bank filed on his home in Ozaukee County. The bank says he owed more than 290 thousand dollars. The bank says it wants a payment of 278 thousand dollars from the actor immediately.