News – March 21, 2016

Dodge County Board District Eight Candidates Interviewed

 

3/21/16 – The two candidates for Horicon’s District Eight seat on the Dodge County Board disagree on how to use county sales tax dollars.  Incumbent Richard Greshay and Challenger Holly Millard recently appeared on WBEV’s Community Comment.  Last year, the Dodge County Mayor’s Consortium began asking the county for a portion of its half-a-percent sales tax revenues to use for local infrastructure and beautification projects.  Incumbent Richard Greshay says distributing funds among all county municipalities would be unfair to the smaller townships and villages who would not see enough money to complete any major projects that are needed.  He says the funds are being put to good use by the county in paying for roads, infrastructure, and the Clearview rehabilitation facility.  Challenger Holly Millard believes municipalities should be able to submit proposals to the county board for specific projects and receive funds if the board gives approval.  The sales tax was put in place two decades ago to pay for the county jail and has since been expanded to cover general county projects.  Throughout March, candidates in contested local races will appear on WBEV’s Community Comment.  District Nine hopefuls Stephanie Justmann and Douglas Schultz will appear on today’s program at 12:35 pm.

 

Listen To The Community Comment Interview:

 

Richard Greshay:

https://clyp.it/rqawo4k4

 

Holly Millard:

https://clyp.it/vf1s52hr

 

Walker Undecided On Presidential Endorsement

 

3/21/16 – Governor Scott Walker remains uncertain whether he’ll endorse one of the four remaining G-O-P candidates for president in the Wisconsin primary that’s 15 days away. Candidates are courting the support of Walker, who was among 17 Republican White House hopefuls when he became the first to leave the race last September. At the time, Walker said other candidates should withdraw so a conservative alternative could emerge to the party’s front-runner — who was and still is Donald Trump. Almost 20 other G-O-P governors are up this fall, and C-N-N says Democratic governors are trying to get their Republican counterparts off the fence by starting a new website today to highlight their positions. Walker is not up for re-election as governor until 2018, and he has not said whether he’ll run again.

 

Garrow Pleased With District Audit Findings

 

3/21/16 – First-year Fall River Schools’ Superintendent Mike Garrow has seen to completion two separate audits of the district’s books.  Fall River schools have had four different administrators in the past six years. Garrow asked for the audits when he came aboard as superintendent last summer. The recommended internal and external audits were completed in late February.  The results of the two audits have led to changes in the district’s record keeping process. Garrow says the audits seem to indicate that the district is in good financial condition.

 

Wisconsin River Falling At Portage

 

3/21/16 – The Wisconsin River is falling at Portage, which was hit the hardest after heavy rains-and-snow caused flooding throughout the state. The river crested yesterday (Sunday), but eight roads were still closed at last word and residents were still picking up sandbags. Roads have up to one-foot of flood water, but officials say the river is receding faster than expected and should be below flood stage sometime tomorrow (Tuesday).

 

Beaver Dam Police Conducting Training At High School

 

3/21/16 – The Beaver Dam Police Department is conducting firearms training at the high school today. Chief John Kreuziger says there will be a lot of emergency vehicles around the campus and a couple dozen officers coming in and out of the building as part of the drill.  As part of the exercise, officers will be using simulated ammunition. There will be different scenarios be conducted throughout the day and depending on the scenario, Kreuziger says there may be some loud noises around the campus. The training at Beaver Dam High School will run from 10am until 4pm.

 

Weather Spotter Class Tonight At Beaver Dam High School

 

3/21/16 – A free weather spotter class will be held Monday night in Beaver Dam. Dodge County Emergency Management Director Amy Nehls says the class is for anyone interested in learning more about thunderstorms and tornados, or even becoming a trained weather spotter volunteer. The class will be taught by officials with the National Weather Service and will cover beginner, intermediate and advanced concepts. Nehls says even if you have attended seminars in the past, new information can be gathered by attending. She says recent budget cuts have led the National Weather Service to eliminate the live presentations in some counties but the Beaver Dam class attracts some of the state’s largest crowds. No pre-registration is required for the free, two-hour training seminar which begins at 6:30pm tonight at the Beaver Dam High School Auditorium.

 

Columbus Man Ticketed For OWI Following Injury Accident

 

3/21/16 – A Columbus man is accused of injuring a passenger in a drunk driving accident. The wreck occurred early Sunday morning on County Road T in the Town of Elba. The Dodge County Sheriff’s Office responded to reports of a car that ran into a sign shortly after 2:30am. The 25-year-old was pulled over a short time later near Highway 60. The passenger refused medical treatment by EMS. The driver was ticketed for first offense Operating While Intoxicated.

 

Homan: ‘Waupun Finishes Dream With Championship Win’

 

3/21/16 – The Waupun High School boys basketball team “finished the dream” over the weekend, taking home the gold trophy in the WIAA Division Three Championship with a buzzer-beating defeat of Appleton Xavier at the Kohl Center. This was the Warriors first trip to state since 1927 and its first state championship win. For six-foot-eight senior Colton Homan says the victory is for the whole community. He noted the teams over the years who advanced to sectionals and came within a point or two of state. “There’s a lot of good teams that have gotten so close,” he says, “the win was for more than just the 2015-2016 Warriors, it’s for all the players before us and the community who rallied around us all.” The Warriors led most of the way Saturday and were up by eleven with less than five minutes on the clock. Xavier came within one point of tying but a missed free throw with two seconds left, clinching the win for Waupun. “It was unreal,” Homan says, “but also a sad moment knowing I would never play in front of Warrior Nation again.”  Homan’s motto this season has been “finish the dream,” and that mantra was adopted by the whole community. On Friday, t-shirts with his saying were printed up in Waupun and sent to Madison. He says it was so great to have the whole community rally around them.  Homan and most of Waupun’s starting lineup started playing together in second and third grade. When asked what he tells those kids now, Homan says basketball can provide so many positive, life-changing opportunities that if you love it, don’t ever give up.

 

Loether Encourages Alice Candidates To ‘Enjoy The Moment’

 

3/21/16 – The six candidates for this year’s 69th Alice in Dairyland were announced Friday in Waterloo.  Jenna Braun of Mayville, Victoria Horstman of Sparta, Kristin Klossner of New Glarus, Ann O’Leary of Evansville, and Emily Selner and Joanna Wavrunek, both of Denmark, are vying for this year’s crown.  The current Alice in Dairyland, Teyanna Loether, says the contestants should take things one step at a time to avoid getting flustered.  As Alice, Loether says she has to plan her schedule days and weeks ahead of time due to all of the job’s components.  Loether also encourages the six women to enjoy each moment.  She says meeting people throughout the state is the best part of the position.  Loether says being publically announced as a finalist is a nerve-filled time with seven weeks of public appearances and professional development looming but also an exciting time since the candidates can finally tell their family and friends.  This year’s selection process wraps up with three days of interviews and events May 5 through 7, culminating with the announcement at Watertown High School on May 7.