4th Quarter: A review of the top news headlines for October, November, and December 2023
OCTOBER
October 4: SMALL FIRE IN HEATING UNIT CLEARS SCHOOL: A small fire in one of the Glenwood City School buildings rooftop heating unit cleared staff and students out of the school building for just under one hour on September 27th. There were no injuries reported and just a little smoke was reported in the school building.
TRIAL RESCHEDULED FOR RIVER FALLS MAN ACCUSED OF CHILD SEXUAL ASSAULT IN BOYCEVILLE: The trial for a 38-year-old River Falls man, Derek P. Johnson, charged with the sexual assault of a child in Boyceville that was scheduled to begin the last week in September has been rescheduled to January.
CWD DETECTED IN 62 OF STATE’S 72 COUNTIES: Representatives for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources say that Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) is present in 62 of the state’s 72 counties.
Either deer have tested positive for CWD in those 62 counties or a deer has tested positive within 10 miles of a county, said Jasmine Batten, DNR Wildlife Health Section Supervisor
October 11: AREA FREEMASONS MAKE DONATION IN SUPPORT OF WISCONSIN STATE PATROL’S PUBLIC SAFETY MISSION: An initial donation of sixteen (16) “Emergency Jump Bags” was presented to an officer of the Wisconsin State Patrol in Baldwin yesterday October 5, 2023. Wisconsin Freemasons plan to immediately donate 57 of these bags to State Patrol officers around the state this year with a pledge to continue the donations until all 500 State Patrol vehicles are equipped with these life-saving devices.
BOYCEVILLE NATIVE, LUCAS MINOR, SERVES ABOARD NAVY FLOATING AIRPORT – U.S.S. DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER : Petty Officer 2nd Class Lucas Minor, a native of Boyceville, Wisconsin, is one of more than 5,000 sailors serving aboard the self-contained mobile airport, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Minor graduated in 2011 from Boyceville High School.
TWO MEN DROWNED IN ST. CROIX RIVER: The bodies of two men, Demetrius A. Kekedakis and Perry D. Montpetit, both of Hudson, have been recovered from the St. Croix River after both apparently drowned while boating near Troy Beach.
October 18: GC POLICE CHIEF CONSIDERS HIMSELF “SMALL TOWN POLICE OFFICER”: Glenwood City Police Chief Joel Klatt has worked in law enforcement for nearly 20 years and considers himself “a small town police officer.”
Police Chief Klatt began his duties in Glenwood City in September of 2022 as a patrol officer and then accepted the position of police chief in April of this year.
DOG PARK GRAND OPENING SCHEDULED FOR OCTOBER 29: At the October 16 regular meeting of the Glenwood City Council, Riley Unruh reported that the Grand Opening for the city dog park would be on Sunday, October 29th from 12-3 p.m.. There will be an opening ceremony followed by ribbon cutting. There will also be treats and a free tennis ball for the all the dogs that visit during the grand opening.
BSD RANKS THIRD FROM THE BOTTOM IN SPENDING: The Boyceville school district ranks third from the bottom for school spending — 418th out of 421 school districts in the state.
But just because the Boyceville school district does not spend as much money as other districts does not mean Boyceville does not have the same kind of expenses.
October 25: DC BOARD REVIEWS PRELIMINARY $92.5 MILLION BUDGET FOR 2024: The Dunn County Board has reviewed a preliminary budget for 2024 of $92.5 million, which compares to the 2023 adopted budget of $92.6 million.
DUNN COUNTY WATER TESTING SHOWS NEARLY 12 PERCENT OF WELLS AT OR ABOVE 10 MG/L FOR NITRATE: Dunn county’s program to test nearly 1,000 water wells shows that nearly 12 percent of those wells are at or above 10 milligrams per liter for nitrate.
The average nitrate contamination in Dunn County is 4.1 mg/L, said Heather Wood, Dunn County water resources specialist.
FIERY INTERSTATE 94 CRASH KILLS TWO: At least two people are dead following a fiery mutli-vehicle crash that occurred late Monday afternoon, October 23 in the westbound lane of Interstate 94 at the Wilson exit (mile marker 28) in St. Croix County.
NOVEMBER
November 1: BOYCEVILLE SCHOOL BOARD APPROVES PROPERTY TAX LEVY OF $3.34 MILLION: The Boyceville Board of Education has approved a total property tax levy of $3,342,879 for the 2023-2024 school year.
The property tax levy approved at the October 25 meeting compares to a total property tax levy of $3,541,686 presented at the school district’s annual meeting on October 11.
CVTC DISTRICT BOARD APPROVES DECREASE IN TAX RATE FOR 2023-24: Chippewa Valley Technical College approved a decrease in the 2023-2024 tax rate from 71 cents per $1,000 of valuation to 66 cents. This decrease is attributed to the increase in new construction and property values.
BULLDOGS CAGE CARDINALS, CAPTURE 30-0 SHUTOUT WIN IN LEVEL 2 FOOTBALL PLAYOFF: Level 2 of the Division 7 WIAA football playoffs pitted Boyceville against a familiar foe in Spring Valley. The old adage dictates “it’s hard to beat the same team twice”, and Boyceville expected a dogfight in the Friday, October 27 contest.
However, the clash didn’t materialize as the Bulldogs held a strong Cardinal offense to less than 200 yards and cruised to the 30-0 victory on a cool night in front of a warm, receptive home crowd.
November 8: FREEMASONS BUILD BED FRAMES FOR DUNN COUNTY’S CARIN SHELTER IN MENOMONIE: A group of local Freemasons put their carpentry skills to work recently by building bed frames for a new Dunn County homeless shelter.
Stepping Stones, an organization located in Menomonie, offers services to homeless and low income families and individuals. They will open the new shelter, called Carin Shelter, next week.
DUNN COUNTY RECEIVES $900,000 GRANT TO ENHANCE FAMILY TREATMENT COURT: Dunn County has received nearly $900,000 from the federal government to enhance services it offers through its Family Treatment Court.
The county recently learned that a three-year grant for $896,784 had been approved by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. The term of the grant is Oct. 1, 2023-Sept. 30, 2026.
COUILLARD SOLAR FOUNDATION PROVIDES GRANTS FOR NON-PROFITS TO INSTALL SOLAR ARRAYS: The Couillard Solar Foundation provides grants to non-profit organizations in Wisconsin, including municipalities, to install solar arrays to generate solar-powered electricity.
November 15: SCC BOARD APPROVES $125.4 MILLION BUDGET FOR 2024, $45.1 MILLION TAX LEVY: The St. Croix County Board has approved a budget of $125,365,036 for 2024, representing an increase of $5,058,844, and a property tax levy of $45,104,414.
St. Croix County ranks number three among the 72 counties for net new construction and is one of the fastest growing counties in Wisconsin, said Ken Witt, county administrator, at the St. Croix County Board’s November 7 meeting.
BOYCEVILLE VILLAGE BOARD VOTED TO VACATE ALLEY: During their monthly board meeting on Monday evening the Boyceville Village Board voted to vacate an alley. They also opted to table discussions about winter parking, village employee vacation time and how to create a new lot.
ONE DEAD FOLLOWING 2-VEHICLE ACCIDENT IN DUNN COUNTY: One person is dead following a two-vehicle accident in Dunn County Monday evening, November 13 in the Town of Elk Mound.
November 22: BOYCEVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT HIRES CONSULTING FIRM: The Boyceville Community School Board approved the hiring of an engineering consulting firm during its November 15 regular meeting held in the high school/middle school Instructional Materials Center.
STEPPING STONE’S CAIRN HOUSE, HOMELESS SHELTER OPENS IN MENOMONIE: An open house was held on November 14 for Cairn House, the new 20 bed homeless shelter owned and operated by Stepping Stones, a non-profit organization located in Menomonie.
WRONG-WAY DRIVER DIES IN I-94 CRASH: A wrong-way driver died when the vehicle she was driving collided head-on with a semi-tractor trailer in the eastbound lanes of interstate 94 near the Hammond exit Friday evening, november 17.
The deceased has been identified as 26-year-old Rylee C. Greene of Hammond.
November 29: GC SCHOOL BOARD APPROVES ROOF REPAIRS: Under the only action item on its November 27 meeting agenda, the Glenwood City school board accepted a work proposal to replace a portion of the roof located at the main entrance to the high school.
THIRD GENERATION OF TREE GROWERS CONTINUE TRADITION AT CONKLIN TREE FARM IN WHEELER: “We’re well connected with the soil,” said third generation Christmas Tree Farmer, Cathy Bauer as she and her crew bustled around the farm getting ready for their busiest month.
Cathy owns and operates Conklin Tree Farms along with her husband Adam Bauer and their five children who range in age from 12 to 22.
BOYCEVILLE VILLAGE BOARD DEBATES OVER WASTEWATER: Pat Morrow, an engineer at MSA Professional Services said a major confounding factor in the planning process is whether Ohly will expand or not. Currently Ohly uses resources for wastewater treatment equivalent to a city of 12,000 residents. If they do a proposed expansion, they would use an equivalent of 250,000 residents, said Morrow.
DECEMBER
December 6: BOYCEVILLE SCIENCE OLYMPIAD EARNS TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS AT 17TH BOYCEVILLE INVITE: The Boyceville Science Olympiad program hosted their 17th Annual Invitational Tournament this past weekend with Division 2 team championships at both the middle school and high school levels.
MENOMONIE COMMUNITY COMES TOGETHER TO BUILD A TWIN HOME FOR TWO FAMILIES: The Menomonie community comes together to build a twin home for two families on Brickyard Road. The “Faith Build” and “Women Build”, as this twin home is referred to, will receive a Ground Blessing, this Sunday, December 10, 2023, at 1:00 p.m.
GLENWOOD CITY WRESTLERS DOMINATE, WIN SECOND STRAIGHT JOHN TIMM DUALS TITLE: The Hilltopper wrestling squad delivered a dominate performance in winning its own John Timm Memorial Dual Invitational here last Saturday, December 2 for the second straight year.
December 13: ST. CROIX COUNTY BOARD VOTES AGAINST APPEALING JUDGE’S DECISION GRANTING A REZONE FOR HIDEAWAY LLC: The St. Croix County Board will not be seeking an appeal which could reverse a judge’s decision that reversed the county board’s decision in June to deny a rezone request for Hideaway LLC to operate in Commercial 3 district along the Apple River in the Town of Somerset.
In other words, the application for a rezone from Mike Kappers and Hideaway LLC has been approved.
BOYCEVILLE VILLAGE BOARD APPROVES BUDGET FOR 2024: The Boyceville Village Board met on Monday evening with board members Jonathan Farrell and Brad Stevens absent and approved a budget, levy limit and a fine and fee schedule for the upcoming year.
The 2024 budget predicts a little over $1.5 million in total expenses and revenues.
RED CEDAR RIVER WATER QUALITY PARTNERSHIP REPORTS NUMEROUS STRIDES TOWARD IMPROVING WATER QUALITY: Phosphorus levels in the Red Cedar River are declining, lake groups are working hard to address local issues at their lakes, farmer-led groups are implementing best management practices, and counties and agencies are helping others to address runoff/water quality issues on farms and other managed lands. All these efforts can lead to improved water quality in the Red Cedar River and its lakes. According to the 2022 Annual Report from the Red Cedar River Water Quality Partnership
December 20: SEEKING $18 MILLION IMPROVEMENT PROJECT: BOYCEVILLE SCHOOL BOARD PLANNING FOR APRIL REFERENDUM: The Boyceville School Board met last Wednesday evening and were updated on how preparations for the upcoming April referendum are coming along by Luke Schultz, Associate Director of Facilities Management Services for CESA 10.
ST. CROIX COUNTY CRASH CLAIMS LIFE OF BOYCEVILLE WOMAN: A two-vehicle accident that occurred on State Highway 128 in Springfield Township last Friday evening has claimed the life of a Boyceville woman. 39-year-old Jessica L. Peterson died in the crash.
ALICE IN DAIRYLAND VISITS GLENWOOD CITY SCHOOLS FOR ANNUAL DAIRY DAY: Ashley Hagenow, the 76th Alice
in Dairyland, attended the second annual Glenwood City School District Dairy Day last week where she spoke with students about Wisconsin agriculture.
December 27: BOYCEVILLE AMBULANCE ACHIEVES SERVICE WITH 2 EMTS 98 PERCENT OF THE TIME: In the month of November, the Boyceville ambulance service achieved 24-7 coverage with two EMTs all but 2 percent of the time.
The 2 percent of the time with one EMT on duty amounted to 12 and 3/4 hours, said Wayne Dow, director of the Boyceville ambulance service, at a meeting of the Boyceville Community Ambulance District Board on December 13.
GC SCHOOL BOARD MOVES FORWARD WITH HVAC PROJECT: At their committee and board meetings held back to back on December 18, the Glenwood City School Board discussed a facilities maintenance report and how to best distribute donated funds to the food service. They also approved going forward with an HVAC project and the purchase of cameras for four buses.
15TH TRAFFIC FATALITY RECORDED IN ST. CROIX COUNTY: The St. Croix county emergency communication center received a call at about 8:28 p.m. On December 23, 2023, reporting a single vehicle crash in the 2300 block of 90th ave, Baldwin Township.
The driver of the vehicle was identified as Lavonne S. Hampton, age 58, from Baldwin, WI.
