Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Top Stories, December 2nd

Quad-Graphics To Close Virginia Plant

12/2/10 - One of Dodge County’s largest employers is closing a plant in Virginia as part of an ongoing effort to consolidate its operations in the Badger State. The Quad-Graphics plant in Fredericksburg Virginia will shut down by the end of January. About 300 people work there – and Quad says they’ll be offered help finding new jobs, including those at other Quad facilities. The company is a leading printer of retail advertising and magazines – and most of the equipment and operations at the Fredericksburg plant will be moved to other plants in Quad’s direct-mail division. The company bought the Virginia plant in 2006. Its long-term consolidation is expected to add 13-hundred jobs in Wisconsin.

Columbus Council Rejects EMS Draft Agreement

12/2/10 - Columbus has appointed a new Ad Hoc Committee to look at the future of Ambulance Services in the area. The current Ambulance contract with Life Star EMS will expire at the end of 2011. Representatives from Columbus and the surrounding seven townships have been working on an agreement that would propose a new EMS “District.” Mayor Bob Link and the Council have rejected a proposed EMS intergovernmental agreement draft because of the suggested representation on the Board that would manage the District. Mayor Link has appointed Council Members Dave Bomkamp, Bill Bruns, and Paula Schuman to serve on an Ad Hoc Committee that will look into scenarios for providing EMS services in the Columbus area. The Council Members will be soliciting input from City residents and township representatives to draft recommendations for Council action.

Back-To-Back Gas Leaks in BD

12/2/10 - There were two separate, back-to-back gas leaks in Beaver Dam Wednesday. The first one happened at 8:15am on the 300 block of North Lincoln Avenue. Deputy Fire Chief Matt Christian says a private contractor working in the street terrace hit the gas line with a backhoe. Alliant Energy arrived just before the fire department and the scene was cleared in about a half hour. The second gas leak occurred just after 10:30am on the 1800 block of North Spring Street when employees with Fleet Farm hit a gas line in their warehouse. Efforts by the employees to turn the gas off at the main resulted in a broken valve. Alliant responded and the scene was cleared in about an hour. Fire officials tell us they can’t remember the last time they had two gas leaks in the same month, let alone the same morning.

Alice in Beaver Dam: Lindner Goes Back To School

12/2/10 - Wisconsin’s 63rd Alice in Dairyland recently paid a visit to South Beaver Dam Elementary, the school she attended as a child. Christine Lepple-Lindner of Fall River talked agriculture with students in the same fourth grade classroom where she met the state’s 46th Alice in Dairyland, Angela Corbin-Tuthill. The Beaver Dam-native says meeting Alice in person was a big moment, leading her to the FFA, a degree in Ag Journalism from UW Madison and a job as the state’s agricultural ambassador. Lindner says she hopes the fourth graders she spoke with will make Wisconsin agriculture a priority in their lives and she is encouraging all eligible woman to apply to be the state’s 64th Alice in Dairyland. More information is available at www.aliceindairyland.com.

Feds Recognize Officers In Gang Arrests

12/2/10 - Federal immigration officials are commending a dozen police officers and prosecutors for their efforts in arresting members of a violent Madison street gang. One of the 12 members with the Chicano Pride and C-14 gangs was tracked down and arrested at a residence in Beaver Dam in August. It was part of “Operation Community Shield,” a federal campaign targeting illegal aliens in criminal street gangs. The gang members – all Mexican nationals – were rounded-up this summer in connection with the death of Antonio Perez, who founded the Madison branch of the Los Angeles-based gang. The suspects were all charged with administrative immigration violations and are being processed for deportation. Nine members of the Madison Police Department’s Crime Prevention and Gang Unit and three individuals with the US Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Wisconsin were recognized this week for their roles in the operation by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office of Homeland Security Investigations.

Kratz Denied DOJ Representation

12/2/10 - The state Justice Department says it will not defend former Calumet County District Attorney Ken Kratz in a federal lawsuit against him. Stephanie Van Groll of Merrill filed the lawsuit a week after Kratz resigned in October, claiming that he violated her constitutional rights. Kratz admitted sending 30 racy text messages to Van Groll in 2009, as he prosecuted her ex-boyfriend for domestic abuse. Once that word got out, four other women complained that Kratz did similar things to them. He asked the attorney general’s office to represent him in Van Groll’s lawsuit – but Justice officials said Wednesday they would not do so.

Walker To Keep Inauguration Overage

12/2/10 - Governor-elect Scott Walker says he and the State Republican Party will keep any excess money that’s raised for his inauguration on January third. Jim Doyle donated his excess funds to the Boys-and-Girls Clubs in each of his two inaugurals. Private donations are used instead of tax money for the traditional inaugural ball and related events. Walker spokeswoman Jill Bader says it’s no different than any other political fund-raiser. She said all donations must be made public, and there will be nothing to hide. Walker’s campaign plans to keep 25-percent of any excess donations – and 75-percent would go to the state G-O-P. In Doyle’s second term, about 676-thousand dollars were raised for his inaugural at the beginning of 2007 – and about half of it ended up being donated.

No comments: