Top Stories, December 7th

LSD Residents Target 2011 Borrowing

12/7/10 - The Beaver Dam Administrative Committee last night discussed funding for 2011 Capital Improvement projects and approximately two dozen residents of Lake Shore Drive were on hand. Property owner Jim Kirsh said the street selection process is flawed as there is no rating system to determine which streets need to be done first. Alderwoman Lisa Davidson says the $1.7 million project from Oneida to Denning should be stopped because public opinion demands a fundamental redesign that would require the city’s other committee, Operations, some time to digest.

Operations Committee Chair Laine Meier defends the process and told us the quality of the street is only one of many important factors that dictate when a street is placed in the multi-year cycle of street repair. Other factors include pedestrian and vehicular traffic and the amount of money the city is able to borrow in any given year, which he says could dictate whether one large project is selected or three small ones.

Mayor Tom Kennedy told the Administrative Committee that he is concerned that the community cannot afford a $1.7 million dollar project and says it can be held off one, two or even five years. Meier tells us delaying the project even one year could push it out of the five-year Capital Improvements Plan entirely because there are planned city projects tied to state projects that would need to be done first.

Administration Committee Chair Don Neuert says they have to fund projects that are critical and he finds it very difficult to support a borrowing plan that includes projects that constituents don’t want done to them. He called a Committee of the Whole session for January to discuss capital borrowing with the entire council.

Council Holds Minute of Silence for Gassen

12/7/10 - The Beaver Dam Common Council had a minute of silence prior to last nights meeting in honor of fallen soldier Jacob Gassen. The Beaver Dam-native was one of six soldiers killed in an attack by a border policeman in an eastern province of Afghanistan last Monday. Mayor Tom Kennedy read from a prepared statement. He said it was his honor to be in attendance at the Madison airport yesterday (Mon) morning with the immediate family, military personnel, city police, fire department staff and state and county law enforcement officials for the return of the casket carrying Jacob’s remains. Kennedy says it’s the “sacrifices of those like Jacob Gassen that bind our community and fellow man together.” Visitation will be at the Murray Funeral Home Wednesday from 3pm to 8pm and again on Thursday from 10am until 12:30pm at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Horicon. Funeral Services will follow at 1pm at the church. Gassen was a 2008 graduate of Beaver Dam High School and spent a year at U-W Oshkosh before enlisting. A memorial fund has been set up in his name by other members of his graduating class.

Autopsy Complete in Fatal Rollover

12/7/10 - The autopsy has been completed on the woman who died in a fatal accident in the city of Beaver Dam late last month. Dodge County Medical Examiner PJ Schoebel says 22-year-old Diamond M. Avalos of Beaver Dam died as the result of blunt force trauma to the head. Avalos was killed in the one vehicle rollover on the 400 block of North Spring Street. 19-year-old Guadalupe Rodriguez Jr. of Beaver Dam was seriously injured and airlifted to UW Hospital in Madison. Authorities say their car was traveling southbound on North Spring Street when the driver went through the Mackie Street stop light, lost control around the curve and rolled over. Authorities have not said who was driving. Beaver Dam Police Lt. John Kreuzinger told us on WBEV’s Community Comment Friday that the incident is still under investigation by his department and the Dodge County Crash Investigation Team. Kreuzinger said additional details have not been released because authorities do not want to jeopardize the investigation.

Teen Charged With Residential and Business Burglary

12/7/10 - A Horicon teen is charged with burglarizing a Mayville home and business. 17-year-old Cory J. Fredericksen and a juvenile friend are accused of breaking into the friend’s grandfathers’ house in May and stealing a cell phone, pills and keys to the grandfathers business. The two are then said to have gone to the business and stole cash. The teens used the stolen cell phone and police were able to use that to connect them to the crime. Frederick had a signature bond set at $1000 yesterday and he’ll be back in court next month.

Meredith Arraigned in Five Year Old Burglary

12/7/10 - A Beaver Dam man, implicated in a burglary from 2005, entered a “not guilty” plea at arraignment yesterday (Mon) morning. Blood found at the scene of the Elm Street break-in was connected to Kodey B. Meredith 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 20-year-old broke into the garage of the home in Beaver Dam and stole a wallet with cash and credit cards. Meredith is charged with a felony count of Burglary and misdemeanor Theft and Criminal Damage To Property. If convicted, the charges carry a maximum 14-year prison term.