text
stringlengths 237
126k
| date_download
stringdate 2022-01-01 00:32:20
2023-01-01 00:02:37
⌀ | source_domain
stringclasses 60
values | title
stringlengths 4
31.5k
⌀ | url
stringlengths 24
617
⌀ | id
stringlengths 24
617
⌀ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
A vacant industrial building in Milwaukee's Harbor District is to be converted into new commercial and office uses under a proposal from its prospective buyer.
Developer Charlie Hutchinson plans to buy the three-story, 24,000-square-foot building, 212 E. Mineral St., and renovate it for new tenants, including some real estate companies he operates.
Hutchinson has filed an application to change the building's zoning from industrial to commercial. That request will undergo Plan Commission and Common Council review.
Hutchinson said his plans are still in the early stages.
"It's a fantastic spot for a brewery," he told the Journal Sentinel on Tuesday.
Hutchinson is founder of Houseworks Collective, a Wauwatosa-based residential real estate agency.
The building, which includes a basement that Hutchinson plans to redevelop, was sold in 2021 for $660,000 to Denmark HD LLC, led by Mark Lathers.
Lathers' initial development plans included a brewery. But the COVID-19 pandemic delayed his purchase of the property, and those plans didn't materialize.
Constructed in 1915, the building lies within the emerging Harbor District.
Other nearby developments include Wantable Inc.'s new headquarters, at 909 S. Barclay St.
Hutchinson's other projects include redeveloping a commercial building at 5710 W. Vliet St.
|
2022-10-04T17:22:49Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Vacant Milwaukee Harbor District industrial building to be redeveloped
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/real-estate/commercial/2022/10/04/vacant-milwaukee-harbor-district-industrial-building-redeveloped/8175435001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/real-estate/commercial/2022/10/04/vacant-milwaukee-harbor-district-industrial-building-redeveloped/8175435001/
|
Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson Tuesday called for creating more audits for future elections to restore public confidence that voting results are accurate.
"Just have snap audits where you go in and you do a complete audit," Johnson said during an appearance at the Rotary Club of Milwaukee. "You take a look at paper trail, you look at the voter logs and take the paper ballots and you audit that against the results of what the machine is telling you."
Johnson, who has called for tightening election laws after the 2020 election, suggested performing audits without advance notice in a certain number of precincts and likened the process to a business auditing petty cash as a signal to root out any potential fraud.
"This isn't rocket science," said Johnson, who is running for a third term against Democratic opponent Mandela Barnes. "I think it's pretty easy to restore confidence."
The state routinely performs random audits in line with what Johnson is suggesting but does not do snap audits.
"You don't just walk in and hand over ballots," said Ann Jacobs, a Democratic appointee to the Wisconsin Elections Commission. "I think people would lose their minds if that is what is going on."
Jacobs said there are rules governing audits, including who is permitted to do the task and ensuring the safety and security of the ballots.
"We've been increasing the number of audits each election cycle and we've found it to be very successful," she said.
More:Here's how Wisconsin certifies votes for final election results — and how to verify that your in-person vote was counted
During his appearance, Johnson weighed in on a variety of topics, from the national debt to the legislative push to codify same-sex marriage.
He defended his votes against the American Rescue Plan COVID-19 relief bill and an infrastructure bill, two significant legislative accomplishments of President Joe Biden's administration.
"I'm actually proud of voting no on trillions of dollars in spending. Somebody has to," Johnson said. "The greatest threat to government benefits, the greatest threat to our economy, to jobs is the debt crisis. Let's just see how the economy is going to proceed with 8.5% inflation. I have been predicting stagflation for well over a year because I'm from the private sector."
After originally declaring he saw "no reason to oppose" a bill to oppose a bill to codify same-sex marriage, Johnson has said he would not support the Respect for Marriage Act in its current form.
Johnson argued codifying same-sex marriage is unnecessary and that it's "scare tactics."
"The only way I would support a bill like this is if we have very strong protections for religious liberty," Johnson said. "What I've seen so far right now is that it's not strong enough."
|
2022-10-04T17:22:55Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Ron Johnson calls for 'snap audits' of voting results in elections
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/10/04/ron-johnson-calls-snap-audits-voting-results-elections/8174866001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/10/04/ron-johnson-calls-snap-audits-voting-results-elections/8174866001/
|
Steve Booth's first reaction when he walked into a meeting where he learned he'd been selected the Harvard Business School Club of Wisconsin's business leader of the year was that there had to be someone else more deserving.
"As I thought about the talent in that conference room full of Harvard MBAs that they might have made a mistake, or maybe there was someone else that they might have missed," Baird's chairman said to the roughly 350 business leaders who gathered at the Pfister Hotel Monday night for the annual award dinner presented by the Harvard Business School Club of Wisconsin.
But as he thought about it, he said, he recognized the award was an opportunity to share how Baird's growth and success are a product of strong leadership teams and committed employees who have helped Baird to annually achieve record results, even during the pandemic. In 2021, the investment firm had $415 billion in customer assets under its management.
"Our success begins and ends at Baird with our now nearly 5,000 colleagues who are delivering for our clients each and every day," Booth said.
"We're not in the business of selling widgets. We're in the business of providing advice. We do that one client in one transaction and one investment solution at a time."
Cory Nettles, founder and managing director of Generation Growth Capital Inc. and a member of Baird's mutual funds board, said that success and accolades like Baird's consistent selection as a top place to work in Wisconsin flow from Booth's "relaxed and disarming" leadership style that "leaves room for everyone to express their divergent points of view before he makes his own decision.
"Steve has had to shepherd Baird over the last few years through some pretty turbulent times and through crises that few leaders at Baird before him had experienced," Nettles said. "And while steering Baird through these choppy business, economic and socio-political times, Steve has proven quite adept at calming the most anxious colleagues, while continuing to preside over Baird's astounding success."
More:Baird CEO Booth discusses inflation, labor shortage and how to be a good leader
Amy Lindner, president and CEO of the United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County, said that those traits carry over into Booth's and Baird's philanthropic efforts.
Booth is a member of the United Way board and last year the company donated more than $3.5 million to the United Way, a $500,000 increase over the previous year.
"Steve both individually leads and lifts other people up," she said.
While their leadership styles differ dramatically, Booth's commitment to supporting the community is a continuation of similar efforts by his predecessor, Paul Purcell, the recipient of the 2012 Business Leader of the Year award, who died in 2020.
The Paul Purcell "Kids Win!" Baird Education Grants fund, created following Purcell's death to fund nonprofit education organizations with a focus on diverse and lower-income communities, has distributed $1.5 million in its first two years.
Nettles said Purcell and Booth shared a "passion for educating the most challenged children of our community."
"As strong as Steve is as a leader inside of Baird, he certainly shows up as a leader in the community," Nettles said.
|
2022-10-04T19:26:33Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Baird CEO Steve Booth recognized for corporate, community leadership
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2022/10/04/baird-ceo-steve-booth-recognized-corporate-community-leadership/8175633001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2022/10/04/baird-ceo-steve-booth-recognized-corporate-community-leadership/8175633001/
|
After 15 years of budget reductions and an unstable-looking future, Milwaukee’s fire chief announced community meetings in all but one fire station over the next week to educate the public on “the increased risk” it faces.
With budget season in full swing in Milwaukee, the move is unlike any other the city’s Fire Department has made in recent memory. Chief Aaron Lipski, who has long been vocal about the strain that recent budget cuts have put on his staff, said the situation is increasing response times and decreasing service to the public.
“We are aiming to educate the public, elected officials, and any other stakeholders or interested parties as to the very real systemic strain our local fire suppression and emergency medical services have been under and will, given the current and forecasted fiscal climate, continue to be under,” Lipski said in a news release.
The department will host 28 community meetings, with many scheduled simultaneously, beginning Wednesday and Thursday and continuing for two days the following week.
Since 2018, the Fire Department has been forced to close seven fire stations — a 20% reduction. And a more recent breakdown in the local private ambulance industry is forcing the city to provide subsidies to two private companies so they can keep responding to lower-level emergencies.
Mayor Cavalier Johnson’s proposed 2023 budget does not propose closing another station, but it does call for the elimination of one fire engine in January and another in June.
It also calls for pouring $75 million from the American Rescue Plan Act into the Fire Department to replace tax levy funding. Another $5 million in federal pandemic aid provided by the state is expected to be used as subsidies to Bell Ambulance and Curtis Ambulance to continue providing ambulance services for lower-level emergencies.
But federal aid is only a temporary solution for a city that is facing a pension crisis. Johnson’s proposed budget expects pension contributions to jump from $71 million to perhaps $120 million or more in 2023.
Lipski said the community meetings are motivated not just by educating the public but also to “help me leverage the MFD’s position to assist in strengthening the entire county’s and city’s position with Madison to pull a long-term solution into focus.
“I will continue to push for a more equitable relationship, a more sustainable relationship and a more predictable relationship with those we so badly need to help us.”
Here is the schedule for the meetings:
5:30 to 6:30 p.m.:
Station 1, 784 N. Broadway
Station 8, 5585 N. 69th St.
Station 18, 3628 N. Holton St.
Station 35, 100 N. 64th St.
7 to 8 p.m.:
Station 7, 3174 S. Chase Ave.
Station 22, 8814 W. Lisbon Ave.
Station 37, 5335 N. Teutonia Ave.
Station 38, 8463 N. Granville Road
Station 23, 1400 S. 9th St.
Station 24, 4927 W. Fiebrantz Ave.
Station 26, 1140 S. 26th St.
Station 27, 2647 N. Bartlett Ave.
Station 2, 755 N. James Lovell St.
Station 16, 10320 W. Fond du Lac Ave.
Station 36, 4060 N. 27th St.
Station 4, 9511 W. Appleton Ave.
Station 9, 4141 W. Mill Road
Station 11, 2526 S. Kinnickinnic Ave.
Station 21, 2050 N. Palmer St.
Station 34, 6205 W. Burleigh St.
Station 39, 8025 W. Bradley Road
Station 12, 2130 W. Oklahoma Ave.
|
2022-10-04T19:26:39Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Fire chief says public is at "increased risk" from budget constraints
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/04/fire-chief-says-public-increased-risk-budget-constraints/8176487001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/04/fire-chief-says-public-increased-risk-budget-constraints/8176487001/
|
For seven-plus years, the Wisconsin Badgers enjoyed a fair amount of success under head coach Paul Chryst, who departs his post with a 67-26 overall record at UW and a 6-1 mark in bowl games — and the one loss a 1-point heartbreaker in the Rose Bowl.
The Badgers made the surprising announcement that they were parting ways with Chryst after a 2-3 start to the 2022 season, most recently a 34-10 loss against Illinois at home.
Chryst teams appeared in three Big Ten title games, and he was twice named Big Ten coach of the year. Consider these moments among the biggest for UW with Chryst at the helm:
1. The Orange Bowl (2017)
In happier times, one of the lasting visuals of Chryst stems from this game, when the mild-mannered Wisconsin native was caught on camera on the sidelines uncharacteristically taunting Miami's "Turnover Chain" ritual with what we presume was some expletives as Wisconsin soaked in the closing seconds of a 34-24 win over the Hurricanes.
Chryst, ever the picture of humility, even covered his mouth for the final couple of words, just in case the cameras were watching. They were. What we could see was "Turnover chain my (obscured)," but you know what he said, don't you?
It became the endearing grace note to a superb season, a year in which the Badgers went 13-1 and came achingly close to the College Football Playoff before taking a heartbreaking 27-21 loss to Ohio State in the Big Ten championship game. Wisconsin came in as the better-ranked team in the bowl battle, but the game was being played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami's hometown.
The 2017 season included convincing wins over ranked Iowa and Michigan, followed by a 31-0 win in Minnesota to claim Paul Bunyan's Axe headed into the Ohio State game. UW was ranked in the Associated Press top 10 all season.
2. Minnesota in the snow (2019)
The Axe Game already carries monumental stakes to the Wisconsin and Minnesota programs, but it's hard to top when a Big Ten West title between two top-15 teams hangs in the balance. In the Minnesota snow, Wisconsin delivered with an immensely satisfying 38-17 win to move to 10-2 and earn a berth in the Big Ten title game, with Jonathan Taylor rushing for three touchdowns and Jack Coan passing for two more.
3. LSU at Lambeau (2016)
Wisconsin came into the year without a ranking in the AP poll, but that changed quickly.
Opening the season with a doozy — a battle against No. 5 LSU at historic Lambeau Field in Green Bay — the Badgers emerged with a 16-14 victory. Wisconsin forced three turnovers (though committed three of their own, including a pick-six), and pulled away for good on Rafael Gaglianone's 47-yard field goal with under 4 minutes to play. D'Cota Dixon intercepted a pass from Brandon Harris with less than a minute to go after the Tigers had gotten to the Wisconsin 35-yard line.
4. The bowl games
Certainly some bowl games were bigger than others, namely the aforementioned Orange Bowl and the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1, 2020, when Wisconsin was saddled with an agonizing 28-27 defeat against Oregon, but the 6-1 record surely stands out. They include:
The 2015 Holiday Bowl. Gaglianone's 29-yard field goal with 2:27 left tipped the scales in a 23-21 win over USC in San Diego.
The 2016 Cotton Bowl (played in early 2017). Wisconsin knocked off previously unbeaten Western Michigan, 24-16, in Arlington, Texas.
The 2018 Pinstripe Bowl. Wisconsin defeated Miami for the second straight year in a bowl game, this time by a convincing 35-3 score at Yankee Stadium. Jonathan Taylor ran for 205 yards.
The 2020 Duke's Mayo Bowl. In Charlotte, the Badgers overcame an early 14-0 deficit to win handily over Wake Forest, 42-28, and Graham Mertz accounted for three touchdowns (but dropped the trophy) during the strange COVID-19 season of college football.
The 2021 Las Vegas Bowl. Braelon Allen had a monster 159-yard rushing performance and the Badgers took down Arizona State, 20-13, capped off by an 18-play drive that chewed up the final 9:57 off the clock.
5. Dominating Michigan at home (2019)
The Badgers began the 2019 season in satisfying fashion, winning their first six games before a brutal loss at Illinois, followed by a lopsided setback at Ohio State. Part of that early stretch was a convincing win over No. 11 Michigan. The Badgers built a 28-0 lead on Michigan before a national TV audience, with a 312-96 yardage advantage in the first half, then led 35-0 with 5:13 left in the third quarter. Michigan came into the game ranked No. 11, with Wisconsin at No. 13 in the AP poll.
6. Rafa's game winner (2015)
After Nebraska edged ahead of Wisconsin with 3:38 to go, 21-20, Wisconsin's last-ditch effort yielded a 46-yard field goal from Gaglianone as time expired for the thrilling 23-21 win. Joel Stave threw the ball 50 times (24 for 50, 322 yards, touchdown) and Dare Ogunbowale ran for 117, with both making plays in the fourth quarter. Gaglianone had missed from 43 yards and 39 yards earlier in the game but successfully capped a winning drive that started at the UW 30 with 1:03 left and no timeouts.
7. Dominating Michigan State on the road (2016)
The Big Ten opener against Michigan State represented the start of a daunting schedule, but UW confidently traveled to play the No. 8 team in the country and won handily, 30-8. It was just the fourth time the Badgers had multiple wins in a season over top-10 programs (since the win came three weeks after the LSU win). The No 10 Badgers won behind redshirt freshman Alex Hornibrook, making his first college start, and the defense forced four turnovers. T.J. Watt had 2 ½ sacks.
8. Jonathan Taylor vs. Purdue (2018)
The Badgers were sliding after three losses in the previous five games, then found themselves on the ropes against unranked Purdue at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette. But Wisconsin scored twice in the fourth quarter to force overtime, then battled to a triple-overtime, 47-44 victory that finally ended on Jonathan Taylor's 17-yard touchdown run — his third score of the game and second in overtime. All told, he racked up 321 yards on just 33 rushes. Danny Davis also caught two touchdowns, including a game-tying circus snag in the sloppy conditions, and Wisconsin racked up 545 yards while also yielding 462.
9. Ogunbowale wins it in overtime vs. Nebraska (2016)
Eleventh-ranked UW welcomed in No. 7 Nebraska to Camp Randall for a night game, and Wisconsin held on to win in overtime on Dare Ogunbowale's 11-yard run for a 23-17 victory. UW went into the fourth ahead, 17-7, but Nebraska clawed back to tie with 3:43 left. Ogunbowale was credited with 120 rushing yards, and Corey Clement added another 82. Dixon broke up a pass on fourth down in the end zone to solidify the outcome, especially important since UW's Andrew Endicott had missed the extra point (and a field goal at the end of regulation). The Badgers became the first Big Ten team since Michigan in 2003 to defeat three top-10 teams during the regular season.
10. Graham Mertz's debut (2020)
Certainly the trajectory of Mertz has had its ups and downs since, but Mertz Mania achieved a quick fever pitch when the highly regarded recruit opened the COVID-shortened season as the starter in place of injured Jack Coan and delivered in a big way. Mertz completed 20 of 21 passes for 248 yards and five touchdowns in a 45-7 win over Illinois in empty Camp Randall Stadium. He tied a UW single-game passing touchdown record.
|
2022-10-04T19:26:57Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
The biggest Wisconsin Badgers football moments under Paul Chryst
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/04/biggest-wisconsin-badgers-football-moments-under-paul-chryst/8169809001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/04/biggest-wisconsin-badgers-football-moments-under-paul-chryst/8169809001/
|
There is a case to be made that Daulton Varsho is the best defensive outfielder in Major League Baseball.
The 26-year-old Wisconsin native, patrolling both right field and center field for the Arizona Diamondbacks, sits atop the Statcast leaderboard for Outs Above Average (basically a metric that scores players on the likelihood of making a play). He's tops in defensive runs saved among outfielders, too. And then there's the twist.
Anyone who has followed the former UW-Milwaukee player's path knows what it is. Varsho came to the big leagues as a catcher and has still been behind the plate for 30 games this year with the Diamondbacks. But in his third big-league season, he's not just a multi-positional curiosity, but an elite one.
"I take pride in being a great defensive player," Varsho said Monday before batting leadoff and playing center field for the D-Backs against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field. "It's pretty cool that my skills have kind of parlayed more to being an outfielder, defensively. Being able to take a lot of reads in the outfield for BP is kind of what I've done to try and get really good at it.
"(Arizona first-base coach) Dave McKay here (has helped) and my dad has had some resources to help me out on footwork positioning and seeing what I need to do to get better."
The work helps him get as good a jump on fly balls as anyone in the game.
"The Gold Glove means a lot to me," Varsho added. "I would really, really like to get one eventually in my career. If it's this year, it'd be great; if it's the years to come, it is what it is. All I can do is be prepared and play the position hard like I can."
The native of Chili, Wisconsin, near Marshfield hasn't been all defense this year, though the Brewers are already well acquainted with his ability in the outfield after he ran down a Tyrone Taylor drive in Arizona on Sept. 4. Varsho also hit his 20th homer in that game and entered the season-finale series with 27, good for second on the team. On Monday, he drove in a go-ahead RBI in extra innings, only for the Brewers to rally back and win, 6-5.
In his first truly full season at the big-league level, he's batting .239 with a .754 OPS. That coupled with his defensive contributions gives him a team-best 5.2 WAR according to Baseball Reference, ahead of even Christian Walker (36 homers, 5.1 WAR) and Cy Young candidate Zac Gallen (2.46 ERA, 5.0 WAR).
"When I was kind of doing both (catching and playing outfield) early on, it was kind of (about) being able to control my workload and understanding what my body can take," Varsho said. "Now being a full-time outfielder it's a little different; I can do a little bit more while just being able to prepare every game (in the outfield)."
Varsho hasn't appeared behind the plate since July 24 and hasn't started there since June; the unusual dual-threat ability of playing catcher and center field may not get used to its full capacity much longer. He experimented beyond the catcher position at UW-Milwaukee and in the Northwoods League when he played in Eau Claire, but he didn't start playing outfield professionally until Class AA baseball in Jackson, Mississippi.
School years in Marshfield were interrupted by long trips to spring training
Varsho's father, Gary, appeared in eight MLB seasons from 1988-95, playing for the Cubs, Pirates, Reds and Phillies, but shortly after Daulton was born, Gary was named manager of the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, then affiliated with the Seattle Mariners.
The Rattlers made the playoffs both years before Gary moved on to the Phillies organization, where he moved up the chain to become the big-league club's bench coach from 2002-06 and even served as interim manager in 2004.
"I just remember being in the clubhouse with some great Phillies at that time: Jim Thome, Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino, Kenny Lofton, Chase Utley ... there were so many great Phillies at that point," Daulton said. "It was just great being around those guys, learning a little bit and try to take it all in and understand how cool the lifestyle is and see how special it is."
Varsho was named after former Phillies catcher Darren Daulton, with whom Gary Varsho became close during his playing days.
Varsho's school years were chaotic once Gary returned to the big leagues as a coach. He would start school in Marshfield (also where Gary attended high school), fly to Florida for spring training and attend school there for two months, then fly back home for the end of school before returning to Philadelphia for the summers.
"It was kind of a different upbringing a little bit, but it was pretty cool to be able to do that and be around guys in the clubhouse and my dad that much," Varsho said.
Gary Varsho continued pro scouting until 2021 before returning to Wisconsin. Daulton's sisters, Andie (softball at Purdue) and Taylor (basketball at Colorado State before transferring to Sioux Falls) both had excellent athletics careers as well, and Taylor (Marshfield's all-time leading scorer) became Marshfield's head girls basketball coach in 2018.
Daulton didn't follow in his father's footsteps to play baseball at UW-Oshkosh, however, instead heading to UW-Milwaukee, where he became a second-team All American and starred for three seasons.
"I love football, so those are kind of my two main sports, but I knew with my size I wasn't really going to pursue much after high school with football because those boys are a little bigger than me," the 5-foot-10, 207-pound Varsho said "My dad didn't push any position on me, so it's pretty cool that I could choose myself.
"I chose UW-Milwaukee just because I liked (coach) Scotty Doffek. ... A lot of other coaches didn't want me to catch because they said I was too small and didn't have an arm for it. He trusted me to be the player that he thought I could be."
For now, Varsho is the only UW-Milwaukee player to have made the big leagues, but he hopes that changes soon. Fellow Marshfield graduate Trevor Schwecke reached Class AAA with the Toronto Blue Jays organization this year, and former Germantown standout pitcher Brian Keller reached Class AAA with the Red Sox organization.
As part of a bumper crop of Wisconsinites at the MLB level, Varsho regularly crosses paths with fellow National League West player Gavin Lux, a Kenosha Indian Trail alumnus whose Dodgers are among the favorites to win the World Series this year.
"He's put up some really good numbers for the Dodgers, trying to make himself an everyday guy over there," Varsho said, adding that he works out in the offseason with former Brewers (now Rays) pitcher JP Feyereisen of River Falls and often chats with Menomonie's Terrin Vavra, now with the Orioles.
|
2022-10-04T19:27:09Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Marshfield native has become elite MLB outfielder for Diamondbacks
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/04/marshfield-native-has-become-elite-mlb-outfielder-diamondbacks/8166631001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/04/marshfield-native-has-become-elite-mlb-outfielder-diamondbacks/8166631001/
|
MADISON – On Sunday morning, Jim Leonhard and the other Wisconsin assistant coaches were hip-deep in their weekly routine of reviewing the previous game.
A few hours later, Leonhard was introduced as UW’s interim head coach, given the responsibility of trying to settle a struggling team that had just been throttled by Illinois and was 0-2 in the Big Ten and 2-3 overall.
Monday came the beginning of the healing process and preparations for a critical game at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Northwestern (1-4, 1-1).
Perhaps the No. 1 item on Leonhard’s to-do list was addressing the emotional state of the players, many of whom were stunned and upset to learn Chryst had been fired five games into his eighth season as UW’s head coach.
“Absolutely a huge concern,” he acknowledged. “We have emotional guys. These are young guys. Even the staff. I mentioned it in the (Sunday) press conference.
“We’re all here because of what Paul Chryst had done and the trust he had in us. Very emotional on our floor, as well as (for) the players.
“Initially felt like there was very little I could say to this team to handle that emotion in the moment. It hurt a lot of guys. Had a lot of conversations with the team, individual, as units.
“Everyone is going to handle it a little bit differently. I guess my message to the team started yesterday. Let it settle in. Get out of the building a little bit. Let it hurt.”
“Brought them back in for a team workout,” Leonhard said. “Wanted to look them all in the eyes at the same time and just say that a big lesson we’ve got to learn is how to compartmentalize the emotion.
“Not trying to brush it aside. Not trying to make it go away. But we have to be able to focus. These guys have got a ton on their plate. Being able to compartmentalize the emotion of it to get done what you need to do.
“As a staff it is no different. We have to be able to do the same thing. Because kickoff is set. The clock is ticking. We’ve got to find a way to get a win and get things back settled down.”
“I think that is a huge piece,” he said. “I pride myself on being able to sit back and read a room. No different now. Guys are going to hurt in different ways. Some are going to very emotional and then maybe realize they overstepped. You’ve just got to be able to navigate that as a coach and understand it is real. It is there for a reason.
|
2022-10-04T21:21:52Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Badgers balance emotion, preparation after Chryst firing
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/04/badgers-balance-emotion-preparation-after-chryst-firing/8174819001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/04/badgers-balance-emotion-preparation-after-chryst-firing/8174819001/
|
'It’s time to get it done': Jim Leonard is ready for Wisconsin to show growth on the football field
MADISON – Even before Paul Chryst was fired Sunday, the hard conversations that come following two blowout Big Ten losses were being had.
Actually, in some regard they’d probably been had over the last month as the Wisconsin football team dropped three of its last four games.
That is the competitive nature sports foster. When situations go bad, coaches and players look in the mirror, rewatch the game and talk out problems in order to figure out what went wrong and what corrections are necessary.
The challenge now, the way interim coach Jim Leonhard sees it, is to execute those changes.
“The messaging in this building is always very consistent with what we expect, what we demand from our players to hold each other accountable,” he said. “To me it’s time to show it. There is no special talk. There is no players-only meeting. There’s no coaches-only meeting. It’s getting it done at this point.
“We know the issues. We know we have to play better. There is no talking anymore. It’s time to get it done. That is what I’m excited about. It’s the action piece of it.”
Wisconsin’s first chance to turn around its season begins at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Northwestern.
The Badgers (2-3 overall, 0-2 Big Ten) will take the field ranking last in league games in total offense and 13th out of 14 teams in total defense.
On Tuesday, Leonhard addressed some of the issues behind the team's struggles as well as his expectations. Given his role as defensive coordinator, he was more familiar with the issues on that side of the ball as well as more comfortable discussing them.
His strongest comments about the unit's play against Illinois pertained to consistency.
“That game was such a mystery of you call a play, you get the exact same play called against you. One goes for nothing. One goes for a big play for them," he said. "That’s the type of consistency we’ve been dealing with. … Is it a trust factor? Is it eyes? What is the issue? That is where we went on defense. How do we make it as tight as we need to give guys confidence?”
More:The buyout Wisconsin will pay to fired football coach Paul Chryst – from private funds – is much less than it might have been
Related:The biggest Wisconsin Badgers moments under Paul Chryst's head-coaching tenure (including that famous Orange Bowl quip)
Leonhard hesitated to offer specifics on what ails the offense beyond playing cleaner but did express a desire to see that unit, and the team as a whole, to regain some of the characteristics that have been identified with Wisconsin football.
“I think we’ve always prided ourselves on a physical style of play up front," he said. "We’re going to run the ball and play-action. We’re going to work our play-action off of that. To me, I just want clean football. Penalties (in) all phases, we’ve got to clean things up. We’ve got to tighten up what we do if that is what gets it done. We’ve got to demand these guys to be accountable for style of play.
“I think we’ve been getting outplayed and that is why the last two games have ended the way they have. That’s been our calling card. We’re going to out-physical you. We’re going to outplay you. We’re going to see if you’re willing sit in there for four quarters and just battle.”
The good news for Wisconsin is that only one Big Ten West division game has been played. That will give the team plenty of time to make corrections as well as rebound from the emotional toll Chryst's firing has had on some of the players. That has been one of the biggest jobs for Leonhard during his first couple of days in charge of the program.
However, he has also stressed that a great opportunity still is within reach for the team.
“I think that is the huge part of trying to take the emotion out of it,” Leonhard said. “All right guys, take a look at what the big picture is. If we start playing good football we’re OK. We are still in position to reach a lot of the goals that we set at the beginning of the year and you’ve got to take it a game at a time. You have to turn it around.… You string together some games and all of sudden you’re a dangerous team again.”
|
2022-10-04T21:21:58Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Wisconsin interim coach Jim Leonard wants Badgers to show growth
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/04/wisconsin-interim-football-coach-jim-leonard-wants-badgers-show-growth/8174851001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/04/wisconsin-interim-football-coach-jim-leonard-wants-badgers-show-growth/8174851001/
|
Greenfield soccer player hospitalized for months after a hit-and-run crash rejoined his team and scored a goal
GREENFIELD - As Greenfield High School senior soccer player Trevor Le-Morrison wound back his right foot and put the ball in the back of the net on senior night Monday, a sense of familiarity he had longed for months for washed over him.
"I had coach on the sideline, my team right behind me, which made me feel normal," Le-Morrison said. "It kind of warmed my heart."
Normalcy has been hard to come by for Le-Morrison since a May 21 hit-and-run accident left him with two broken femurs, a broken collarbone, fractured vertebrae and brain bleeding, among other injuries. He remained in the hospital until Aug. 11, recovering and re-learning how to walk.
"He has to learn walking stairs, he basically has to learn everything again," Trevor's mother, Oanh Le, said. "He’s doing good at it, he improves daily, his speed is getting faster."
Taking the time to recover from his injuries also meant returning to his role as team captain for Greenfield soccer on the field at the start of the season was not possible. However, with coordination between Greenfield head coach Peter Knebel and Woodland Conference rival Brown Deer, Monday's conference finale for the Hawks provided a full-circle moment for all.
Upon learning of Le-Morrison's story, Brown Deer agreed to stand down on the opening kickoff, allowing him to dribble down the field and score. Greenfield in turn allowed Brown Deer to even the game back at one with a conceded goal once Le-Morrison was subbed out. The Hawks ultimately beat the visiting Falcons 5-2. For fellow Greenfield senior and captain Brandon Vosters, getting to share the field one more time with his friend was a moment he will never forget.
"When (the accident) first happened, I didn’t think I was going to be able to do it again, but then here we are tonight," Vosters said. "I don’t know how to explain it, it was like …I’m just grateful for it to happen, for it to be a possibility tonight."
An outpouring of support for Le-Morrison began from the outset of his recovery, highlighted by financial assistance toward his medical bills through a GoFundMe campaign created by his coach, which has raised more than $40,000. Knebel was surprised to see how far the story and subsequent support reached, especially in the soccer community.
"One of our JV players was on the elevator with the UW-Whitewater head coach," Knebel said. "He said to my player, ‘So tell me about this kid Trevor, is he a good player?’ and my JV player said ‘No, he’s a great player.' That defines who he is and how our program is," Knebel said.
"I hope Trevor knows that he’s loved," Le said. "I hope Trevor knows that everyone’s got his back and has been behind him since the accident."
"They’ve always been there for me, so I know if I can be here, I should be there with my team to motivate them and show them that I’m here," Le-Morrison said. "They were there for me, so I was here for them."
|
2022-10-04T21:22:04Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Greenfield soccer player scores again after hit-and-run car accident
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/high-schools/2022/10/04/greenfield-soccer-player-scores-again-after-hit-and-run-car-accident/8167393001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/high-schools/2022/10/04/greenfield-soccer-player-scores-again-after-hit-and-run-car-accident/8167393001/
|
In one of the least surprising news developments of the season, centerfielder Jackson Chourio has been named the Milwaukee Brewers' minor-league player of the year for 2022.
Right-hander Carlos Rodríguez, meanwhile, is the organization's minor-league pitcher of the year.
In 99 games split across Class A Carolina, advanced Class A Wisconsin and Class AA Biloxi, Chourio hit .288 with 20 home runs, 75 runs batted in and 16 stolen bases while compiling an OPS of .879 at just 18 years of age.
His campaign – his first full-season experience as a professional – has also led to Chourio becoming one of the top minor-league prospects in baseball. Baseball America ranked him second overall in early August.
"Love him," said Wisconsin manager Joe Ayrault. "Just unfazed by a lot of things. We had autograph seekers coming throughout the year but when he showed up, it was just lines. People were out there waiting at 8 o'clock in the morning.
"Very impressed with him."
Chourio began the season at Carolina and in 62 games hit .324/12/47/.973, ultimately earning a spot in Major League Baseball's Futures Game in July, a showcase for the top young players in the game that precedes the All-Star Game.
He was then promoted to Wisconsin and as the youngest player at the advanced A level he hit .252/8/24/.805. Chourio finished his season with a six-game stint at Biloxi.
How rare was Chourio's performance?
He is just the fifth player since 2006 to hit 20 or more homers in his age-18 season while playing exclusively in full-season leagues, with Fernando Tatis Jr. and Giancarlo Stanton two of the players on that list.
"I saw him take a 100 mph, 3-0 pitch over the left-center field wall," Ayrault recalled. "I'm pro 3-0, and whack! He didn't cheat to get to it. Just short, compact (swing). Then a week later we were getting no-hit in Peoria, guy threw him a first-pitch breaking ball and he takes it out upper level in center.
"It was like, 'What the heck is going on here?' Then he can run, he can throw, he can play defense. He's a good one."
Ayrault was asked, considering Chourio's vast natural talents, what stood out most to him.
"Hit tool," he said. "Every time he came to the plate, he was a threat to do something. No matter what the pitcher had. We had scouting reports on guys. In the same game he hit the homer on 3-0 at 100, there was a reliever on their team that was throwing 99 to 102.
"The day before he asked how hard the guy threw. We told him 102 and he goes, 'I want to hit off that guy.' No fear. After he hits the 3-0 bomb, that guy comes in to pitch and, whack! Base hit off 101, a rocket to left.
"It's just like, wow. At 18, to face premium stuff like that, it was impressive."
Like Chourio, the 20-year-old Rodríguez began the season at Carolina and graduated to Wisconsin in his first full season of professional baseball.
He was actually markedly better at the higher level, finishing 3-1 with a 1.98 earned run average and WHIP of 0.94 in seven starts with 45 strikeouts in 36⅓ innings.
In 26 appearances overall (20 starts), Rodríguez finished 6-5 with a 3.01 ERA and WHIP of 1.06 while striking out 129 in 107⅔ innings.
He also limited opposing batters to a collective .198 average.
Whereas Chourio signed with the Brewers as an international free agent at age 16, Rodríguez was a sixth-round pick out of Florida Southwestern State Junior College in 2021.
A three-pitch pitcher, Rodríguez may be best now with his changeup while sitting between 93 and 94 mph with his fastball. He also throws a slider.
|
2022-10-04T23:08:09Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Jackson Chourio named Brewers' top minor-league player for 2022
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/04/jackson-chourio-named-brewers-top-minor-league-player-2022/8174865001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/04/jackson-chourio-named-brewers-top-minor-league-player-2022/8174865001/
|
The Delafield Arts Foundation is fundraising for a stage at Liberty Park in Delafield
The idea has been on the foundation's radar since 2016. The pandemic pushed plans back, but now the foundation is officially fundraising for a stage they hope to build on the north side of the park, 901 Genesee St., abutting St. John's Northwestern Academies.
"The park is big enough where it can handle this many people, but it’s also small enough so you get some intimacy surrounded by the Bark River and the trees," said Jim Reiher, foundation president. "With the trails, the parking lot, and the access to downtown and the rest of the city that is a walking community, it really sets it up well for having a stage and hosting events.”
A stage would be the latest development in the city along the Bark River. The park was cleared of buckthorn about six years ago thanks to efforts from the Friends of the Bark River, which Reiher is also a member of.
Reiher said that the plan is to be on par with stages in Mequon, Cedarburg and Wauwatosa that are "more than a bandshell."
"If you’re around long enough, you want a legacy that is going to outlive you. You want something there 20 to 30 years from now that the community is proud of and still using," Reiher said. "This will be a stage that can cater to many different acts and something we want the community to be able to use whether that’s a student theater production or bringing in concerts in the summer."
"This is another supplement to keep the city all natural with another way and reason to access and appreciate the river and the park," Reiher said. "As long as this is incorporated and this doesn’t become a mini-mall or a dog park, we will make sure this is an accessible, public park. This is the beauty of Delafield. To have a park right downtown, a stage would only complement what we have already."
Reiher said so far he has received support for the project from the parks and recreation commission, the plan commission and the common council. If built, it is believed that the foundation would maintain and operate the stage. The city does not have a parks and recreation department.
“Not one negative thing have I heard about this,” Reiher said. “We have broad-based support for it. Now, it’s a question of getting to the next stage and working with the city to get the right people to build it and then operating in conjunction with the city to maintain it.”
|
2022-10-05T13:30:02Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Delafield Arts Foundation is fundraising for a stage at Liberty Park
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/lake-country/2022/10/05/delafield-arts-foundation-fundraising-stage-liberty-park/10449714002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/lake-country/2022/10/05/delafield-arts-foundation-fundraising-stage-liberty-park/10449714002/
|
'Fighting the forces of nature every day': Pagel's Ponderosa Farmstead cheesemaker revels in the challenge
Cheesemaker Ben Shibler can’t pass up a good cheese curd. He’s never met a cheese he won’t try. Mozzarella whips are always a temptation, and he’ll splurge for a good aged cheese.
After nearly two decades of cheesemaking in the Green Bay area, he still sees cheese as an endless opportunity for learning. As head cheesemaker at Pagel’s Ponderosa Farmstead and Ron’s Wisconsin Cheese, he has created an array of award-winning cheeses.
This year, Ron’s Wisconsin Cheese received a number of top honors at the World Dairy Expo, including placing first and third for mozzarella string. In the flavored cheese curd category, Ron’s Wisconsin Cheese placed second with ranch curds and third with its garlic and dill. The 2022 World Dairy Expo runs Oct. 2 through Oct. 7 at the Alliant Energy Center, 1919 Alliant Energy Center Way, Madison.
Shibler and his team work at the on-farm creamery envisioned by John Pagel at Ponderosa Farmstead, N4893 County C, Kewaunee. Ron’s Wisconsin Cheese retail store is located at 124 Main St., Luxemburg.
I’ve grown up within 30 minutes of Green Bay my entire life, a Wisconsinite cheesehead. I’ve been in dairy since my first job baling hay for the neighbors at 11 …
I got a degree in forestry and wildlife management. The job market was atrocious that year, and I didn’t want to live at home forever.
There are cheese plants everywhere within an hour of Green Bay. The cheese industry in this area has a reputation for paying well. It is hard work, and they compensate you for it. I got hired at a plant about 20 minutes from where I grew up …
A year later, I landed my first plant manager job at the same company. I was good at it and liked it. Before you knew it, I stayed with cheese and stopped looking for a job with my degree. Now, 18 years later, I’ve been operations manager at Ponderosa Dairy, the legal name is Ron’s Wisconsin Cheese, and head cheesemaker since 2016.
Mastering mozzarella
I’m studying to be a master cheesemaker in mozzarella. It is a three-year process from the time you are accepted to the program, once you’ve been a licensed cheesemaker for 10 years. I’m scheduled to graduate in April 2023. I have one class left to take.
You can’t pick any old cheese; it has to be a cheese you can prove you have been making for at least five years.
First cheese he made
Mozzarella. I got hired at a plant that made mozzarella and provolone. I did those for about a year, then blue cheese and gorgonzola and taleggio, then a couple years mascarpone, ricotta and a little more provolone and mozzarella depending on where the plant was running.
Now at Ron’s the past six and a half years I’ve been doing cheddar, Colby jack, mozzarella, some French raclette, pecorino, parmesan. The last six years have been really fun, getting into some cool stuff.
Why he loves making cheese
I’ve never been the sit-down, studious type. I like to do things with my hands. Cheesemaking fits well with that.
It is not as routine as people think. You're fighting the forces of nature every day. We're taking milk, bacteria and bringing it to different temperatures and concentrations. We’re trying to manipulate it to turn into a cheddar or provolone or whatever, and Mother Nature likes to flex her muscles. You need to adjust on the fly every day. It is part of the skill of cheesemaking.
What he eats in a day
I easily eat over a pound of cheese a day during a shift. We make some of the best cheese curds in the world, we have the awards to prove it. The mozzarella whips, those are snack products, so it is almost too easy.
Can’t live without
The one thing I can’t get enough of is the mozzarella whips. We have a hot pepper jalapeño cheese whip. It is the most addicting thing, a slightly salty snack with that pepper spice note. Oh boy are those good. Then our snow cheddar, our version of a traditional cheddar with some alpine cultures and a nutty sweetness like a parmesan or asiago, that’s pretty addicting when it hits year three or four.
Milk makes the cheese
We’re actually a farmstead cheese operation. … The cheese plant is in the same building as the milking parlor. We don’t transport our milk. It is pumped right into the cheese vats. We’re one of the few places around set up like that.
In six hours or less, I can take something from cow to countertop. The milk I am using for curds and mozzarella whips, it is still in the cow when we turn the lights on and I am putting on my uniform. About 6.5 hours after the cow is milked, I have salted curds ready for retail.
That is on the Pagel’s Ponderosa, a 100% family-owned dairy farm in Kewaunee. We bought Ron’s Cheese, and that facility is in Luxemburg. The cheese we make is transported to them, where they package it. All of it is owned by the Pagel family.
By the number
Each vat gives us 1,000 pounds (of cheese). We run one to three vats per day. We have two big vats and one small one for experiments. That’s what we use when we’re making a change, so we haven’t screwed up the entire production run.
We make anywhere from 8,000 to 10,000 pounds per week. Besides me, there are three other employees in the production plant.
The word on curd
Curds have definitely been the unsung hero for a long time, a hidden gem and best-kept secret. Modern times and technology have helped curds out, too, and the fact we can get better shelf life now with what we know. … I’ve met few people who have had a curd and not thought it was amazing.
Curd he craves
My favorite curd is not flavored, about 10 minutes right out of the vat. There are a handful of people on the planet who get to experience that flavor profile before it gets in the package. It is still good in the package, but it changes fairly quickly. It is unrefrigerated that first day, and you can’t beat that squeak, flavor and texture.
Evolving appetites
There is definitely a shift in what people want. Commodity cheese, like Kraft slices, will always be there because of people and families on a budget. Since I started, artisan cheeses have become much more popular. There is more being made, more being sold, and more pressure to come up with the next thing that has never been done before.
The World Dairy Expo and some of the other contests, it is a good opportunity for small people like us.
If you do win an award, it is a good opportunity for some great exposure and to show people you don't have to be a multimillion-dollar company with a huge research and development budget to be the best. … A small group of people that are passionate and study and research their trade can be just as good as any corporation.
What he still wants to learn
There is so much to cheesemaking I haven’t even touched on. … There are so many varieties of cheese and cultures and ways you can adjust your recipes. The possibilities are almost endless. There are almost over 400 cheeses produced in the state of Wisconsin. You could spend a lifetime and not even learn half of it. I want to learn as much as I can.
|
2022-10-05T13:30:20Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Pagel's Ponderosa cheesemaker loves the challenge, wins world awards
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/life/food/fork-spoon-life/2022/10/05/pagels-ponderosa-cheesemaker-loves-challenge-wins-world-dairy-expo-awards-kewaunee-mozzarella-master/8127752001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/life/food/fork-spoon-life/2022/10/05/pagels-ponderosa-cheesemaker-loves-challenge-wins-world-dairy-expo-awards-kewaunee-mozzarella-master/8127752001/
|
Finding people to participate in the program initially took some work — despite the offer of 10 free meals a week.
“You think that would be enough for them to say, ‘I'm going to finally do something,’” Mahaffey said. “But it's not. It’s just not.”
That may be understandable. Most people know they should eat better or exercise more, and they may have thought that the coaches would nag them or make them feel guilty each week.
Willingness to make changes
People need to be ready to make changes in their life, said Kathy Koshgarian, former president and chief operating officer of the Dohmen Company Foundation and now president and CEO of Food For Health.
“That often is not easy,” she said.
Some of the participants, though, already were working to improve their health.
Pat Lowney of Neenah had lost 65 pounds and was exercising regularly when Common Ground contacted him. He began the program in May of last year and lost an additional 20 pounds.
The program taught him the value of eating healthy as opposed to focusing on losing weight. He learned that he doesn’t get as hungry, for instance, when he includes protein, such as eating a salad with chicken, in his meals.
His favorite meals included whole wheat lasagna, salmon with vegetables and the salads.
“They have terrific salads,” Lowney said. “Their salads are outstanding.”
The coaching has been even more important for him.
“The biggest part has been the encouragement and the feedback,” he said. “That’s been really important.”
Lowney had been on medication for high blood pressure for 10 years. Late last year, his physician dropped the medication. His physician also took him off one prescription for diabetes and lowered the dosage of another. And his cholesterol is lower than it has been in years.
Garvey, too, exercised regularly. But his health coach put him in touch with another coach who also is a fitness trainer. She changed his workouts, reducing the number of reps but increasing the resistance when he lifts weights.
An added benefit of the program Garvey cooks for his parents, and now they are eating healthier.
The Dohmen Company Foundation worked with Food is Medicine Coalition to develop the meals and program.
The organization launched a program to provide technical assistance and training to nonprofit food agencies that were interested in preparing and delivering medically tailored meals to people, particularly to people who have low incomes, who have diabetes, kidney disease, heart failure and other medical conditions.
“We want this to be sort of a pipeline into the Food is Medicine Coalition,” said Jean Terranova, director of food and health policy at Community Servings, a Boston nonprofit that was one of the founders of the coalition.
Community Servings was founded in 1990 by AIDS activists, faith groups and community organizations through the leadership of the American Jewish Congress to provide home-delivered meals to people with HIV/AIDs.
The Food is Medicine Coalition’s goal is to expand access to medically tailored meals nationwide and to have Medicare and state Medicaid programs cover the meals the same way they cover other health care costs.
The coalition’s clinical committee, overseen by an advisory board, has issued guidelines based on tailoring meals for specific medical conditions. Its members must meet standards for nutrition and food quality, nutrition counseling and education, data collection and health care referrals.
Food For Health, the organization started by the Dohmen Company Foundation, became certified in June. It now is one of roughly 30 organizations that belong to the coalition.
The Dohmen Company Foundation has spun out Food For Health as a separate nonprofit organization. That will encourage other foundations and organizations to support the program. It also will enable Food For Health to lobby for Wisconsin’s Medicaid programs to cover medically tailored meals and services.
North Carolina, California, New York and Massachusetts have programs or pilot programs that do that.
Food For Health — which also hopes to contract with health plans to provide medically tailored meals and services — is moving its commercial kitchen from Chicago to Milwaukee. The new kitchen is expected to open in October. It will be able to produce 55,000 meals a week.
The Dohmen Company previously bought Cooked in Chicago and Focused Fork, two companies that prepared and delivered healthy meals. And Adel Korkor donated Salus Corporate Wellness to the foundation. Their operations now are part of Food For Health.
Separately, the Dohmen Company Foundation also has started a for-profit company — the Food Benefit Co. — that hopes to contract with employer health plans to provide healthy food and an array of wellness services, including medically tailored meals, for employees. Profits will go to support the foundation’s philanthropy.
Dohmen transitioned to philanthropy
All this took place after the conversion of the Dohmen Company in 2019 to a so-called philanthropic enterprise in which its profits would support its charitable giving.
The conversion came after the company — founded in 1858 and in its sixth generation as a family-owned business — had completed a string of profitable sales and acquisitions.
They included selling its wholesale drug business to Cardinal Health for more than $100 million 2016, selling Restat, which managed prescription drug benefits, to Catamaran Corp. for $409.5 million, in 2013 and selling its subsidiary that provided services to drug and medical device companies for an undisclosed amount to two private equity firms in 2018.
“It all led to where we are today,” said Koshgarian, who also is president of the Food Benefit Co.
Now its focus is on preventing disease lowering health care costs.
The Food For Health program, she said, shows that with encouragement, support and access to the right food, eating healthy can become part of people’s lifestyle.
For Garvey, the program has been a constant reminder of how to eat well.
He would recommend the program, especially for anyone with diabetes, and he has become a supporter of the idea that food is indeed medicine.
“It’s very much a real thing,” he said.
Annie Mattea reported this story while attending Marquette University and working as a research assistant to Journal Sentinel reporter Guy Boulton. Boulton spent the 2021-22 academic year as an O'Brien Fellow in Public Service Journalism at Marquette University examining the social determinants of health. Angela Peterson is a photojournalist with the Journal Sentinel.
|
2022-10-05T13:30:26Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Common Ground meals program demonstrates the power of food as medicine
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/health-care/2022/10/05/common-ground-meals-program-demonstrates-power-food-medicine/7996258001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/health-care/2022/10/05/common-ground-meals-program-demonstrates-power-food-medicine/7996258001/
|
Cudahy is considering a special election in 2023 to find a new alderman
Cudahy’s Common Council is now short one member after District 3 Ald. Paul Marifke recently moved out of the city.
Marifke, who now lives in Franksville, said he was told his term ended when he officially moved and “became a non-citizen,” which was on Sept. 14. He lived in Cudahy for 12 years.
“I’m no longer allowed to be the alderman,” he said. “I’ve still been answering emails and phone calls and communicating with people’s issues still. I inform people when they call me, ‘just so you know, I’m no longer your alderman’ but I can help you and point you in the right direction.”
Marifke said he wants to stay involved and become a part-time city inspector in Cudahy.
As for who will fill his seat, the city is looking into holding a special election in conjunction with the spring 2023 election. Nomination papers can be circulated as soon as the election is ordered, according to a Sept. 29 city memo. The election order could go out no earlier than Nov. 21 but could come as late as Jan. 3, 2023.
The common council was set to discuss the matter at its Oct. 4 meeting.
Marifke is still listed on the city website as the alderman for District 3 as of Oct. 3. He was elected in April 2021 for a three-year term — his first term in any political office.
“I like helping people out and I figured as long as I lived in the community, with as much as I knew, I figured if I didn’t like something what can I do?” he said. “So, I ran.”
|
2022-10-05T16:39:21Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Cudahy alderman Paul Marifke ends brief political career with move
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/south/news/cudahy/2022/10/05/cudahy-alderman-paul-marifke-ends-brief-political-career-move/8174311001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/south/news/cudahy/2022/10/05/cudahy-alderman-paul-marifke-ends-brief-political-career-move/8174311001/
|
The Elmbrook School District has once again earned top honors from Niche as the best school district in the state of Wisconsin for 2023 — a feat the district can claim for the fourth year running.
The metro Milwaukee area performed very well in the statewide rankings, as it accounts for three of the top five school districts — Elmbrook, Mequon-Thiensville and Whitefish Bay.
The top 10 districts are: Elmbrook, Middleton-Cross Plains, Mequon-Thiensville, Whitefish Bay, Waunakee, Muskego-Norway, Cedarburg, Pewaukee, Shorewood and Greendale.
Niche is an online rankings site that ranks schools, companies and neighborhoods based on data, rankings, reviews, report cards and other factors. Schools are ranked based on their academics, teachers, diversity, college prep, clubs and activities, administration, food, health and safety, resources and facilities and sports.
Elmbrook
In Niche’s nine-category report card the Elmbrook School District earned A+ grades in academics, teachers, clubs & activities, sports, college prep and administration. The district received an A for resources & facilities and food, and its lowest grade came in the diversity category where it received a B.
According to Niche’s database, the district achieved an impressive 97% graduation rate and at least 61% of the district's students will have achieved proficiency in reading, and 68% will achieve proficiency in math. The student-teacher ratio in the Elmbrook School District is 15:1.
“In the midst of several unusual school years, we are proud that our commitment to our students and staff have continued to wield amazing results. This accolade shows the care and importance that our community places on high-quality education for all of our students,” said Dr. Tanya Fredrich, Assistant Superintendent for Teaching & Learning, said in a statement.
Mequon-Thiensville
The Mequon-Thiensville School District stays in the top three in the new rankings as it received an A+ in academics, teachers, clubs & activities, sports and college prep. The district received an A in the administration, food and resources & facilities categories. In what is a trend for the top districts in Wisconsin, Mequon-Thiensville’s lowest grade came in the diversity category where it received a C+.
According to Niche data, the district has an almost perfect graduation rate of 99%, while 67% of the district's students achieve proficiency in reading and 64% achieve proficiency in math. Mequon-Thiensville also offers a 15:1 student-teacher ratio.
“The engagement of our students, staff, families, and community members all play a role in ensuring that each student has the tools they need to achieve success. We are grateful for the partnership of the entire MTSD community,” said district superintendent Matthew Joynt in a statement.
Whitefish Bay School District was ranked fourth in Wisconsin but is the top-ranked District in Milwaukee County. The district was given an A+ for academics, teachers, sports and college prep. The categories of administration, clubs & activities and resources & facilities all received an A. Whitefish Bay’s overall ranking was hurt most by a C+ ranking in diversity and a C- ranking in food.
Niche data puts the graduation rate for the district at 96% and students are achieving proficiency in reading at 68%, and in math at 66%. Whitefish Bay stays one student under the national average as it boasts a 16:1 student-teacher ratio.
Not only was the district ranked high for students, but it also ranked the third best place to teach in Wisconsin. Something district superintendent John Thompson said he takes pride in.
“This is really a recognition of our talented and committed team members. We have a lot of dedicated staff here making sure this is an excellent place and it shows in our motivated and engaged learners. I think it's also a reflection of our supportive families and our supportive community as a whole, so when you put those three ingredients together, that's a recipe for high-quality schools right there,” Thompson said.
Milwaukee area Private schools were also recognized
Brookfield’s dominance in the rankings continued as Brookfield Academy was ranked the best private school in Wisconsin.
Brookfield academy received an overall grade of A+, however, grades for private schools were determined by only six categories. The school earned an A+ in the academics and college prep categories. Teachers and clubs & activities received an A while sports received an A-. Niche was not able to give the school a grade for diversity as it did not have the necessary information to do so.
Niche data shows a perfect 100% graduation rate for Brookfield Academy, and while proficiency cannot be measured by the same standardized tests that public schools take, the average SAT and ACT scores at the school are 1380 and 31. The school also offers a very intimate learning setting with the student-teacher ratio being 9-to-1.
“An important factor in the school’s continued success has been the unwavering dedication to its Mission, ‘to graduate students prepared for college and life, educated in the skills, values, and heritage of responsible, constructive, free people,’" The school said in a statement.
Ranking second, University School of Milwaukee is the only other Milwaukee area private school ranking in Niche’s top 10. University School of Milwaukee has either ranked first or second every year since Niche started its rankings.
The school earned a grade of A+ in the college prep, academics and clubs & activities categories. Moreover, it received a grade of A in sports and teachers, and the school's lowest grade came in the form of A- which it received in the diversity category.
Niche data has the graduation rate at the University School of Milwaukee at 100% and average SAT and ACT scores at 1380 and 30. Small classrooms are also offered as the student-teacher ratio is 12:1.
“Our overall A+ grade speaks to our longstanding tradition of academic excellence, highly experienced and credentialed faculty and diverse and supportive community,” said the school in a statement.
|
2022-10-05T16:39:24Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Milwaukee area schools top latest best schools in Wisconsin rankings
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/west/news/2022/10/05/milwaukee-area-schools-top-latest-best-schools-wisconsin-rankings/8184341001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/west/news/2022/10/05/milwaukee-area-schools-top-latest-best-schools-wisconsin-rankings/8184341001/
|
A succession plan is in the works for the Milwaukee area's largest business group —whose leader has been at the helm since 1992.
Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce President Tim Sheehy hasn't set a retirement date, but the organization is creating a new position of senior vice president and is searching for someone to fill that job.
MMAC's senior vice president will play a critical role in the organization’s long-term leadership, according to the group.
“As MMAC Board members, we recognize the importance of leadership continuity, and it is our responsibility to ensure the organization is prepared to carry forward its critical mission,” said Chair Cathy Jacobson in a statement.
Sheehy "has served admirably in his role for 30 years and continues to serve as a strong advocate for our business community today," said Jacobson, president and chief executive officer of Froedtert Health.
"While no change in MMAC’s leadership is imminent, it is prudent to begin planning now for when that day inevitably comes," she said.
Sheehy, 63, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel he has no "specific date for whatever becomes of the next chapter in my career."
"When the time comes for a transition, we want to ensure that MMAC is well prepared," he said.
Sheehy also said he will remain active in civic affairs after leaving MMAC.
Among other things, Sheehy is board chair of the Southeast Wisconsin Professional Baseball Park District.
More:The Brewers stadium sales tax ended two years ago to applause. Here's how we're back to again talking about public help for the ballpark.
The district owns American Family Field and will play a key role in what's expected to be a request by the Milwaukee Brewers for hundreds of millions of dollars in renovations at the ballpark.
|
2022-10-05T16:39:30Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Succession plan started for veteran MMAC President Tim Sheehy
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/real-estate/commercial/2022/10/05/succession-plan-started-veteran-mmac-president-tim-sheehy/8185053001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/real-estate/commercial/2022/10/05/succession-plan-started-veteran-mmac-president-tim-sheehy/8185053001/
|
The Savannah Bananas, who achieved viral fame for their unique take on baseball and fan-engaging exhibitions, will be barnstorming the country on their "World Tour" in 2023, with two dates at Franklin Field near Milwaukee on Sept. 8-9.
Traveling in a limited capacity outside of Georgia before now, the Bananas are expanding to a 33-city, 21-state tour through 2023.
"We've heard from over 150 cities at this point," said yellow-tuxedoed owner Jesse Cole. "Major league teams, numerous Triple-A ballparks, pretty much every area of the country had reached out, excited to try to bring us to their communities."
Related:The Harlem Globetrotters are coming back to Milwaukee's Fiserv Forum — on New Year's Eve, naturally
Logistically, the Bananas aren't yet equipped to play in big-league ballparks, but the 4,000-seat venue in Franklin (which serves as home to the Milwaukee Milkmen) offers a perfect fit for the team's pregame and in-game shenanigans. The Bananas usually travel with another squad that serves as its foe, the Party Animals, but this stop will feature Milkmen players as opponents.
The professional travel version of the Savannah Bananas play a competitive, unscripted version of baseball that includes a number of rule alterations — including any foul ball caught by a fan resulting in an out.
"Banana Ball" exhibitions also emphasize speed. There's a two-hour time limit, no mound visits, and batters can't leave the batter's box once they enter. Batters can't bunt, but they can steal first base. When a player walks, he's invited to keep sprinting around the bases until every player on defense touches the ball. Extra innings also features a pitcher, catcher and one fielder, and the batter must try to round the bases before he's tossed out.
The Bananas craze has generated interest in a TV show and book, among other ventures.
There's also a great deal of dancing.
Tickets are not yet available, but fans can sign up for a presale.
|
2022-10-05T16:39:56Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Savannah Bananas bringing wacky baseball exhibition to Milwaukee
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/2022/10/05/savannah-bananas-bringing-wacky-baseball-exhibition-milwaukee/8185678001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/2022/10/05/savannah-bananas-bringing-wacky-baseball-exhibition-milwaukee/8185678001/
|
Here's what you should know about the Big Ten West Division football game between the Badgers (2-3, 0-2 Big Ten), playing their first game since firing head coach Paul Chryst, and the Wildcats (1-4, 1-1) at Ryan Field in Evanston, Illinois.
More:'A little bit of a scramble': Wisconsin's players and coaches have ridden an emotional roller coaster since Sunday
|
2022-10-05T16:40:02Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Wisconsin vs. Northwestern football game: TV, livestream and radio
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/05/how-to-watch-wisconsin-vs-northwestern-big-ten-football-game-at-ryan-field-in-evanston-illinois/8185471001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/05/how-to-watch-wisconsin-vs-northwestern-big-ten-football-game-at-ryan-field-in-evanston-illinois/8185471001/
|
A splash feature and all-inclusive playground in downtown Menomonee Falls are slated for completion by the end of this month
Village Park in Menomonee Falls will soon have its long-awaited splash feature, all-inclusive play area and renovated tennis and pickleball courts. Phase 2 of the Village Park upgrades — its final phase — is on track to be completed by the end of October.
One of the biggest attractions is an all-inclusive play area. According to village documents, the 13,000-square-foot play area will include a central multi-level climbing feature, an accessible swing and merry-go-round, a play hill, swings and toddler play structures. There will be a rubber surface for those in a wheelchair or with mobility issues.
"We are very excited. There currently is no playground area (at Village Park), said Cailyn Kison, social media manager for Menomonee Falls Downtown. She said, as part of the Menomonee Falls Downtown staff, that this will "absolutely" help with the village's future summer programming.
"We want to have more movie nights next summer," she said. After doing one movie night in September this summer, she said there can be more programming before the movie as kids can play in the playground before the movie begins.
Kison also said this will help increase attendance for the concerts or adult-level programs. "Kids have someplace to play (if the adults want to participate in an event)," she said.
Another amenity will be a splash feature, a 1,250-square-foot circle with ground, sensor-activated fountains, according to village documents. This feature will also have LED lights to change colors and will be wheelchair accessible. In the warmer months, kids can play in it, and it can be a decorated, lighted feature in the summer months.
More:Menomonee Falls Downtown has added a Fall Harvest Festival and Christmas in the Falls this year. Here’s what you need to know.
More:This Menomonee Falls woman is honored as an Unsung Hero after years of giving to her community
There will also be more outdoor lighting, a picnic shelter and additional seating areas.
Phase 2 cost was approximately $3.2 million, said Village Manager Mark Fitzgerald. Of that, an estimated $2.2 million came from public investments such as park impact fees (funds from new building permits), tourism dollars (money from the hotel tax) and tax incremental financing.
The Optimist Club — an international organization to benefit kids with a local chapter in Menomonee Falls — raised the remaining balance for the Village Park. According to the Optimist Club website, they raised $1.05 million with $1,028.693 with $20,000 of verbal pledges.
The first phase, a $2.1 renovation project for Village Park, was completed last year. This project included a multipurpose plaza space, performance stage, shelter building with restrooms, landscaping and lighting features, gathering spaces and multiple electrical access points for event vendors.
Full programming that will incorporate the features of Phase 2 will begin the summer of 2023, according to village documents.
|
2022-10-05T19:24:55Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Latest upgrades at Menomonee Falls Village Park are nearly complete
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/northwest/news/menomonee-falls/2022/10/05/latest-upgrades-menomonee-falls-village-park-nearly-complete/8180206001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/northwest/news/menomonee-falls/2022/10/05/latest-upgrades-menomonee-falls-village-park-nearly-complete/8180206001/
|
Greendale residents want dedicated pickleball courts. Village officials aren't sure it's affordable.
Elected leaders in Greendale aren't sour on pickleball, but they're not ready to serve up funds to pay for new courts.
The Greendale Village Board on Tuesday, Oct. 4 reviewed a proposal that would add six dedicated pickleball courts at Community Center Park, 6200 S. 76th St.
The project would also entail resurfacing the existing basketball court at the park.
The discussion was a precursor to the village's 2023 budgeting process to see how trustees felt about the plan.
The gist was most liked the idea, but questioned whether there'd be money to pay for it.
Trustee Matt Sell said he'd love to see it, and the courts would be an "awesome addition," but that "now is not the right time" to pursue the plan. He cited the economy, interest rates and the cost of borrowing as reasons for his hesitation.
Other trustees had similar thoughts.
"I totally agree," Trustee Robby McFaul said, saying he'd like to "hold off on this" and see how the budget process shakes out.
The estimated cost of the project is $260,000.
The courts are proposed to be located just north of the existing tennis courts and would replace a large asphalt pad.
The project would include two courtside shelters, along with walkways, fencing and gates.
The resurfacing of the basketball court area, just east of where the pickleball courts would be, is estimated to cost $71,000.
Exact dollar amounts for both projects would be determined during the bidding process.
With the increase of pickleball play, village staff felt the addition of dedicated pickleball courts would address the demand for pickleball courts, according to village documents.
In a recent community survey, more than one in four responders (27%) were interested in Greendale adding pickleball courts in the village.
Village staff members also considered College Park as a location, but their research revealed that on-site restrooms, drinking fountains and seating are important amenities for pickleball groups.
College Park does not have water service, and the cost of extending service to the park would be high, according to the village.
Board members didn't take an official vote on the proposal, but agreed to revisit the idea during the budget process.
|
2022-10-05T19:25:01Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Pickleball courts proposed for Greendale might be too expensive
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/southwest/news/greendale/2022/10/05/pickleball-courts-proposed-greendale-might-too-expensive/8180840001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/southwest/news/greendale/2022/10/05/pickleball-courts-proposed-greendale-might-too-expensive/8180840001/
|
MADISON – The question was posed to the six Wisconsin players seated at a table inside the McClain Center on Wednesday morning.
Did any of you think you would be here answering questions about losing your head coach at any point this season?
Senior safety John Torchio jumped at the chance to respond.
“I don’t think anyone saw it coming, to be honest with you,” Torchio said. “Why not? I thought we as players would execute better and perform better and we haven’t. And that’s on us as players.
“We were all shocked and none of us ever thought we’d be in this situation this season.”
But here the Badgers are, 0-2 in the Big Ten and 2-3 overall entering their game at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Northwestern (1-4, 1-1).
And there sat the six players Wednesday, three days after Paul Chryst was fired and defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard was named interim head coach, trying to put their emotions into words and discuss a season that so far has fallen short of expectations.
They were: Torchio, quarterback Graham Mertz, outside linebacker Nick Herbig, nose tackle Keeanu Benton, wide receiver Chimere Dike and tailback Braelon Allen.
Allen leads UW in rushing with an average of 99.8 yards per game but was held to 2 yards on 8 carries in the 34-10 loss to Illinois.
A little more than 24 hours later, Chryst had been fired.
“Nobody wanted to see coach Chryst go,” Allen said. “For me personally it’s fuel. Like Torch mentioned, it’s really on us. We didn’t execute. We didn’t play the way we needed to play.
“This is a consequence of that. So I guess moving forward you’ve got to use it as fuel like coach Leonhard has said.”
Herbig, one of three defensive players who spoke Wednesday, was asked what he would say to anyone who asked if Leonhard is capable of getting the team on track in the Big Ten West Division race.
He first reminded everyone how much he revered Chryst.
“He is a mentor,” he said. “He is one of my best friends. All of the guys in the locker room miss him. All the coaches miss him.
“He has been a mentor for coach Leonhard as well. Coach Leonhard is taking over, reiterating that we’re still playing for coach Chryst. It is still his team. We’re still his guys. He still loves us. We still love him.”
Leonhard told reporters Tuesday that it was essential for the coaches and players to be able to compartmentalize their emotions so they could focus on practice and facing Northwestern on Saturday.
“I feel like that what this week has been about,” Benton said. “Coach Leonhard has not failed to reiterate to us that when we’re away you can grieve, you can do what you need to do.
“But when you come in and are between those lines you’ve got to do what you need to do. I feel like our guys have done a great job of that these past couple days. We hope to bring it into Saturday as well.”
|
2022-10-05T19:25:13Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Wisconsin players grappling with emotions after Paul Chryst's firing
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/05/wisconsin-players-grappling-emotions-after-paul-chrysts-firing/8180801001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/05/wisconsin-players-grappling-emotions-after-paul-chrysts-firing/8180801001/
|
Just a prediction: church attendance in Wisconsin will take a dip on Sunday.
The Packers are playing bright and early at 8:30 a.m.against the New York Giants in London, the first time Green Bay has participated in the NFL's International Series. The game will be played at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium; here's what you need to know about the occasion.
Why are the Packers playing in London?
The NFL International Series has been going on in some form since 2007, when the NFL first started sending games to London. The league added a Mexico game in 2016 and, starting this year, Germany will get some games as well.
The Packers famously are the last NFL team to finally play in one of these showcases. The first game was played Oct. 28, 2007, when the Giants edged the Dolphins, 13-10, and the NFL had one game per year for the first six years before expanding to two in 2013, three in 2014 and even four in 2017 and 2019.
Could it eventually lead to an NFL franchise in London? Speculation seems to always point in that direction.
Is this considered a home game for the Packers?
It is indeed a home game for the Packers. Remember, though, the league expanded to 17-game schedules starting last year, so the Packers aren't losing a traditional home game at Lambeau Field per se. Last year, they had eight home games and nine road tests; this year, they'll still have eight true home games with the ninth as the London game and eight other road games.
Barring another overseas assignment, it means the Packers won't get a true "extra" home game until 2024, with the AFC and NFC rotating which conference gets the extra hosting gig each year.
It's also curious that the Packers don't have a bye week immediately after the travel to London; Green Bay was given the option to take their bye in Week 6 and apparently declined. The team is scheduled to get the bye in Week 14 instead.
Starting this year, each team is guaranteed to play internationally at least once every eight years.
Why were the Packers the last team to go overseas?
The Packers have always refused to surrender a home game, citing the disproportionate economic impact giving up a home game would have on the market. Losing a game would amount to an estimated $15 million hit.
Not only that, but visiting teams were hesitant to face the Packers overseas, knowing if the Packers were on their original home schedule, they'd stand to gain a significant amount of traveling Packers fans for that contest. Economically, it just made sense for the NFL to keep Packers games stateside.
Once the schedule was expanded to 17 games, it meant Green Bay wouldn't be losing any additional games if one were played overseas, and now teams are compelled to play internationally on a rotating basis.
It's in north London, which you probably should know is the capital city in England and the United Kingdom. It's between 8-10 miles away from London Bridge, Buckingham Palace, Big Ben or Abbey Road if those are your only reference points.
How many NFL games has the stadium hosted?
The first NFL game was played there in 2019, and on Oct. 2, the Vikings beat the Saints there, with the Packers-Giants matchup to follow a week later. An Oct. 30 game between the Jaguars and Broncos will also be played in London, but that will take place at Wembley Stadium. The Packers game will be the sixth NFL regular-season game at the stadium.
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is a giant soccer stadium, right?
Yes, but there's a twist. The stadium was opened in 2019 with the intent to use it for multiple sports — including the NFL, making it the first stadium designed with the NFL in mind outside North America. The artificial turf for NFL games actually lies beneath the soccer surface, which breaks away in three segments to reveal the NFL surface and rolls into storage beneath the stands.
You should really check out this time lapse of how it all comes together.
Who normally plays at the stadium?
Naturally, Tottenham Hotspur, a soccer club in the Premier League, plays at Tottenham Hotspur stadium. That was supposed to be a temporary name, but a sponsor hasn't been secured for naming rights yet. Some call it New White Hart Lane, given that the Tottenham Hotspur club previously played at a stadium known as White Hart Lane, since demolished with the new digs built on the same location. The construction looks an awful lot like when Miller Park was being built adjacent to County Stadium in Milwaukee in the late '90s and early 2000s.
Tottenham ranks third in the Premier League standings as of Oct. 5, with their next game on Saturday.
How many people does the stadium seat?
Capacity is 62,850, which by comparison seats far less than the 81,441 who can squeeze into Lambeau Field. But it's the third-largest stadium in England and the largest in London.
Where does the Tottenham name come from, and why is their mascot a cockerel?
Tottenham is the name of the town in the north borough of London.
The Spurs were founded in 1882, with the Hotspur nickname stemming from a late-1300s English noble who appears as a famous character in Shakespeare's "Henry IV," Sir Henry Percy (better known as Harry Hotspur).
Their mascot is a cockerel (a young rooster), stemming from a bronze statue built in the early 1990s because Harry Hotspur was fond of cockfighting. There's a golden cockerel atop the new stadium. So perhaps you might catch a giant rooster mascot roaming about.
Just to be clear, is this 'England' or 'The UK?'
OK, here's your civics lesson, straight from the Smithsonian magazine.
To start with, there's the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The U.K., as it is called, is a sovereign state that consists of four individual countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Within the U.K., Parliament is sovereign, but each country has autonomy to some extent. For the most part, Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish parliaments defer to the U.K. Parliament in “reserved matters” that deal with things like foreign policy and EU membership, but retain authority over “devolved matters” that deal with things like education and housing.
Though bound to the Crown and tied together in unity, the individual countries within the U.K. retain their own local identities and even their own regional languages. (Welsh, for example, is the official language in Wales even though the official language in the U.K., as a whole, is English.)
Since becoming a republic in the 1940s, the Republic of Ireland (which shares a border with Northern Ireland) has operated as a sovereign state of its own. Though it is physically close to the U.K., the Republic of Ireland has its own relationships and memberships with the United Nations, the European Union and other international organizations.
London is the capital of both concepts.
Packers-Giants:How to watch and listen to the Packers vs. Giants Week 5 game on TV, live stream and radio
Packers betting:How national writers, oddsmakers are picking the Packers-Giants game in London
|
2022-10-05T19:25:31Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Why are the Packers playing in London at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium?
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/nfl/packers/2022/10/05/why-green-bay-packers-playing-london-tottenham-hotspur-stadium-vs-new-york-giants/10452256002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/nfl/packers/2022/10/05/why-green-bay-packers-playing-london-tottenham-hotspur-stadium-vs-new-york-giants/10452256002/
|
7 Wisconsin hotels ranked among best in the country by Conde Nast Traveler
Seven Wisconsin hotels can claim to be among the best in the country after winning 2022 Readers' Choice Awards from Conde Nast Traveler magazine.
The Osthoff Resort in Elkhart Lake has the most bragging rights, winning the award for the best resort in the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest. The Grand Geneva Resort & Spa in Lake Geneva ranked second on that list.
For the fifth time, the American Club in Kohler was recognized among the top destination spas in the United States, coming in at No. 11. The Sundara Inn & Spa also made the list at No. 16, marking the third time the Wisconsin Dells resort won a Readers' Choice Award.
Both the American Club and Sundara also were ranked among the best resorts in the Midwest by Travel + Leisure magazine earlier this year as part of the magazine's 2022 World's Best Awards.
Three Milwaukee-area hotels joined the resorts in winning awards from Conde Nast Traveler, with the Saint Kate arts hotel, the Delafield Hotel and the Pfister all making the magazine's list of the Midwest's best hotels, ranking 10th, 12th and 15th, respectively. This is the third year the Saint Kate has made the list, the fourth for the Delafield Hotel and the sixth for the Pfister.
Chicago again claimed the award for the best big city in the U.S. — the sixth year in a row the city has held that spot.
Votes from hundreds of thousands of readers determined the winners of the 35th annual awards, which were announced online on Oct. 4 and will appear in the magazine's November 2022 issue.
More:15 things you have to do in Wisconsin Dells that are not water parks
|
2022-10-05T19:25:37Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
7 Wisconsin hotels ranked best in the country by Conde Nast Traveler
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/travel/wisconsin/2022/10/05/7-wisconsin-hotels-ranked-best-country-conde-nast-traveler/8186237001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/travel/wisconsin/2022/10/05/7-wisconsin-hotels-ranked-best-country-conde-nast-traveler/8186237001/
|
AT&T is proposing to install a 95-foot tower in downtown Menomonee Falls. But will it fit with the historic downtown?
AT&T is proposing to install a 95-foot tower in the historic Menomonee Falls downtown area.
The village plan commission is slated to decide whether to recommend the tower at its next meeting on Oct. 11.
If commissioners recommend it, village board trustees may vote on it at their Nov. 7 meeting.
After Nexius outlined its proposal to install this tower — with a bank of antennas at 90 feet adjacent to the former Fresh Thyme grocery store, N89 W16849 Appleton Ave. — village officials need to decide: Does the tower aesthetically fit with the village's plan for keeping a historic downtown? Or will the tower help cover a documented gap in AT&T's cellphone service?
According to village documents, the tower is proposed to be in a 52-foot-by-33-foot leased space, surrounded by a 6-foot-high cedar fence. The antenna equipment would be housed in the enclosed space. Additional space would be available for other carriers to lease space on the antenna.
More:Menomonee Falls man is honored as a Lifetime Achiever for going all out as a local sports announcer and for volunteering
More:A splash feature and all-inclusive playground in downtown Menomonee Falls are slated for completion by the end of this month
Director of Community Development Matt Carran said the applicant has submitted a line of sight analysis for the tower, and he said there are photo simulations from different areas of downtown where the full tower is fully visible to people who are in the downtown area. He said that the tower will have a "visual impact" on the downtown.
According to a report from the village's planning department, the proposed location of the cell tower would not be consistent with the village’s overall plan and the Downtown Business Improvement District’s ongoing efforts of downtown economic development, revitalization and historic preservation.
"The visual impact that the tower would have on the downtown would be significant and would be a negative impact to the space, and as such recommends this request be denied," according to the report.
However, a Nexius representative, Matthew Davis, said AT&T identified a coverage gap in the village’s downtown. Village Manager Mark Fitzgerald said that the AT&T officials said that having a tower would improve AT&T phone service.
“AT&T is proposing to plug that network gap and deliver service to the village in doing so,” Davis said.
|
2022-10-05T22:01:42Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
AT&T is proposing to build a 95-foot tower in downtown Menomonee Falls
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/northwest/news/menomonee-falls/2022/10/05/at-t-proposing-build-95-foot-tower-downtown-menomonee-falls/8184322001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/northwest/news/menomonee-falls/2022/10/05/at-t-proposing-build-95-foot-tower-downtown-menomonee-falls/8184322001/
|
Nickel: Pressure is on Graham Mertz, Wisconsin teammates as they share responsibility to move forward following coaching change
MADISON – There will be changes.
Thankfully. If not, what was the point of firing Paul Chryst in the first week of October?
As the Wisconsin Badgers prepare this week for the next opponent, Northwestern, they’ll have to do it with their defensive coordinator, Jim Leonhard, taking over the entire program. And we don’t know much about how Leonhard wants to run an offense.
So the challenges for the 2-3 Badgers in practice this week will be handling the leadership change, the emotions that come with the firing, the week itself — it is midterms for a lot of students, remember, they’re supposed to study and take tests — and then some first steps toward re-examining at least some of their offensive goals and strategies.
“Yeah, there’s some new stuff,” said quarterback Graham Mertz. “But that’s for us to know.”
He laughed a little.
Wisconsin Badgers players speak publicly for first time since Paul Chryst firing in strange press conference
But there is a lot of pressure on this team, and always on Mertz, and it’s clear they are tightening their circle right now for their own survival.
Mertz and a handful of his teammates spoke to reporters Wednesday in the Dave McClain Athletic Facility, where for the first time players could publicly comment on the tumultuous week they’ve faced. Chryst, in his eighth year, was canned as head coach Sunday evening, in the fourth quarter of the Packers-Patriots game.
The player press conference was a bizarre set up. Players sat at a table and media was kept several feet away, marked off by boundary tape, in an exchange that was capped off at 12 minutes for everyone. But again, it’s understandable, for the sake of the student-athletes caught in the crosshairs of a rare Wisconsin in-season coaching dismissal.
Graham Mertz was 'shocked' by firing of Paul Chryst, took day to process it
Mertz was not expecting the news of Chryst’s dismissal.
“I’d say initially the first day I was shocked,” Mertz said. “Obviously I’ve got a great relationship (with Chryst) and I can speak for anybody that’s played under Coach, or coached with him. Just the type of man he is, he’s the guy you want to play for. He’s so down to earth and he always wants the best for his players.”
Mertz took Monday for himself, to process the change, and to talk to Chryst himself.
“Anytime you go through something in life, you’ve got to take a step back and figure out what happened,” Mertz said. “And then it’s, how quick can you move forward.”
What choice does Mertz have? A decorated and heralded recruit, by standards that are loosely defined at best, the quarterback as one of the team’s captains can only thrive in the environment in which he’s placed. He’s dependent on the leadership and coaches to his development, consistency. It’s evident we can see the talent. The question is, who is going to help him get even better and more consistent?
It’s funny, after the Packers’ overtime win Sunday night, Green Bay coach Matt LaFleur was talking about his defense. And LaFleur said:
“You’re only as good as your last performance. That’s just the reality of the world we live in. We always talk about: you’re either getting better or you’re getting worse, you’re never staying the same.”
That’s the ridiculously high standard pro and college coaches and athletes have to work and perform in now.
But the Badgers did not look like they were getting better, not in recent games, and not this season overall, for whatever reasons. And it looks like that’s why Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh sacked the sometimes bland, hardly marketable, but apparently respected and admired Chryst, from the perspective of the players.
Jim Leonhard is working with a Badgers team filled with injuries
The rest of this season is intriguing.
Maybe this is a trial period for the 39-year-old Leonhard to show what he can do with this same group of Wisconsin Badgers — or at least the ones who aren’t out rehabbing injuries. Remember, TE Clay Cundiff, S Travian Blaylock are done and these key players are out this week: OLB Aaron Witt, S Hunter Wohler and QB Chase Wolf. Meanwhile we are awaiting status updates on RT Riley Mahlman, who hasn’t played since the opener; CB Alexander Smith, who hasn’t played this season; TE Hayden Rucci; TB Isaac Guerendo; and WR Keontez Lewis.
Or, maybe this is merely setting the stage to anoint Leonhard the head coach after all, it doesn’t matter.
It’s the players who are running and throwing, tackling and making split-second decisions. While every podcaster and your great aunt can have an opinion on this and the supposed certainty that it needed to happen, it’s the people in the jerseys that have to either make or break Leonhard’s future, and or condemn or justify Chryst's past. It seems fair to give them some space to recalibrate.
“I’m focused on this group up here and the team down in the locker room. And getting us ready to go. That’s where I’m putting my energy towards,” Mertz said. “And then moving forward — that’s our motto, forever forward, here.
“And that’s what I’m focused on. All that’s on my mind is winning."
Mertz continued later:
"I don't think this should fall on any one person's shoulders and I think that's why this group is upset. ... We all have a sense of, 'I could have done this better.' That's what we need to turn in to fuel to move forward. And that's what Coach Leonhard did a great job of coming in, Day 1, saying is we need to be better. And how. Instead of saying you need to frickin' attack it.
"Yeah there's a sense of responsibility, but it's across the board. We're all figuring out how to do our job better. And we will figure that out.”
Wisconsin vs. Northwestern:How to watch and listen to Wisconsin Badgers Big Ten college football game vs. Northwestern on TV, livestream and radio
Paul Chryst highlights:The biggest Wisconsin Badgers moments under Paul Chryst's head-coaching tenure (including that famous Orange Bowl quip)
|
2022-10-05T22:02:00Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Graham Mertz, Wisconsin players to move forward after Chryst firing
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/05/graham-mertz-wisconsin-players-move-forward-after-paul-chryst-firing-jim-leonhard-coaching-change/8186590001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/05/graham-mertz-wisconsin-players-move-forward-after-paul-chryst-firing-jim-leonhard-coaching-change/8186590001/
|
Wisconsin's race for U.S. Senate gets its first dramatic clash Friday night when Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson meets Democratic Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes in a televised debate in Milwaukee.
Debate organizer: The Wisconsin Broadcasters Association.
Broadcast coverage: More than 70 television and radio stations will air the event either live or delayed. Key outlets include WMVS-TV (Channel 10) in Milwaukee; C-SPAN National Cable Network; Wisconsin EYE; Wisconsin Public Radio/PBS Wisconsin.
The full list of stations can be found here.
Moderator: Jill Geisler, veteran broadcast journalist
Debate panelists:
Next debate: Oct 13 from 6 to 7 p.m. at Marquette University's Varsity Theater and broadcast by WTMJ-TV (Channel 4).
|
2022-10-06T00:19:19Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Mandela Barnes and Ron Johnson debate Friday. Here's how to watch
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/10/05/mandela-barnes-and-ron-johnson-debate-friday-heres-how-watch/8190942001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/10/05/mandela-barnes-and-ron-johnson-debate-friday-heres-how-watch/8190942001/
|
Ideas Lab
A NEW PRESCRIPTION | A JOURNAL SENTINEL SPECIAL REPORT
The U.S. embraces personal responsibility. But is our emphasis on health care over social services the result of blaming those in need?
Guy Boulton and Alexa Jurado, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Chekenna Williams, left, an Ascension Wisconsin community health navigator, talks with Tyanna Wilder, during a Blanket of Love baby shower at Ascension Ebenezer Health Resource Center. The organization is working to prevent causes of infant death in Milwaukee. Angela Peterson/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
HEALTH DRIVERS | HOUSING NEEDS | A NATIONAL MODEL | FOOD INSECURITY FOOD AS MEDICINE
In a typical flu season, the cost of saving one life is about $1.4 million. A similar calculation puts the cost of saving one life with high blood pressure at about $8 million.
Those estimates, by Peter Muennig of Columbia University, are just two examples of the value we place on medicine and health services. And for the most part, no one questions whether the spending is worthwhile.
Roughly $8 million also is the cost of providing housing vouchers, which limit rent to 30% of a person or family's income, to about 600 households.
But the United States, virtually alone among developed countries, tends to be much more willing to accept the cost of high-tech treatment and cathedral-like hospitals than it is to accept the cost of affordable housing.
For some people, stable and safe housing could do more to improve health and well-being.
Why the paradox?
For one thing, increasing social spending means taking money from some people and giving it to others.
For another, there is skepticism — reinforced time and again — about whether government programs, or programs that receive government funding, are accountable and actually work.
That skepticism "has been built over years through political rhetoric and government failures,” said Charles Franklin, a professor of law and public policy, and director of the Marquette Law School Poll.
Jeff Niederdeppe, a communications professor at Cornell University
There's a dominant ideology of individual responsibility that underlays all of this — that says it's up to you to survive through your own decision-making and your own willpower — despite having created conditions that make it incredibly difficult, particularly in communities that struggle with resources, poverty and these kinds of challenges.
Perhaps deeper than that, however, is the value the United States places on personal responsibility. It's at the core of the idea of the American Dream, that success can be achieved through hard work, determination and initiative.
“There's a dominant ideology of individual responsibility that underlays all of this — that says it's up to you to survive through your own decision-making and your own willpower — despite having created conditions that make it incredibly difficult, particularly in communities that struggle with resources, poverty and these kinds of challenges,” said Jeff Niederdeppe, a communications professor at Cornell University.
Ellen Tetting, left, has her blood pressure taken by Ascension All Saints - Family Health Center nurse Jenny Ovide during a home visit. Ovide has been meeting with Tetting for 15 years. Angela Peterson / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Research on how readers interpret stories about poverty, for example, shows they often focus on even the smallest story element that suggests some sort of individual fallibility, Niederdeppe said.
The response, perhaps unconscious, often is: “Oh, well that explains it. That person just made bad choices,” he said.
That's not to say people don't want to support helping those who are less fortunate, particularly children, people with disabilities and the elderly. Polls consistently show this, Franklin said.
But there's an underlying strain of thought that conditions like inadequate housing and food insecurity are the result of faulty character, not to be rewarded.
That mindset can even extend to school lunches.
Last year, the Waukesha School Board struggled with whether to extend federally funded meals to students. One board member said the program made it easy for families to "become spoiled." An administrator said he feared there would be a "slow addiction" to the service.
Yet physicians, economists and policy analysts point to dozens of studies that show addressing social determinants — affordable housing, adequate food, transportation, good-paying jobs, education, and safe neighborhoods — can improve overall health and, at times, save money.
In their eyes, we're at times penny wise and pound foolish.
Outperformed on health measures
The United States spends far more on health care — more than $4 trillion in 2020 — and far less on social programs, relative to the size of its economy, than other developed countries. Yet those countries outperform the United States on many measures of overall health.
An extensive report by Rand Corp., which does policy research and analysis, found that countries spending more money on social services have better health outcomes, even when tested in many ways, and that social spending seems to have a particularly strong relationship with health outcomes.
The report also found that the connection seems to be even stronger when long-term outcomes are considered — and stronger still in countries with more inequality.
But spending on health care and spending on social programs are in different ledgers in the United States — and viewed differently. We may complain about health care costs and inefficiencies, but few quibble about $100,000 cancer drugs with limited effectiveness or other costly medical interventions.
A nurse prepares to check patients vitals at Ascension SE Wisconsin Hospital - St. Joseph Campus. Angela Peterson / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
"Part of human nature is to do whatever it is we can to help somebody who is sick,” said Muennig.
The physician and professor of health policy and management — who shared his estimates on life-saving costs for the flu and high blood pressure in a presentation at the University of Wisconsin-Madison — does research on the best mix of social policies to improve health. Those include reduced class size, pre-kindergarten programs, lead abatement programs, welfare reform, transportation policies and health insurance.
“A lot of these programs actually don’t work,” Muennig said. “But a lot of them do.”
The challenge is identifying the programs that do work and can be implemented widely.
Angela Rachidi, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and a visiting scholar at Badger Institute
There is moral obligation for the government to provide for families who can’t provide for themselves. But it has to be done in an effective way.
“There is moral obligation for the government to provide for families who can’t provide for themselves,” said Angela Rachidi, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and a visiting scholar at Badger Institute, a Wisconsin policy research institute. “But it has to be done in an effective way.”
The key: “Be smart about it and target it to those who need it,” she said.
At the same time, be aware of the tradeoffs.
"The challenge for policymakers is to craft those policies in a way that minimize tradeoffs," said Rachidi, who believes in limited government. "And that raises a lot of complexities.”
Not wrong, just incomplete
None of this is to dismiss personal responsibility.
Welfare reform in the 1990s led to more people working, and, when combined with the Earned Income Tax Credit and food stamps (now the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP) dramatically reduced the number of children living in poverty.
Nor can the importance of marriage and two-parent households be ignored. Children born outside marriage are approximately five times more likely to be poor than children born to married couples, noted the 2015 report by the American Enterprise Institute and the Brookings Institution, two well-known think tanks. Some children do fine, the report notes. But on average they face much worse odds.
Even people who considered themselves liberal believe that health is predominantly influenced by lifestyle and access to health care, according to the 2018 National Survey of Health Attitude developed and done by Rand Corp., and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the country’s largest philanthropy devoted to improving health, and the Rand Corp.
Those most likely to believe this were predominantly white, educated and had higher incomes.
“It’s not that it’s wrong,” said Geoffrey Swain, a physician and emeritus professor at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. “It’s just that it’s incomplete.”
Geoffrey Swain, a physician and emeritus professor at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health. Angela Peterson / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The people surveyed who had the broadest view of what drives health — those who also cited social and economic conditions — were more likely to belong to racial and ethnic groups and tended to be female, older and have lower incomes.
For people who are middle class or affluent, the day-to-day lives of people who are poor is an abstraction.
“Many people are living in constant crisis,” said Bob Waite, who oversees data at Impact, the nonprofit, confidential 211 helpline and online resource directory for nine counties in southeastern Wisconsin. “It’s normalized life for so many people to have to constantly be worrying about all these things that a lot of people take for granted.”
Relatively minor setbacks, such as car repairs or a few days of missed work because of sickness, can instigate a financial emergency.
Bob Waite, who oversees data at Impact
We can’t keep vilifying the poor people who are struggling. Everyone will benefit if they do well.
“We can’t keep vilifying the poor people who are struggling,” Waite said. “Everyone will benefit if they do well."
Social benefits also are less generous than most people realize.
For example, roughly one in four people who are eligible for housing vouchers, which limit rent to 30% of household income, receive them. Yet stable, affordable housing is widely considered an essential foundation not only for health but also for almost every other aspect, from schooling to employment, in a family’s life.
Further, children fortunate enough to grow up in a middle or upper-middle class family and neighborhood have clear advantages over children who grow up poor in a segregated neighborhood.
Researchers at diversitydata.org have compiled a Child Opportunity Index based on a wide range of measures on neighborhood conditions that shape children’s health and development.
Ascension Wisconsin parish nurse Brenda Buchanan teaches an exercise class at Jefferson Court, a Mercy Housing Senior Community. The class, "Check, Change and Control," is sponsored by the American Heart Association and introduces seniors to healthy eating, stress management, blood pressure management skills, and fitness. Angela Peterson / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
In the Milwaukee metro area, the typical white child grows up in a neighborhood with a Child Opportunity Score of 85. The typical Black child grows up in a neighborhood with a score of 6.
That gap is the widest of the 100 largest metro areas in the country.
Studies also show that people overestimate the chances of upper mobility in America — a cornerstone of the American Dream.
People are more likely to move up the economic ladder in Canada and Australia than in the United States. The chances of someone who grows up poor making a better life is even higher in Germany, Japan, Sweden and Finland.
'Investing in the future. Period.'
The right programs, well funded and effectively run, have the potential to not only lower health care costs but also generate additional returns, particularly for kids, such as higher college graduation rates or lower crime.
“Much of how we frame our language in the world of pediatrics and in particular in public health is exactly that you are investing in not just the future of this child,” said Veronica Gunn, a pediatrician and CEO of Genesis Health Consulting in Milwaukee. “You are investing in the future. Period."
Children who grow up in poverty are more likely to have physical and behavioral health problems. They are more likely to struggle in school, and the achievement gap is wider today than it was in the early 1990s. Fewer than one in five go on to graduate from a four-year college.
LaShawnda Gray, six months pregnant, picks out baby items at the Blanket of Love baby shower at Ascension Ebenezer Health Resource Center. Angela Peterson / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Advances in science help explain why.
The chronic stress of growing up on poverty speeds aging and can have lifelong effects on health.
It also can change the wiring in a child’s brain, especially in the first three years of life, affecting the parts devoted to such tasks as focusing, memory and self-control — traits important for success in school and work.
By the start of kindergarten, children from poor families perform significantly worse on tests than children from higher-income families, and teachers report that they have more difficulty paying attention and are more likely to have behavioral problems.
Further, chronic stress in a child can affect their parenting skills when they become adults. As they grow up, they are at greater risk of having behavioral health and substance abuse problems as well.
In Milwaukee, where almost one in four children live in households with incomes below the poverty threshold, the impact on long-term worker productivity, economic growth and lost potential is devastating.
Swain cites one example: Wisconsin now spends more on prisons than on the University of Wisconsin System.
The state has budgeted $2.5 billion for correctional operations compared with $2.4 billion for the UW System for the 2021-2023 fiscal years.
The budget for prisons also is double the $1.1 billion allocated for the state’s technical colleges.
No political gain from long-term results
None of this makes proposals to address the so-called social determinants or drivers of health an easy sell.
Lessening health disparities — poorer health overall for people with low incomes — is not a priority for many people.
Only 31% of those polled in the 2018 National Survey of Health Attitudes, for instance, strongly agreed that it would be unfair if some people had more of an opportunity to be healthy than other people.
That likely holds even if the programs save health care dollars in the long run.
“It's not about saving money in the long term,” said Stephanie Robert, a professor of social work at UW-Madison whose research focuses on social policy as health policy. “It's about just the concept of paying money that is going to support other people.”
Nubia Rojas, patient navigator and social worker, fills food orders for patients with specific needs such as food insecurities, hypertension, diabetes and anemia at Ascension SE Wisconsin Hospital - St. Joseph Campus . After meeting with physicians and undergoing a health screening, patients have an opportunity to receive foods based on their specific conditions. Angela Peterson / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The lack of easily measurable, short-term results doesn’t help. Foundations want to show results to their donors; politicians want a springboard for their next campaign.
Increased spending on home visiting programs, such as Parents as Teachers, Nurse-Family Partnership and Early Head Start, holds the potential of improving parenting skills and lessening the overall gap between children from poor families and other children when they enter kindergarten.
But the potential benefits — such as more children who obtain the skills needed to get a high-paying job in adulthood — will not be seen for 20 years.
“Spend a lot of money now and you'll benefit 20 years from now doesn't help anyone politically,” said Niederdeppe, the Cornell professor.
Without new approach, 'it hurts us all'
So far, the biggest source of agreement across the political spectrum — at least to some degree — is investing in early childhood development and education.
“The focus should be on targeted investment to those kids who need educational opportunities the most — because research shows those are the crucial years,” said Rachidi of the American Enterprise Institute and the Badger Institute.
She cites programs such as the Nurse-Family Partnership, which have been rigorously evaluated and largely shown to be effective.
Samoria, 5, stays close by her mother Tyanna Wilder while attending the Blanket of Love baby shower April 22, 2022, at Ascension Ebenezer Health Resource Center. The Blanket of Love program was started in 2004. Angela Peterson / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
What matters is spending money wisely.
The recent proposal to expand the child tax credit, for instance, was estimated to cost $100 billion a year.
“What if you put $100 billion a year into home visiting programs?” Rachidi asked.
Muennig, whose research focuses on the best mix of social policies to improve health, would increase the Earned Income Tax Credit, to give people in low-wage jobs more income, as well as focus on child development and quality preschool programs.
“It’s an investment with pretty good returns,” he said.
The programs can be relatively expensive.
But so is the cost of what the country spends on blood pressure medication.
“You are talking about a tiny fraction of that cost,” Muennig said.
Muennig is among the growing body of physicians, health policy experts and organizations drawing attention to the idea that money spent on health care could be better spent elsewhere.
One of those organizations is the Health Initiative — a national campaign to persuade health insurers, foundations and federal and state agencies to increase investments in the social, economic, environmental and behavioral influences on health.
A Hunger Task Force stock box recipient leaves with one of the monthly food boxes distributed by Ascension SE Wisconsin Hospital - St. Joseph Campus. On the first Wednesday of every month in partnership with the Hunger Task Force, St. Joseph gives out 30 to 40 meal boxes to the elderly. Angela Peterson / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Gunn, the pediatrician, is on the organization’s board and was a top executive at Children's Wisconsin. She stressed the potential benefits of a new approach
“It does not benefit any of us if there are segments of our population — of our collective society — that do not have opportunities for optimal health,” Gunn said. “It hurts us all. This is not just something nice that we, the privileged, need to do to help ‘those poor individuals.’ It is something that we, as a society, really have to do.”
Reporter Guy Boulton
Editing Thomas Koetting & Greg Borowski
Photos & Video Angela Peterson
Digital Production Jordan Tilkens
|
2022-10-06T12:03:35Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
The U.S. cherishes the American Dream. But what about those who fail?
|
https://www.jsonline.com/in-depth/money/business/health-care/2022/10/06/united-states-cherishes-american-dream-but-what-those-who-fail/7573346001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/in-depth/money/business/health-care/2022/10/06/united-states-cherishes-american-dream-but-what-those-who-fail/7573346001/
|
Wisconsinites: Apparently, the "best US state for a night out" is ... right here.
Take that, Nevada, New York and our neighbor to the south.
And it's thanks to Wisconsin's low-cost cocktails and high number of bars and clubs per 1,000 people, according to a new study from Nasty Gal, an online retailer of women's clothing and fashion accessories.
With a state that's home to a baseball team called the Brewers, vibrant college towns and a city that's one of the best known for beer, this isn't all that surprising.
More:9 unique bars to try in Milwaukee, from a German beer hall to Northwoods-themed bars
Ahh, it's almost like all of those game days spent at your favorite watering hole, times closing Wolski's, and nights stumbling up and down Brady Street were warranted. Our state's nightlife is evidently just too robust and economical to miss out on.
Using cost of living data from Numbeo and Expatisan, the study found the average cost in Wisconsin for:
A cocktail: $7.30 (Wisconsin came in first for most affordable)
A mid-range bottle of wine: $15
A party dress from a high street store: $41.30
A cab for 5 miles with starting tariff: $23
A fast food meal (such as a McDonald's Big Mac meal): $8
Data from each state's three most populated cities was collected and averaged out to determine an average cost for each state, according to the study's methodology. If data was limited, additional analysis was conducted using local bars and clubs' websites.
Trip Advisor data was used to figure out the number of bars and clubs in each state (as well as how many with 5-star ratings). Population data was used to determine the number of bars/clubs per 1,000 people.
According to the study, Wisconsin is home to 1,107 bars and clubs, with 18% of them rated 5 star. Wisconsin tied with Washington, D.C., and Nevada for most bars and clubs per 1,000 people but had the highest number with 5-star ratings on Trip Advisor, the study said.
Safety data for each state was sourced from World Population Review; Wisconsin received a safety score of 54.67 out of 100.
"Each factor was then pulled into a weighted scoring system, whereby each factor was evenly weighted at 0.1, aside from safety data which was 0.3," the methodology said.
Out of 100 possible points, the dairy state received an overall score of 78.26. Trailing behind us was Wyoming, with 75.74 points.
Vermont, North Dakota and Iowa rounded out the top 5.
At the bottom of the list was California, then Arkansas, and in last place, Texas.
|
2022-10-06T12:03:41Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Wisconsin is the best state for a night out, 2022 Nasty Gal study says
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/2022/10/06/wisconsin-best-state-night-out-2022-nasty-gal-study-says/8187373001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/2022/10/06/wisconsin-best-state-night-out-2022-nasty-gal-study-says/8187373001/
|
Atomix Logistics thrives on e-commerce biz on city's near west side
In a massive old warehouse on Milwaukee's near west side, Atomix Logistics handles the shipping needs of e-commerce businesses from around the world.
The startup company on West Michigan Street fulfills orders of jewelry, clothing, sporting goods, barbecue sauce, and much more.
Online businesses send Atomix their orders, and the company takes care of the shipping from its 10,000 square foot facility that's part of a much larger building near Marquette University.
Atomix has e-commerce business clients in Australia, the United Kingdom, Malaysia, China, and across North America. It ships tens of thousands of orders for them through the US Postal Service, FedEx, UPS, and other carriers.
Atomix, like an Amazon fulfillment center but much smaller, works with independently owned businesses created on e-commerce sites such as Shopify. In addition to packing and shipping their orders, it does inventory management.
Atomix owner Austin Kreinz began the year with only two full-time employees but now has more than 20 full-time and part-time combined. He's planning additional hiring this fall as the holiday shopping season gets underway.
Part of a busy nonprofit
The company is a member of Near West Side Partners, a nonprofit that seeks to fill empty storefronts and encourage businesses on the city's near west side.
"The biggest thing we can offer the community right now is jobs. We're not that large, but it's what we can do to help make the community stronger," Kreinz said.
Originally from Delafield, he spent part of high school at Portsmouth Abbey, a boarding school in Rhode Island, so he could pursue his passion for lacrosse. At Portsmouth, he was captain of the lacrosse, ice hockey and football teams.
At University of Pennsylvania, Kreinz was captain of the men's lacrosse team.
"He's a heart and soul guy. He's tough as hell, and he'd do anything for you," coach Mike Murphy was quoted as saying about Kreinz in The Daily Pennsylvanian college newspaper.
After graduating with a bachelor's degree in history of economics in 2017, Kreinz moved to New York where he was a finance analyst for the consumer retail sector for three years. Then he spent a year with State and Liberty Clothing Co., in New York, before moving back to Wisconsin to launch Atomix.
"I've always had a fascination with entrepreneurship," Kreinz said, and his father had a shipping and logistics business.
Micro-pods use specific employees
One thing unique about Atomix is its micro-pod system that assigns clients specific employees to handle their shipping needs and inventory management.
"We have someone dedicated to their products who knows them inside and out," Kreinz said, and questions can be answered in minutes.
The company developed its own logistics software aimed at clients who don't want to spend a lot of time on the nuances of shipping and inventory management. "We didn't want to overcomplicate it because they already have enough on their plate growing their business," Kreinz said.
Atomix clients include Wigwam Mills, a socks company based in Sheboygan; Freja New York, a vegan handbag maker; and Raven Rova, a women's motorcycle apparel company.
Kreinz said he'd like to have operations on the East and West coasts as well as Milwaukee.
"We're going to follow customer demand," he said. The company could someday have small warehouses in densely populated urban areas like New York, Chicago and Los Angeles, with a goal of getting products to customers faster.
The work atmosphere is casual. Sunlight streams through large windows in the warehouse and office all in one open space. There's coffee and bagels on Monday mornings, and everyone eats lunch together on Fridays.
Kreinz said he intends to keep the company headquarters in Milwaukee, although as the business grows, he may soon have to find a larger location.
"This is an up-and-coming city, and we want to be part of it," he said.
|
2022-10-06T12:03:59Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Atomix Logistics ships orders for Wigwam, Freja New York, many others
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/2022/10/06/atomix-logistics-ships-orders-wigwam-freja-new-york-many-others/8084753001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/2022/10/06/atomix-logistics-ships-orders-wigwam-freja-new-york-many-others/8084753001/
|
Cardboard boxes full of bakery, frozen beef patties, fresh fruits and vegetables, boxed potatoes and other goods line the floor every Wednesday at WestCare’s Everything And Then Some (E.A.T.S.) food pantry in Milwaukee's Harambee community.
Like many pantries, E.A.T.S. purchases in bulk from stores such as Walmart and Trader Joe’s. It also receives a weekly delivery from Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin's food bank.
Food banks receive donations from the federal government, as well as other sources, which are redistributed among food pantries and other social service agencies, such as soup kitchens and homeless shelters.
The E.A.T.S. food pantry is one of dozens across the state that help relieve food insecurity, which is defined by Feeding America as “a household’s inability to provide enough food for every person to live an active, healthy life.”
More than 110,000 Milwaukee County residents reported experiencing food insecurity in 2020.
Audrey Wilson, who runs the E.A.T.S. food pantry, described the job as her calling.
“If we didn’t have food pantries, things would be a lot worse, especially for seniors, those with disabilities and single parents,” she said.
According to Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap data, Milwaukee families as a whole needed nearly $60 million to purchase enough food to become food secure.
‘This is ministry for me’
From her experience, Wilson said residents may find themselves food insecure for many reasons.
“Even though a lot of people have received the extra on their food share, those who didn’t are the ones we see come here,” she explained. “It’s a supplement. It helps them get to their next payday.”
Clients, she said, come in from the surrounding Harambee neighborhood and from as far away as Cudahy, Brown Deer and West Allis.
At E.A.T.S., Wilson said the pandemic has especially been hard on single parents and the elderly residents who live in the neighborhood’s three senior centers:
“Seniors have to decide, ‘do I eat or pay my bills?’ or ‘Do I eat or get my medication?’ Because they’re on that fixed income.”
Food insecurity among seniors for the metro area of Milwaukee, Waukesha and West Allis was around 9.2% in 2020, or almost one in ten.
E.A.T.S. combats food insecurity among seniors with deliveries replete with produce. Wilson said much of the produce at E.A.T.S., such as fresh fruits, vegetables, poultry and eggs, is supplied by two farms.
Wilson said the produce goes a long way: “The seniors, they like it because not only is it healthy for them, but they’re also no longer at the age where they can bend down and do their own gardening.”
It’s a way that WestCare fulfills one of its most important tenets, said Travis Landry, the vice president of WestCare: “meet people where they are.”
“We communicate without passing judgment,” he said.
Over her year at WestCare, Wilson said she has gotten to know most of the clients and help them fulfill other needs. Many, for example, need clothes for their children. WestCare receives brand-new children’s clothing donations from Walmart which they can distribute with the food.
“I see the embarrassment and hurt on people’s faces,” Wilson said. “Because I know my clients so well, I can tell when something’s wrong, I say, ‘What’s going on with you today? Where’s my smile?’”
When she drives around the community, Wilson keeps four or five small bags on-hand, to give to youth or homeless people who have no food.
“I don’t like to see people go without,” she said.
Wilson said people can help fight hunger by volunteering time or sending checks to WestCare, located at 335 W. Wright St.
After 12 years running food pantries, Wilson considers giving to others its own reward.
“I give so much of myself sometimes that I’m a little spent, but as long as I brighten someone’s day (or) put a smile on someone’s face, I know I’ve done what God wants me to do,” she said.
“This is ministry for me.”
Milwaukee County hunger needs far outweigh other counties
There were roughly 57,000 — or one in four — children in Milwaukee County who experienced food insecurity in 2020.
Food insecurity was also stratified by race with roughly one in four Black (28%) and Hispanic (23%) residents experiencing food insecurity and less than one in ten white residents (7%) experiencing food insecurity.
ZIP codes with the highest percentages of food insecurity included 53205 and 53206, both of which are predominately populated with Black residents.
Food insecurity has far-reaching consequences.
A study looking at children visiting the emergency department of Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin found nearly half (45%) of the children’s caregivers reported food insecurity, indicating sustainable access to food is associated with better overall health.
Getting access to healthy foods is difficult too: a 2019 report from the city of Milwaukee determined there were 13 food deserts across the city. Food deserts are defined by the United States Department of Agriculture as “low-income tract(s) where a substantial number or substantial share of residents does not have easy access to a supermarket or large grocery store” — many other definitions emphasize access to fresh fruits and vegetables. A USDA map of food deserts shows dozens of spots throughout Milwaukee County where low-income communities struggle to access supermarkets.
Lacking access to healthy food has been connected to a range of diseases, including obesity, diabetes, heart disease and osteoporosis.
|
2022-10-06T12:04:17Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Stock the Shelves: What does hunger look like in Milwaukee County?
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/06/stock-shelves-what-does-hunger-look-like-milwaukee-county/10428962002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/06/stock-shelves-what-does-hunger-look-like-milwaukee-county/10428962002/
|
While the die has already been cast on the Milwaukee Brewers' 2022 season, there were still a couple players in the lineup for the season finale with significant personal milestones on the line.
Starter Corbin Burnes entered Wednesday's matinee against the Arizona Diamondbacks at American Family Field needing to pitch only one inning to reach the coveted 200-inning mark for the first time in his career.
He stayed in the game for three before handing the ball off to Aaron Ashby in an eventual 4-2 loss.
"Every starting pitcher, that’s a standard that they really want to try to achieve," manager Craig Counsell said. "I think it represents a lot of things. It represents consistency. It represents availability."
Burnes credited those who work closest with him for what he's accomplished.
"For me, the main thing is health," he said. "Making 33 starts this year, going over 200 innings, that’s just attributable to me being healthy, sticking to the routine between outings.
"The strength staff, training staff, helping me with recovery between starts. Yeah, it’s 200 innings, but it’s more about the staff and people around me who helped me get to that point."
The reigning National League Cy Young Award winner, Burnes won't repeat this season with Miami's Sandy Alcantara appearing to be the runaway favorite.
Even still, Burnes will make his mark yet again in the franchise annals by becoming the first Brewers pitcher to ever lead the league — NL or AL — in strikeouts.
He entered Wednesday with a career-best 238, with only Gerrit Cole of the New York Yankees (257) having recorded more in the major leagues, and tacked five more onto his total to finish 243.
That performance allowed him to pass Teddy Higuera (240) for the second-most strikeouts in a single season in franchise history. Only Ben Sheets (264 in 2004) had more.
"That’s not something I strive for," Burnes said. "Going for results is something that’s secondary. For me it’s about going out, executing pitches, having fun and having a chance to win.
"The fact we were able to lead in strikeouts is pretty cool, but not something I’m setting out to do."
Adames just misses 100 RBI
Then there was shortstop Willy Adames, who entered the day needing two runs batted in to reach 100 for the first time in his career.
He singled twice but failed to add to his RBI total.
Adames indicated the century mark didn't hold much meaning for him now anyway considering the Brewers have been eliminated from postseason contention — something he demonstrated Tuesday by ceding his spot as starting shortstop to Luis Urías for the first time since June 22.
That snapped a streak of 89 consecutive games started for Adames.
"If those two RBI gave a win to clinch, yes (it would mean more)," he said before the game. "But right now, if I get it, cool. If not, I’m cool with that."
Adames, who set a goal early in the season of playing all 162 games, saw that dream go out the window when he missed 20 games from late May into June.
He finishes with 138 starts (135 at shortstop and two at designated hitter) and 139 games played. Adames set career highs with 152 games played and 145 starts at shortstop in 2019 with the Tampa Bay Rays.
"He’s been a rock for us, he really has," Counsell said. "I don’t know what it was, but he was in there every day for 7-8 weeks, and it’s been impressive. No signs to me that – you go through the ups and downs hitting-wise – but I kind of look at the defense a lot, and the concentration.
"You get tired concentrating on every pitch, and he's been so good defensively (10 outs above average, which is best on the Brewers and 20th-best in the majors at any position). That’s one of the things that I look at. He’s maintained that high level of concentration in the field really, really well."
Peter Strzelecki impresses for the Brewers, makes 'special' impact
Last season, it was Jake Cousins who emerged from relative anonymity to make his major-league debut and pitch high-leverage innings out of the bullpen.
This season, it was Peter Strzelecki, an undrafted free agent who in four separate stints with the Brewers went 2-1 with a 2.83 ERA in 30 appearances, 40 strikeouts in 35 innings and four holds.
"We haven’t talked about Peter a lot, but the impact that he’s made in the last six weeks of this season has been really special," Counsell said. "You talk to those guys down there and they love him. He’s a connector type of kid and he’s pitched really well and he’s taken the ball a whole bunch and been effective for a rookie, a young (pitcher) with very little experience.
"He handles every situation really, really well. He’s been our biggest surprise, definitely, on the pitching side of the ball, for sure. I don’t think he got in a spring-training game. Where he started this year and where he’s finishing this year, I’m really proud of him and really happy for him."
Strzelecki also accomplished a big personal first Tuesday by retiring the Diamondbacks in order in the ninth to lock down his first major-league save.
"It was always on my mind," the Queens, N.Y., native said when asked if he ever doubted he could compete in the majors. "I always had the confidence. It was just about getting an opportunity and just showing everybody I could do this.
"I knew I could do this."
Just how far off the radar screen was Strzelecki, who will turn 28 on Oct. 24, heading into spring training?
He never even pitched in a Cactus League game for the Brewers, a factoid Counsell noted.
Safe to say, he'll be receiving an invitation for 2023 sometime this offseason.
"I mean, it’d be cool to go to my first big-league camp," he said, matter-of-factly. "Hopefully I’m invited to that."
Jace Peterson would love to return to Brewers in free agency
When Jace Peterson signed a minor-league contract with the Brewers in 2019, how many expected him to spend three seasons with the team and grow to play a prominent role?
Not too many.
That Peterson revitalized his career in his age-30 season while with his fifth big-league club in 2020 and maintained that level for three seasons with Milwaukee is a testament to him.
As the 2022 regular season wound to a close Wednesday, Peterson was batting .239/.320/.387, with an OPS of .707, putting him slightly above league-average in that category.
He hit a career-high eight home runs and stole 12 bases in what was a career-best season by all counts as he nearly more than doubled his career Wins Above Replacement up until 2022 in one year (2.4 WAR this year after 1.3 coming in).
Peterson now is set to become a free agent at season’s end, one of a handful of expiring player deals the team has.
Of that group, which includes Omar Narváez, Taylor Rogers, Andrew McCutchen and potentially Kolten Wong and Brad Boxberger, Peterson is one of the more likely candidates to return considering his expected cost relative to his value provided.
Whether or not that happens is to be seen, but Peterson indicated Wednesday he would love to return.
“For sure,” Peterson said. “I love the fact that we have unfinished business. We’ll see what happens.”
|
2022-10-06T12:04:47Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Brewers' Corbin Burnes finishes as NL strikeout leader
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/06/brewers-corbin-burnes-finishes-nl-strikeout-leader/8185583001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/06/brewers-corbin-burnes-finishes-nl-strikeout-leader/8185583001/
|
Madison — During the two decades Talib Akbar spent behind bars, he was placed in solitary confinement 10 times, ranging from six months to nearly a year.
Each stay in the 6-by-10-foot cell was mental torture; after his release in 2013, he was diagnosed with severe depression.
Akbar’s stints in solitary while in prison for sexual assault resulted from violating one of the more than 80 rules prisoners must follow. They can't lie to guards, for example, make threats, fight or disobey orders.
“There are a lot of things that can land you in solitary, but what it ultimately comes down to is if the guard likes you or not,” Akbar said. “If they have a problem with you, they can find a reason to put you in the hole.”
Now, at age 69, Akbar is on a mission to help others understand the trauma of solitary confinement. He has built a 6-by-8-foot replica of a prison cell on the back of a box truck, equipped with a toilet and sink, gray walls made to look like concrete, a small bed with a prison mattress, and an intimidating orange door.
He is traveling across Wisconsin, allowing volunteers to spend an hour in the cell, to get a small taste of what it's like to be locked up with no human contact.
I tried it recently and came away with a very different perspective on the use of solitary confinement.
'Everyone who has spent time in the hole tells me I got it right'
During one of Akbar’s stints in “the hole” in 2011, he sketched his cell at the Wisconsin Secure Program Facility in Boscobel. The intricate drawing became a model for the first mock solitary confinement cell created by students at Edgewood College in Madison in 2014. It took the students months to create the 1,000-pound replica.
The solitary confinement cell built by Edgewood College students had the look and feel of the real thing, but it was hard to move. Two years ago, Akbar started building a mobile version.
“I worked every time I had free time and everyone who has been in it, or seen it, who has spent time in the hole tells me I got it right,” he said.
A friend built the door for him with a small window and two slits. One slit allows guards to give a prisoner food. The other is made to shackle the inmate.
Being locked up for 22 to 23 hours a day challenges a person to be creative. Akbar entertained himself by doing push-ups and sit-ups to exhaustion, by reading and by doing paralegal work for other inmates.
“Solitary can play with your mind, so you have to find a way to keep busy while you’re in there,” Akbar said.
Inmates in solitary can get books and magazines to read, but they only get what’s left after the other inmates pick over the best ones.
After a month or two in solitary, Akbar says your brain starts to play tricks with you and it becomes more difficult to keep track of the days or even hours of a day.
“It’s mental torture, no doubt about it," he said. "It’s meant to mess up your mind."
Akbar believes his numerous stints in solitary affected his mental health. When he was released from prison, he dealt with bouts of being homeless.
“It affects you in different ways and you just don’t know how until you are in that situation,” he said.
UN calls it torture
According to the United Nations, prolonged isolation is a form of torture. The UN says the lack of meaningful human contact can lead to an inmate harming themselves or committing suicide.
In a January 2016 commentary for the Washington Post, President Barack Obama argued that the nation should rethink the use of solitary confinement.
Obama cited the 2010 case of 16-year-old Kalief Browder, who was accused of stealing a backpack. The teen was sent to Rikers Island Correctional Facility in New York to await trail. During his time there, Kalief was beaten by both inmates and guards. Court records show Kalief spent 1,100 days behind bars and more than 800 days in solitary.
He was never given a trial. He was never convicted of a crime.
“In 2013, Kalief was released, having never stood trial. He completed a successful semester at Bronx Community College, But life was a constant struggle to recover from the trauma of being locked up alone for 23 hours a day. One Saturday, he committed suicide at home. He was just 22 years old,” Obama wrote.
Solitary confinement gained popularity in the U.S. in the early 1800s but today is overused, Obama argued, noting that 100,000 inmates are held in solitary confinement in U.S. prisons on any given day.
It's fairly easy for an inmate to break a rule that lands them in solitary.
Akbar was once placed in solitary at the Boscobel prison for allegedly filling out a false report with state regulators. His violation: He has said a nurse failed to address his medical needs. The nurse said he lied about that — and that was enough to land him in segregation.
“The report was not false, but I was placed in the hole for it,” he said.
Akbar, who is the vice president of WISDOM, a statewide network of faith communities that supports the incarcerated and formerly incarcerated, said the use of solitary confinement needs to be rethought because of the devastating psychological consequences.
David Liners, director of WISDOM, said his organization follows the United Nations guidelines, which say that anything more than 15 days in solitary confinement is torture.
“To me, even 15 days seems like too much, but if we could get it down to that first, it would be a huge step in the right direction,” Liners said.
So, what do you do with inmates who are extremely troubled or dangerous?
Place them in small units and give them extra attention, Liners said.
Some places, such as Colorado, have stopped using solitary confinement, and there has been a decrease in violations within the prison system.
“People are so damaged by the experience of solitary confinement that they need to be rehabilitated before they can safely be allowed back into society,” Liners said. “That’s why we oppose it.”
My phone is taken, the door closes
When I got inside Akbar’s replica cell, he handed me a pair of green prison clothes.
“They came from one of my friends who was released from prison. He didn’t have any clothes so when he was released from prison, this was all he had,” Akbar said.
Then reality set in as my phone was taken, the door was closed, and Akbar piped in recorded noises from a prison.
The screaming and clanging of metal cups against the metal bars made it impossible to take a nap. I cranked out a few push-ups and dips from the bed, but after 30 minutes, I was bored.
In fact, I had a hard time doing an hour in this make-believe “hole.” I couldn’t imagine being trapped in a cramped cell for 23 hours with little to no meaningful contact for days on end.
“I did over 300 days.” Akbar said. “It’s not easy but you really don’t have a choice. You just have to keep your mind busy.”
Most of the time I laid down on the mattress, but Akbar noted that even in doing that I had violated a prison rule.
“When you lay on the bed, you have to lay with your head facing the security door so the guards can see it,” he said. “If you don’t, they can cite you for another violation and give you even more time.”
Bottom line, it is so unnatural to be confined and alone for a prolonged period of time that it can't be considered anything other than cruel and unusual.
One thing is certain: It isn't rehabilitation.
Where to see the mobile cell
Talib Akbar and his mobile solitary confinement cell will be in Milwaukee from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 7-9 at St. Benedict the Moor Church, 1015 N. 9th St.
He will be in Madison from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Oct. 14-15 at Bethel Lutheran Church, 312 Wisconsin Ave., Madison. For more information go to www.wisdomwisconsin.org or call (608) 843-0171.
|
2022-10-06T14:28:07Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Former inmate built a confinement cell to educate public about torture
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/2022/10/06/former-inmate-built-confinement-cell-educate-public-torture/8118844001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/2022/10/06/former-inmate-built-confinement-cell-educate-public-torture/8118844001/
|
Ella Foti and the Marquette volleyball team keep doing the work and it's paying off
It's most obvious on the court, where she has found a new role and helped the Golden Eagles (13-1, 4-0 Big East) rise to No. 18 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association poll. It's a hot start that few predicted for a revamped roster that includes five freshmen and two transfers.
"We kind of went into it like nobody is expecting anything from us, let’s just go out there and play hard, have fun and see what happens," Foti said Wednesday.
The 6-foot Foti's debut for the Golden Eagles has been a long time coming. She committed to MU as a freshman at Madison Edgewood High School, not long after suffering a torn ACL. She enrolled early at MU in 2021 when the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the volleyball season until the spring. Foti didn't get a waiver to play, but she rehabbed a broken ankle. Then she redshirted last season after tearing the medial meniscus in her right leg.
“She’s been through so much and just has had a terrific spirit through all of it," MU coach Ryan Theis said. "I would never be as strong as she is throughout the last five years of her life.”
"Just how things shook out, with a couple awesome transfers we got, this was just kind of my path on the court and I was like I just want to do whatever I can to help the team succeed and win," Foti said.
It's been a seamless fit with Foti posting a hitting percentage of .304.
"The one thing that doesn’t change, which is why we decided with her on the right very early in the season, is right-side blocking and right-back defense," Theis said. "That’s where a setter plays. So she was the most experienced player in our gym as a right-side blocker.
Foti's sense of teamwork extends away from volleyball. She's a double-major in psychology and educational studies and wants to be a child life specialist to help kids and families cope with surgeries or long-term illnesses. Foti also has been working with her family to build a nonprofit called Milotso, which facilitates community work for athletes.
"We just jump-started this program this summer," Foti said. "We’ve done a clinic and I had some of my teammates and basketball friends go to a facility called Running Rebels where we just hung out with the kids and taught them volleyball and it was super fun. We also at the end of July helped out with a backpacking thing with United Way."
Foti's pragmatism reflects MU's approach this season.
"We prepare a lot for each game," she said. "We have film sessions. We scout the teams hard. We have practice players come in and act as our opponents and try to play like them.
"And honestly going into every game we are well-prepared in that we never expect this is going to be an easy game or anything like that."
MU plays at St. John's and Seton Hall this weekend before a hotly anticipated battle at No. 21 Creighton next Friday.
"We talk about winning a Big East championship probably means a world (where) 17-1, 16-2 is probably what it takes with Creighton over there playing their way," Theis said. "So every match we always say ‘St. John’s is the most important match of the year. Why is that?’
"And our team will unanimously say, ‘Because it’s the next one.’ "
|
2022-10-06T14:28:13Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Madison's Ella Foti and Marquette volleyball team seek Big East title
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/marquette/2022/10/06/madisons-ella-foti-and-marquette-volleyball-team-seek-big-east-title/8180761001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/marquette/2022/10/06/madisons-ella-foti-and-marquette-volleyball-team-seek-big-east-title/8180761001/
|
When asked what her favorite thing about being out in nature was, Martina “Mars” Patterson closed her eyes and soaked in the sweet September sunshine as birds chirped and Lincoln Creek babbled nearby.
"Simply, being able to breathe,” she said, after a moment.
That’s what she hopes others can find in Hopkins Hollow, an 18-acre plot of land on the city’s northwest side where she sat on a bench overlooking a small waterfall along the creek.
Patterson is a land steward and arts and youth educator for Nearby Nature, an environmental justice and equity initiative that is working with the property’s owner, the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District, and the Northwest Side Community Development Corporation to restore the land and turn it into a natural oasis in an area of the city that doesn’t have many.
There’s no large sign marking the property yet — those are in the works, Patterson said, along with plans for peace post installations by artist Muneer Bahauddeen.
For now, the only indication there’s anything beyond the manicured lawn at the intersection of North Hopkins and West Congress is a narrow trail cutting through tall grasses at its eastern end, marked by a small knee-high sign.
Patterson, who teaches environmental education for Nearby Nature in area schools, also brings students to the property to learn. Like most adults who walk by, many of the students don't realize the little park exists beyond the sidewalk.
“They're really surprised when they turn the corner,” she said. “Because they didn't know (this was here). And they are very inquisitive, which I appreciate.”
That’s what Nearby Nature is all about — not only restoring natural spaces in areas of the city that have been historically overlooked, but also providing education about those spaces.
"The goal of Nearby Nature is to connect and expose and reintroduce Black children to nature,” Patterson said. "And beyond that, when we're done with our lesson plan, or if we don't come back to that school the following year, I still want to be connected, so at some point if in the future they remember that lady that came and talked about butterflies, now they might want to study lepidoptera. I hope to inspire on that level where they think about me later.”
She hopes that inspiration carries forward to college students, too, like the three who worked as interns for Nearby Nature this summer, funded by MMSD.
"I looked at (these internships) not as as just, we're paying you. My main focus is this is an opportunity to learn,” Patterson said. “It's just building your skills if you choose to put what you gain into whatever you choose to do after this. Maybe you want to own a restaurant one day, but now you know what plants you can eat or go harvest later. I feel like everything ties back to nature in some kind of way.”
Possible careers in nature
Opening kids’ eyes to the possibilities in nature, including possible careers, is one of the primary goals of Nearby Nature, which got its start in 2017 with a grant from the Sierra Club Foundation.
David Thomas, who volunteers as Nearby Nature’s project coordinator, was part of the team from the Sierra Club’s Great Waters Group and others who applied for the grant.
“The proposal was to deal with environmental justice issues in Milwaukee's central city,” he said. “The basics of environmental justice is to recognize that communities of color especially impacted by poverty bear a heavier burden when it comes to environmental issues, like environmental degradation, dumping. There are a lot of brownfields in the inner city where toxins were dumped.”
Hopkins Hollow represents many of the environmental problems that plague poorer communities. In the 1950s, the Metropolitan Sewerage District lined some of the county's waterways — including Lincoln Creek — with concrete in an effort to move floodwaters away from residential areas more quickly and prevent flooding. The project altered the course of the creek and soon "Lincoln Creek was treated like it was an open sewer,” Thomas said. The creek also became contaminated with PCBs, and over time, Hopkins Hollow became something of an unofficial dump site.
While MMSD began removing concrete from the creek in 2000, and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and others began cleaning up the toxins in 2008, the perception of Lincoln Creek as a dumping ground was hard to shake.
“I think that has been ingrained in some of the community members and then it passed down, so a lot of people see this as a sewage runoff or a dumping station,” Patterson said, adding she thinks a lot of the illegal dumping was done by contractors who don’t live in the neighborhood or people who weren't aware of resources available for getting rid of trash.
Nearby Nature has been working to change that mindset by cleaning up the site and talking with community members. It's already working. Patterson said one day when their group was there dropping wood chips, a neighbor thought they were dumping trash and called out to them to stop.
Patterson said they went over and explained the work they were doing, and that she's thankful for neighbors like that who are watching out for the property.
While it might seem small, insignificant even, to care about or spend money on such a tiny plot of nature in the middle of a city plagued by serious problems from poverty to crime, those are exactly why this “pocket of paradise,” as one Nearby Nature member called Hopkins Hollow, is necessary. Nature is a proven healer, and everybody needs space to breathe and take it in.
“The fact is that the people of color deserve to have the same experiences outdoors that people in white communities have, and they don't,” Thomas said.
According to the Trust for Public Land's ParkScore Index, 90% of Milwaukee residents live within a 10-minute walk of a park. But people in neighborhoods of color have access to 70% less nearby park space than those in white neighborhoods, and those living in lower-income neighborhoods have access to 57% less nearby park space than those in higher-income neighborhoods.
Thomas pointed to an example of that environmental injustice in the city, comparing the Milwaukee River Greenway, which has a well-established coalition that helps maintain 878 acres of greenspace linking 12 parks and 28 miles of trails through wealthier neighborhoods in Shorewood and Milwaukee's east side; with the Lincoln Creek Greenway, which has many areas that are trash-filled and neglected, and doesn't have a comparable coalition as it passes through more impoverished neighborhoods on the north side.
“Certain parts of Lincoln Creek are invested in and ‘better kept.’ This area is just kind of forgotten,” Patterson said.
But just because those areas of the city have other problems doesn't mean the environmental needs should be ignored, Thomas said.
"Environmentalists would use that as an excuse for not doing work in the central city," he said. " 'Oh, why don't we have any Black people on our board? Well, they're too busy dealing with issues like poverty and racism and bad education and lack of access to good jobs, and all these other things.' But things are all interconnected. And just because people are poor and marginalized doesn't mean they shouldn't have access to nature."
Nearby Nature sought to change that and from the beginning held community listening sessions and engaged with environmental leaders like Venice Williams from Alice's Garden Urban Farm, Brenda Coley from the Milwaukee Water Commons, and Yvonne McCaskill, the coordinator of the Century City Triangle Neighborhood Association.
The group started with a focus on environmental education, contracting with the Urban Ecology Center to bring educators into local schools and partnering with groups like the Boys & Girls Clubs and the Uniting Garden Homes neighborhood association.
While the UEC has a similar mission to Nearby Nature, the former nonprofit’s three centers — in Riverside Park, Washington Park and the Menomonee Valley — focus on serving a population within two miles of those centers, leaving a gap on the city’s north side that Nearby Nature fills.
In 2019 the Milwaukee Environmental Consortium took over fiscal sponsorship of the group and hired Patterson as a youth educator. Before the pandemic, Nearby Nature held 68 programs in four youth-serving agencies that serve a population that is 90% or more Black.
With education programs rolling, Nearby Nature set its sights on a small plot of land along Lincoln Creek and got permission from MMSD to build a 500-foot demonstration trail there with the help of volunteers in 2021.
Patterson said Sierra Taliaferro, an outdoor educator on Nearby Nature’s steering committee, dubbed the spot Hopkins Hollow because it is a hollow — or narrow valley — along Hopkins Street.
Walking through the hollow
Patterson led the way through the hollow on that September day, pointing out a small frog that hopped out of the way as we walked by, and later pausing to point out deer tracks in the mud. Nearby Nature — and by default, Patterson, as the nonprofit’s only land steward — is responsible for maintaining the trail. They also bought and installed two benches that were made by interns with Reflo, a nonprofit dedicated to sustainable water use. MMSD manages the site’s invasive species, which include garlic mustard, buckthorn, wild parsnip and giant ragweed.
But in September the native plants were stealing the show, filling the prairie we walked through with bright yellow goldenrod and cheery purple aster. As she made our way into the wooded section of the trail, Patterson paused to talk about Jerusalem artichoke, a wild edible which she said has roots that look like ginger but taste like a potato.
She said she hopes that one day the site might have “a wild food space, so that we can have access to healthy foods in an otherwise healthy food desert.”
Patterson said community members have also expressed interest in learning about medicinal plants.
We arrived at the end of the trail where the property’s woods meet a prairie landscape. Patterson said there are four biomes, or plant and animal communities, on the property — southern mesic forest, mesic savanna, riparian and cliff/hillside prairie — which is one reason it’s unique and important.
"There are so many interesting biomes within this space that don't exist in other nature spaces, especially because it's 18 acres," Patterson said.
Sitting on benches at the intersection of those biomes in the hollow cut by Lincoln Creek, trees blocked out most of the sounds and sights of the city around us.
“We thought this would be a good spot for people to have some respite and witness the waterfall, because once you get around here, traffic kind of quiets down. It’s a little pocket of calmness over here,” she said.
That calmness is in the middle of an 880-acre stretch of property known as the 30th Street Corridor that has been at the center of redevelopment efforts over the past decade.
The corridor, between 27th and 35th streets from Hampton Avenue to Highland Avenue, was once home to manufacturing giants like A.O. Smith, Badger Meter and Briggs & Stratton with good-paying jobs that fueled stable middle class neighborhoods. But since those companies left and took those jobs with them, the area has struggled to replace them and poverty and crime began to take hold.
Now a handful of groups are trying to reverse that trend, including The 30th Street Industrial Corridor Corp (The Corridor), a nonprofit dedicated to neighborhood revitalization and economic development; Community Within the Corridor, a development with apartments and commercial space in the former Briggs & Stratton complex; and the Rails to Trails Conservancy, which is working with The Corridor and other partners to bring a 6.7-mile paved trail and linear park to the corridor.
That trail would run along the railroad tracks just east of Lincoln Creek. Patterson hopes one day a footbridge would link Hopkins Hollow with that trail so people could park or walk their bikes across and find respite in the hollow.
The property's benefits extend beyond rest and relaxation, too. More greenspace and wetlands in the city can help remediate flooding — and wastewater overflows into Lake Michigan and other area waterways like Milwaukee experienced in September. And well maintained greenspace can also increase property values for those who live nearby.
Those who live nearby are the key to this space, and both Patterson and Thomas stressed that engaging with community members about the property and what they wanted to see there was vital to Nearby Nature’s mission.
Patterson said some community members hope to host more events there.
"One guy wanted to do a barbecue down there," she said. "He wanted to have more community gatherings in the space and not just on the perimeter, because a lot of times people will walk on the outside but it's not as inviting to come around the corner."
Patterson, who studied fashion design and fine art in college and is a working artist in addition to working for Nearby Nature, hopes adding some art to the exterior will help with that and make Hopkins Hollow even more representative of the power of restoring natural spaces in the city.
"This specific space, I think, highlights how the intersectionality of community restoration, culture and art can succeed,” Patterson said. "(The four biomes) coexisting reflects the potential of us, as humans, coexisting. The most diverse spaces are on these edges of our communities and within nature ... everything flourishes the best within the diverse space.”
More information: Nearby Nature is inviting people to join Bahauddeen, a community-based public artist, in making peace posts for the Hopkins Hollow trailhead from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 8 at Banner High School, 4675 N. 35th St.
The demonstration trail in Hopkins Hollow is at 4410 N. Hopkins St. For more on Nearby Nature and upcoming events, see nearbynaturemke.org.
|
2022-10-06T14:28:25Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Nearby Nature's 'pocket of paradise' at Hopkins Hollow in Milwaukee
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/travel/wisconsin/outdoors/2022/10/06/nearby-nature-hopkins-hollow-milwaukee/10391381002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/travel/wisconsin/outdoors/2022/10/06/nearby-nature-hopkins-hollow-milwaukee/10391381002/
|
After more than two years of discussion, Wauwatosa officials have rejected a proposed ban on no-knock warrants in the city
After more than two years of discussion, a proposal to ban the use of no-knock warrants by the Wauwatosa Police department was rejected Oct. 4 by the common council in a 12-3 vote.
The ban was first discussed in June 2021 by the government affairs committee, but was ultimately tabled. In 2022, the proposal would be revived by Ald. Sean Lowe after he was elected to the Wauwatosa Common Council.
If approved, the proposal would have changed the city ordinance to ban no-knock warrants, but it would not have totally eliminated them as it would have allowed for exceptions to be “granted from the police chief or a judge under extreme circumstances.”
Council members Lowe, Andrew Meindl and Meagan O’Reilly were the only members to support the ban. Council members voting against the ban cited worries about what the proposal would actually do, as the ability to grant exceptions means it would closely resemble the Wauwatosa Police Department’s current set of operations.
Lowe has publicly opposed the use of no-knock warrants since 2020 when he first called for them to stop being used. Lowe reiterated his position on the topic in a September government affairs meeting where the ban was discussed.
“No-knock warrants have continually been banned in cities across our country, including the city of Milwaukee … no-knock warrants are not only dangerous for citizens, but they are also very dangerous for police officers,” said Lowe.
At the same meeting, Police Chief James MacGillis spoke passionately against the ban as he explained that he feels the sparsely used tool can be crucial in protecting officers and community members.
“I feel even stronger that legislation will take away my ability to have this additional option to either approve or deny (a warrant),” said MacGillis, “I am respectfully asking you to deny this proposed legislation … understand if you're going to try and send a message you will be putting my officers and this community in danger.”
The Wauwatosa Police Department has served 30 no-knock warrants from 2016-2021 — all outside city limits
In the 2016-2021 period preceding the latest proposal to ban no-knock warrants, the Wauwatosa Police department executed 30 no-knock warrants, however, all of them took place outside city limits.
“Generally, all search warrants served by our special response team stem from an incident in Wauwatosa. However, we partner with multiple task forces and other jurisdictions and occasionally assist in serving search warrants from their investigations,” said Sgt. Abby Pavlik of the data.
There was some public support for the ban as one community member spoke at the meeting, saying she doesn't feel this kind of warrant brings anything positive into the community and thus it is not needed.
The government affairs committee did not agree with this stance as it would eventually go on to recommend rejecting the ban in a 7-1 vote. Some committee members expressed that the proposal is more a matter of semantics than an ordinance change because of the loopholes for emergency situations.
“Legally we are already kind of bound to this, it’s already kind of our place and how we are running things and so I’m just wondering what is left to discuss if we are already at this point?” said Ald. Amanda Fuerst.
Despite the rejection, Lowe said he “absolutely” plans to restructure the proposal and offer it to the council again sometime in the future. As for what that could look like, Lowe said it is still too early to tell.
A proposal years in the making
The push to ban no-knock warrants gained momentum across the country in the summer of 2020 after Breonna Taylor was fatally shot by plainclothes officers who rushed into Taylor’s apartment while executing a no-knock warrant.
The idea was first talked about in Wauwatosa the same year when the Wauwatosa Equity and Inclusion Commission, which Lowe chaired, recommended a ban on no-knock warrants alongside calls for body cameras and a ban on chokeholds.
A year after these recommendations were made, talks about a ban on no-knock warrants were rekindled during a June 2021 government affairs committee meeting. It was eventually decided that the proposal would be tabled until the Wauwatosa Police Department appointed a new police chief.
Arguably the biggest step in the culmination of the current proposal came in 2022 when Lowe was elected to the city's Common Council. After being elected Lowe, immediately identified a ban on no-knock warrants as one of his top priorities.
|
2022-10-06T16:38:10Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
No-knock warrants will not be banned in Wauwatosa, officials say
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/west/news/2022/10/06/no-knock-warrants-not-banned-wauwatosa-officials-say/8189240001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/west/news/2022/10/06/no-knock-warrants-not-banned-wauwatosa-officials-say/8189240001/
|
The Milwaukee County Zoo's 4-month-old red panda cub has made her debut in her outdoor habitat
The Milwaukee County Zoo's newest red panda cub, Cinder, has made her debut in her outdoor habitat.
Cinder, who is almost 4 months old, was born June 12 at the zoo to mom Dr. Erin and dad Dash. She is the red panda parents' third cub.
The zoo's animal care staff have been working with the red panda for the past few weeks to get her used to her outdoor surroundings. The process has been somewhat slow as Cinder is more cautious than her siblings were.
Cinder likes climbing the trees in her outdoor space and is still learning how to use her tail to balance; that means visitors will sometimes see her with her tail wrapped around herself.
For now, Cinder will be hanging out with her mom in the outdoor habitat for part of each day, gradually increasing her outside time as she grows more comfortable.
Red pandas are on the list of endangered animals, and the Milwaukee County Zoo participates in the animal's Species Survival Plan, in which zoos cooperate to support breeding plans that will help achieve the goal of long-term genetic diversity.
More:A baby giraffe was born outside in front of visitors at the Milwaukee County Zoo
More:The Milwaukee County Zoo is the first in the U.S. to offer a virtual-reality experience about gorillas only seen in the wild
|
2022-10-06T16:38:16Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Milwaukee County Zoo red panda cub Cinder debuts in outdoor habitat
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/life/wisconsin-family/2022/10/06/milwaukee-county-zoo-red-panda-cub-cinder-debuts-outdoor-habitat/8195514001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/life/wisconsin-family/2022/10/06/milwaukee-county-zoo-red-panda-cub-cinder-debuts-outdoor-habitat/8195514001/
|
Beverly Klein was a mentor to women in the newspaper business 'when mentoring wasn't even a thing'
When Journal Co. advertising department employees heard six-inch heels clicking down the hall, they sat up straight.
Customers calling to place classified ads waited on hold while employees fielded their orders. When the wait times got too long, an alert would go up and marketing boss Beverly Klein would emerge from her office and walk into the call center — the sound of her stilettos making her presence known.
"She wasn't there to criticize, or say, 'Work harder' or say, 'This is unacceptable,'" said Beckie Thompson, a former employee and Klein's granddaughter. "She was there to sit in a chair, put on a headset and take rummage sale advertising calls."
Klein died Sept. 29 at the age of 95. She retired from a 32-year career at The Journal Company in 1993 as the senior vice president of marketing.
Although she was a key executive, Klein didn't consider herself too important to help out with smaller tasks, said Sandy Wysocki, another former employee. "She knew that there was a job to be done," she said.
Klein began her Journal Co. career in 1961 as a classified ad taker. She was a young widow and a mother to five children. At the time, it was rare for women to have careers at all, let alone to become executives. But Klein quickly rose through the ranks.
"She was a ball of energy and very creative, very friendly," said Keith Spore, former Journal Sentinel publisher. "She was the perfect ad director. She could woo clients like no one else."
Often the only woman in the room, Klein had to carefully manage her workplace relationships. When younger women joined the company, she often took them under her wing.
When Wysocki was a young employee, Klein would listen to her attentively, regardless of who else was in the room.
"She was a mentor to me when mentoring wasn't even a thing," Wysocki said.
Known for her stylish wardrobe, Klein was proudly feminine in the workplace. Her experiences as a woman and a working mother also shaped her management style.
Klein told family how she supervised a woman who needed to leave the office early each day to pick up her child from daycare. Klein saw potential in the employee and thought it would be foolish to give her a hard time.
Klein was proud to say she never missed a day of work. But she never missed a graduation or a grandparents' day at school either, said Thompson. She had 12 grandchildren and 25 great-grandchildren.
"For the big job that she had and the amazing things she accomplished, her greatest job of all, in her heart, was her family," Thompson said.
Klein was also involved in the community. She served on the boards of the Milwaukee Symphony League and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Foundation.
She was also a strong believer in education. Her family suggested donating to Divine Savior Holy Angels High School in her memory.
She was proceeded in death by her son Thom, daughter Mary Pat Pfeil and a granddaughter. She is survived by her children, Kathleen Ramstack, Dennis Klein and Maureen Lager.
A visitation will be held Saturday at 10 a.m. followed by an 11:45 a.m. service at Christ King Catholic Church, 2612 N. Swan Blvd. in Wauwatosa.
|
2022-10-06T16:38:22Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Beverly Klein was a mentor and trailblazer in the newspaper business
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2022/10/06/beverly-klein-mentor-and-trailblazer-newspaper-business/8178661001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2022/10/06/beverly-klein-mentor-and-trailblazer-newspaper-business/8178661001/
|
A medical clinic is planned for a former drug store on Milwaukee's south side. It would be just one block from another new clinic.
A medical clinic is being proposed for a former drug store on Milwaukee's south side — just one block from another new clinic.
Froedtert & Medical College of Wisconsin would remodel the former CVS Pharmacy, 1316 W. Forest Home Ave., into a primary care clinic, according to plans filed with the city Historic Preservation Commission.
That building, while constructed in 1995, is within the Mitchell Street Historic District.
So, any exterior renovations would need commission approval — which could come at its Monday meeting.
The clinic, to open by June, would include 16 exam rooms, a lab and other features.
Also, it would house a physician residency training program, and include a conference and training center for 20 to 25 people.
The Froedtert & MCW clinic would be around one block northeast of a Children's Wisconsin primary care clinic that opened in June at 1432 W. Forest Home Ave.
The Children's Wisconsin clinic's construction proceeded after a battle before the Historic Preservation Commission.
The former Forest Home Branch Library was demolished to make way for the clinic.
That happened after the Common Council in December 2020 rejected a commission ruling to designate the former library as historic.
The proposed Froedtert & MCW clinic property is owned by Brookfield-based El Rey Properties LLC.
The clinic would use most of the one-story, 16,500-square-foot building.
Around 2,400 square feet is set aside for a future bank tenant, according to the plans. That will be operated by North Shore Bank, according to city building permits.
El Rey Properties bought the building and two neighboring buildings, housing Reflections Jewelry and a Domino's Pizza, in 2021 for $2.15 million, according to state real estate records.
|
2022-10-06T16:38:28Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Medical clinic planned for former drug store on Milwaukee's south side
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/real-estate/commercial/2022/10/06/medical-clinic-planned-former-drug-store-milwaukees-south-side/8194782001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/real-estate/commercial/2022/10/06/medical-clinic-planned-former-drug-store-milwaukees-south-side/8194782001/
|
Madison's dormant absentee ballot drop boxes transformed into artwork, criticism of Supreme Court ruling
MADISON - Madison city officials have wrapped more than a dozen dormant absentee ballot drop boxes in art and criticism of a Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling barring voters from returning their ballots anywhere but a clerk's office or polling station.
The drop boxes, once painted to resemble the capital city's bright blue flag, have been transformed into permanent monuments against the court's July ruling that arrived amid a two-year battle between city officials and Republicans who promoted former president Donald Trump's false claims of widespread election fraud.
The boxes now feature the artwork of New York-based artist Jenny Holzer that includes Sojourner Truth's "Truth is powerful and will prevail." Madison city officials previously featured Holzer's work in 2020 as part of a voter outreach campaign.
"It’s really important for us to acknowledge that the state Supreme Court made a very bad decision and to acknowledge the Legislature has failed to act to make it easier and safer for people to vote," Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway said.
"We do not want to remove the drop boxes in the wake of the state Supreme Court decision — I wanted to transform them to acknowledge what's happening in this state and let them stand as a testament to the fact that the truth is powerful and will prevail."
"They are not a memorial. I hope they are a marker and perhaps a placeholder for the future."
The court's 4-3 ruling was a win for Republicans who now oppose the longstanding use of ballot drop boxes after their use proliferated during the coronavirus pandemic and was heavily criticized by Trump, who alleged with no evidence that absentee voting was rife with fraud and led to his reelection loss in 2020.
The court's conservative majority said state law does not permit drop boxes anywhere other than election clerk offices and only state lawmakers may make new policy stating otherwise — not the Wisconsin Elections Commission, which issued guidance to clerks allowing them.
More:How to register to vote, request an absentee ballot and answers to other questions about voting in Wisconsin
"WEC's staff may have been trying to make voting as easy as possible during the pandemic, but whatever their motivations, WEC must follow Wisconsin statutes. Good intentions never override the law," Supreme Court Justice Rebecca Bradley wrote for the majority.
Hundreds of absentee drop boxes were installed across the state in 2020 to help voters cast their ballots without interacting with other people. More than 40% of all votes cast that year were through absentee ballots.
Republicans began scrutinizing their use as Trump launched a baseless campaign against absentee voting ahead of his election loss that continues today.
Madison's defunct drop boxes also feature voting instruction for residents to help them return their ballots.
|
2022-10-06T16:38:34Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Madison adorns its dormant absentee ballot drop boxes with artwork
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/10/06/madison-adorns-its-dormant-absentee-ballot-drop-boxes-artwork/8195478001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/10/06/madison-adorns-its-dormant-absentee-ballot-drop-boxes-artwork/8195478001/
|
Suburban Milwaukee schools districts had mixed results when it came to 2021-22 state standardized testing scores.
While, statewide, fewer than half of Wisconsin students were deemed proficient in math and language arts in 2021-22, most local districts fared better.
In suburban Milwaukee school districts, the K-8 Lake Country School District led the way with the highest scores on the math portion of the Forward Exam, as the district saw a slight increase from 79.3% proficient or advanced in 2019 to 80.9% in 2022.
On the language arts portion of the Forward Exam, the district saw a slight decrease from 72.9% proficient or advanced in 2019 to 72% in 2022.
Lake Country School Superintendent Chad Schraufnagel said the district was excited about its Forward Exam results.
"This is a reflection of the dedication of the students, staff, parents, community, and board of education and the collective commitment to providing a quality education to all students who attend the Lake Country School District. We will continue to analyze our data and continue to look for ways to grow and better support our students," said Schraufnagel in an Oct. 5 email.
More:Fewer than half of Wisconsin students were proficient in math, language, according to 2022 standardized tests
Another district that performed well on the Forward Exam was the K-12 Cedarburg School District. The district improved its math proficiency from 67.3% proficient or advanced in 2019 to 76.6% in 2022 and improved its language arts proficiency from 62.9% in 2019 to 68.9% in 2022.
The K-8 Hartland-Lakeside School District improved from 73.4% in math proficiency in 2019 to 75.6% proficiency in 2022. The district saw a slight decrease on the language arts portion, from 67.4% proficiency in 2019 to 65.6% proficiency in 2022.
Another K-8 district that had high 2022 marks on the Forward Exam was North Lake, which decreased in math proficiency from 78.6% in 2019 to 72.5% in 2022 on the math portion and slightly decreased in language arts proficiency from 68.8% in 2019 to 67.2% in 2022.
Merton, another K-8 district, also had high marks, improving its language arts proficiency from 63.2% in 2019 to 69.9% in 2022 and decreasing in math proficiency from 71.9% in 2019 to 69.3%.
On the flip side, some suburban Milwaukee districts saw their scores decrease in 2021-22.
Brown Deer, for example, decreased in math proficiency from 42.9% in 2019 to 25.8% in 2022. The district's language arts proficiency also decreased, declining from 39.2% in 2019 to 25.2% in 2022.
Another district that did not perform well on the Forward Exam in 2021-22 was Cudahy. The district's language arts proficiency decreased from 36.2% in 2019 to 28% in 2022 and its math proficiency decreased from 33.5% in 2019 to 23% in 2022.
Other local districts that did not fare well in 2022 on math and language arts exams:
Palmyra-Eagle decreased in math proficiency from 42.9% in 2019 to 26.9% in 2022 and decreased in language arts proficiency from 37.4% in 2019 to 30% in 2022.
South Milwaukee decreased in math proficiency from 38.3% in 2019 to 24.4% in 2022 and decreased in language arts proficiency from 31.6% in 2019 to 24.7% in 2022.
West Allis-West Milwaukee decreased in math proficiency from 36.9% in 2019 to 21.8% in 2022 and decreased in language arts proficiency from 40.8% in 2019 to 28.1% in 2019
The Forward Exam's math and language arts test is given annually to third- through eighth-graders statewide.
The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction cautioned against comparing numbers for the Forward Exam in 2022 with those from 2021 due to low participation numbers caused by the pandemic. Some school districts were still in virtual learning at the time of testing in 2021. Scores for the exam also counted students who did not take the test as not proficient, which lowered schools' proficiency rates. Tests were canceled in 2020.
ACT testing
Area school districts also performed well on the ACT exams in 2021-22, with most districts' average composite score exceeding the 2021-22 state average composite score of 19.2.
Some districts saw high ACT average composite scores in 2021-22, which in most cases were improvements over their 2020-21 average composite scores. They included:
Whitefish Bay at 25.1, an increase from 22.7 in 2020-21
Elmbrook at 23.5, an increase from 23.0 in 2020-21
Mequon-Thiensville at 22.8, an increase from 22.5 in 2020-21
Arrowhead and Cedarburg, who each had 22.7; Arrowhead's score increased from 22.5 in 2020-21 while Cedarburg decreased from 23.4 in 2020-21
The Whitefish Bay School District sent an emailed statement to a reporter Oct. 5 attributed to Superintendent John Thomsen.
“Although this is just one measure, it is a key indicator of post-high school readiness. These results reflect our ongoing commitment to developing strong student academic and 21st century skills while addressing the whole child in a caring and supportive environment. We do not know of any other public school district in the state that has matched this high, long-standing record. Consistent ACT scores above 25 are just one reflection of the dedicated effort and commitment to learning demonstrated by our students, their families, and our entire District Team," Thomsen said in the emailed statement.
The district with the lowest composite score in the area for 2021-22 was St. Francis with 16.2. Other districts with low composite scores were Cudahy with 16.7, West Allis-West Milwaukee and Brown Deer with 17.1 and South Milwaukee with 17.2.
To see how your district performed on the Forward Exam and ACT, visit wisedash.dpi.wi.gov/.
|
2022-10-06T18:41:25Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Here's how suburban school districts performed on state testing
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/lake-country/2022/10/06/heres-how-suburban-school-districts-performed-state-testing/8135566001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/lake-country/2022/10/06/heres-how-suburban-school-districts-performed-state-testing/8135566001/
|
Black women are disproportionately hit by breast cancer. Here's how to get a free mammogram this Saturday.
Two local alumni chapters of the historically Black Sigma Gamma Rho sorority are joining forces this month with a major local hospital to get more Black women and women of color up to date on their mammograms.
Froedtert and the Medical College of Wisconsin's Clinical Cancer Center, 8800 W. Doyne Ave., will provide free mammograms this Saturday, Oct. 8, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. for those who sign up. Appointments can be booked by calling 414-777-1900 (choose option one and ask for the Sigma Gamma Rho mammogram), and were still available as of Wednesday.
The group has a goal of providing 100 mammograms, starting with the health fair this weekend and continuing with scheduled appointments for women who can't make it. Registration will be open through the end of the month or until available space runs out.
Moya Baylis, the immediate past president of the Gamma Pi Sigma alumni chapter of the sorority, said she's seen many of her own sorority sisters battle breast cancer, which disproportionally affects Black women. Baylis' own chapter has five breast cancer survivors.
"We noticed that a lot of women of color were just not getting their mammograms, and the outreach for getting to them has just not been a focal point, we felt, in our community," Baylis said.
Outreach to Black women is particularly important because they are more likely to be diagnosed with particularly aggressive types of breast cancer, more likely to face delays in getting treatment, and are more likely to die from the disease than white women, according to data from the American Cancer Society.
Dr. Adrienne Cobb, a surgical oncologist with the Froedtert and MCW Clinical Cancer Network specializing in breast cancer, sees it as her personal mission as a Black physician to bring more breast cancer awareness to her community and other underserved populations.
"Interestingly enough, in Black women the incidence of breast cancer — how common it is — is actually less than white women. It's about 4% less," Cobb said. "However, Black women are about 40% more likely to actually die from breast cancer."
There are many reasons for this disparity, advocated and health experts say. Black women are more likely to be diagnosed at later stages and with more aggressive forms of breast cancer, Cobb said.
"We think that some of it has to do with differences in care, but we also can't ignore the fact that barriers to housing, jobs and the role and impact of structural racism play in the overall creation of disparities in all cancer care," Cobb said.
Overall, the five-year survival rate for Black women diagnosed with breast cancer is 82% compared to 92% for white women, according to the American Cancer Society.
While she was in medical school, Cobb lost a friend's mother, who she saw as her second mother, to a particularly aggressive form of breast cancer called triple negative breast cancer.
"I watched her go through chemo and everything, and ultimately, she passed away and it was just not the picture that I had in my mind of what breast cancer was," Cobb said. "The vision that I had was women at the Susan G. Komen walk who survived 20 years and were living a regular life. That just wasn't her experience. And it was then that I started to learn more about triple negative breast cancer and its disparate impact on Black women."
Black women are three times more likely that white women to be diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer, according to Touch, The Black Breast Cancer Alliance. They are also more likely to have denser breasts, which makes it more likely for them to get cancer and harder for mammograms to catch it, Touch notes.
American Cancer Society data shows the mammogram screening rate for Black women declined from a peak of 71% in 1999 to 65% in 2005. It's been relatively stable there since, according to the American Cancer Society.
More:'Listen to your body.' Doctors, patients at Aurora Sinai Medical Center champion less-invasive surgery for uterine fibroids
More:Aurora Sinai researchers building data on water births. So far, women report feeling more comfortable, and more in control.
Those who get mammograms through the sorority who have insurance will be billed according to their coverage (routine mammograms are covered in most cases), but those who do not have coverage or are underinsured will not be charged.
The hope is that the chance of getting the test done alongside members of their own community will also being some ease to the "fear of the unknown" that some Black women might have when it comes to getting checked out, Baylis said, and to remind people that getting diagnosed early can give them life-saving options.
"Sometimes, if I can see somebody that looks like me, then it's like, 'OK, that makes sense. Maybe I shouldn't be as fearful because I can see somebody — and they live right here — that has gone through it," she said.
Women with an average risk of breast cancer can begin getting annual screenings starting at 40, Cobb said.
Those who are at high risk — because a first-degree relative was diagnosed and/or because they have certain genetic mutations — should be screened annually beginning ten years before the age at which their relative was diagnosed or at age 35, whichever comes first.
Talk to your doctor about what is best for you.
Call 414-777-1900 (choose option one and ask for the Sigma Gamma Rho mammogram), for a mammogram through the sorority event.
Find data on Black breast cancer and resources from Touch, The Black Breast Cancer Alliance at https://touchbbca.org/ and learn more about clinical trials from their "When We Trial" initiative at https://www.whenwetrial.org/.
|
2022-10-06T20:37:25Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Froedtert and MCW partner with Sigma Gamma Rho to provide mammograms
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/health/2022/10/06/froedtert-and-medical-college-wisconsin-partner-sigma-gamma-rho-provide-free-mammograms-saturday/8180160001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/health/2022/10/06/froedtert-and-medical-college-wisconsin-partner-sigma-gamma-rho-provide-free-mammograms-saturday/8180160001/
|
Beset with vacancies and delays, the scarcity and demands on Milwaukee’s Department of Neighborhood Services were laid bare during a hearing before the finance committee Tuesday.
Aldermen relayed the frustrations received from business owners and residents about delays in permit applications being approved, demolitions being conducted and inspections being completed.
Department of Neighborhood Services Commissioner Erica Roberts blamed budget constraints, staff turnover and a scarcity of contractors as the source of delays.
Here are five of the biggest takeaways about the state of the department:
1. Permit delays source of frustration for business owners
The department’s Permit & Development Center is responsible for reviewing applications and issuing the permits for various development projects, including small commercial and residential properties, landscaping alterations and fence construction. The department also approves requests for occupancy status, zoning changes and other development-related issues.
The center reported an average of wait time of 14 business days before applications are reviewed. However, Ald. Milele Coggs said she has received several calls from business owners whose permit applications have been delayed for months.
The delays, she said, often hurt companies’ budgets.
“When I think about the domino effect of some of these projects not getting done in a timely fashion, particularly with the escalating costs of development, for some of these projects ... that time will determine if they can finish that project.”
Mary Wilkinson-Church, the manager of the center, said although the department issues permits, it is part of a larger system that applications go through, and the center’s employees are often waiting on approvals from other departments.
Wilkinson-Church also noted that batch requests often make applications more complex. Habitat for Humanity, which Coggs used as an example, had provided the same land survey for different properties and had to provide additional paperwork to correct that mistake, which delayed the process.
Roberts told aldermen they are exploring adding more features to their website to help reduce some of the load on Development Center employees.
So far, the center has issued 9% more permits this year than it did last year for a total of 1,409.
2. Unpaid reinspection fees often lead to foreclosures
One of the department’s most well-known roles in the city is code enforcement, which involves inspectors responding to complaints about a property and issuing work orders that require the property owner to make repairs.
Coggs said she regularly hears from residents that a combination of taxes and fees are the reason property owners lose their homes to tax foreclosure, which often leads to the city seizing ownership.
Reinspection fees in particular, Roberts said, are one of the most expensive additions, as they are issued on an graduating scale from $60-$350 and can be issued monthly until repairs are made.
Roberts said the department’s special enforcement division reaches out to property owners who are past the deadline to make repairs monthly to offer resources, such as the department’s STRONG Homes loan program, which helps homeowners make up to $20,000 in essential repairs to their properties.
“The city doesn’t want to own those properties,” Roberts said.
The city has reduced the number of tax foreclosures it owns from nearly 2,000, Roberts said, to roughly 600, thanks in part to those efforts.
3. More contractors needed to reduce demo delays
The department has 400 properties on a list to be razed, with 79 of those contracted out for mechanical demolition.
DNS Supervisor Chris Kraco said the department is currently only working with two contractors who can demolish properties. However, because the contracts are not exclusive work, there have been long delays and many buildings remain vacant and in significant disrepair.
Those properties can often become a nuisance or hazard, or in some cases, dangerous — Coggs pointed out that a dead body was found in one such building, highlighting the need to speed up the demolition process.
In addition, the city’s deconstruction program has struggled to get off the ground with multiple local companies dropping out of the bidding process.
Roberts pointed to challenges finding contractors to do the work who can also pass the Small Business Enterprise (SBE) qualifications and who can comply with the city’s Residents Preference Program.
RELATED:'A good notion gone bad': Are participation programs hurting Milwaukee's minority contractors long-term?
Roberts said even her office, which sat down and attempted to register as a small business enterprise, was daunted by the paperwork required to become an eligible contractor.
The commissioner noted the requirements for demolitions allocated through the American Rescue Plan funds are much less restrictive for contractors, suggesting that set of requirements might be more effective.
She said she reached out to the Department of City Development, which received $20 million in federal funds to rehabilitate and repair properties around the city through contractors, for more support.
4. Vacancy rates among inspectors ‘tremendously high’
The department is missing 23% of the positions in its residential inspection division, one-third of positions in its special enforcement division and half the positions in its commercial inspection division.
After losing many of its staff to other municipalities and different government jobs, Roberts said the vacancy rate is “tremendously high.”
Higher pay and better benefits were strong motivators for many employees, while others reported the desire to work remotely, which DNS does not offer due to what Roberts described as lower productivity levels during the pandemic’s remote work era.
Roberts also said the job itself can lend to burnout.
“What is mentioned frequently in exit interviews is the stress levels that the staff experience,” she said. “They’re working at the maximum of output on a daily basis. I think it’s a tough environment to work in.”
Working without nearly a quarter of its staff, DNS’ residential inspection division responded to 75% of the complaints received in 2021. The department also reported operating its Development Center without more than a quarter of staff.
To address the impact of overwork on employees, Roberts said she would like to add staff, including four more residential inspectors. But she said she is “respectful” of budgetary limits, which means those positions aren’t likely to be included.
“Maybe we’re shooting ourselves in the foot by not having that fully staffed,” Ald. Michael Murphy said, noting that the increased workload on fewer employees is likely to increase the risk of turnover.
Roberts said she would also like to increase employee salaries. Murphy noted higher fees might be the best way to raise revenue for that increase.
5. Inspector safety a key issue
Perhaps one of the biggest reasons for turnover is the lack of safety many inspectors report on the job.
“This is an issue that lies really heavy in my heart,” Roberts said.
Last year, a Milwaukee Housing Authority inspector was shot in her car by someone from the home she had just visited. A DNS housing inspector was killed in an attempted carjacking in 2017.
“We have a lot of folks who report back that they’ve been threatened in the field. People have said ‘I’m going to shoot you,’ ” Roberts reported. “We've had a number of incidents where ... they are approached by subjects with bad intentions.”
It is extraordinarily challenging for anyone in these neighborhoods, Roberts added, citing her five years of experience as an inspector.
Inspectors are at risk even driving to and from appointments, Roberts said, explaining several employees have had accidents due to someone else’s reckless driving.
Although the department requires inspectors to carry insurance, repairs and deductible come out of their pocket.
Murphy described the revelations as “very disheartening.”
Roberts said the department has an internal policy that allows any inspector who feels unsafe to cancel an appointment and return another day.
|
2022-10-06T20:37:31Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Vacancies, delays plague Milwaukee Department of Neighborhood Services
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/milwaukee/2022/10/06/vacancies-delays-plague-milwaukee-department-neighborhood-services/8180112001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/milwaukee/2022/10/06/vacancies-delays-plague-milwaukee-department-neighborhood-services/8180112001/
|
A year of firsts continues for Milwaukee Brewers closer Devin Williams.
Having already appeared in the All-Star Game for the first time in July, on Thursday the right-hander was added to the Team USA roster for the upcoming World Baseball Classic.
Williams, 28, becomes just the third Brewers player to be named to Team USA's WBC roster, joining Ryan Braun (2009 and 2013) and Jonathan Lucroy (2013).
More:Brewers finish season with a loss to Arizona but set their sights on 2023 with optimism
More:Corbin Burnes, Willy Adames entered season finale chasing significant personal achievements. How did they do?
He just wrapped up his most productive season for Milwaukee, going 6-4 with a 1.93 earned run average, WHIP of 1.01 and 15 saves.
Williams also struck out 96 in 60⅔ innings, a rate of 14.2 per nine.
Several other Brewers players are contemplating taking part in the WBC as well, but nothing has been finalized.
The opening round of the WBC runs from March 11-15 and will take place at Chase Field in Phoenix. The quarterfinals, semifinals and final are March 17-21 at loanDepot Park in Miami.
The Brewers will host a yet-to-be-determined WBC team for an exhibition game at American Family Fields of Phoenix on March 8.
|
2022-10-06T22:28:17Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Brewers' Devin Williams on Team USA for World Baseball Classic
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/06/brewers-devin-williams-team-usa-world-baseball-classic/8199831001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/06/brewers-devin-williams-team-usa-world-baseball-classic/8199831001/
|
Three people dead after a vehicle drives off the 16th Street Viaduct
The Milwaukee Fire Department says three people were killed when a vehicle, being pursued by police, drove off the 16th Street Viaduct and burst into flames on West Canal Street in the Menomonee Valley.
Earlier, the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office said there were "several fatalities," and the victims were unknown at the time.
The 16th Street Viaduct is just south of Interstate 94 near Potawatomi Hotel & Casino.
It's about a 16-foot drop from bridge, according to Wisconsin Department of Transportation records.
|
2022-10-07T01:57:40Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Car crashes off 16th Street bridge in Milwaukee, three reported dead
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/06/car-crashes-off-16th-street-viaduct-bridge-several-reported-dead/8201208001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/06/car-crashes-off-16th-street-viaduct-bridge-several-reported-dead/8201208001/
|
The folks who are handling this year's Christmas Fantasy House are looking for a few good volunteers.
Four hundred and forty, to be exact.
And that’s on top of the nearly 500 they already have.
Deb Wolff, one of the chairs of the volunteer committee as well as the overall event, said there’s a need because this year’s event will be in the former University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Alumni House, now a private home that spans about 25,000 square feet.
“Now we have 460 volunteers and we are shooting for 900. We are going to shoot for the moon and see what we end up with. Normally, 460 is enough, but now with a house that’s 25,000 square feet, we need more,” she said.
This is the largest house ever used for the event. Previously, the largest had been a 10,000-square-foot house in Delafield, she said. For that event, 700 volunteers were needed.
More:He bought the UW-Milwaukee Alumni House for $1.8 million. Now he just has to renovate it back into a home.
Wolff, who has been volunteering at the event for about the past 10 years, said those who volunteer will help raise money for the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Eastern Wisconsin.
Volunteers are needed to sell raffle tickets for holiday baskets, trees and wreaths; work in the boutique or the sweet shop; act as docents in the many rooms that will be decorated by area designers; and drive shuttle buses, among other roles.
Volunteers are needed for three-hour shifts, Wolff said. They can sign up for just one shift or more.
There are perks with these jobs, Wolff said.
“One is they are helping us reach our goal of helping the Ronald McDonald House financially. The second is that they are able to tour the house before or after their shift for free,” she said.
The Christmas Fantasy House will be open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 29 and 30 and Nov. 5 and 6; and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, 3 and 4.
To volunteer, go to christmasfantasyhouse.com. Click on “To Volunteer,” then scroll down and look for a button that says “Sign up Genius.” You also can call any of the following numbers; (262) 641-0661, (262) 789-1719, (414) 699-4478, or (414) 254-5944.
|
2022-10-07T12:58:00Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
2022 Christmas Fantasy House still needs hundreds of volunteers
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/life/home-garden/2022/10/07/2022-christmas-fantasy-house-needs-hundreds-volunteers-uwm-fantasy-house-ronald-mcdonald-charities/8181010001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/life/home-garden/2022/10/07/2022-christmas-fantasy-house-needs-hundreds-volunteers-uwm-fantasy-house-ronald-mcdonald-charities/8181010001/
|
White House announces $40 million in broadband funding for Wisconsin
The Biden administration on Thursday announced another $40 million in funding aimed at bringing high-speed internet, also known as broadband, to 8,000 Wisconsin homes and businesses.
The funding was included in a COVID-19 relief bill passed by Congress in 2021 and is tied to another effort, the Affordable Connectivity Program, which currently offers internet discounts of $30 a month to qualifying lower-income households.
The $40 million, from the $10 billion Capital Projects Fund, will go into the Wisconsin Broadband Infrastructure Projects program intended to reach rural areas of the state lacking service now considered essential for tasks such as taking an online class, working from home, or a telemedicine visit.
Through a competitive grant process, the money will be dispersed by the state Public Service Commission to internet service providers to install cable and other infrastructure.
The $40 million represents 21% of the state's total expected allocation of $189 million under the Capital Projects Fund. More funding is expected to be announced as it's approved by the Treasury Department.
An estimated 650,000 Wisconsin residents, most of them in rural areas, lack access to broadband, according to the PSC. Hundreds of millions of dollars in state and federal grants have been poured into the solving the problem and much more is on the way.
"Our state investments have brought new or improved high-speed broadband to more than 387,000 homes and businesses in Wisconsin. This is life-changing progress, but the digital divide remains," said PSC Chairwoman Rebecca Cameron Valcq.
The Capital Projects Fund money headed to Wisconsin will complement $100 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding the state has already committed for its broadband expansion grant program.
The PSC used ARPA money to award 83 broadband grants totaling nearly $100 million. It used federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act funds for 12 grants totaling $5.4 million.
Questions have been raised about how some of the money was spent.
Broadband service providers failed to document what they actually spent on their federally-funded projects, according to a recent report from the state Legislative Audit Bureau.
What's more, the PSC did not document its efforts to verify that grant recipients had built the high-speed internet infrastructure for which they were reimbursed, according to the report.
|
2022-10-07T12:58:06Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
More federal funding coming for Wisconsin rural broadband expansions
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/2022/10/07/more-federal-funding-coming-wisconsin-rural-broadband-expansions/8196225001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/2022/10/07/more-federal-funding-coming-wisconsin-rural-broadband-expansions/8196225001/
|
The folks I know who will benefit from President Joe Biden’s student debt forgiveness program are not Sen. Ted Cruz’ “slacker baristas.” Nor is it true that most beneficiaries would be earners “in the top 60%” as Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson falsely claimed.
Instead, Biden’s plan would primarily help future respiratory therapists, nurses, early childhood educators, firefighters, and HVAC technicians. These are the nation’s essential workers, celebrated as national heroes during the early days of the pandemic. Student loan forgiveness would help them crawl out of mountains of debt to possibly buy their first homes and enter the middle class.
But don’t take my word for it. The nonpartisan Penn Wharton Budget Model found nearly 75% of Biden’s proposal would benefit households earning $29,000 to $88,000 a year.
Biden’s plan would help people like Yolanda, a single mother and domestic violence victim, who escaped her abusive husband, but not their bills. Yolanda enrolled in Milwaukee Area Technical College's Licensed Practical Nursing program to jump-start a new life for herself and her children. She took out over $45,000 in loans despite working part-time as an EKG technician because she “couldn’t afford to go to school, be a mom, and work full time.”
Yolanda is not alone. The most recent data from the U.S. Department of Education show 721,400 Wisconsin residents hold an average debt of $30,581 and, in total, held more than $23.5 billion in federal student loan debt. This huge drag on the economy as well as adults’ lives is the direct result of government policies.
Federal Pell Grants once covered the cost of attendance for students who attend two-year colleges. Today they cover less than 60%. Ron Johnson, who has voted against increasing Pell grants, apparently prefers shaming needy students and ignoring the fact that working a part-time job or even two is no longer enough to cover the cost of college.
More:5,000 former ITT Tech students in Wisconsin will have their federal loans canceled after investigations into the school's practices
How does that lost 40% get made up? Certainly not on the state level. Wisconsin’s Republican-dominated Legislatures have prioritized high income and corporate tax cuts while slashing investments in higher education. For our state’s tech colleges, this means higher tuition and program cuts. For tech college students, it means taking yet another part-time job and going even deeper into debt by signing up for yet another loan.
Student problems were exacerbated by corporate for-profit colleges. Frequently employing deceptive tactics, companies like Corinthian, ITT Tech, the University of Phoenix and Sanford Brown descended on Milwaukee during the Great Recession. Many have now closed, leaving behind thousands of students with little to show for their efforts but massive debts, worthless credentials and broken dreams.
More:U.S. wiping away $5.8 billion in debt for Corinthian Colleges borrowers, including 3,320 students in Wisconsin
One of these students is Lateesah. She was lured into attending Everest College, an affiliate of the now defunct Corinthian colleges, by rosy promises of job placement. Despite graduating, Lateesah found that employers considered her Everest degree worthless, and she couldn’t land a job. But Everest had set her up for over $20,000 in student loans. Lateesah is now enrolled in the MATC’s Dental Technology program. Enrolling only 5% of college students nationally, for-profit institutions are responsible for 15% of all student debt and 39% of all defaults.
President Biden’s student debt initiative will benefit these students and help create the skilled and technical workforce the nation needs.
While forgiving $10,000 to $20,000 in debt is important, it’s a one-time program. It does not address the structural crisis of college affordability. Biden’s proposal to make two-year colleges tuition free would be an important step in addressing this systemic problem. So would enacting a statewide first dollar promise program, something that was proposed by Governor Evers’ Task Force on Student Debt. Unfortunately, both these proposals are dead in the water because of Republican opposition.
Recall that the U. S. led the world in establishing universal public education. That investment helped create the world’s biggest, most dynamic economy with a growing middle class. Following World War II, the nation expanded on that commitment by making higher education a universal public good with the GI Bill, the National Defense Higher Education Act, and large state investments in expanding affordable state university and technical colleges.
Older generations of college students didn’t have as much debt not because they were more virtuous, as Senators Cruz and Johnson have suggested, but because they benefited from social investment in their education by government. Those now opposing student debt forgiveness are conveniently forgetting that the government underwrote college education for earlier generations.
If we’re serious about addressing the student debt issue, if we are serious about competing in the global economy, if we are serious about addressing the shortage of skilled and technical workers, we must address the crisis of college affordability by investing in our colleges, universities and the students who attend them.
We must make public higher education affordable again.
Michael Rosen is retired from the MATC Faculty and vice president of the FAST Fund board of directors, which offers emergency aid to keep MATC students in financial crisis from dropping out.
|
2022-10-07T12:58:24Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Biden's student loan plan helps future Wisconsin nurses, firefighters
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/2022/10/07/bidens-student-loan-plan-helps-future-wisconsin-nurses-firefighters/8170190001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/2022/10/07/bidens-student-loan-plan-helps-future-wisconsin-nurses-firefighters/8170190001/
|
MADISON – Compete. Battle. Work.
The offseason allowed the Wisconsin men’s hockey team to get back to those basics of the game. That grind happens every offseason, but this time there was an edge and intensity to the proceedings that comes with a group itching to prove itself after a disappointing season.
More than one player noted the team had a chip on its shoulder, and it showed.
“Our biggest thing is our work level and our compete level is top notch, the highest I’ve seen it in five years here,” senior captain Dominick Mersch said. “We’re off to a great start and now the goal is to be consistent and keep that going.”
That edge comes with an optimism based on a couple of factors: the opportunity to build on what veterans of the team feel was a solid finish to last season, and an infusion of talent off the recruiting trail and transfer portal aimed at addressing the team’s shortcomings on offense.
UW dropped from being the Big Ten champion in 2021 to a fifth-place tie last season that was just a half-game ahead of last-place Michigan State. The Badgers finished 10-24-3 overall and 6-17-1 in the Big Ten.
Can the Badgers rise in the standings as quickly as they fell? We’ll begin to get some answers Friday and Saturday during UW’s season-opening series at Ohio State, which is ranked No. 14 in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll
“Last year was a tough year for all of us,” UW coach Tony Granato said. “We didn’t replace what we lost so we chased it all year, and when you don’t have the horse to chase it, you have a year that you have to kind of struggle through. We struggled through the year.
"This year is a new start. We’ve got our players in place and we’re going to have a good year, an exciting year, and move forward.”
Many of the Badgers' problems last season stemmed from scoring the puck.
They ranked last in Big Ten play in goals scored and goals allowed. They were also last in shot percentage. They dipped to fifth in power-play percentage after excelling at that the year before and were last in faceoff percentage.
Some of those issues should improve with experience. Junior Mathieu De St. Phalle, sophomore Corson Ceulemans and senior Brock Caufield, the team’s top three scorers from last season, are back.
Granato fortified that group with a handful of skilled players on the front and blue lines.
Freshman Charlie Stramel, a projected first-round NHL draft pick next spring, and Cruz Lucius, who was taken in the fourth round of the draft by Carolina last spring, are freshmen who come to UW from the U.S. national team developmental program. Ty Smilanic, a 2021 third-round draft pick by Florida whose rights are owned by Montreal, comes to UW from Quinnipiac, where he scored 27 goals and totaled 44 points in two seasons.
“They’re pretty skilled guys and they’re highly touted guys,” Mersch said. “That is really cool, adding some top-notch talent. They were brought in to help us score more goals and help us be more offensive this year.”
Granato also added two offensive defensemen in freshmen Ben Dexheimer and Tyson Jugnauth. Jugnauth was a British Columbia Hockey League all-star last season and a 2022 fourth-round NHL pick by Seattle. Dexheimer comes to UW from the Madison Capitals of the United State Hockey League.
"You add the pieces that we added on the back end to move the puck in a different way than our blue has in a long time," Granato said "Jugnauth, Dexheimer, two kids who came in, are just great puck-holding offensive defensemen. We talked about scoring, those two guys are going to get the puck to our forwards a lot."
Those newcomers join a team that returning players feel showed improvement late in the season.
That said, those outside of the Wisconsin program are taking a wait-and-see approach. UW is picked to finish fourth in the Big Ten behind Minnesota, Notre Dame and Michigan.
The Badgers also didn’t receive any votes in the USA Today/US Hockey Magazine or USCHO polls.
The Badgers get a chance to prove themselves on the ice, a challenge De St. Phalle can't wait to start.
"I lose sleep some nights I get so excited, especially after last year,” he said. “I think we showed what we can do toward the end of the year. This is a winning program. This is Badger hockey. I think we really want to get back to that standard and we all have a lot of faith (that we can) because of how hard we worked this summer.”
|
2022-10-07T12:58:36Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Wisconsin men's hockey reloads after disappointing season
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/07/wisconsin-mens-hockey-reloads-after-disappointing-season/8190915001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/07/wisconsin-mens-hockey-reloads-after-disappointing-season/8190915001/
|
Milwaukee Health Department leaders say its Office of Violence Prevention is taking steps to address the frustrations officials had voiced before the firing of OVP's previous director in August.
OVP Director Ashanti Hamilton told leaders of the council's powerful Finance and Personnel Committee that he is working on filling vacancies and collecting data to determine — and demonstrate — the effectiveness of the office's programs.
Hamilton was appointed in August by Mayor Cavalier Johnson, a former Common Council colleague, to succeed Arnitta Holliman.
Holliman was fired by Johnson after months of questions about the effectiveness of her office and a White House trip that raised questions at City Hall about a violence prevention fund housed at the Greater Milwaukee Foundation that leaders said they had been unaware existed.
She has said she was unfairly maligned and called her termination "unwarranted."
On Thursday, Hamilton noted the transitions in mayors and health commissioners that left the OVP director as the only person aware of the fund.
It is supposed to be overseen by an advisory committee made up of the mayor, health commissioner and the OVP director, according to the 2017 agreement signed at its inception.
The fund was meant to be flexible to allow for quick responses to some of the needs that result from traumatic situations, and it should continue to exist but in a "radically transparent" form, Hamilton told the committee.
That requires an internal city process to access the funds, oversight and communication to the council and public about how the money is being spent, he said.
"I think all of us were kind of surprised about the access to resources and the ability to ... expend resources of that amount and that magnitude without there being some process," he said.
Hamilton and Health Commissioner Kirsten Johnson also said they are working to expand data collection and reporting to show the outcomes of OVP's work and spending.
That data is needed in order to determine what efforts are working and prove the impact of the work, Hamilton said.
Johnson said the Health Department has the expertise to identify data that can be reported. But she said it's also necessary to work with community partners and the Medical College of Wisconsin to ensure the collective impact of OVP's work can be compiled and reported in a uniform way.
She said more proactive communication is necessary with groups that partner with OVP about the kinds of data that could be collected and those groups' capacity to collect it.
Hamilton also said his goals for 2023 included sustaining and growing crisis response and healing, and re-engaging the community, including by using Promise Zones to carry forward the Blueprint for Peace and reaching out to residents citywide to create a "network of protection."
The Office of Violence Prevention, housed within the city's Health Department, was created in 2008 and has dramatically changed in the past decade. Once a one-person office that focused primarily on gun policy issues, the Office of Violence Prevention now has more than a dozen positions and a budget of more than $4 million. It coordinates community-based organizations and efforts addressing the root causes of violence.
|
2022-10-07T16:06:44Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Milwaukee Office of Violence Prevention director highlights efforts
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/milwaukee/2022/10/07/milwaukee-office-violence-prevention-director-highlights-work-efforts-ashanti-hamilton/8199551001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/milwaukee/2022/10/07/milwaukee-office-violence-prevention-director-highlights-work-efforts-ashanti-hamilton/8199551001/
|
It was a repeat performance for the top two players on the Milwaukee Brewers in 2022.
Willy Adames and Corbin Burnes have been named the team’s most valuable player and most valuable pitcher, respectively, for the second consecutive season by a panel from the Milwaukee chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America
Adames, a shortstop, hit .238 with 31 home runs and 98 runs batted in while compiling an OPS of .756 over 139 games. His RBI total led the Brewers, as did his 31 doubles, 258 total bases and 62 extra-base hits.
His 31 HR tied Corey Seager of the Texas Rangers for the major-league lead for a shortstop and were the most in franchise history at the position in a single season, passing the 29 set by Robin Yount in 1982.
Adames also had a superb defensive season, ranking 20th in the majors at 10 outs above average and 25th in defensive runs saved with nine.
More:Brewers' Devin Williams earns Team USA roster spot for upcoming World Baseball Classic
The right-handed Burnes finished with a 12-8 record, 2.94 earned run average and WHIP of 0.97 while limiting opposing batters to a .197 average.
The 2021 National League Cy Young Award winner set personal highs by making 33 starts, pitching 202 innings and striking out 243 batters, becoming the first Brewers pitcher to lead either league in strikeouts.
Also honored was right fielder Hunter Renfroe, who was named newcomer of the year after hitting .255 with 29 homers and 72 RBI in 125 games. His 11 outfield assists ranked fourth in the majors.
Renfroe was acquired from the Boston Red Sox last Dec. 1 in exchange for outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. and minor-leaguers Alex Binelas and David Hamilton.
Left-hander Hoby Milner was named unsung hero after going 3-3 with a 3.76 ERA and WHIP of 1.18 in a career-high 67 relief appearances, a total that tied for eighth-most in the NL. He also stranded 32 of 37 inherited runners, ranking fifth in the majors.
Brandon Woodruff earned the team’s Good Guy Award for the second straight season, an honor bestowed on the player “who has the most outgoing, friendly presence in the clubhouse and interacts well with the media on a daily basis in a cooperative and pleasant manner.”
Aside from his good nature, the right-hander also had another strong season as he led the Brewers with a 13-4 record while posting a 3.05 ERA and WHIP of 1.07 in 27 starts.
|
2022-10-07T16:07:08Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Willy Adames, Corbin Burnes are Brewers' top player and pitcher in '22
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/07/willy-adames-corbin-burnes-brewers-top-player-and-pitcher-22/8204648001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/07/willy-adames-corbin-burnes-brewers-top-player-and-pitcher-22/8204648001/
|
As the close gubernatorial and senatorial races rapidly approach, Wisconsinites across party lines discussed climate change, inflation, the sanctity of democracy and more at a town hall on Thursday.
A panel of southeastern Wisconsin citizens spoke as part of the statewide "Main Street Agenda" project, presented by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Ideas Lab, the La Follette School of Public Affairs and Wisconsin Public Radio. The project aims to foster political dialogue between residents about issues that matter most to them. Thursday's town hall was hosted at Pewaukee's Ingleside Hotel.
Panelists were chosen out of over 2,000 people who responded to a survey from the project. The panel of five voters included one Democrat, one Republican and three independents.
While they shared the top three issues most important to them, including the economy, gun policy and education, panelists did not identify their political affiliations.
As political campaigns intensify closer to Election Day, the panel could all agree that candidates aren't addressing key issues.
Waukesha resident Carole Henning said that when she researches candidates, she's still confused as to what they stand for.
"I see the TV commercials, but I don't know what these people are about," Henning said. "I don't know exactly what they say about issues that are important to me."
Paul Stretcher, from Delafield, wants climate change to be addressed, and said candidates aren't offering up any viable solutions.
"I see very little substance of addressing issues in the (political) ads," Stretcher said. "When there is, it's usually very cursory and just alludes to what they think, but doesn't really say what they think or what they intend to try and do about it."
Two panelists, Kathryn Doering and Pierre Payne, shared their desire to preserve democracy.
"I would say, whereas in the past I've voted on issues, this year I'm voting for democracy," said Wauwatosa resident Payne. "Nationally, and at the state level."
One of Heidi Hallett's main issues was the right to an abortion.
"A woman should be able to make her own health care choice safely," Hallett, from Oconomowoc, said.
Just witnessing rising prices at the grocery store shows why voters need to prioritize the economy, Henning said.
"The economy should be number one because we all buy groceries, we all buy gas," Henning said.
Audience members agreed that inflation needs to be addressed. Three political experts from the La Follette School of Public Affairs answered written questions submitted by town hall attendees, and many queries expressed inflation concerns.
Mark Copelovitch, professor of political science and public affairs, addressed how the pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war spiked inflation. However, he also presented a study that revealed the United States' economy is recovering faster than one may think.
"The relative amount of coverage that we've had about inflation in the news over the last year versus the amount of how much has unemployment recovered, how quick has the U.S. economy recovered?" Copelovitch said. "There's been much more of the first and much less of the second."
There will be two more "Main Street Agenda" events:
7 p.m., Oct. 11, Brown County Public Library, 515 Pine St., Green Bay. To register, go to https://tinyurl.com/greenbayagenda.
7 p.m., Nov. 1, UW Stevens Point–Wausau Campus: UW Center for Civic Engagement, 625 Stewart Ave, Wausau. To register, go to https://tinyurl.com/wausauagenda.
|
2022-10-07T19:02:48Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Wisconsin voters talk inflation, climate change ahead of 2022 midterms
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/lake-country/news/pewaukee/2022/10/07/wisconsin-voters-talk-inflation-climate-change-ahead-2022-midterms/8203103001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/lake-country/news/pewaukee/2022/10/07/wisconsin-voters-talk-inflation-climate-change-ahead-2022-midterms/8203103001/
|
A Green County judge dismissed an investors lawsuit claiming New Glarus Brewing Co. CEO Deb Carey and the brewery underpaid them when they sold a portion of their ownership in the company in 2019.
Karen Eichhoff, Steven Speer and Roderick Runyan, all early investors in the brewery, claimed the valuation of their stock was fraudulently undervalued at the time of the sale.
Green County Circuit Court Judge Faun Marie Phillipson dismissed those claims, ruling Thursday the plaintiffs willingly accepted the offer, which was based on a discount of the brewery's 2017 employee stock ownership plan valuation. Eichoff and Runyon claimed the valuation was not shared with them prior to the sale and the offer was well below fair market value.
Phillipson ruled the company was under no obligation to explain how it arrived at its per-share offer.
Unlike the other plaintiffs, Runyan's sale was to the company's ESOP and that agreement did include a reference to the fair market value of the stock. However, it said that the value would be "determined by an appraisal of New Glarus by Capital Valuation Group Inc.”
Phillipson pointed out that the original stock purchase agreement warned that there is "no recognized market" for the shares of New Glarus and that the company's board of directors is charged with setting the stock's value.
The judge wrote that "no material misrepresentations or omissions could have been made — nor, once the legal conclusions are peeled away, do any appear to have been alleged — because New Glarus Brewing Co. essentially set the market for Plaintiffs’ shares in the transactions at issue based upon nothing more than a dollar figure known to both seller and purchaser."
Phillipson also dismissed a second claim, seeking relief for acts to "oppress the plaintiffs, including frustrating plaintiffs’ reasonable expectations regarding receiving value from their investment."
That relief could have resulted in an order to sell the company or dissolve it.
Carey called the lawsuit "a simple case of greed and overreach."
"The important point here is that the brewery will not be forced to sell or be taken over by anyone else," she said, though she also acknowledged that the fight isn't over.
The Green County case stemmed from a 2021 lawsuit against Carey filed by the same investors in Dane County that is scheduled to go to trial in December. A Dane County judge split that case to allow claims that could have led to New Glarus' sale to be heard in the brewery's home county.
In that case, Eichhoff, Speer and Runyan claim Carey changed bylaws without notice, didn't disclose other companies' offers to buy the brewery, told them she'd never pay out profits beyond tax distributions and has misused company funds to set up a charity.
The suit contends New Glarus has built up $100 million in retained earnings and $40 million in cash on annual profits of $15 million to $20 million and has no debt.
|
2022-10-07T19:03:06Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Judge dismisses investor lawsuit against New Glarus Brewing Co.
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2022/10/07/judge-dismisses-investor-lawsuit-against-new-glarus-brewing-co/8206026001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2022/10/07/judge-dismisses-investor-lawsuit-against-new-glarus-brewing-co/8206026001/
|
A Washington County judge has ordered the Wisconsin Parole Commission to immediately turn over records detailing who has been paroled in 2022 to a conservative website.
Wisconsin Right Now, based in Hubertus, sued the commission last month under the open records law. The suit stated the commission had not yet provided records requested in May about which inmates were paroled this year.
In his order, Circuit Judge Michael Kenitz wrote the commission partially filled the request in June and stated it was gathering the rest of the records.
"Nevertheless you have unjustifiably withheld and refused to release those remaining records ... to the injury of the plaintiff," his order reads.
If the records are not provided as soon as his order is served, the commission's representatives must appear at an Oct. 28 hearing to explain why.
In addition to the immediate disclosure of the records, the lawsuit asked the court to make the parole commission pay attorney fees and damages if the judge concludes the delay was arbitrary and capricious.
Related:Here's why it may soon be costlier to seek some public records in Wisconsin
The commission had previously disclosed records to the site about paroles granted in 2021, according to a news release from the Wisconsin Institute of Law & Liberty, a conservative law firm representing the website.
Wisconsin Right Now has been publishing stories about individual parolees, focused on their past crimes, under the heading, "Evers' killers and rapists," implying that Gov. Tony Evers and Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, who is pictured in the logo, chose to release dangerous criminals.
Evers appoints the chair of the Parole Commission, who makes the final determination about who gets paroled. Only inmates convicted prior to Wisconsin's truth in sentencing law, adopted in 1999, are eligible for parole.
Parole ignited as a campaign issue in the spring when the family of a woman slain by Douglas Balsewicz began a public campaign against his scheduled parole. He stabbed his estranged wife at her West Allis home more than 40 times in 1997 in the presence of the couple's two young children.
Balsewicz's parole was rescinded as a result of the campaign and subsequent pressure from Evers to reverse the original decision granting parole.
There are more than 20,000 people incarcerated in Wisconsin prisons. Fewer than 10% are serving pre-truth in sentencing terms, according to Wisconsin Department of Corrections data.
For the most part, those remaining parole-eligible inmates were convicted of serious-enough offenses to earn at least 20-year sentences. By law, all pre-1999 inmates can seek parole after serving 25% of their prison term, and most must be released after serving two-thirds of their sentences.
Fact check: Michels widely mises mark with claim on Walker, Evers and parole
|
2022-10-07T19:03:12Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Wisconsin Parole Commission ordered to turn over records on releases
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/07/wisconsin-parole-commission-ordered-turn-over-records-releases/8207010001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/07/wisconsin-parole-commission-ordered-turn-over-records-releases/8207010001/
|
Almost all of Wisconsin is expected to freeze early Saturday morning, according to the National Weather Service in Milwaukee and Green Bay.
A freeze warning is in effect from 1 to 8 a.m. Saturday. During that time, temperatures across most of the state are forecast to drop to the upper 20s to low 30s, reaching the low 20s in parts of north-central Wisconsin.
In the Door County area and the southern lakeshore, the temperatures are forecast to dip into the mid-30s, but the freeze warning is still in effect for these areas.
The low temperatures are the result of an air mass moving in from Canada, said Tasos Kallas, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Green Bay.
The freezing weather "may be a smidge early for the southern part of the state, but up here in northern Wisconsin it's not that unusual at all," Kallas added.
The hard freeze is right at the end of the growing season for the Fox Valley, Door County and southern Wisconsin. The weather service advises that residents bring in or cover all plants sensitive to the cold and protect outdoor water pipes.
|
2022-10-07T19:03:30Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Freeze warning issued for most of Wisconsin as temperatures drop Oct 8
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/weather/2022/10/07/freeze-warning-issued-most-wisconsin-temperatures-drop-oct-8-2022/8206980001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/weather/2022/10/07/freeze-warning-issued-most-wisconsin-temperatures-drop-oct-8-2022/8206980001/
|
Catholic Memorial High School is purchasing several baseball fields and an indoor athletic facility to help in its campus expansion efforts.
The Waukesha-based private high school said in a news release that it is acquiring the Infinity Fields Baseball Park in Waukesha, adding 36 acres of outdoor space and a 51,000-square-foot indoor athletic facility to its campus footprint.
The outdoor space includes six baseball diamonds, a concession stand and 8 acres of wetlands. The indoor space currently houses NX Level Sports Performance, which, according to its website, "provides specialized performance training for male and female athletes, middle school through college, and professional athletes in the Waukesha and Mequon, WI areas." The indoor space consists of an athletic facility, including full locker rooms and showers, a practice football turf field, a full-size basketball court that can be used as two full-sized volleyball courts, a weight room, sand pits, batting, pitching and golf cages, the release said.
The school said in its news release the move aligns with one of its strategic plan objectives, which is enhancing the student experience. In addition to athletics, the facility is expected to provide academic opportunities such as access to wetland and ecological space for science classes.
Catholic Memorial High School President Donna Bembenek said in an Oct. 7 email that the school looks forward to working with Froedtert and NX Level Sports Performance to expand its internship program with the benefit of the facility. The school's internship program currently consists includes opportunities in the biomedical science, engineering, computer science and business fields.
Bembenek said in an Oct. 4 phone interview that the purchase will also allow the school to expand opportunities for its youth sports program. Through the Junior Crusaders program, elementary and middle school students participate in baseball, boys and girls basketball, football and co-ed tennis programs. Participants receive training from Catholic Memorial coaches and players.
"It just made sense for us to consider this as an option," Bembenek said. "We're landlocked at Catholic Memorial. It very much aligns with our strategic plan, and we just saw this opportunity as something unique for our school to expand our campus and to serve our kids, both our current students and our vastly growing youth program."
Bembenek said the school's offer to purchase the property, for $5.3 million, was accepted in September. The deal is expected to close in November.
Bembenek said for the near future, the school will operate the facility "exactly as it operates today" and will work with the village of Waukesha to improve the facility. With improvements, she said the total cost, including the purchase price, will be $8 million.
Currently, the facility is used by Catholic Memorial's varsity and junior varsity baseball and softball teams. The school has also used NX Level to rent the fields for its Junior Crusaders youth baseball program. Youth baseball and softball tournaments, games and practices are also held on the diamonds.
Youth sports tournaments played on the baseball diamonds will continue, Bembenek wrote in her Oct. 7 email. She said NX Level staff run the tournaments; they have been invited to join CMH staff in continuing to run them.
Bembenek added that NX Level Sports Performance has a lease in the building and will continue with that lease.
"Our students benefit from the facility today, and we look forward to that growing. Brad Arnett, owner of NX Level, approach(es) athletic training very similarly as CMH — with the focus on developing the whole student as a great person first," she said.
"We think there are things like turf fields that would make it more usable, so we'll work with the village to look at turfing the fields and maybe adding some additional fields," Bembenek said.
The school's news release said that the school would add turf fields for baseball and softball as well a multi-use field for the school's soccer, rugby and lacrosse teams, which would allow those teams to have their own home field.
"We're really excited that we're going to be able to provide our student athletes with a higher level training environment, as well as being able to play our competitions there, as well as being able to serve the youth through youth tournaments and things like that. Extremely excited to be a part of that and naturally help manage the coaches, the student athletes, the youth programming that's going to go on over there. It's an exciting time for Catholic Memorial High School," said Catholic Memorial High School athletic director Matt Bergan in a phone interview.
|
2022-10-07T21:33:00Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Catholic Memorial purchases Waukesha baseball park facility
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/waukesha/news/waukesha/2022/10/07/catholic-memorial-purchases-waukesha-baseball-park-facility/8195969001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/waukesha/news/waukesha/2022/10/07/catholic-memorial-purchases-waukesha-baseball-park-facility/8195969001/
|
While the Bucks take on the Atlanta Hawks for two preseason games in Abu Dhabi, the first National Basketball Association event in the Middle East, many Milwaukeeans have traveled along to bring a taste of games inside Fiserv Forum to the international audience.
Shawna "DJ Shawna" Nicols is blasting beats, including some Milwaukee music, Rim Rockers are performing alongside the Hawks' dance team, and Melanie Ricks is hosting the game for the foreign fans at Etihad Arena.
Ricks co-hosted the game on Thursday with Atlanta in-game host Shamea Morton.
She said that it wasn't so different than a Fiserv Forum game.
"I will tell you I was pleasantly surprised how responsive the fans are but how much they are like our fans in Milwaukee," Ricks said. "People were good at cheering and being a crowd."
One thing that the entertainment team was told was that they should avoid hand gestures, especially pointing like she might before throwing a T-shirt into the crowd.
Another culture shock was when the group visited the mosque, the women traveling with the Bucks had to cover head-to-toe. Men were not required to do the same.
While Abu Dhabi is a modern city, Ricks said, the country of United Arab Emirates has been cited by Human Rights Watch as a country that has "significant discrimination against women."
"I have so much pride in being able to not only be a woman hosting the game and hosting it with another woman, and the crowd was very engaged and responsive, but we are two black women who are hosting the first ever global games in Abu Dhabi. It choked me up a little," Ricks said. "We are fighting for certain rights in the U.S. as well and to show how incredible women are, I'm grateful for it."
The goal was to not only bring the NBA to Etihad Arena, but also Milwaukee and Atlanta cultures.
"Basically we were awarded the game several months ago. The NBA called and they said we're going to bring some live entertainment from both the Bucks and the Hawks," Bucks Executive Producer Johnny Watson said. "They asked us to think about what we wanted to do and how to share Milwaukee with the world."
Watson said that part of the culture is just the people they bring along, sharing their Milwaukee pride. It also includes various giveaways for attendees there to grow their Bucks fandom.
For DJ Shawna, it means playing music mostly like she would at Fiserv Forum, but she did add some Middle Eastern flavor.
"What I love about the Bucks is how global and diverse our team is. That’s one of my favorite things is that we have an eclectic group of players and humans who have an eclectic taste in music from afro beats, reggaetón, and even Serge Ibaka, who has music on Spotify," Nicols said. "It's one of the coolest things to DJ for them."
She also said she would throw in some Milwaukee music when she takes over the DJ stand on Saturday's game.
"I always do that generally, and I don’t even think about it anymore because I do it so often. We have so much music and I've been collecting it this summer, which I'm excited to share it," Nicols said. "I'm always trying to do my part with Milwaukee music and Milwaukee artists."
|
2022-10-07T23:51:57Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Milwaukee Bucks in Abu Dhabi bring flavor of Fiserv Forum
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/2022/10/07/milwaukee-bucks-abu-dhabi-bring-flavor-fiserv-forum-dj-shawna-rim-rockers-melanie-ricks/8190445001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/2022/10/07/milwaukee-bucks-abu-dhabi-bring-flavor-fiserv-forum-dj-shawna-rim-rockers-melanie-ricks/8190445001/
|
After tens of millions of dollars in dueling ads and weeks of circling each other on the campaign trail, Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson and his Democratic challenger, Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes finally squared off in their first debate Friday night.
Meeting in a Milwaukee television studio with just a month to go before the midterms, Johnson and Barnes trotted out their familiar talking points as each candidate sought to portray the other as out of step with Wisconsin voters.
They clashed over crime, abortion, the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and riots in Kenosha.
After an opening handshake minutes before the debate, the candidates delivered some jabs.
Views on abortion
"Now, the senator called the overturning of Roe vs. Wade a victory," Barnes said. "He celebrated the court's decision. And he said that if women don't like the laws of their state, like the 1849 criminal abortion ban we have here, he said they can move. I can't think of more callous out-of-touch more extreme position to take."
Johnson made his push for a referendum on the subject, even as Republicans in the Legislature recently blocked an Evers initiative to take up a constitutional amendment allowing statewide referendums.
On the insurrection and Kenosha riots
Johnson also pivoted to rioting the previous summer, including in Kenosha. Johnson charged "that instead of trying to calm things down," in Kenosha, Barnes gave a news conference and said "it felt like a vendetta was carried out against one of our community members. He incited the riot."
Barnes countered that Kenosha County's Republican sheriff said the governor provided the resources needed.
There has to be a better format than this
The Wisconsin Broadcasters Association Foundation boasts of having more than 32 years of history in running statewide debates.
But this wasn't so much a debate as a joint news conference, with the two candidates outnumbered by a moderator and a panel of five journalists asking questions. A sixth was sidelined by COVID but her questions were asked by a colleague.
Throw in all the filler, and the viewers were left to chew over around 50 minutes of discussion on the issues.
WTMJ-TV (Channel 4) gets a crack at the candidates Thursday from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. from Marquette University's Varsity Theatre. TMJ4’s Charles Benson and Shannon Sims are the moderators.
A potential third debate fell through with WISN-TV (Channel l12). The station said Johnson accepted an invitation but Barnes declined.
|
2022-10-08T04:03:58Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Ron Johnson and Mandela Barnes clash in Wisconsin U.S. Senate debate
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/10/07/ron-johnson-mandela-barnes-clash-wisconsin-u-s-senate-debate-october-7-2022/8208628001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/10/07/ron-johnson-mandela-barnes-clash-wisconsin-u-s-senate-debate-october-7-2022/8208628001/
|
The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office has identified the three men who died Thursday night when the vehicle they were in drove off the 16th Street Viaduct, falling to street below, resulting in the vehicle catching fire. The crash followed a short Milwaukee police pursuit.
The cause of death is still pending, the medical examiner's office said.
According to police, about a minute after the attempted traffic stop, the driver of the vehicle went on to strike a 18-year-old Milwaukee woman walking on the 16th Street Viaduct before crashing through a safety fence and driving off the bridge onto West Canal Street.
|
2022-10-08T06:00:37Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Medical examiner identifies men killed in Milwaukee viaduct crash
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/07/medical-examiner-identifies-men-killed-milwaukee-viaduct-crash/8214735001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/07/medical-examiner-identifies-men-killed-milwaukee-viaduct-crash/8214735001/
|
The state Department of Health Services is warning more than 12,000 Medicaid members that their personal health data — including first and last name, date of birth, gender, county location, Wisconsin Medicaid member identification number and Social Security number — may have been exposed to "unauthorized individuals."
DHS officials learned on Aug. 8 that a presentation that was emailed to the agency's Children's Long Term Support Council contained some members' protected health information.
The presentation was forwarded to county government employees in Rock and "other counties," and was also posted to DHS's website as part of meeting minutes.
The agency removed the presentation that was posted online "immediately" after learning of the issue and replaced it with a PDF version that did not include the personal health data, according to a Friday press release. DHS officials also confirmed that people who were emailed the meeting minutes deleted the files they were sent.
The agency said it is continuing to investigate the situation and make changes for the future.
On Friday, 12,358 Wisconsin Medicaid members were notified that their information may have been exposed in the incident. The agency is offering a year of free credit monitoring to all who received those notices. DHS also has established a dedicated call center for people to have their questions answered.
Wisconsin Medicaid members who received a notification or have questions about the incident can call 833-875-0804 between the hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Monday through Friday, for help.
|
2022-10-08T10:38:25Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
More than 12,000 Wisconsin Medicaid members' data potentially exposed
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/health/2022/10/08/more-than-12-000-wisconsin-medicaid-members-data-potentially-exposed/8210813001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/health/2022/10/08/more-than-12-000-wisconsin-medicaid-members-data-potentially-exposed/8210813001/
|
4 things to do for Indigenous Peoples Day this weekend and Monday in Milwaukee and Wisconsin
Indigenous Peoples Day is on Monday, a time to honor Native American history and culture, which is varied and diverse.
Wisconsin is home to 11 federally recognized tribal nations and the Brothertown Indian Nation, which does not have federal recognition.
Students at the Indian Community School in Franklin began petitioning lawmakers to observe the holiday a few years before Evers' executive order.
Here are a few things to do this weekend and on Monday to celebrate the holiday.
Central Wisconsin Indigenous Peoples Day Pow Wow
Doors open at 11 a.m., Oct. 8-9
East Gate Hall at Marathon Park, 801 Garfield Ave., Wausau
The Indigenous Peoples Day Pow Wow returns for the first time since 2019. It is free and open to everyone. A powwow is a time to socialize and celebrate song and dance. Dancers dressed in regalia move to the beat of booming drums and practice different styles of dance, including traditional, fancy and jingle dress. Jingle dress dancers wear regalia adorned with rows and rows of metal cones that clink together. Grand entry, when all the dancers come into the arena, is at 1 and 7 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday. A feast is at 5 p.m. Saturday.
Indigenous Peoples Day at Milwaukee Public Museum
10:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Oct. 10
Milwaukee Public Museum, 800 W. Wells St., Milwaukee
The museum will have programming celebrating Indigenous peoples, including a presentation on moccasins on the museum's second floor. The museum's tribal liaison will discuss the beadwork, patterns and construction styles that distinguish moccasins of one tribal nation from another. A champion woodland dancer will also demonstrate the woodland style of dancing and share hand drum songs from 1-3:30 p.m. on the second floor. Museum admission for non-members is between $16 and $22.
Indigenous Peoples Day Hike
5:30 - 7 p.m., Oct. 10
Lakeshore State Park, north entrance, 500 N. Harbor Drive, Milwaukee
Honor Milwaukee’s Indigenous residents past and present on a walk through the park to learn about native uses for the plants found at Lakeshore and how the Lake Michigan ecosystem has changed since European occupation. More info: dnr.wisconsin.gov/events/63261
Sundance Indigenous Shorts Tour at the Oriental
Oriental Theater, 2230 N. Farwell Ave., Milwaukee
This roughly 90-minute program showcases six short films from the United States, Mexico and the Philippines directed by Indigenous filmmakers. The titles are from the 2022 Sundance Film Festival shorts program and from alumni of Sundance Institute's Indigenous Program.
The lineup includes an experimental documentary called "Kicking the Clouds" by a director who is part Ho-Chunk. It also includes a short documentary called "Long Line of Ladies" about a girl and her community as they prepare for her Ihuk, the once-dormant coming-of-age ceremony of the Karuk Tribe of Northern California. General admission is $12. Tickets for children under 12 cost $6, and for seniors age 60 and older $10. More info: mkefilm.org/cine-sin-fronteras.
|
2022-10-08T16:49:53Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
4 things to do for Indigenous Peoples Day in Milwaukee and Wisconsin
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/08/4-things-do-indigenous-peoples-day-milwaukee-and-wisconsin/8209328001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/08/4-things-do-indigenous-peoples-day-milwaukee-and-wisconsin/8209328001/
|
DULUTH, Minn - One-hundred people gathered in a loose assemblage Sept. 25 at the top of a grand overlook along the western edge of Lake Superior.
Long was referring to Pershing "Jack" Hofslund, a professor at the University of Minnesota-Duluth. Hofslund started by putting signs on the cliff that read "Don't Shoot Hawks."
In 1972, the Duluth Audubon Society, with a loan from the Minnesota Chapter of The Nature Conservancy, donated funds to the city of Duluth to purchase the highest part of the Ridge.
|
2022-10-08T20:07:27Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory in Duluth is great spot for public viewing
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/columnists/paul-smith/2022/10/08/hawk-ridge-bird-observatory-duluth-minnesota-offers-studies-public-viewing/8206603001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/columnists/paul-smith/2022/10/08/hawk-ridge-bird-observatory-duluth-minnesota-offers-studies-public-viewing/8206603001/
|
So you want to go stock car racing? Take a look at what it could cost at the short track level.
WEST SALEM – Imagine you want to go racing.
You intend to be successful, whatever that means. Maybe it’s competing for a season championship at a local track. Maybe it’s racing in big events around the country as a springboard toward a career in the NASCAR Cup Series.
Assuming you have the talent, the conversation immediately turns to money: How fast do you want to go? How much do you want to spend?
The answers may surprise you. Not the numbers themselves, necessarily, but rather the huge range in options raised during a handful of conversations on the cost of asphalt super late model racing.
Teams from Wisconsin, elsewhere around the Midwest and even one from Oklahoma gathered for Sunday’s Oktoberfest 200 at La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway, the ARCA Midwest Tour season finale and one of the biggest special events in the state with $10,000 going to the winner.
Still, the prospects for coming out ahead were bleak.
“We sat down, said we’re coming to the Fest, we’re going to be here for damn near a week,” said Jeff Storm, a longtime regional-level racer from Waterford. “Add it up, this is what it’s going to cost. You either do it or you don’t.
“To break even … I don’t know.”
Powerhouse team owner Donnie Wilson came to Oktoberfest for the first time from his home base in Oklahoma City with cars for William Sawalich and Cole Butcher. One of the most successful asphalt super late model programs in the country, Wilson Motorsports came to Wisconsin with 15 victories in about 40 of the biggest special events, usually with two cars.
Sawalich entered the weekend with five victories this season, and Cup Series driver William Byron had four with Wilson Motorsports, including the Slinger Nationals in July. ARCA national series drivers Corey Heim, Sammy Smith and Jesse Love have raced for the team this season, as did NASCAR truck series driver Chandler Smith.
Wilson was asked, hypothetically, what someone could get for $150,000.
“Unfortunately this sport takes money, whether you’re doing it for a hobby or a little more serious about it,” he said. “I always did it as a hobby and it turned into an opportunity for these younger guys to come and race. We put a good car under them. A lot of people don’t want to own a car. That’s one of the things.
“Yeah, 150 would get to some pretty good races.”
But how many races? If they were the biggest – including the multi-day Snowball Derby in Florida in December – maybe four.
“Honestly, coming up here because of how big a crew you have and with the number of days you have, man, it’s expensive,” Wilson said. “Coming up here is like going to the Derby. … All these big races are expensive when you’re gone three or four days. It’s all about people, manpower. Hotels are crazy now. Expenses have gone through the roof. It’s not cheap.”
Mark Kraus of Stratford has had son Derek, a regular on the NASCAR truck circuit, in five super late model races this season with a top finish of third. He figured he could get a lot further on less money with his small family-owned and -operated team, hitting 8-12 specials on a hypothetical budget of $100,000.
“It can cost a lot or you can do it cheap,” Kraus said. “If you do it cheap you probably aren’t going to get the results out of it as if you did it the right way. It’s expensive. We just bought the 14 tires you need to run all three races (Thursday and Friday nights and Sunday afternoon). The tire bill there is $3,000.”
To qualify for the feature meant a driver would at least make enough in purse money to pay for the six tires that would be used in the 200-lapper. That doesn’t begin to account for having a car to put them on or an engine to make them turn, much less the possibility of damage from a crash.
That’s where sponsorship comes in, that and the willingness of an individual or family to pay for an expensive hobby.
“Just the race car, turn-key, ready to rock ’n’ roll, you hear that $100,000 mark (but) that’s top of the line equipment there and it’s nowhere near there,” Storm said, motioning to his car. “We’re probably 55, 60 tops. It’s still a lot of money, don’t get me wrong. Any race car you build brand new … (stuff) costs money now … plus all the parts you have to put on them.”
Justin Mondeik of Gleason, one of the busiest racers in the state, came into the weekend not expecting to win but hoping to make a run at the top five.
He operates on a different level from Wilson, but has competed in about 50 races this season, winning 15 times and collecting championships at State Park Speedway in Wausau and Norway Speedway in Upper Michigan as well as the TUNDRA Super Late Model Series. Mondeik and his father, Peter, do most of the work on three cars in their shop and have volunteer crewmen who rotate through to help on race days as their time permits.
“You have to have good sponsors,” Mondeik said. “Just racing alone, it’s probably close to 80-90k, just for expenses and travel, this year with diesel, pit passes. A lot of the time you’re racing from week to week. You’re waiting for winnings.
“But overall it keeps us busy and we like it.”
Jay Van Der Geest got a nasty reminder of how quickly the costs can add up when 18-year-old son Levon spun in water and virtually destroyed one of his cars Thursday. The front and rear sections of the car were mangled and even the engine – which had run fewer than 100 laps – went back to the builder for a checkup.
“One lap changes your day,” Van Der Geest said. “But every race car driver knows that.”
Van Der Geest also entered cars in Oktoberfest for Chris Weinkauf and Jason Weinkauf, who help him throughout the year. He didn’t run any races himself this season but had the 27 years prior.
“That wreck probably cost me easily 25 grand, 25-30 grand,” Van Der Geest said. “Yep, that’s racing though. This is what I do, this is what I love, this is what I go to work to pay for.
“Some people buy bass boats for $100,000 and pontoons nowadays. I buy $50,000 race cars and spend a lot of time with my son and my wife (Kristin) and very close friends around us.”
|
2022-10-09T15:06:28Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Short-track stock car racing costs explained at La Crosse Oktoberfest
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/motor/2022/10/09/short-track-stock-car-racing-costs-explained-la-crosse-oktoberfest/8228607001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/motor/2022/10/09/short-track-stock-car-racing-costs-explained-la-crosse-oktoberfest/8228607001/
|
Milwaukee-area Catholics gathered Saturday evening at a parish on the northwest side with a message of support for LGBTQ people.
The Rev. Greg Greiten, who is openly gay himself, organized the "LGBTQ Mass of Celebration and Inclusion" because it was important for the community to feel welcome in the church, he said.
"My first words are: I love you. You are loved. You are beloved. You are holy. You are made in the image of God," he said at the start of his homily.
The Mass and subsequent reception at St. Bernadette Parish drew about 100 people, including a handful of young people, who were eager to remain in the Catholic faith while also pushing for change.
Hailey Hable, 22, of Milwaukee spoke during the homily about struggling to accept herself as a transgender person while enrolled at an all-boys Catholic boarding high school. She considered suicide but found strength in her faith, she said.
It was important to share her story because, she said, she now had the opportunity to help others feel welcomed and accepted.
"I had never felt that way growing up," she said.
Married couple Deborah and Kim Cavaliero-Keller, who also spoke at the Mass, believe it is their mission to create a more inclusive environment for LGBTQ people in the Catholic Church.
More:Archdiocese of Milwaukee says new gender identity policy aligns with Catholicism. But critics argue it's damaging for transgender youth.
"Let's build a larger table instead of making marginalized people feel less-than," Kim Cavaliero-Keller said.
The official church teaching is that homosexuality is "objectively disordered." Meanwhile, support for same-sex marriage has continued to rise among U.S. Catholics, polling shows.
In 2021, 74% of Catholics were in favor of same-sex marriage, according to the Public Religion Research Institute. And 81% supported laws that would protect LGBTQ people from discrimination.
Greiten holds onto glimmers of hope that things are changing, such as supportive comments from Pope Francis and recent reports from synod listening sessions that show lay Catholics want the church to reach out more to LGBTQ people.
"The church is our rightful home," Greiten said. "The LGBTQ community has been a part of this community and is here to stay."
Working for change from within the church
Those at the Mass said it was an important step toward a better future.
"It means we're on the right road," Deborah Cavaliero-Keller said.
Peter Govern, 18, a Marquette University student, called the Mass "unconventionally compassionate" for the Catholic Church and an example of how accepting the church could be.
Govern grew up attending St. Bernadette and changed his work shifts so he could attend the Saturday evening Mass. It was important to make time to attend it, he said.
"It's really a hope that by showing support for something like this, it'll continue to grow, it'll continue to flourish," he said.
Mary Syverson of Sussex said Catholicism is her spiritual home, but she always felt like she was betraying her two gay siblings by remaining in the church. Getting involved with a group called Gay and Straight in Christ at her Menomonee Falls parish has been a way to work for change from within.
"I want to help one person at a time make change," she said.
Valeria Spinner-Banks, a former Catholic school teacher and administrator at Mount Mary University, disagreed with the Archdiocese of Milwaukee's new policy on transgender individuals, which calls for Catholic school students to use the pronouns, uniforms and bathrooms that match their sex assigned at birth.
"I understand the trauma these kids go through day by day," she said. She was bothered that students have "something extra now put on them."
Still, Spinner-Banks will not abandon her Catholic faith.
"You don't let anybody run you from your God," she said. "If I leave, I can't make a difference."
More:Milwaukee's Black Nite tavern set to become the first LGBTQ landmark in county history
Welcoming 'lost sheep'
Stephen, 21, a Marquette University student who asked that his last name not be used because of safety concerns, grew up Catholic but as an adult did not feel comfortable attending a church where he might not be accepted.
The Mass on Saturday brought Stephen to tears at points.
"It's cool to be accepted," he said, adding that it was nice to hear Greiten say LGBTQ people were loved.
Greiten said he knows of many people who left the church because they did not feel they were welcome.
"I will spend my priesthood, and every remaining day, searching after the lost sheep. I will find them. I will welcome them. I will tell them I love them," he said in his homily.
After the Mass, Greiten sat at one of the long tables in the church hall and watched as people milled around, enjoying refreshments and chatting.
"It's just wonderful. This is what people should experience almost every weekend. It should be that place," he said.
More:New book chronicles life of Wauwatosa native, writer and trans historian in his own words
|
2022-10-09T21:55:20Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
At Milwaukee Catholic Mass for LGBTQ community, a show of support
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/2022/10/09/milwaukee-catholic-mass-lgbtq-community-show-support/8188954001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/2022/10/09/milwaukee-catholic-mass-lgbtq-community-show-support/8188954001/
|
Hard work and heart get the job done as Andrew Morrissey wins Oktoberfest the right way this time
WEST SALEM – This wasn’t an upset.
Andrew Morrissey’s victory Sunday in the Oktoberfest 200 was a testament to hard work, experience and talent behind the wheel.
Driving a car recently completed in his own shop – built for someone else, but better in his hands in a big race like this one – the 38-year-old from De Forest scored one of the biggest victories of his career.
The only one that might compare came at the same event four years earlier, but there’s a distinction: Although it happened at La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway, it didn’t happen on the racetrack.
“Winning it in the tech shed just isn’t the same,” said Morrissey, who was elevated from fourth in 2018 after the three cars that finished ahead of his were disqualified in post-race inspection.
"Ever since then I just … I had to win this race just so I can say I really won it. I couldn’t be more proud and thankful.”
More:So you want to go stock car racing? Take a look at what it could cost at the short track level.
Morrissey raced near the front of the field most of the day and took the lead for the third and final time with 30 laps to go, winning a back-and-forth battle with Derek Kraus. Morrissey survived one more caution and edged away over the final 15 laps to beat Kraus by 1.2 seconds for a $10,000 payday.
Casey Johnson finished third after leading 38 laps mid-race and sewed up his third ARCA Midwest Tour championship. Since winning Oktoberfest a year ago, Johnson had picked up two big-money Tour victories at Madison International Speedway and one at the Milwaukee Mile.
Ty Majeski was in position to win a fourth Oktoberfest victory and claim a $7,000 bonus after starting at the rear of the field, but his car wouldn’t come out of first gear as he led on a restart with 43 laps remaining. After repairs he fought back for sixth.
Donnie Wilson’s national powerhouse team struggled in its La Crosse debut, finishing 10th with Canadian Cole Butcher, who won the prestigious Oxford 250 in May, and 14th with 15-year-old Minnesota prodigy William Sawalich, who has five victories in national-level specials.
So the finish came down to Morrissey vs. Kraus, a regular on the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series who has raced a handful of super late model events for his family-owned team and won a preliminary event Thursday. Kraus grabbed the lead from Morrissey on a restart with 31 laps left, and then Morrissey quickly got back around.
“Overall it was a really fun day racing with Andrew,” Kraus said. “We had kind of a gift given to us with Ty breaking … but overall it was a good day and a lot of fun.”
As for the back-and-forth?
“That’s good short-track racing,” Kraus said. “I drove it in there and slid up a lane; he drove it in there and slid up a lane. That’s what the fans are coming here to see.”
Morrissey, who long has carried the No. 39, was in a black car as usual but one carrying the No. 28. It was built for Nathan Kelly, the son of Chicago-area legend Pat Kelly, who races at Grundy County Speedway in Illinois and may run the Midwest Tour next season.
“Everybody that helps me … they worked their asses off on this thing the last three weeks and it paid off,” Morrissey said. “Brand new car; couldn’t have been a better debut for it.
“That thing's just been phenomenal.”
When it mattered most, so was the driver.
|
2022-10-10T03:37:50Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Andrew Morrissey tops Derek Kraus for La Crosse Oktoberfest 200 win
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/motor/2022/10/09/andrew-morrissey-tops-derek-kraus-la-crosse-oktoberfest-200-win/8231852001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/motor/2022/10/09/andrew-morrissey-tops-derek-kraus-la-crosse-oktoberfest-200-win/8231852001/
|
MADISON - A mining company is hoping to soon explore a mineral deposit within one of Wisconsin's national forests.
GreenLight Metals is planning to explore a mineral deposit in the Chequamegon National Forest starting in November, if the exploration plan is approved.
The company submitted a letter of intent to drill to the Department of Natural Resources in late September, detailing the plan for drilling at six sites on a 40-acre parcel of land within the forest in Taylor County, near the Yellow River, according to submitted documents. GreenLight is leasing mineral rights from Soo line Railroad, also known as Canadian Pacific Railway.
More: DNR board passes new mining regulations, raises permitting fees for metallic mining
While the DNR is going through the intent document, Taylor County will also be notified of the company's intent to drill, a step required by an ordinance passed by the county after a mining moratorium was lifted in 2017.
The county is not required to vote on or approve the exploration plan, said Dan Colton, CEO of GreenLight.
The drilling is expected to take about 12 weeks to complete, documents said. Restoration of the drill sites will begin in the spring and is anticipated to cost nearly $46,000.
The drilling will only take place after the ground has frozen, Colton said, so November or later. No roads will have to be created to get to drill sites with the equipment.
Once the core samples are pulled from the ground, they'll be analyzed and the company will decide where more drilling needs to be done in order to gain a better understanding of the mineral deposit in the area.
In the meantime, the company will also be monitoring the surrounding land and water for impacts, though drilling is typically a low-impact activity conducted by licensed professionals.
"It's a very low-impact program, no different than installing groundwater monitoring wells," Colton said. "And in addition, the U.S. Forest Service is providing detailed oversight in terms of reviewing the plans and they won't approve a plan that they think minimizes impacts or is being implemented in inappropriate ways."
Exploration of what is known as the Bend Deposit will likely go on for years before opening a mine in the area would be discussed.
The Bend Deposit is located within the Chequamegon National Forest, about 19 miles north of Medford. It was discovered in 1986 and first drilled in the 1990s. It is suspected to contain copper, gold and silver, totaling an estimated 4.23 million tons.
GreenLight also holds the mining rights to the Reef Deposit in Marathon County, just outside of Wausau. Drilling is also being pursued at that deposit, which likely contains copper, gold, silver and zinc.
Paperwork was submitted to Marathon County to commence drilling earlier this year but was sent back to the company for more information. The county will have to approve the application for the company to start work at the site.
While there has been interest in exploratory drilling over the last several years, mines aren't common in Wisconsin. The last mine permitted was the Flambeau mine in 1982 in Ladysmith.
|
2022-10-10T13:14:55Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Mineral company asks to drill in Chequamegon National Forest
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/wisconsin/2022/10/10/mineral-company-asks-drill-chequamegon-national-forest/8168795001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/wisconsin/2022/10/10/mineral-company-asks-drill-chequamegon-national-forest/8168795001/
|
WASHINGTON – Democratic congressional leaders joined state Sen. Brad Pfaff on Friday to push back on claims from Republicans that the party is abandoning their candidate in the race for Wisconsin's 3rd Congressional District.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Wisconsin U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore in a call with reporters before a fundraiser in Milwaukee stressed the national significance of the race and expressed confidence in maintaining the seat despite polling, fundraising and advertising data indicating Republican retired Navy SEAL Derrick Van Orden has the advantage in the contest.
“I’m here to show that we believe this race is not only winnable — we believe you’re going to win this race," Hoyer, a Maryland Democrat, told Pfaff.
“This is an important election," he added. "It is about our democracy. ... It’s about our respect for the law, our respect for the truth."
The joint call came just over a month before voters in Wisconsin's western district head to the polls to decide who will replace retiring Democratic U.S. Rep. Ron Kind, who has held the rural seat since 1997. Kind was one of a handful of Democrats to win in a district Republican Donald Trump carried in 2016 and 2020.
Republicans outspending Democrats in 3rd Congressional District for TV ads
Since the Aug. 9 primary, Republican groups have dominated advertising in the district and accused Democrats of abandoning Pfaff.
Van Orden has a massive fundraising advantage over Pfaff, according to Federal Election Commission reports from the summer, and has been consistently airing ads in the La Crosse, Wausau, Minneapolis and Madison media markets.
The Congressional Leadership Fund, a PAC aligned with the House GOP leadership, spent more than $400,000 in television and digital advertising in support of Van Orden, and the National Republican Congressional Committee has another $1.3 million of ad time reserved from the last two weeks of October until Election Day.
House Majority PAC, Democrats’ largest outside group for congressional campaigns, had been the only major Democratic group to reserve ad time to boost Pfaff, scheduling $1.68 million.
But that support could be in jeopardy, with the group linked to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi reportedly considering cancelling the ad buys, according to Axios.
Last Thursday, Center Forward PAC reserved nearly $500,000 in ad buys for Pfaff in the La Crosse media market. The group will be airing an ad alleging Van Orden was closer to the Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol than he's let on.
The ad includes a clip of Van Orden wearing an earpiece and gesturing toward the Capitol building that day. "The Capitol. That's where we're headed to right now," Van Orden says in the clip.
Van Orden has outraised Pfaff by a factor of six, according to finance reports from the end of July, before Pfaff emerged from the primary, and has been advertising longer than his opponent.
Are Democrats doing enough to support Brad Pfaff in the race?
Democrats have expressed concerns in recent weeks the party is not doing enough to support Pfaff as Republicans see Wisconsin's 3rd Congressional District as among the seats most likely to flip this year.
“Are we spending enough? No," Hoyer said Friday.
“So why don’t we spend more money than they do? I am confident the people of the 3rd Congressional District are going to say this is not about money. It’s about us, the people.”
“It’s gotta be people over profits," said Moore, the Democrat representing Milwaukee. "There’s no way we can match, dollar for dollar, the monies that are coming in.”
Democrats go on the attack for Van Orden attending Trump rally on Jan. 6
The three Democrats continued to attack Van Orden for his presence at the Capitol ahead of the insurrection on Jan. 6. The former SEAL has maintained he attended the Trump rally that preceded the insurrection but left when the riot began.
“I’m confident the people of Wisconsin are not going to send to Congress somebody who neither respects the law nor the order and was involved in an effort which resulted in the deaths of a number of police officers and civilians," Hoyer said in Milwaukee.
A day earlier, Republican U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil joined Van Orden in La Crosse for a roundtable discussion with local law enforcement officials about illicit drugs like fentanyl.
"This is a real, major issue," Van Orden told WXOW. "Dealing with the folks who are distributing, selling these narcotics, that's up to the police officers. They need support from the judges and the prosecutors."
In a statement to the Journal Sentinel, Van Orden accused Pfaff of "running to be Nancy Pelosi’s next rubber stamp" and said Pfaff's event with Hoyer "proves it."
"His campaign is floundering and he will continue to run on slander because he has no platform," Van Orden said.
Van Orden referenced 40-year high inflation, rising crime and an increase in fentanyl overdoses.
"These are the things that people in the 3rd care about, I know because I speak to hundreds of our folks every week.”
|
2022-10-10T13:15:01Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Wisconsin Democrats trail in polls but confident in 3rd District race
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/10/10/congressional-democrats-step-boost-brad-pfaff-battleground-wisconsin-3rd-congressional-district/8209427001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/10/10/congressional-democrats-step-boost-brad-pfaff-battleground-wisconsin-3rd-congressional-district/8209427001/
|
Ruy Teixeira and Dan Adams
Spend 10 minutes on Twitter or watching the cable commentariat and you will be hard pressed to believe any commonalities exist among the Red and Blue tribes. But this media-fed belief is false, and we have the data to prove it.
The Red-Blue divide is especially pronounced in Wisconsin. Over the past two decades, Wisconsinites have engaged in vast self-sorting of their media consumption, friendships and even the communities where they decide to live. Social media has accelerated the trend toward tribalism, which covers the overlapping areas of political and cultural sentiment.
However, a truly great society cannot be a large version of the Hatfields and McCoys. Recognition of common values, historical ties and future goals is important to keep us striving together toward a better future.
This year, Public Policy Polling conducted a large survey of Wisconsin’s Democratic and Republican primary voters on a number of statements about seemingly tribal policies — from immigration and race to policing and gender identity. The good news: Wisconsinites across the political spectrum can agree in principle about even the most controversial political topics.
The crux of these statements could be summarized as: “Common sense tells us these issues are complicated and have nuance.” Unlike cable and Twitter shouters, most Wisconsinites recognize complexity, exceptions to general rules, and gray areas. The statements are drawn from an article one of us wrote here.
The first statement we polled is one that gets to the core of the American ethos. It read: “Equality of opportunity is a fundamental American principle; equality of outcome is not.” Amazingly, 66% of Wisconsin Democrats and 73% of state Republican voters agreed with this principle.
We then proposed: “America is not perfect, but it is good to be patriotic and proud of the country.” 71% of Democrats and 93% of Republicans agreed.
Next we asked: “Discrimination and racism are bad, but they are not the cause of all disparities in American society.” A clear majority, 62%, of Democrats agreed, as did 91% of Republicans.
Regarding racial bias we asked: “No one is completely without bias but calling all white people racists who benefit from white privilege and American society a white supremacist society is not right or fair.” 55% of Democrats agreed, as did 87% of Republicans.
Regarding immigration, Donald Trump’s signature issue, we asked: “America benefits from the presence of immigrants, and no immigrant — even if illegal — should be mistreated. But border security is still important, as is an enforceable system that fairly decides who can enter the country.” A large majority of Democrats (74%) and Republicans (89%) agreed.
As to the summer of 2020’s dominant issue, policing, we asked: “Police misconduct and brutality against people of any race is wrong, and we need to reform police conduct and recruitment. More and better policing is needed for public safety, and that cannot be provided by ‘defunding the police.’ ” 69% of Democrats and 91% of Republicans agreed.
Next we asked: “There are underlying differences between men and women, but discrimination on the basis of gender is wrong.” Incredibly, this statement garnered near equal support, with 91% of Republicans and 90% of Democrats agreeing.
Regarding one of the most hotly-debated cultural issues, transgender rights, we posited: “There are basically two genders, but people who want to live as a gender different from their biological sex should have that right and not be discriminated against. However, there are issues around child consent to transitioning and participation in women’s sports that are complicated and not settled.” We were heartened to see that both Democrats (65%) and Republicans (76%), agreed with this statement.
Next we asked about the statement, “Racial achievement gaps are bad and we should seek to close them. However, they are not due just to racism, and standards of high achievement should be maintained for people of all races,” with 91% of Republicans in agreement and 64% of Democrats.
Finally we asked about free speech: “Language policing has gone too far. By and large, people should be able to express their views without fear of sanction by employer, school, institution or government. Good faith should be assumed, not bad faith.” Democrats agreed by a clear majority of 61%, and Republicans were in near universal agreement at 91%.
In sum, the above shows partisan voters can agree in principle on the most controversial issues. Cumulatively, the statements were agreed to by 87.3% of Republicans and 67.7% of Democrats. And lest you think that only Wisconsinites would endorse these views in a bipartisan way, we note that the same set of statements was tested in the very liberal state of Massachusetts and generated the same basic pattern of results!
Our takeaway: if either of our political parties would strip away the noise of social media and cable opinion arsonists and speak to the common sense and common ground available to them, each would do better in electoral contests and as long-term political brands.
Apart from elected officials, we offer the following prescriptions for concerned citizens who, like us, are shocked at the tribalization of our current politics:
• Break out of your media silos — quit Twitter and turn off cable “news.” Instead, support professional journalism through paid subscriptions.
• Don’t leave nasty comments online — especially anonymous ones. Instead, make the effort to talk to your neighbors in person. It’s harder to tell someone off eye-to-eye than online. Jokes and memes are entertaining, but both sides use them as crutches to attack their opponents and destroy productive conversation.
• Embrace the idea that many things in life aren’t simple and you won’t understand everything or everyone all the time. Intellectual humility means not having to make knee-jerk decisions on every issue under the sun.
• As the data shows, issues involving race seem to be the most polarizing. Our country’s troubled history should be discussed openly and honestly. Hiding our past only exacerbates current divisions.
• And finally, regardless of your faith tradition, treat others how you’d like to be treated and assume when someone is engaging with you on a topic of public opinion that they have good intentions.
Together, we can fight back against the trend of political tribalism and create a house that stands together.
Ruy Teixeira is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and an editor of “The Liberal Patriot” blog on Substack. Dan Adams is a Wisconsin criminal defense attorney and political commentator.
|
2022-10-10T13:15:13Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Despite noise of social media, there's common ground in Wisconsin
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/2022/10/10/despite-noise-social-media-theres-common-ground-wisconsin/8191449001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/2022/10/10/despite-noise-social-media-theres-common-ground-wisconsin/8191449001/
|
Nearly 300 new apartments could be coming to the Mayfair Collection as part of a three-phase residential plan for the area
A nearly 300-unit development could be coming to Wauwatosa’s Mayfair Collection in the form of two five-story buildings at 11220 Burleigh St.
Proposed by Wingspan Development Group, the project, currently named Foundry, would be the first step in a three-phase residential vision for the area that the group is hoping to break ground on by summer 2023.
This new development would be yet another in the highly popular Mayfair Collection hybrid residential and shopping community. The proposed development is also in line with Wauwatosa’s growing desire to provide larger amounts, and more diverse styles, of housing.
Project will feature a pool, pickleball court, putting green and more
The proposed development will be broken into two five-story buildings with one building larger than the other. The smaller building will contain 95 units that will amass a total of 132,405 square feet. The larger building will offer 194 units and will be 227,750 total square feet.
Both the individual buildings will offer the same diverse set of apartment layouts with 5% of the units being studios, 33% being one-bedroom units, 58% being two-bedroom units and 4% being three-bedroom units. For some units on the first floor, a private yard will be included.
Central to the developer's vision is a semi-public community area that will offer a variety of spaces on the first floors and in the courtyard of the development. Some of the amenities included in the first proposal are a pool, a pickleball court, a bocce ball court, a putting green, a fire pit and a lounge/ game room.
The developers explained that the community area is primarily intended to serve residents of the development. However, as more residential developments are built, in line with Wingspan's three-phase vision, it will be shared by the surrounding buildings.
Wauwatosa officials support the project
The presentation of Wingspan’s development at Thursday’s Design Review Board meeting was never intended to seek approval. Rather, Wingspan Development Group wanted to take the opportunity to field critiques of the first rendition of the project.
Reactions to the development were overwhelmingly positive. Board member Dennis Scherr said the project was “very successful in my mind at this stage,” and another board member, Dan Beyer, mentioned that he felt the project is in line with what the area needs.
“I think there's a really nice feel to this,” said Beyer.
Wingspan Development Group is no stranger to the Milwaukee metro area. The company built the HUB13 apartments in Oak Creek and the Ruby apartments in Brookfield.
Wingspan hopes to start construction on the Foundry project in summer 2023.
Despite the positive feedback to its first proposal, the development will have to return to the review board at a later date to officially be approved.
The Mayfair Collection has grown considerably
The Wingspan proposal is the latest in an influx of projects that have bolstered the residential and commercial prowess of the Mayfair Collection in recent years.
Wauwatosa in 2019 announced would pay $20 million to help finance mixed-use developments at the Mayfair Collection that will eventually include 750 apartments and multiple office spaces.
Moreover, another development in 2022 was in part financed by federal tax credits. That development will total 80 apartments, with 56 units set aside for low- to moderate-income families.
|
2022-10-10T16:27:57Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Nearly 300 new apartments could be coming to the Mayfair Collection
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/west/news/2022/10/10/nearly-300-new-apartments-could-coming-mayfair-collection/8204384001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/west/news/2022/10/10/nearly-300-new-apartments-could-coming-mayfair-collection/8204384001/
|
Nickel: Runners and volunteers at Not Lakefront Marathon show Milwaukee wants a big marathon event
An hour after the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon was canceled, runner Claudia Dominguez called the organizer for Milwaukee Running Group – otherwise known as OMG – and simply said, what are we going to do?
"And I said, what we are going to do...?” replied Patrick Bieser, stunned by the news and then the question. “And she said, 'Yes. Do something.'
“And I said, 'OK, well, sure… we'll do a marathon. How hard could that be?' ”
And that was how the miracle of the Not Lakefront Marathon came about last Sunday, Oct. 2, the day of the original race, which was canceled 22 days earlier over planning problems with the organizers and the City of Milwaukee.
The Not Lakefront Marathon avoided all that with a grassroots, just-show-up effort. The organizers set up a starting line right by the beer garden at South Shore Terrace and continued southbound on the Oak Leaf Trail for 6.55 miles, until the runners turned around and ran back for the half marathon. The marathon runners repeated this out-and-back route twice to get their 26.2 miles.
It’s a gorgeous path on the lakefront along new condominium development and winding through trees, with stunning views of the beach and bluff in places.
But the turnout for the Not Lakefront Marathon was even more impressive: 700-800 runners representing 20 states, with a few out-of-country runners. There were distances of 5K and 10k as well. But there's more.
– Runners received official bibs, commemorative shirts and finisher medals.
– 400 volunteers worked as registration officials, course marshals and at water stations
– 9 aid stations were staffed by running groups November Project, Badgerland Striders and OMG
– Medical people were on standby to respond to no emergencies
– One member of the city of South Milwaukee fire chief’s staff was dispatched to “roll the trail” on a bike to keep an eye on the runners
– Port- A-Potties were rented and plentiful
– A massage therapist volunteered to help at the finish line
– Untold amounts of beer were donated for the finish line, as well as milk, donuts, chocolate and bananas
And there was only one slightly taken-aback representative from the FBI building right on the trail in St. Francis.
“We let them know that we were running through and were going to block the building,” said Bieser. “He said, what? It took him about 30 seconds to understand and he was OK with it.”
The Not Lakefront Marathon expense was $3,000, which was covered by donations.
Everyone, it seemed, stepped up to contribute something.
“I likened it to the stone soup story,” said Bieser.
It was a remarkable day considering the anger, frustration and bitterness that had developed after the Sept. 10 cancellation of the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon.
“It's a beautiful place, and lots of people mentioned how beautiful the course was,” said Bieser. “People came in from different states; there were a couple of international travelers. They all had the ‘Lakefront’ on their calendars, and it was canceled and then probably within a day or two they heard that we came up with an alternative.”
OMG, in its 11th year, has more than 3,000 members – and growing after the run last Sunday. They host 15 organized runs per week and are inclusive to all abilities.
“And we welcome new members, slow members,” said Bieser. “People always say, Oh, I can't come to the run because I'm too slow. Oh my God. Just stop. There's lots and lots of people like you that are slow and they'd love to run with somebody else.
“We have morning people and night people, people doing long distance and short distance. It's just a great way to make connections and encourage each other. There's just wonderful friendship and fellowship. So come on over.”
OMG made it look easy, but don't be fooled. This was a herculean effort by so many volunteers and thankfully it went smoothly.
After the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon cancellation, representatives from the City of Milwaukee reached out to hosting group Badgerland Striders and race director Scott Stauske in a last-ditch effort to reinstate the marathon within a day.
“But in the end, my team felt there was too much time lost for planning and not sending the wrong message to those who were already planning for the future,” Stauske wrote in an email message. “I have reached out to the City with thoughts of how we can collaborate more effectively.”
The future of the Lakefront Marathon is unclear, but Stauske said he had been busy with responding to more than 1,000 runners by dealing out refunds, or teaming up with OMG in the last month.
While the turnout for Not Lakefront Marathon was impressive, what about everyone else? It was a fraction of the 3,300 runners who were originally signed up for the Lakefront Marathon.
Runners looked for other marathon options
Many jumped over to Silver Circle Sports Events' Non-Cancelled Marathon (Fall edition) in Oconomowoc. This marathon was created in the past, in the spring, when the pandemic and other marathons had been canceled, and it was revived at the last minute again when the Lakefront Marathon was abruptly shut down.
“There was a pretty decent crowd, many from Lakefront, ” said veteran runner Stephanie Graf, who was supposed to do her third Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon – this time the half marathon distance.
“Not racing wasn’t an option. I trained far enough to throw it away. Silver Circle does an excellent job with races and this was no different. I’m glad I had the opportunity to put the training to use.”
An additional 200 runners also took advantage of a special discount coupon from the Twin Cities Marathon to switch races altogether.
One of them was Jack Hackett, a former runner at Marquette University and now coach who was intending to make his marathon debut. Instead he hustled up to Minneapolis last Sunday, clocking in at 2 hours 47 minutes and taking 68th place overall.
"Jack had to make a trip five hours north, but I think he would agree that his race turned out very well for his debut marathon," said his running friend, Scott Kasten, who was scheduled to run the Lakefront half marathon. "And he is definitely one of the faster individuals who I think had to make that pivot up to the north there."
It’s a credit to the running community and the kind of resiliency found in runners, as well as all the volunteers who make it happen.
"People kept posting on social media: We're making lemonade out of lemons," said Kasten, who was set to run in the Chicago Marathon on Oct. 10. "It was a bad situation, or an unfortunate situation, and it ended up being very positive for a lot of people."
Added Hackett: "The runner mentality is to put your head down and just get it done. So we pivoted and figured it out. I just kind of wish I wasn't racing so I could have helped with the Not Lakefront marathon."
Downfall of the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon
As for the collapse of the 2022 Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon, one month later, there still appears to be plenty of blame to go around.
More:Nickel: Athletes feeling betrayed after course hangups in Milwaukee result in Lakefront Marathon 2022 cancellation
Construction in the North Shore forced changes in the long-standing marathon route that started in Grafton and ended in Milwaukee. The City of Milwaukee took a lot of criticism for not accommodating the Badgerland Striders and organizers in the efforts to re-route this year from Milwaukee to the South Shore communities.
Milwaukee officials would not cut off a neighborhood for the sake of the marathon and would not accept unanswered questions about details, like when barricades would be removed, and what exact involvement would city police have.
Milwaukee faces similar challenges for the national Age Group Triathlon Championships or Al’s Run – for example, Discovery World doesn't like being cut off from public access during those events.
And while the City of Milwaukee was aware that the Striders are a volunteer-driven organization (the race director does draw a salary, however), there were too many unresolved issues for 2022.
“The complication comes in organizing an event in a way that meets the basic safety requirements, and the needs of the entire community – not just the participants,” City of Milwaukee spokesman Jeff Fleming said. “It requires a level of experience and sophistication. Unfortunately all the pieces were not in place this year to pull off the marathon.
“City staff did work with organizers, but in the end there were so many loose ends that needed to be taken care of on the part of the organizers that it was just not possible to answer all the of questions in the short length of time that remained.”
Organizing a marathon is a major undertaking
Perhaps no one understands more than Christ Ponteri, the former race director of the other event in Milwaukee from 2015-19, the Milwaukee Marathon. His creation was a multi-race race bonanza within the streets of Milwaukee with the crown jewel being the marathon distance, and he said there is an enormous amount of work that goes into getting the approval of a route.
In an email, this is what Ponteri said:
• I made about 15 to 20 trips to City Hall to meet with the mayor, members of the Common Council and Public Works Department to discuss the event and the route, as well as several meetings at the Police Department
• I went before the Public Works Committee twice and Milwaukee County Parks Committee once
• I had at least 20 meetings with various neighborhood groups and leaders of churches which were along the route
• We entered into an Operating Agreement with the City of Milwaukee several months before the event. This agreement laid out the requirements for us to obtain our event permit. This included the amount and type of insurance we had to carry, the traffic plan, the safety plan, the neighborhood notification plan, and a timeline for all these items to be completed. These plans were very detailed and all required a significant amount of time to organize and complete.
It may be necessary for the Badgerland Striders to hire an event-planning company to organize the marathon for 2023. Or it may be necessary to pause the race altogether until construction is complete and the old route is, hopefully, made available again.
Message Lori Nickel on Twitter at @LoriNickel, Instagram at @bylorinickel or Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ChinUpLoriNickel
|
2022-10-10T16:28:13Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Runners and volunteers show Milwaukee wants a marathon event
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/2022/10/10/runners-and-volunteers-show-milwaukee-wants-marathon-event/8200216001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/2022/10/10/runners-and-volunteers-show-milwaukee-wants-marathon-event/8200216001/
|
In the annals of great Wisconsin sports performances, does Lew Burdette get the credit he deserves?
Burdette was on the mound at Yankee Stadium on Oct. 10, 1957 — 65 years ago — to cap off a remarkable World Series run as the Milwaukee Braves beat the Yankees, 5-0, securing the lone World Series title in the city's history.
Burdette finished off a complete-game shutout just three days after he also worked a complete-game shutout in Game 5, a 1-0 victory in the final game of the year at Milwaukee County Stadium.
Coupled with his 4-2 win in Game 2, Burdette shares the record for most World Series pitching victories in a single season, with three. He allowed just two earned runs in 27 innings of that series.
In the clincher, Burdette out-dueled Yankees hurler Don Larsen — whose perfect game in the previous year's World Series endures as one of the great accomplishments in baseball history — and allowed one walk and seven hits (six singles) with just three strikeouts over his nine scoreless innings.
The Yankees loaded the bases in the ninth before Burdette induced a groundout to third baseman Eddie Mathews off the bat of Bill Skowron. Mathews stepped on third and the celebration was on.
Mathews also delivered a two-run double in the third to chase Larsen from the game, and Henry Aaron followed with an RBI single in the four-run frame. Del Crandall homered in the eighth. Burdette had previously pitched on two days rest in 1955, two years earlier, but he was pressed into duty when Hall of Famer Warren Spahn, came down with the flu.
"I'll have all winter to rest up," Burdette said.
It was the first time a pitcher had thrown three complete-game victories in a World Series since 1920 and the first pitcher to have two complete-game shutouts since 1905. Making it all the sweeter was that it came against the team with whom Burdette had thrown his first big-league innings back in 1950.
"(Manager Casey Stengel) would yell over, 'Hey you, get in there and warm up,'" Burdette said in 1957 about his brief stint with New York. "It was always 'Hey, you' — he never knew my name. I threw just two pitches at Yankee Stadium in my whole life before I stopped them last week in the series. Most of the time I threw batting practice and was in the bullpen."
Burdette garnered a Corvette for earning MVP of the series.
"Nuts to that," Burdette said before Game 7. "I've got a car. My wife drives one and I've got a jeep besides. So who cares about the car? I'll take that win anytime."
"We never figured on that man," Yankees star catcher Yogi Berra said afterward. "The man we were worried about was Spahn."
Known as a prankster with a penchant for great quotes, Burdette would have been a fan favorite in any era. He famously posed as a left-hander on his 1959 Topps baseball card (he was right-handed) and talked to himself on the mound. He was frequently accused of throwing a spitball.
He only twice made the all-star team but finished third in the Cy Young voting in 1958 and received MVP votes each season from 1956-59. In the 1958 World Series, he recorded a win in Game 2 and hit a three-run home run in the first inning, but this time he was saddled with losses in Game 5 and Game 7 as the Yankees turned the tables to win in seven games.
Archive:For 13 years, the Braves were a Milwaukee institution. Now, the franchise will face the Brewers in the playoffs
On May 26, 1959, Burdette recorded perhaps his best-known performance, when he matched up with Pittsburgh's Harvey Haddix and somehow emerged victorious at County Stadium, 1-0, even though Haddix still had a perfect game heading into the 13th inning.
Mathews and Aaron were the other heroes of the 1957 series. Mathews' two-run shot in the 10th inning broke a 5-5 tie and gave the Braves a walk-off victory in Game 4, and he finished the series with four extra base hits. Aaron hit three homers in the series and batted 11 for 28 overall, with seven RBIs and five runs scored. Joe Adcock's single in the bottom of the sixth accounted for the only offense in the 1-0 win.
Archive:Helping 'mankind' more meaningful to Hank Aaron than hits and homers
The Yankees won Games 1 and 3, with the Braves knotting the series each time, before that 1-0 win gave Milwaukee a 3-2 series lead. New York forced Game 7 with a 3-2 win two nights later, though Aaron briefly tied the game in the seventh with a home run.
Burdette died in 2007. He was added to the "Walk of Fame" outside of American Family Field in 2010.
|
2022-10-10T16:28:19Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Lew Burdette pitched Milwaukee Braves to 1957 World Series title
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/10/lew-burdette-pitched-milwaukee-braves-1957-world-series-title-over-new-york-yankees/8234686001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/10/lew-burdette-pitched-milwaukee-braves-1957-world-series-title-over-new-york-yankees/8234686001/
|
Oconomowoc approves bowhunting in parts of the city to manage the deer population
To control the deer population, bowhunting is now permitted in certain parts of the city of Oconomowoc, including two designated public parcels.
The common council voted unanimously Oct. 5 to change the existing ordinance for discharging weapons to include the ability for residents to bow hunt at least 50 yards from a habitable building and in two designated zones in the city.
While the city does not require any specific registration, potential hunters are still required to have proper licenses from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.
More:Oconomowoc considers allowing bowhunting on city land to manage deer population
More:Wisconsin hunting seasons officially begin with early geese, teal and doves
The effort to allow for bow and arrows and crossbows was spearheaded by Aldermen Lou Kowieski and Charles Schellpeper in conjunction with the city of Oconomowoc Police Department. It mimics efforts by other Lake Country municipalities like Nashotah and the city of Delafield which have allowed for bowhunting to manage the local deer population.
"I think this is going to be a great addition to our community," Oconomowoc Police Chief James Pfister said. "I think it's going to help prevent the car-deer accidents we have and help thin out the herd here in Oconomowoc. Working with attorney Stan Riffle, I think we have some great language in here that protects citizens of Oconomowoc and keeps everybody safe at the same time."
Private landowners with enough space from a habitable dwelling are still able to hunt on that land, as are people with written permission to hunt on the private land from the owner, in accordance with DNR laws and local ordinances.
The city also set aside two zones specifically for bow hunting.
The first zone includes about 34 acres bordered by the wastewater treatment plant to the north, interurban trail to the east, Oconomowoc River to the west and the conservatory to the south.
The second zone includes 27 acres by the Oconomowoc Industrial Park and River Bluff subdivision. Pfister said that signage will be posted in the near future to notify hunters and passersby.
One issue brought forward by Ald. Jennifer Aultman-Kloth was the first zone being split by the Lake Country Trail and the possible danger of hunters shooting across the trail, which is illegal.
"The deer population in this area is so terrible that something needs to be done and I am 100% in favor of hunting," Aultman-Kloth said. "Where I get tripped up is I’ve just seen so many irresponsible hunters since Nashotah opened up their hunting. On one hand, the Lake Country Trail is closed this year and this would be good for the first year because technically you shouldn’t be on the trail. On the flip side, maybe the hunters will get used to having no traffic on the trail and then I’m afraid they won’t be as safe."
This sparked a discussion about items to keep in mind during the pilot season that could bring forward changes in 2023. Changes discussed included implementing wearing blaze orange in the designated zones and increasing or decreasing land or distances based on the pilot season.
The pilot season will operate within DNR bow hunting laws. The 2022-23 bow hunting deer season opened Sept. 17 and runs to Jan. 8.
Without deer tags or an official system to track hunters and zone usage, the city did not list standards that need to be met. However, they will revisit the matter again in 2023.
"I am going to go ahead and trust you just with the understanding that next year we can switch things up whether that’s space off of the trail or blaze orange," Aultman-Kloth said.
In related action, the council also changed the ordinance to allow shotgun and muzzle loaders to be discharged legally within 100 yards of a habitable dwelling. The previous distance had been 200 yards.
|
2022-10-10T19:21:56Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
To control the deer population, Oconomowoc OKs bowhunting ordinance
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/lake-country/2022/10/10/control-deer-population-oconomowoc-oks-bowhunting-ordinance/8187134001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/lake-country/2022/10/10/control-deer-population-oconomowoc-oks-bowhunting-ordinance/8187134001/
|
MADISON – Wisconsin coach Greg Gard and his players chuckled last fall after seeing the Badgers picked 10th in the Big Ten in the annual preseason media poll.
Perhaps they viewed the 2022-23 poll, conducted by The Columbus Dispatch and The Athletic, as progress.
UW, which won a share of the Big Ten regular-season title in 2019-20 and again last season, is the No. 9 pick this season.
UW must replace starters Johnny Davis and Brad Davison and reserves Chris Vogt and Ben Carlson, who helped UW finish 15-5 in the league and 25-8 overall last season.
Indiana was picked to win the league and received 19 of 28 first-place votes. Illinois (six first-place votes) was picked second, followed by Michigan (one first-place vote), Michigan State, Purdue (one first-place vote), Ohio State, Iowa (one first-place vote), Rutgers, Wisconsin, Maryland, Penn State, Minnesota, Northwestern and Nebraska.
The Badgers were picked as high as third and as low as 11th. Twelve voters picked UW to finish ninth.
Senior forward Tyler Wahl and sophomore guard Chucky Hepburn were on the five-player preseason all-conference second team.
Michigan’s Hunter Dickinson was the preseason payer of the year. He edged out Indiana’s Trayce Jackson-Davis by one vote, 14-13.
|
2022-10-10T22:03:01Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Wisconsin picked to finish ninth in Big Ten men's basketball
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/10/wisconsin-picked-finish-ninth-big-ten-mens-basketball/8233319001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/10/wisconsin-picked-finish-ninth-big-ten-mens-basketball/8233319001/
|
MADISON –- Although Wisconsin nose tackle Keeanu Benton expects to be on the field Saturday against Michigan State after suffering a minor knee injury, the Badgers will be without reserve tailback Chez Mellusi.
The senior suffered a broken right wrist on his final carry against Northwestern last week, with 8:26 remaining in the game. He underwent surgery and is out indefinitely.
According to a source, the injury is not expected to end Mellusi’s season.
Interim head coach Jim Leonhard said Monday the staff should know more during UW’s off week, which comes after the Oct. 22 game against Purdue.
Mellusi finished with 31 yards on 10 carries and added a 23-yard touchdown catch in the 42-7 victory over Northwestern.
He has played in all six games this season and has 223 yards on 56 carries.
Julius Davis is the only other tailback to carry the ball this season. He has 82 yards on 11 carries. Brady Schipper is also available.
“It is hard for him,” said Allen, who spoke to Mellusi on Sunday. “He is a guy who no matter what he is going through is going to try to be on the field and help his team out.
“For him not to be able to do that, at least right now, is tough. He was having a tough time after the game. You have to find a balance of letting him know that you love him and you’re there for him but also giving him his space.”
|
2022-10-10T22:03:07Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Wisconsin running back Chez Mellusi out indefinitely with broken wrist
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/10/wisconsin-running-back-chez-mellusi-out-indefinitely-broken-wrist/8237014001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/10/wisconsin-running-back-chez-mellusi-out-indefinitely-broken-wrist/8237014001/
|
Keeanu Benton, who suffered a minor knee injury at Northwestern, insists he will be ready to play at Michigan State
MADISON – Keeanu Benton limped toward the table full of microphones and digital recorders inside the McClain Center on Monday.
Wisconsin’s senior nose tackle was prepared to answer the obvious question:
Will you be ready to play this week against Michigan State?
Benton, who was wearing a black compression sleeve on his right leg, insisted he will be fine.
“I just got hit in the back of my knee and from the knee down it kind of went numb,” Benton said, referring to the injury he suffered late in the first half last week at Northwestern. “I couldn’t run.”
Benton went down with 1 minute 42 seconds left in the first half and sat out the remainder of UW’s 42-7 victory.
He watched UW hold the Wildcats to 3 of 13 third-down conversions, 79 rushing yards and one fourth-quarter scoring drive.
Benton noted the defense had fewer mental mistakes overall than in previous games.
“Previous weeks,” he said, “it’s always somebody doing something wrong. Ohio State we had like 10 plays out of all the plays where everybody did their job. That is unacceptable for us. We talk about being the best defense in the nation.”
Alexander Smith ready to play; Hunter Wohler still out
Senior cornerback Alexander Smith, who has missed all six games because of a hamstring injury suffered early in camp, was in uniform at Northwestern. He was only to be used in an emergency situation, however, and did not play. He said Monday he will be ready to play at Michigan State.
Safety Hunter Wohler, who was injured in the season opener, is no longer using crutches or a protective boot. He has not practiced, however.
“Getting closer,” Leonhard said. “Doing significantly more in his rehab. It is probably a situation where it is going to be close to the bye week. Whether it is before or after, want to do right by him.
“When he is available, obviously he will be a contributor for us."
Also out this week are tailback Chez Mellusi (wrist), tight end Hayden Rucci (leg) and kicker Vito Calvaruso (leg).
|
2022-10-10T22:03:13Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Wisconsin's Keeanu Benton says he will play at Michigan State
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/10/wisconsins-keeanu-benton-says-he-play-michigan-state/8233359001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/10/wisconsins-keeanu-benton-says-he-play-michigan-state/8233359001/
|
The Milwaukee Bucks returned to the practice court at the Sports Science Center on Monday afternoon following their five-day trip to the United Arab Emirates for two preseason games against the Atlanta Hawks.
Head coach Mike Budenholzer said the team came out of the trip healthy and the Bucks now look ahead to finishing the preseason with back-to-back games at Chicago on Tuesday and at home Wednesday against Brooklyn.
Before leaving Abu Dhabi, Budenholzer acknowledged the scheduling wasn’t ideal, but he was confident they’d get the necessary work in for the players who will be held out of those games. The team already elected to not hold a shootaround before Tuesday’s contest in Chicago.
“There will be some significant, probably, decisions about who plays and who doesn’t play coming off of this trip to Abu Dhabi,” Budenholzer said.
“We’ll probably figure out some things to do as it pertains to (Tuesday) night.”
Khris Middleton makes appearance on court
It remains unlikely Bucks all-star Khris Middleton will be on the court for the start of the regular season Oct. 20, but he was on the court for the team’s post-practice shooting session open to the media Monday.
“He’s making progress,” Budenholzer said. “I think everything kind of along the what’s expected (time line). So, I think he’s pleased with it, we’re pleased with it. But he’s still got a ways to go.”
More:Khris Middleton stays grounded in hometown Charleston roots as he looks to add to Milwaukee Bucks legacy
More:Milwaukee has changed adopted son Bobby Portis' life. The Bucks fan favorite hopes it can do the same for his brothers.
Bucks soaked in trip to Abu Dhabi
The personal social media feeds of the Bucks’ traveling party to the UAE offered glimpses into some of the activities that were on the docket for them between practice and games against the Hawks. Outside of the Jr. NBA camps the team participated in, players rode camels, held peregrine falcons, danced, visited holy sites and “sand boarded” dunes.
For a team that opened camp with 16 players who spent time with one another on the roster last season, it was a different way to reinforce team chemistry rather than manufacture it.
“I think it’s great because obviously we know each other so well, we’ve been together,” center Brook Lopez said. “I don’t think you need all that – not that there’s anything wrong with it, you obviously do this because it works – team-bonding where you have to kind of go out of your way to create the team bonding and do activities and stuff like that. I think it was just a great, natural situation where we enjoyed our company, we’re comfortable with one another, and we have a good time enjoying a new place.”
Lindell Wigginton trying to make most of opportunity
Lindell Wigginton came to the Bucks in mid-January on a two-way contract after playing 17 games with the organization’s G League affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd. A pro since going undrafted out of Iowa State in 2019, he had turns in not only the G League but Israel and Canada.
The 6-foot-2 guard played 19 games for the Bucks last season, shooting 34.6% from behind the three-point and 42.6% overall in averaging 4.2 points per game.
“Being able to know those guys for a full year and on to another year, it’s been great,” Wigginton said. “Also learning from guys like Jrue (Holiday), that’s like my vet, learning from him each and every day, whether it’s pickup, just individual workouts or things like that, it’s making me more and more confident just learning from a guy like him.”
He was not extended a two-way contract for this season but was signed to the team’s summer league and training camp rosters. The Bucks already have 15 guaranteed contracts on the books and a draft pick (Sandro Mamukelashvili) holding one of the two two-way deals.
Wigginton knows the math.
“I mean, obviously it’s going to be in the back of your mind at some point,” he said. “But I try not to think about it. I just gotta go out there and be the best me and whatever happens at the end of the day I know I put the work in to be where I’m at today.”
But he said his experience from last year and this camp has given him more confidence – and that was on display Saturday. He came off the bench in the fourth quarter against Atlanta in Abu Dhabi and poured in 16 points on 4-of-6 shooting, including 3-for-4 from behind the three-point line.
“Just being the best me I can be,” he said of his approach. “Just being a sponge to all the older guys that’s telling me what to do and what not to do on the court. I’m just taking full advantage of my opportunity and am ready to be the most confident and toughest guy out there.”
Rooke AJ Green finding his shots
The Bucks don’t have many new faces in this training camp, but undrafted rookie AJ Green is one of them. The 23-year-old out of Northern Iowa signed a two-way contract after posting a career 37.8% from behind the college three-point line. In his four years, he was also a 90% free throw shooter.
“I think there’s no better place to start my professional career,” he said of Milwaukee. “I mean, just not even basketball-wise, just who the people are, the characteristics of the players, staff, the people. Love the city here, it’s close to home. I’ve got family in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, so I’m very excited to be here. It’s the real deal. I love it.”
Green said he’s also loved the fact his new teammates are trusting him to do the thing he did so well in college.
“I’m letting it fly,” he said. “Yeah. People go under (a screen), a kick-out and I’ve got space – especially if it's coming from guys like Giannis and Jrue – if they’re passing it to you it’s because you’re probably open so they want you to shoot it. That’s kind of been my mindset is shoot that thing.”
|
2022-10-10T22:03:25Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Bucks plan for preseason back-to-back after enjoying Abu Dhabi trip
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/nba/bucks/2022/10/10/milwaukee-bucks-plan-preseason-back-back-after-enjoying-abu-dhabi-trip/8233421001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/nba/bucks/2022/10/10/milwaukee-bucks-plan-preseason-back-back-after-enjoying-abu-dhabi-trip/8233421001/
|
A labor agreement has been made regarding the construction of a potential live entertainment venue in downtown Milwaukee.
On Monday, leaders from the Milwaukee Bucks, construction contractors, labor and city officials announced a project labor agreement on the proposed FPC Live music venue located in the Deer District on the grounds of the old Bradley Center.
“We’re making a bet on Milwaukee,” Joel Plant, CEO of Frank Productions, said. “Big, impactful projects require partnerships.”
The agreement brings together Miron Construction Co., JCP Construction, Milwaukee Area Service and Hospitality workers union, and the Milwaukee Building and Construction Trades Council.
The proposal must first be approved by the city before construction can begin.
The agreement places goals on the development for the facility to be constructed by 100% union labor, a minimum of 25% of total construction hours to be allocated to Milwaukee County residents, a minimum of 25% of subcontractors to go to minority, women and disadvantaged businesses, 15% of the labor hours plan to be for job training and apprenticeship programs and 5% of construction hours for women-labor on the site.
“If we’re going to transform the city from a center of low wage work and an income inequality economy to one of shared prosperity for people of all backgrounds, it’s going to be because we transform service sector work into good union jobs to rebuild that middle class,” Peter Rickman, president of Milwaukee Area Service and Hospitality Workers Union, said.
“FPC Live made a choice. They made a choice for good union jobs in downtown Milwaukee.”
Dan Bukiewicz, president of the Milwaukee Building and Construction Trades Council, noted the job training and apprenticeship aspect of the agreement.
“That is huge. Fifteen percent doesn’t seem like a lot but when you’re a young person and you want to start your career, it’s going to support your family, it’s going to carry you safely to retirement,” Bukiewicz said. “That extra 5, 10% that is on their job allows that person to have their ‘in.’ And that just doesn’t happen by accident. It happens by partnership and commitment.”
Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson called the agreement “positive news.”
“When workers make good money, that adds stability to their lives, to their families lives, and when you get a critical mass of that happening it creates stability in our neighborhoods which leads to greater public safety for all of us,” Johnson said.
Rickman advocated for the approval of the development
“Voting ‘yes’ means voting for more good union jobs for residents of our city who need them the most,” Rickman said. “Voting ‘yes’ means tackling the income inequality and building the kind of city we all want to see.”
If the development goes forward, employees working at Fiserv Forum could work at the new venue.
“The bartender that’s trying to piece together three part-time jobs around Milwaukee is going to be able to park at one place and come to work in the same general vicinity five days a week. That’s how we turn service sector work into good family supporting jobs,” Rickman said.
“That’s why we’re so excited about this as a union because it builds the strategy that we had for years to transform this work into good family supporting full-time employment.”
|
2022-10-11T02:40:24Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Labor agreement reached for proposed FPC Live venue in Deer District
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2022/10/10/labor-agreement-reached-proposed-fpc-live-venue-deer-district/10462234002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2022/10/10/labor-agreement-reached-proposed-fpc-live-venue-deer-district/10462234002/
|
A 18-year-old Sheboygan man is dead and three others are injured, including a 14-year-old boy, following a single-vehicle crash in the town of Auburn in Fond du Lac County on Saturday.
The Fond du Lac County Sheriff's Office said a 31-year-old Kiel man was driving northbound on County Road GGG, north of County Road S, around 5:39 p.m., when he lost control of the vehicle resulting in the vehicle entering the east ditch before rolling over multiple times.
The vehicle then crossed back over the road before resting in a west ditch.
Three people, ages 14, 19 and 31, managed to get out of the vehicle, but 18-year-old Gavin Matter needed to be extricated.
Matter was flown via Flight for Life to Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee, where he later died, the Fond du Lac County Medical Examiner’s Office announced Monday.
A passenger, a 14-year-old Sheboygan boy, was initially transported to Froedtert Hospital in West Bend, before being flown via Flight for Life to Children's Hospital in Milwaukee. The sheriff's office said he has "serious injuries."
The 31-year-old driver and another passenger, a 19-year-old Kohler man, were transported to Froedtert Hospital in West Bend with "minor injuries." Both men have been released, the sheriff's office said.
"At this point in the investigation, it is believed that speed and careless operation of a vehicle are contributing factors in the crash," the sheriff's office said in a statement.
In addition to the sheriff's office, Kewaskum Fire Department and Ambulance, Campbellsport Ambulance, and West Bend Paramedics all responded to the scene. The Wisconsin State Patrol assisted at the scene as well, the sheriff's office said.
County Road GGG was shut down between County Road S and the Mauthe Lake Campground Entrance for approximately five hours.
|
2022-10-11T02:40:30Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Sheboygan man dead, three others injured in Fond du Lac County crash
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/10/sheboygan-man-dead-three-others-injured-fond-du-lac-county-crash/10462660002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/10/sheboygan-man-dead-three-others-injured-fond-du-lac-county-crash/10462660002/
|
12-year-old girl shot and killed, another 46-year-old woman also injured on Milwaukee's north side
Milwaukee police say a 12-year-old girl was shot and killed on the north side Monday night. A 46-year-old woman was also struck and she is expected to survive.
The double shooting occurred in the 5300 block of North 38th Street around 6 p.m.
The girl was transported to a hospital, where she later died.
Police do not have anyone in custody. Anyone with any information is asked to contact Milwaukee Police at (414) 935-7360 or to remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at (414) 224-Tips or P3 Tips.
Last week, a 12-year-old boy was shot in the Lincoln Creek neighborhood on Thursday and a 2-year-old boy, and two others, were shot while at the 21st & Keefe Park on Tuesday.
|
2022-10-11T02:40:36Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
12-year-old girl shot and killed on Milwaukee's north side
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/crime/2022/10/10/12-year-old-girl-shot-and-killed-milwaukees-north-side/10463438002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/crime/2022/10/10/12-year-old-girl-shot-and-killed-milwaukees-north-side/10463438002/
|
These are some of the most elaborate Halloween decorations in the Milwaukee area
In the era of yard inflatables, giant skeletons and massive spider webs, just about everyone can decorate for Halloween in a way that consumes most of their yard, even with minimal effort.
So to be the best, you've got to go above and beyond.
Maybe it's an elaborate graveyard on 84th Street in Milwaukee, a thematic approach like Beetlejuice in Bay View or a twisted game night in Hubertus, or perhaps the implementation of killer dolls in Oak Creek. Photographer Mike De Sisti went out in search of Milwaukee's finest Halloween decorations.
Here's what he found. Where else are you seeing top-shelf Halloween décor?
|
2022-10-11T17:51:46Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
We went searching for the best Halloween decorations in Milwaukee
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/life/2022/10/11/we-went-searching-best-halloween-decorations-milwaukee/10465555002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/life/2022/10/11/we-went-searching-best-halloween-decorations-milwaukee/10465555002/
|
Generac Power Systems, of Waukesha, has introduced a hydrogen fuel-cell generator that runs nearly silent and emits only warm water and filtered air as it produces electricity.
The 88-kilowatt unit is meant for commercial and industrial purposes and has been used to power a lights and laser show at the Eiffel Tower in Paris. It's also been used at sporting events and concerts, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans auto race, the Energy Boat Challenge in Monaco, a Rolling Stones concert, and the Lollapalooza Paris festival.
With its ability to run quietly and not produce harmful emissions, the portable generator has been used by a Netflix film crew to provide lighting for scenes in a castle.
Generac is importing the GEH2 units, costing approximately $300,000 each, from EODev, a French developer and manufacturer of hydrogen fuel-cell generators.
The GEH2 uses a Toyota fuel cell and a lithium iron phosphate battery that stores and distributes the electricity. The unit can run independently or as part of the utility grid.
Standing about seven feet tall, but narrow, it's meant for sporting events, concerts and other places where silence and a lack of hydrocarbon emissions are priorities. Tunnels, mines, shelters and hospitals could be other uses.
The GEH2 runs off pure hydrogen that's normally only available for industrial use.
It's more expensive to operate than a gas or diesel generator, said Erik Wilde, executive vice president of the Industrial-Americas division at Generac.
"But people want to have that pure green product," Wilde said.
The GEH2 has a broadband connection that allows continuous online remote monitoring via the cloud.
The generator is not meant to run constantly, Wilde said, but rather it keeps the battery system charged to provide power as needed.
Generac has placed an initial order for GEH2s, some of which have already arrived in the United States. It has signed a distribution agreement with EODev for the North American market.
Last week, Wisconsi Gov. Tony Evers said he's agreed to work with the governors of Minnesota, North Dakota, and Montana on developing "clean hydrogen" produced in a way that emits little or no greenhouse gases. The federal Inflation Reduction Act creates tax credits for hydrogen production as well.
|
2022-10-11T17:51:52Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Generac offers a hydrogen fuel-cell generator with no harmful emissions
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2022/10/11/generac-offers-hydrogen-fuel-cell-generator-no-harmful-emissions/8195000001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2022/10/11/generac-offers-hydrogen-fuel-cell-generator-no-harmful-emissions/8195000001/
|
A camera man pushed to the ground by former Green Bay Packers wide receiver Davante Adams after the Las Vegas Raiders lost a close 30-29 game Monday night in Kansas City reportedly sought out police after the incident and was transported to the hospital.
TMZ is reporting that the man filed a police report and claimed he was injured. The Associated Press and NFL Network first reported that Adams could face discipline, with the league office reviewing the incident, and that could even mean a suspension.
Video caught Adams, on his way to the tunnel in the immediate aftermath of the loss to the Chiefs, shoving the man to the ground.
Adams apologized at his locker during a media availability after the game and again on Twitter.
The game itself was the latest in a series of frustrating chapters for the Raiders, now 1-4 in the first season with Adams on board. Adams caught three passes for 124 yards and two touchdowns in the game, but he also ran into slot receiver Hunter Renfrow on a critical fourth-and-1 play that ultimately ended the Raiders' upset attempt on the road.
Adams has 29 catches this season for 414 yards and five touchdowns, with three 100-yard receiving games. This was his first as a Raider with multiple touchdowns.
Why did Davante Adams leave the Packers for Las Vegas?
The five-time Pro Bowler in Green Bay was traded in the offseason for a first-round and second-round draft pick, then signed a contract that made him the highest-paid receiver in the league.
Adams had made it clear to Packers brass that he had a desire to play for the Raiders and reunited with quarterback Derek Carr, his college teammate and good friend. Adams, who grew up in East Palo Alto, California, was a Raiders fan growing up while the team played in Oakland and called it "a dream" to be a Raider.
Green Bay initially used the franchise tag on Adams and had the right to match any offer from another team; Adams has said the Packers offered more money than the Raiders ultimately did, but he preferred the opportunity to play in Las Vegas.
More:Report: Davante Adams, Green Bay Packers 'far apart' on extension talks
The Packers, now 3-2 without Adams, must rely on rookies Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs to fill some of the void left by the star receiver, a situation that hasn't been a disaster but also hasn't paid monster dividends.
CORRECTION: The first version of this story incorrectly stated that the Packers were unwilling to match Oakland's offer.
|
2022-10-11T17:52:20Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Ex-Packers receiver Davante Adams shoves camera man after Raiders loss
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/nfl/packers/2022/10/11/ex-packers-receiver-davante-adams-shoves-camera-man-after-las-vegas-raiders-loss-to-chiefs/10465807002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/nfl/packers/2022/10/11/ex-packers-receiver-davante-adams-shoves-camera-man-after-las-vegas-raiders-loss-to-chiefs/10465807002/
|
The weather in Milwaukee and across Wisconsin could get noisy later Tuesday afternoon into the overnight hours.
The National Storm Prediction Center has placed almost all of Wisconsin under a marginal — 1 out of 5 — risk for severe thunderstorms late Tuesday afternoon into Wednesday.
Forecasters are not looking for a widespread damaging severe weather outbreak. Instead, it appears an isolated storm or two could be strong.
"The chance for thunder is there," said Denny VanCleve, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sullivan. "We haven't had much thunder this fall. It's been pretty quiet."
Forecasters can't rule out some small hail or strong, gusty winds accompanying a random storm, VanCleve said.
Any storms that develop will be the result of warm, humid air flowing into Wisconsin from the south. The high temperature in Milwaukee on Tuesday is forecast to be 72 degrees.
Far northern Wisconsin is forecast to be in the 70s, too.
Storms are possible across the entire state.
"Scattered thunderstorms are expected to push across the region late tonight," according to a statement from the weather service office in Green Bay. "Isolated strong storms with wind gusts to 50 mph and hail to 1 inch in diameter are possible."
A cold front is then set to sweep across the state late this afternoon or overnight. The clash of air masses, which is typical this time of year, will result in the chance for rain and maybe a few thunderstorms.
"It's a strong cold front," VanCleve said. "But it's not your typical spring or summer setup for severe storms. The potential is there. We're just going to have to watch the storms that do develop and keep an eye on them."
"It does look like everyone will get some rain at some point tonight," he added.
Once the cold front moves through it will feel like fall again for much of the remainder of the week.
The high temperature on Thursday in Milwaukee is forecast to be 54, a drop of nearly 20 degrees from Tuesday.
In Wausau, the high on Thursday is forecast to be 44 degrees, a drop of nearly 30 degrees from Tuesday's predicted high of 72.
|
2022-10-11T17:52:26Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Chance for strong storms in Wisconsin, later Tuesday into Wednesday
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/weather/2022/10/11/chance-strong-storms-milwaukee-green-bay-appleton-wausau-later-tuesday-into-wednesday/10465437002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/weather/2022/10/11/chance-strong-storms-milwaukee-green-bay-appleton-wausau-later-tuesday-into-wednesday/10465437002/
|
Glendale's new drive-thru-only Chick-fil-A is opening on Friday
Glendale has a new drive-thru Chick-fil-A opening this week.
The Atlanta-based fast-food chain located at 5201 N. Port Washington Road off Interstate Highway 43, will open Friday, Oct. 14, for drive-thru only from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Guests can order food in-person or on the Chick-fil-A app.
The restaurant is bringing approximately 120 full- and part-time jobs to Glendale, according to a news release from the company. This location joins more than 10 other Chick-fil-A restaurants in the Milwaukee area.
The restaurant will have an off-duty police patrol on opening day to mitigate traffic. In anticipation of the opening, Chick-fil-A has created a traffic plan where right lane traffic heading south on Port Washington Road will be for Chick-fil-A customers only.
Before opening this year, Chick-fil-A attempted to come to Glendale in 2019 but was met with a negative recommendation from the plan commission over traffic concerns.
The restaurant is offering two seasonal fall items, the Autumn Spice Milkshake and the Grilled Spicy Deluxe Sandwich. These items are available nationwide through Nov. 12, while supplies last.
Ahead of the opening, Chick-fil-A partnered with Feeding America to make a $25,000 donation to a local food bank to fight against hunger.
For more information, visit Chick-fil-A's Facebook page, www.facebook.com/cfaglendalewi.
More:Wauwatosa could be getting its first Chick-Fil-A location, but the timeline for its opening is unknown
|
2022-10-11T21:07:44Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Chick-fil-A opening drive-thru only location in Glendale on Friday
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/northshore/2022/10/11/chick-fil-opening-drive-thru-only-location-glendale-friday/10465415002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/northshore/2022/10/11/chick-fil-opening-drive-thru-only-location-glendale-friday/10465415002/
|
Muskego OKs next step in Muskego High School renovation
The next step has been taken toward renovating Muskego High School.
After district voters in April approved renovations and additions to the school as part of a $44.6 million referendum, the Muskego Plan Commission on Oct. 4 unanimously approved the site plan and exterior engineering for the renovations.
There will be a science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM) addition to the northwest corner of the existing high school, a new practice and fitness addition to the southwest corner of the existing high school, and an addition to the district's administration buildings, according to documents from the Oct. 4 meeting.
The STEAM building's exterior will be masonry, and its western facade will include metal accents that will also be used for rooftop mechanical screening.
Metal and wood dust collectors have also been proposed for the STEAM addition's exterior to highlight "the type of manufacturing that will be taking place within this area," documents said.
In an Oct. 11 email, Muskego-Norway School District chief operating officer Jeremiah Johnson said the STEAM building will consist of an innovation lab and engineering classroom, a robotics lab, a new auto shop with five lifts and a classroom, a new fabrication shop with welding booths and a classroom, art classrooms, a photography and film room, a building trades room and courtyard for outdoor builds, a commercial culinary arts room and renovations of the school's north gymnasium.
The fitness addition will continue the masonry and metal accents.
The indoor practice facility and fitness facility are part of the health science addition, which also includes a certified nursing assistant lab, athletic training room, locker rooms and a health classroom, Johnson said in his email.
The practice facility will be used by physical education classes, band classes, activities, athletics and the community, according to the Muskego-Norway School District's website.
The addition to the district administration building, which is south of the football stadium, will be added to the south side of the existing administration building. It will match the masonry on the existing building.
With the additions to be built where existing parking is located, a new parking area with 1,271 new parking stalls will be built west of the fitness addition between the football/track stadium and the softball fields.
Johnson said other projects the referendum will fund include a gymnasium addition at Lakeview Elementary School and a renovation to Muskego High School's band and chorus rooms to increase capacity.
Johnson said groundbreaking for all projects is expected in spring 2023; projects are expected to be completed by summer 2024.
|
2022-10-11T21:07:50Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Plans for Muskego High School renovations approved
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/waukesha/news/muskego/2022/10/11/plans-muskego-high-school-renovations-approved/8210232001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/waukesha/news/muskego/2022/10/11/plans-muskego-high-school-renovations-approved/8210232001/
|
Tamia Fowlkes
Wisconsin’s partisan midterm election is set for Nov. 8, 2022. Several major statewide races, including the governorship and a U.S. Senate seat, are on the ballot. Here’s what you need to know to cast your ballot.
What is at stake in Wisconsin's 2022 midterm general election?
The races on the ballot this November are for Wisconsin's 2022 midterm election. Many of the seats up for election this fall include incumbents seeking reelection for statewide office. Each race has the possibility of shifting state leadership and party control from the Democrats to the Republicans.
Milwaukee County Sheriff
Milwaukee County Clerk of Circuit Court
Congressional Representative District 4
Assembly Representative District 17
Milwaukee County referendums
Milwaukee County firearms referendum
Milwaukee County marijuana referendum
When is the November general election and how late are the polls open in Wisconsin?
The November general election will take place Nov. 8. Voters can cast their ballot in person at their polling location from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
How to find your polling location
Some district borders have been redrawn since the last election. To confirm where you should be voting, visit myvote.wi.gov and enter your address. This will allow the system to identify your polling location as well as candidates on the ballot in your district.
What you need to bring with you on Election Day
Previous elections have brought instances of voter confusion in regard to proper documentation to register to vote and cast your ballot. The following items are necessary to have when you head to the polls.
Voter ID (A Wisconsin driver's license, even if driving privileges are revoked or suspended)
Wisconsin Identification Card issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles (available for free)
A military ID card issued by a U.S. uniformed service
A U.S. passport, an identification card issued by a federally recognized Indian tribe in Wisconsin (can be used even if expired, regardless of expiration date).
Wisconsin voters are able to register to vote in person at their polling location before casting their ballot. Voter registration and address changes will also be available at early voting sites from Oct. 25 until Saturday, Nov. 5.
To register or change an address at the polls, a voter must provide a physical or digital copy of one of the documents below. The document must include the voter’s complete name and residential address.
Utility bill (gas, electric, phone) issued within the last 90 days
Bank, credit union, credit card or mortgage statement
Current and valid Wisconsin driver's license or Wisconsin identification card
A government-issued document or letter (federal, state, county, municipal, tribal, state college or public school).
Check issued by a unit of government.
Real estate tax bill or receipt for the current year or the previous year.
Residential lease effective on the day of registration.
Contract or intake document issued when admitted to a nursing home or care facility.
College fee statement issued in the last nine months, accompanied by student ID card.
Affidavit from a public or private social service agency, on letterhead, identifying an individual who is homeless and indicating where that individual resides.
Official identification card or license issued by a Wisconsin governmental body or unit
Identification card issued by an employer in the normal course of business, which has a photograph of the cardholder (not a business card).
Fishing and hunting licenses
State Social Service Programs
How and where to vote early
Early voting for Milwaukee residents will take place at several locations in Milwaukee County from Tuesday, Oct. 25, until Saturday, Nov. 5. The following locations will be open on weekdays (Monday-Friday) from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and will open on weekends (Saturdays and Sundays) from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Midtown Shopping Center, 5740 W. Capitol Drive
Zeidler Municipal Building, 841 N. Broadway
Good Hope Library, 7715 W. Good Hope Road
Clinton Rose Senior Center, 3045 N. KingDrive
Additional locations will also be available from Monday, Oct. 31, through Saturday, Nov. 5. Weekdays: 9 a.m.-6 p.m., Saturday: 10 a.m.-3 p.m.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court recently ruled that absentee ballot drop boxes were illegal in the state. According to the Wisconsin Elections Commission, Wisconsin law mandates voters to place their ballots in the mail, only making exceptions for the ballots of individuals who are disabled to have someone place their ballot in the mail for them. If you would like to cast your vote absentee, follow the steps below.
Go to myvote.wi.gov's "Vote Absentee by Mail" page.
If needed, update your address (a Wisconsin driver's license is required for this online step).
Confirm that you have resided at your current residential address for at least 28 consecutive days prior to the next election, with no present intent to move.
Confirm that you are not currently serving a sentence for a felony conviction, including probation, parole or supervision.
Once you have updated your address, return to the "Vote Absentee by Mail" page and request your absentee ballot.
Who is running for governor?
Tony Evers (Democratic) - Incumbent
Tim Michels (Republican)
Who is running for U.S. senator?
Ron Johnson (Republican) - Incumbent
Who is running for lieutenant governor?
Sara Rodriguez (Democratic)
Roger Roth (Republican)
Who is running for attorney general?
Josh Kaul (Democratic) - Incumbent
Who is running for secretary of state?
Doug La Follette (Democratic)
Who is running for state treasurer?
Aaron Richardson (Democrat)
Who is running for Milwaukee County sheriff?
Denita Renee Ball (Democratic)
Who is running for Milwaukee County Clerk of Circuit Court?
Anna Maria Hodges (Democratic)
What is the Milwaukee County firearms advisory referendum?
What is the Milwaukee County marijuana advisory referendum?
|
2022-10-12T00:04:11Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Wisconsin 2022 midterm elections: What's on ballot, voter registration
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/10/11/wisconsin-midterm-elections-how-to-vote-early-absentee-registration-november-2022-referendums/8165360001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/10/11/wisconsin-midterm-elections-how-to-vote-early-absentee-registration-november-2022-referendums/8165360001/
|
The entirety of the team’s talented starting rotation can be brought back. The core pieces of the position-player group are still under team control. So, too, are the most talented arms in the bullpen.
“I think Ozzie and Conner did a really good job as two new coaches in the organizations, in new roles, in a new formulation of the hitting coach role, working together and functioning as a team,” Stearns said. “Working together with one message and one vision. They worked incredibly hard. They were always there for our players and had the information that our players wanted and needed.”
|
2022-10-12T00:04:24Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Brewers' David Stearns says failure to make playoffs stings
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/11/brewers-david-stearns-says-failure-make-playoffs-stings/10465009002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2022/10/11/brewers-david-stearns-says-failure-make-playoffs-stings/10465009002/
|
Milwaukee Bucks executive vice president John Steinmiller, whose career spanned both of the team's NBA championships, passes away at 73
Milwaukee Bucks executive vice president John F. Steinmiller passed away Tuesday at age 73 after a short fight with cancer.
Steinmiller had been synonymous with the organization, beginning his career with the franchise in 1970 when he was still a student at Marquette University. In his more than 50 years with the Bucks, he served in many roles from his part-time beginnings to serving in the front office. He began as an administrative assistant and eventually moved into the role of public relations director in 1972, becoming the youngest person in professional sports in that job.
"More than his impressive resumé, John was one of the most kind, humble and loyal people that you could be lucky enough to know He was adored, appreciated and respected by his colleagues and Bucks fans alike. We send our deepest condolences to John's wife, Corrine, their children, John and Mary Kate, and their entire family. The Bucks will always be grateful to John for his long devotion to the organization. He will be missed."
A Whitefish Bay resident for more than 30 years, Steinmiller was born in Evanston, Illinois, before growing up in Mount Prospect, Ill. He attended St. Viator High School before enrolling at Marquette and graduating with a degree in journalism in 1970.
Steinmiller served on many community boards, including a term as chairman of Visit Milwaukee, along with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Milwaukee, the Greater Milwaukee Committee, the Milwaukee Bucks foundation, YMCA of Metropolitan Milwaukee and the Milwaukee Urban Day School.
Visitation will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, Oct. 14 at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, 812 N. Jackson St. in Milwaukee. A memorial mass will begin at 2 p.m. A celebration of life will begin at 3:30 p.m. at Major Goolsby’s, 340 W. Kilbourn Ave.
In lieu of flowers, donations are welcomed in Steinmiller’s name to the MACC Fund at www.maccfund.org or the Kinship Community Food Center at www.kinshipmke.org.
|
2022-10-12T00:04:30Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Milwaukee Bucks executive vice president John Steinmiller dies at 73
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/nba/bucks/2022/10/11/milwaukee-bucks-executive-vice-president-john-steinmiller-dies-73/10470603002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/nba/bucks/2022/10/11/milwaukee-bucks-executive-vice-president-john-steinmiller-dies-73/10470603002/
|
Mental health, secure elections and inclusive housing are Tosa's biggest priorities in the proposed 2023 budget
It’s budget season again in Wauwatosa as the fate of various social services will be determined throughout October as the common council, and various committees, discuss the proposed budget for 2023.
A yearly process, the 2023 budget has defined mental health, secure elections and inclusivity as major priorities for 2023.
In a process that started in July, the 2023 budget was officially proposed at an Oct. 4 committee of the whole meeting. Each week the council will discuss the budget and on Nov.1 there will be a public hearing after which the budget, if approved, will be adopted on Nov. 15.
Some fundamental changes that have already been proposed during this year's sessions include a bevy of budget increases that will in turn affect taxes for city residents.
One of the proposed increases will be to the general fund, which is used to finance various city projects, and in the new budget this would increase by approximately 4.7%. Another increase could come in the property tax levy, which is set to increase by about 2.6% in the new budget. Lastly, the residential city tax bill could increase by 2.1% — which on average means a $40 increase in that tax bill for residents.
You can access a detailed presentation of the new budget here.
One issue that is taking center stage in this year's budget is an increase in funds that will support mental health services. The city began prioritizing mental health last year when it announced it would use American Rescue Plan Act funds to help finance three new mental health-related jobs in the city.
“Mental health has been an area of concern for many years, but the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated many of these issues in our community. The City recognizes this need and is responding by making it a priority in the budget,” said Wauwatosa Health Director Laura Stephens.
The 2023 budget will add a health strategist role as well as funding for mental health services for Wauwatosa Police Department officers, specifically by expanding crisis intervention training, crisis assessment response team and adding mental wellness check-ins for officers.
Open government & secure elections
Another priority for the 2023 budget is promoting tools that will increase government transparency. This will include a new meeting portal system that the city says will make it easier for residents to make public comments. The city also plans to add an additional communications specialist that will help field questions surrounding city issues and services.
Investing in the security of city elections is also a major priority in the new budget. This will come in the form of new physical assets the city has not named and the implementation of an elections management program that the common council already approved.
“This really allows us to streamline the way we set up elections, the way we schedule poll workers … it really reduces the risk of human error in setting up for the elections,” said city administrator Melissa Weiss.
Inclusive housing & diversity initiatives
In a continued effort to implement diversity initiatives and inclusive housing, the 2023 budget currently includes a substance abuse specialist position that the city said will help aid “populations that have been traditionally underserved” by substance abuse services.
Moreover, the city plans to continue using $1.7 million in ARPA funds to finance its housing rehabilitation plan. This plan allows low- to moderate-income families to have crucial home repairs paid for by the city. When ARPA funds run out, the city plans to fund the program with Community Development Block Grant Funds.
“We have a high-quality housing stock, but it’s not always set up for people to age in place,” said Weiss. “This program will allow for the rehabilitation of older homes in the community to allow people to stay in them.”
|
2022-10-12T13:47:26Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Here are three of Wauwatosa's biggest priorities in next year's budget
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/west/news/2022/10/12/here-three-wauwatosas-biggest-priorities-next-years-budget/8237833001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/west/news/2022/10/12/here-three-wauwatosas-biggest-priorities-next-years-budget/8237833001/
|
Milwaukee writer remembers a decade of Broadway conversations and one big argument in 'Sondheim & Me'
For a decade, Milwaukee's Paul Salsini had a remarkable view of what Stephen Sondheim was like when the musical theater composer was "finishing the hat."
That phrase comes from the painter character in Sondheim's musical "Sunday in the Park with George," who feels compelled to complete the details of his creation even when his personal life is in uproar.
During the decade he edited The Sondheim Review, Salsini corresponded and talked regularly with Sondheim while the composer worked doggedly on a musical that would variously be called "Bounce,' "Wise Guys," "Gold!" and "Road Show."
"He was really excited. I mean, almost like a kid," Salsini said.
Salsini's new book, "Sondheim & Me: Revealing a Musical Genius" (Bancroft Press), is both a memoir of his interactions with the composer and a judicious sampling of articles, essays and interviews from The Sondheim Review, which folded in 2016 long after Salsini's departure.
Salsini will launch the book with an in-person event Oct. 18 at Milwaukee's Boswell Books.
Salsini, a Marquette University graduate, worked for decades as a reporter, editor and staff development director at The Milwaukee Journal, before taking a buyout when the Journal merged with the Milwaukee Sentinel in 1995. But he was also a passionate musical theater devotee who traveled to New York to catch new Broadway productions.
Seeing "Follies" in 1972 hooked him on shows with Sondheim's music and words. A decade later, Salsini would occasionally mail Sondheim a note after seeing one of his musicals; to his surprise, he often received a courteous note back from the composer.
In 1994, inspired by the excellent semi-annual newsletter of the Kurt Weill Foundation, Salsini conceived a newsletter covering his favorite living composer's works, which quickly grew into The Sondheim Review, a quarterly magazine of news, reviews, interviews and essays.
TSR also often included a short note from Sondheim, usually with corrections or "emendations" about a previous issue. "He obviously considered The Sondheim Review important because it would provide a permanent record," Salsini writes in his book.
The composer-lyricist of "Sweeney Todd," "Into the Woods" and "Sunday in the Park with George" made time for phone calls for this guy from Milwaukee. Salsini believes that happened because the magazine "would always be about the work, not the man."
In interviews with Salsini and other TSR contributors, reprinted or excerpted in "Sondheim & Me," the composer disclosed details about how he worked and why he chose the shows he did. He regularly insisted that story was the most important element to him. "You get attracted to a story, and you do it, for whatever series of reasons, whether they're psychological or theatrical or a combination of both," he told Salsini in an interview about the musical "Passion."
Speaking of "Passion," a TSR magazine review of the London production sparked the only blow-up between Sondheim and Salsini. The explosion was all on the composer's side. He called Salsini and burst into a litany of complaints, most of which Salsini thought were overblown or wrong.
"Writing about this episode twenty-five years later, I am still baffled and have no explanation," Salsini notes in his book.
But their otherwise cordial professional relationship continued through the decade Salsini edited TSR. He has pondered why Sondheim gave him so much time over the years. "I think he looked for affirmation from people," Salsini said.
Sondheim lovers will find many juicy tidbits among the interviews, essays and letters repurposed in Salsini's book. For example, "Send in the Clowns," one of his signature songs, was originally going to be for the male character (Len Cariou) in "A Little Night Music." But after he finished it, everyone knew it had to go to the female character (Glynis Johns) – before it went on to become a hit for Judy Collins and a standard.
MORE:'As always, Steve': Corresponding with Sondheim, note by note
MORE:Memoir of Madison police chief turned priest, other new books share wisdom of Wisconsin elders
Salsini will talk about "Sondheim & Me" in conversation with writer Mike Fischer at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 18 at Boswell Books, 2559 N. Downer Ave. Admission is free, but registration is required. Visit boswellbooks.com.
|
2022-10-12T13:47:32Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
In 'Sondheim & Me,' Milwaukee writer relives connection with composer
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/books/2022/10/12/sondheim-paul-salsini-passion-argument/8186662001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/books/2022/10/12/sondheim-paul-salsini-passion-argument/8186662001/
|
5 things to do in Milwaukee this weekend, including the NARI Home & Remodeling Show and Home Movie Day
1. NARI Milwaukee Home & Remodeling Show
More than 100 home improvement and remodeling experts will be on hand this weekend at the Wisconsin Exposition Center at State Fair Park in West Allis for the NARI Milwaukee Home & Remodeling Show. Hours are noon to 8 p.m. Oct. 14, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Oct. 15 and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 16. Tickets at the door are $10, $8 for seniors 60 and older, and free for kids 17 and younger. Info: narimilwaukeehomeshow.com.
2. Species Spooktacular at Schlitz Audubon Nature Center
Schlitz Audubon Nature Center, 1111 E. Brown Deer Road, Bayside, hosts its annual Halloween-in-nature event Oct. 16. Doings include a nature-themed scavenger hunt, with treats at the end for kids. There are three registration times: 10 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 3 p.m. Tickets are $10, free for kids 2 and younger. Info: schlitzaudubon.org.
3. Fall Fest in Center Street Park
The Friends of Center Street Park are holding Fall Fest at the park, 6420 W. Clarke St., from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 15. The family-friendly event will have live music, food, pumpkin carving, scarecrow building and more. Admission is free. Info: Fall Fest Center Street Park Facebook event page.
4. Home Movie Day at UW-Milwaukee
The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Archives and Film Studies program host Milwaukee's first Home Movie Day from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 15 in Room B91 at Mitchell Hall, 3203 N. Downer Ave. At the event, in partnership with the Center for Home Movies, people can bring in their home movies in a variety of formats and UWM volunteers will inspect and, if needed, repair them. There'll also be screenings of some of the home movies, as well as information on caring for home movies. Admission is free. Info: centerforhomemovies.org.
RELATED:Bring your tired, your poor, your glitchy home movies to UW-Milwaukee for Home Movie Day
5. 'TV Grime' release party at Lion's Tooth
Lion's Tooth, the Bay View bookstore at 2421 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., is hosting an event from 5 to 8 p.m. Oct. 15 for the debut of "TV Grime," a 100-plus-page guide to scores of Halloween-themed television episodes by local writer Luke Geddes, writing in the style of the old TV Guide magazine. The party's entertainment is vintage TV footage and an assortment of "least favorite Halloween candy." Admission is free. Info: lionstoothmke.com.
|
2022-10-12T13:47:38Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
5 things to do in Milwaukee this weekend, including Home Movie Day
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/events/2022/10/12/5-things-do-milwaukee-weekend-including-home-movie-day-nari-home-show-species-spooktacular-fall-fest/8142046001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/events/2022/10/12/5-things-do-milwaukee-weekend-including-home-movie-day-nari-home-show-species-spooktacular-fall-fest/8142046001/
|
No shortcuts, 'scrappy' and local: Chef Esther Choi carries on love for quality Korean food
Esther Choi fell hard for food and cooking, starting out working in kitchens as a teen.
Her parents hoped she’d become a doctor or pharmacist. Instead, Choi attended the Institute of Culinary Education in New York.
Much of her inspiration and love for food comes from her Korean grandmother. When traditional ingredients were hard to find in New Jersey, the now 95-year-old Jungok Yoo grew her own, making almost everything from scratch including kimchi, chile pastes and powders.
Choi learned to value every ingredient and where it comes from, an approach that helped when she got a job procuring foods for competitors on "Iron Chef." Rubbing elbows with the best of the best inspired her to want to compete at that level as well.
Today, Choi has appeared on "Iron Chef" and Food Network. Her cooking combines traditional and modern influences, as seen at mŏkbar, which she opened at age 28. This fall, she opens her fifth location, at the Gateway Center in Newark, N.J. She also runs Korean American cocktail bar Ms Yoo, named with a nod to her grandmother.
Her first visit to Wisconsin will be at Kohler Food & Wine Experience, which is Oct. 20-23 in Kohler. Choi’s demonstrations of Korean fried chicken and Korean barbecue are sold out. For additional events and tickets, go to KohlerFoodandWine.com.
Question: Tell us about your food roots, and your path from growing up in New Jersey to a culinary career. You learned Korean cooking from your grandmother?
Answer: My grandmother was so resourceful. This is one of the things I learned from her.
I learned to cook from my grandmother, yes, but it was more her style and idea and philosophy of cooking, sourcing ingredients and having to be scrappy. She cooked a lot of Korean food at home, but the ingredients she would use were local. We would adapt to our environment.
She would make all her own fermentation, a lot of the Korean base products. She couldn’t get her hands on those, so she’d make her own. She brought the chile seeds from Korea and different vegetable seeds and planted her own stuff. Everything was from scratch, because it was necessity.
My grandmother had a big influence on my food. She taught me to love food in a way that is very different than anyone else. Even the process of cooking, I don’t take any shortcuts. This was her. She was like if you’re going to take a shortcut, people will taste it. That effort and love you put into every dish is the difference.
Q: How did she react when you named one of your businesses after her?
A: Actually, she cried. She’s 95, she’s amazing. She knows how much effort and work it is to run a restaurant and cook. She thinks I work way too hard.
Q: You actually started out with plans to go into medicine or pharmaceuticals?
A: That was my parents. They wanted me to be a doctor, a very typical immigrant story. They did not want me to do a blue collar job. They wanted me to get every degree possible. Look how that turned out.
I started my first restaurant when I was 28, my first location. Now with mokbar we have four locations. My fifth one is opening next month. Ms Yoo is a cocktail bar. …
I love cooking and obviously that’s my passion, but business and being an entrepreneur has always been my dream. When I was 9 I’d sell candy. My parents would buy big things of candy. I’d take individual ones and sell them on the bus. I’d read all these entrepreneurial books. I always knew I wanted to start my own business. Then I fell in love with food.
Q: Early in your career you were a food buyer for shows, sourcing ingredients for chefs doing competitions and programs. What did you learn from that process?
A: As a purchaser, that was probably one of the most important jobs I ever had to learn. It teaches you the fundamentals, the basics, your ingredients. That is the basics of any food, knowing where you get it from, how it is sourced, managed and how it comes to your plate matters.
I worked on four to five seasons of "Iron Chef." These are the best chefs in the world coming to compete. They are so particular about their ingredients. They’re coming to battle, they’re trusting me to source ingredients. Getting to work with the best chefs and these ingredients I’d never heard of, sourcing all over the world, and the timing matters, to get it freshest but available that day. All these things created such a big learning experience, and then working with these crazy minds inspired me to do it myself as well.
That was my takeaway. After watching these chefs compete, it came full circle. I competed myself.
Q: What have you seen as far as ingredients, availability and awareness today versus when you started?
A: I think with social media, especially TikTok and all these platforms, availability is not an issue. if you want to find the weirdest, craziest ingredient, you will be able to now. It has to do with awareness.
Now, with everything at your fingertips, it is finding the quality and knowing where you are sourcing. There are a million kimchis out there, but the quality I look for you can’t really buy. You have to make it yourself. … Nothing is hard to find anymore, but knowing and trusting your sources is really important.
Q: You also had an online show testing kitchen gadgets. What’s worth the splurge and what's not?
A: As a chef, even a home chef who loves food, you’re attracted to every gadget because it is cool. I loved every kitchen gadget. Doing that show I saw every gadget, even one for peeling an egg. As someone obsessed with food, I like the idea of them all, but after you test them you realize no one needs this in their life.
I have every gadget possible. I will not kid you. I’m obsessed, but in the end I’m a purist and use very simple things. A spoon is my favorite kitchen gadget. All the other weird kinds of cool kitschy gadgets are not necessary.
Q: What are you making when you are at Kohler Food & Wine Experience?
A: I wanted to show classic, popular Korean dishes but in a fun way, teaching one or two techniques they might not know but familiar enough they might make it at home. I’m doing a Korean fried chicken, an iconic dish. Fried chicken is iconic in America, so why not showcase Korean fried chicken, which might be different from what a lot of people know.
I wanted to do a really complicated stuffed chicken wing, but when you’re doing a demo for more than 100 people, you’re sending a recipe and they execute it. I went classic Korean fried chicken.
I’m also preparing Korean barbecue, butchered in a classic Korean way, a technique that doesn’t exist any other place than with Koreans. Both are classic Korean dishes and crowd pleasers.
Q: When it comes to Korean cooking, what is most misunderstood by beginners?
A: People are intimidated, because it is not something they are used to, the ingredients. That is a common misconception. As long as you get to know those common pantry ingredients everything is pretty easy.
Just try, go at it. That’s the thing about cooking in general. For someone who isn’t a great cook or doesn’t cook in general, how do you start? Just do it. You will mess it up a few times, but that’s OK. It is just food. Don’t be intimidated. It is all there in the recipes. Always read the recipe.
Q: When it comes to stocking your pantry, what ingredients are always in your kitchen?
A: Kimchi, you know it. That will always be in my fridge, and if it is not I have a panic attack. I have to have emergency kimchi. Even when I travel, I always bring ramen and kimchi with me. It is that important to me. Gochujang, a chile paste, and then sesame oil. The sesame oil makes or breaks a dish.
Q: How do you choose a good gochujang?
A: What is available in the U.S. as far as gochujang is pretty good, not a lot of people make it from scratch and sell it. I would trust a Korean brand, like one made in Korea. I would not trust a made in the U.S. brand. There are so many nuances. Even in Korea only a few factories make it. Just make sure it is made in Korea.
Q: Do you have plans for your own products someday?
A: Yes, I’m working on a line of fundamental Korean products now. Gochujang being one of them, which is why I know how difficult of a product it is to make and source.
Q: What do you want people to know about what you do and why?
A: When I first started mokbar I had a very specific goal of making Korean food more accessible and mainstream. Accessibility is really important to me. I want people to know what it is because I want people to enjoy it. … It is almost amazing how far Korean food has come from, but there is still so much to do. This is just the beginning.
More:'Fighting the forces of nature every day': Pagel's Ponderosa Farmstead cheesemaker revels in the challenge
|
2022-10-12T13:47:44Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Chef Esther Choi to share love of Korean food at Kohler Food & Wine
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/life/food/fork-spoon-life/2022/10/12/chef-esther-choi-share-love-korean-food-kohler-food-wine-experience-iron-chef-moktar/8190857001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/life/food/fork-spoon-life/2022/10/12/chef-esther-choi-share-love-korean-food-kohler-food-wine-experience-iron-chef-moktar/8190857001/
|
Earlier this fall, NBC News Political Director Chuck Todd visited Wisconsin as he sought to assess one of the most polarized political battlegrounds in the country.
From Act 10 more than a decade ago to the attempted recall of former Gov. Scott Walker to close presidential elections in 2016 and 2020, the state is something of a living laboratory for all the crosscurrents of American politics.
"I think what was interesting is how everybody in hindsight views the divide of 2010, 2011 and 2012 as small potatoes compared to what we're dealing with today," said Todd, moderator of Meet the Press.
Todd interviewed three former Wisconsin governors — Walker, fellow Republican Tommy Thompson and Democrat Jim Doyle. He also spoke with Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester), state Sen. Lena Taylor (D-Milwaukee) and independent voters.
He called Vos the most "fascinating" political figure in Wisconsin as he tries to keep his Republican caucus together even as some in the party cling to the false claim that former President Donald Trump won Wisconsin in 2020.
Todd's findings will be detailed in Meet the Press Reports, which airs on NBC News NOW at 9:30 p.m. Central time Thursday, with the episode available on-demand starting Friday on Peacock.
The following is an edited transcript of an interview with Todd.
Q: Why Wisconsin?
Todd: Wisconsin is patient zero for polarization, where we are as a nation. Before America got divided and put on the jerseys and families stopped speaking to each other over Donald Trump.
The question I have is, can we learn anything about our national polarization from what happened in Wisconsin? And does Wisconsin have to heal itself before the nation can heal itself? Or is this now metastasized where until we heal ourselves nationally Wisconsin is just going to be sitting on the ledge until the nation gets out of this red-blue divide.
Q: How polarized do you find the state?
Todd: It's extremely polarized. Part of it is because of geography. I think the most amazing thing about Wisconsin is the lack of swing counties. There aren't 50-50 counties in the state. There used to be. When I first started covering elections, Brown County was one of the five most important counties in the country. It was a 50-50 county in the '90s and early aughts.
Q: Is there any evidence that the polarization will end?
Todd: I didn't find any in Wisconsin. There's exhaustion. The only good news is you get that sense that everybody wants it to end. ... Rhetorically, everyone wants it to end to turn down the temperature. In that sense, there's a desire to do something. But that's not the way to win an election. The problem that we're running into is what it takes to win an election and get your vote out is to polarize.
Q: Do you view polarization as good or bad, or simply a fact of modern American political life?
Todd: I happen to think it's bad personally. I come from the school of thinking that the whole point of politics is to resolve a conflict without a weapon. You come to a political resolution to avoid violence. I believe politics is the art of compromise, not the art of winning and losing.
Polarization does not help in governing. All polarization does is help and identify your base voters. You do certainly force people to make a choice at the end, but it doesn't lead to better governing outcomes. Polarization has only created more gridlock, not less. ... I would argue that it has been bad. Now if you're a devoted liberal or a devoted conservative, polarization is a good thing. It's a way to power.
Q: What's your favorite Wisconsin city?
Todd: I'm a Packers fan, so there's only one city to love.
|
2022-10-12T13:48:02Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Chuck Todd says Wisconsin 'is patient zero' for political polarization
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/12/chuck-todd-says-wisconsin-is-patient-zero-political-polarization/8237046001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2022/10/12/chuck-todd-says-wisconsin-is-patient-zero-political-polarization/8237046001/
|
At least six injured after bus rolls over, catches fire and shuts down ramp near Mitchell Interchange
A ramp near the Mitchell Interchange has been closed after a bus rolled over and caught fire, injuring at least six people Wednesday morning.
The crash occurred at 5:15 a.m. on the system ramp from the eastbound lanes of Interstate 894 to the northbound lanes of Interstate 43/94, according to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. That’s in the area of South 27th Street in Greenfield.
The closure is expected to last several hours, according to the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office. Traffic is being diverted to head south on I-94.
The sheriff’s office said the bus became fully engulfed in flames and at least six people were transported to a hospital. No other vehicles were involved in the crash.
|
2022-10-12T13:48:08Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Bush crash near Mitchell Interchange injures six, closes ramp
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/milwaukee/2022/10/12/bush-crash-near-mitchell-interchange-injures-six-closes-ramp/10475116002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/milwaukee/2022/10/12/bush-crash-near-mitchell-interchange-injures-six-closes-ramp/10475116002/
|
David D. Haynes
At a time when the airwaves and Internet teem with opinions, our statewide editorial board limits what it says.
We rarely endorse candidates.
Our rare editorial opinions focus on issues where the public recognizes our expertise or special duty — we defend the First Amendment, public records and public access to government meetings, to open and honest government.
We highlight government corruption and ensure that minority rights and viewpoints are respected by the majority.
Above all, our editorials defend our democratic republic — where citizens remain in charge.
Given what’s at stake for American democracy on Nov. 8, and the consistent disregard some representatives have shown for democratic norms, we are obligated to speak up.
Sen. Ron Johnson’s reckless conspiracy mongering, stretching of the truth, unwillingness to accept election results and obeisance to the Trumpist right should disqualify him from public office, the USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin editorial board believes.
Editorial: Election deceiver, science fabulist, billionaire benefactor. After 12 years, it's time to term-limit Ron Johnson
Opinion: I'm a lifelong Republican but sometimes party loyalty asks too much. I'm voting for Mandela Barnes and Tony Evers
With Wisconsin politics once again in the crosshairs of a broader national debate, here’s our bottom line: No politician who refuses to accept valid election results or continues without evidence to question the 2020 election deserves the support of citizens who believe in self-government and the Constitution.
Editorials are derived from the consensus of the board, which discusses the issues, decides what topics to tackle and what point of view to take and always operates independently of our news reporters.
Our editorial board is an independent voice for open, honest government. Our editorials focus on promoting discussion, encouraging sound public policies and holding powerful politicians like Johnson to account.
When I joined the editorial board of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in 2006, we often published two or three editorials a day on a range of topics. But as the media landscape has changed in recent years, we’ve changed as well.
We live in a world that is saturated with opinion, ranging from the nightly cable news programs to talk radio to social media. Much of it is uninformed and not based on evidence. Nor is it independent. Quite the contrary.
Opinion content is the red meat that feeds the bottom lines of cable outlets such as Fox News and MSNBC and a host of online operators, many of which are secretly underwritten by the same special interests who also fund political campaigns. There is no attempt at independence. They are, instead, cogs in partisan machines that follow the attack scripts of the day.
In this environment, we had to rethink how and when to use this unique and powerful tool — the editorial.
But we've found when used wisely, our editorials have major impact.
On the eve of the Fourth of July Holiday in 2015, for example, legislative leaders secretly attempted to gut the state's Open Records Law with language slipped into a budget bill. We quickly declared it a "Declaration of Secrecy" and said in an editorial that this outrage ran counter to American values. In addition to news coverage that day, we published the editorial on the front page, urging readers to contact their representatives.
By the time politicians marched in parades that weekend, they were already reversing course due to a public outcry from people across the political spectrum, conservatives as well as liberals. Once aware of what the politicians were up to, the citizens of Wisconsin reminded them who was in charge.
With the First Amendment, our nation's founders gave the press a mission: To inform the citizens so they can stay in control of government. That’s why we’re challenging Senator Johnson’s cynical approach to representing Wisconsin.
Anyone who continues to question the results of elections, without any evidence, should not be re-elected. Ron Johnson holds his federal office due to the consent of the people he represents in the Senate. The moment he denies their right to vote him, or any other leader, out of office, he forfeits his right to be a public servant.
Our board believes it's the civic duty of Wisconsin voters to fire Johnson. The voters must let their elected representatives know who is boss.
It's the only way we will keep our democracy.
David D. Haynes is editor of the Ideas Lab and leads the USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin Editorial Board. Email: david.haynes@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DavidDHaynes
|
2022-10-12T13:48:14Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Given stakes in midterm elections, editorial board opposes Ron Johnson
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/2022/10/12/given-stakes-midterm-elections-editorial-board-opposes-ron-johnson/8236543001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/2022/10/12/given-stakes-midterm-elections-editorial-board-opposes-ron-johnson/8236543001/
|
James Wigderson
In his book about President John F. Kennedy, “A Thousand Days,” the historian Arthur Schlesinger wrote about Kennedy’s disappointment with the Massachusetts Democratic Party’s nominee for Senate, Gov. Foster Furcolo. Furcolo was facing the Republican incumbent, Leverett Saltonstall.
Kennedy asked Schlesinger how he planned to vote.
“Say it, say it — of course you’re going to vote for Saltonstall. Sometimes party loyalty asks too much.”
Editorial:Election deceiver, science fabulist, billionaire benefactor. After 12 years, it's time to term-limit Ron Johnson
Opinion:Given the stakes in Wisconsin's midterm elections, the editorial board has a duty to stand up for voters and against Ron Johnson
William F. Buckley, the founding father of modern conservatism, wrote in Cigar Aficionado about the first time Trump considered a run for president, “...it becomes more necessary to discourage cynical demagogy, than to advance free health for the kids. That can come later, in another venue; the resistance to a corrupting demagogy should take first priority.”
We should follow Buckley’s advice and recognize the policy battles can wait while we rid ourselves of demagogues who will not accept the results of democratic elections they do not like. This takes on a special importance when people like Michels and Johnson are running for offices that put them in positions that can allow them to endanger our democratic elections.
James Wigderson is the former owner/editor of RightWisconsin and now writes a twice-weekly newsletter, "Life, Under Construction."
|
2022-10-12T13:48:20Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Opinion: Lifelong Republican to vote for Democrats in 2022 election
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/2022/10/12/opinion-lifelong-wisconsin-republican-vote-democrats-mandela-barnes-tony-evers-2022-election/10465035002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/2022/10/12/opinion-lifelong-wisconsin-republican-vote-democrats-mandela-barnes-tony-evers-2022-election/10465035002/
|
USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin Editorial Board
He's tried to rewrite the sordid history of the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, claiming the attackers were "people that love this country, that truly respect law enforcement, would never do anything to break the law."
He suggested the government should rewrite the rules for the two government programs seniors rely on most — Medicare and Social Security — making them subject to annual political fights in Congress rather than mandatory payments as promised.
For years, Ron Johnson has demonstrated that he should be retired to his family's seaside Florida home — and not representing Wisconsin in the U.S. Senate. Voters should send him packing this November.
Here are eight reasons:
He wants to upend Medicare and Social Security
Johnson said recently that Medicare and Social Security should be subject to annual budget deliberations, which would be a drastic change for a pair of essential social insurance programs and could put them at risk.
Americans pay into both programs and qualify for benefits when they reach retirement age. They are set up like insurance plans and offer a guaranteed benefit. That's why they are treated by the government as mandatory spending. Treating them as “discretionary spending” would subject them to annual partisan squabbles and could put the guarantees promised to seniors at risk.
Though there are legitimate concerns about future funding of both programs, neither is in imminent danger. Medicare is funded through 2028 and Social Security through 2035, according to government projections. In the past, Congress has been willing to work out solutions rather than continually blast campaign rhetoric. It has resolved funding problems without resorting to drastic steps.
His office was involved in Trump's ‘fake elector’ scheme
Johnson's office was involved in an attempt to pass a document regarding “Wisconsin electors” to then Vice President Mike Pence just minutes before Congress was to ceremonially certify the election on Jan. 6. Johnson’s explanations for what happened — and for what he and his staff knew — don’t add up.
Trump and his lawyers were pushing a wild scheme to replace authentic electors — the people selected based on citizens' votes — with sycophants who would flip the results in battleground states to Trump. That corrupt plan could have erased the choice made by voters and potentially handed the presidency to Trump if enough swing states flipped. Trump lost the popular vote by 7 million votes nationwide and in the Electoral College 306-232. The Trump scheme was treasonous.
Opinion:I'm a lifelong Republican but sometimes party loyalty asks too much. I'm voting for Mandela Barnes and Tony Evers
He refused to tell the truth about the 2020 presidential election
Johnson spent weeks questioning the validity of the election despite evidence showing conclusively that Joe Biden had won the presidency. He held a one-sided hearing allowing Trump’s lawyers to air allegations of fraud that had already been rejected by dozens of courtrooms across America, including both Republican and Democratic judges and even federal judges appointed by Trump.
Johnson’s role in amplifying lies about the election — including his threat to challenge the ceremonial counting of electoral votes in Congress — encouraged Trump supporters to believe the result could be overturned and contributed to the tragedy at the Capitol.
On Jan. 6, 2021, Johnson did not vote against objections to Joe Biden's victories in Arizona and Pennsylvania after the deadly sacking of the U.S. Capitol interrupted Congress' tallying of Electoral College votes. Up until the insurrection, Johnson publicly stated he intended to vote in favor of challenges to state-certified votes.
Johnson knew better.
About two weeks after the election, he acknowledged that Joe Biden had won the election, according to the former Brown County Republican chairman. And in August of 2021, Johnson was recorded saying that Trump lost Wisconsin simply because he underperformed other Republicans on the same ballots in the same election. "He didn’t get 51,000 votes that other Republicans got, and that’s why he lost," Johnson said.
Now Johnson refuses to say whether he would accept the outcome of the November election once the results are certified, the Wisconsin State Journal reports.
We cannot elect people to office who do not honor the results of elections and still expect to hold onto our democratic republic. It's that simple. Even citizens who don't like his opponent should withhold their vote for Johnson on this point alone — to ensure our government derives its power from the consent of the governed.
To ensure, as Republican President Abraham Lincoln put it, "that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth."
He repeatedly downplayed the seriousness of the attack on the U.S. Capitol
Johnson claimed the rampage "didn’t seem like an armed insurrection.” This was despite the fact that five people died, rioters called for the deaths of Vice President Mike Pence and leaders of Congress, weapons were found on attackers and stashed nearby, and organized white nationalists led violent charges against Capitol Police and forced their way into the building, using flagpoles, bear spray, fire extinguishers and other blunt objects as weapons.
Johnson later said those who attacked the Capitol, “were people that love this country, that truly respect law enforcement, would never do anything to break the law.” If that wasn’t bad enough, he added this racist remark: If the protesters had been “Black Lives Matter and Antifa protesters,” he said. “I might have been a little concerned.”
With a wink and a nod, Johnson was voicing support for the white supremacists who led the attack on the Capitol.
It's worth noting: One of the people at the scene that day, a top lieutenant to the Proud Boys chairman, pleaded guilty last week to seditious conspiracy in connection with the riot at the Capitol.
He made sure his ultra-wealthy donors got a giant tax break
Johnson forced changes to the 2017 Republican tax overhaul that benefitted some of the nation’s wealthiest people, including himself and his own donors.
In 2021, ProPublica revealed how Wisconsin’s Republican senator ensured donors got a massive tax break in a bill the party claimed was a “middle-class tax cut.” Thanks to Johnson's last-minute threat to vote against the legislation, a huge portion of its billions in savings ended up going to just 82 of America's wealthiest families.
Three of the senator's top donors — billionaires Diane Hendricks and Dick and Liz Uihlein — were on the short list of those who gained the most. ProPublica reported that the tax break Johnson muscled through "could deliver more than half a billion in tax savings for Hendricks and the Uihleins over its eight-year life."
And now, as Johnson comes under criticism during his reelection campaign for leveraging a tax break for the uber-wealthy who need it least, he accuses his critics of "class envy."
Hendricks and the Uihleins continue to invest in Johnson, funding attack ads against his challenger, Democrat Mandela Barnes.
More:Ron Johnson's efforts on Trump tax cut delivered millions in savings to billionaires who financed his campaigns, IRS records show
He has displayed a stunning lack of interest in creating jobs in the state he represents
After Oshkosh Corp. said in June it intended to make vehicles for the U.S. Postal Service at a new facility in Spartanburg, S.C., U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin and others stepped in to try to bring those 1,000 jobs to Wisconsin.
Johnson stepped aside.
"It's not like we don't have enough jobs here in Wisconsin," Johnson said. He said the company was best suited to decide where to locate the jobs.
"I wouldn't insert myself to demand that anything be manufactured here using federal funds in Wisconsin," Johnson said.
He was a super spreader of disinformation during the pandemic
Johnson used his perch as a U.S. Senate committee chair to promote the use of Ivermectin as a coronavirus therapy even though the manufacturer itself said there was no evidence it worked. He touted the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine as a treatment though studies found it wasn’t effective.
Johnson questioned the need for masks — and later questioned the safety of COVID vaccines themselves and declined to be vaccinated, even though all the evidence has shown masks help slow the spread of disease and that the vaccines are safe and effective.
Johnson asserted that gargling with mouthwash can kill the virus that causes COVID-19, an outlandish claim the makers of Listerine and medical experts quickly debunked.
Johnson claimed "athletes are dropping dead on the field" after receiving the COVID-19 vaccination, an utter fabrication.
And he falsely claimed that unvaccinated people around the world were being put into “internment camps,” earning him a “Pants on Fire” rating from PolitiFact.
He’s a climate change denier
From his first run for office in 2010, Johnson has thought that he knew better than the vast majority of scientists who study climate change.
During a meeting with this editorial board that year, Johnson claimed the impact of humans on the climate hadn’t been proven. It was “far more likely,” he said then, that “it was sunspot activity or something just in the geologic eons of time where we have changes in the climate.”
And last year, he told a Republican group, "I don't know about you guys, but I think climate change is — as Lord Monckton said — bullshit."
In fact, more than 99.9% of peer-reviewed scientific papers agree that climate change is mainly caused by humans burning fossil fuels and increasing the amount of carbon and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, according to a 2021 survey of 88,125 climate-related studies.
It should come as no surprise that Johnson has taken hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations from people employed by or associated with the fossil fuel industry.
You'll notice Johnson is not touting a long record of accomplishments in his ads for re-election. Instead, he and his supporters have attacked his opponent — a Black man — as "different" and "dangerous."
So, what has Johnson delivered for Wisconsin after 12 years in the Senate (the equivalent of three presidential terms)?
Earlier this year, he touted two accomplishments:
• The Trump tax cut that he, in fact, blocked until it was amended to deliver enormous new breaks for his top donors and 80 other ultrawealthy American households.
• A 2018 "Right-to-Try bill" that allows terminally ill patients to try experimental treatments not yet approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
In fact, Ron Johnson is the worst Wisconsin political representative since the infamous Sen. Joseph McCarthy. Johnson in the past promised to serve no more than two terms. Voters should hold him to that pledge in November.
MORE:Senate challenger Mandela Barnes wants action on climate change. Incumbent Ron Johnson sees green energy as unreliable and 'pointless'
Editorials are a product of the USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin editorial board, which operates independently from the network's news departments. Email: jsedit@jrn.com
Why we write editorials. Meet the editorial board.
|
2022-10-12T13:48:26Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Ron Johnson has no business being a Wisconsin senator any longer
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/2022/10/12/ron-johnson-has-no-business-being-wisconsin-senator-any-longer-editorial/7888310001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/opinion/2022/10/12/ron-johnson-has-no-business-being-wisconsin-senator-any-longer-editorial/7888310001/
|
MADISON – If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it.
That appears to be the attitude of Wisconsin interim head coach Jim Leonhard and offensive coordinator Bobby Engram.
Engram called the plays from the coaches’ box in UW's first five games but worked from the sideline last week at the request of Leonhard, who thought Engram’s presence on the sideline would benefit the players and enhance communication among the coaches.
All parties liked how the plan worked in UW’s 42-7 victory over Northwestern, so Engram is set to be on the sideline again this week at Michigan State.
“You feel the environment, obviously,” Engram said. “I liked it and that is how we’ll move forward.”
Perhaps the most significant benefit for Engram was the ability to sit and talk over the previous offensive series face-to-face with quarterback Graham Mertz.
“I saw what I saw from the sideline,” Engram said, “and we would talk through what he saw and make sure we’re on the same page.”
Mertz, who completed 20 of 29 attempts for 299 yards and five touchdowns, preferred the face-to-face talks.
“I can verbalize what I like and he can get a feel for the emotion of the game,” he said, “how everybody is feeling, what routes they like, how the DBs are playing, whether it is heavy inside leverage (or) heavy outside leverage.”
Engram and Leonhard talked throughout the game as well.
“He loves ball,” Engram said. “I love ball. We love coaching. We love these guys. We love being here."
There were a few minor adjustments for Engram.
Working from the box makes it easier to identify quickly where the ball has been placed after a play so Engram knows the precise down and distance.
“You have to communicate with the guys more,” Engram said. “Is it 2? Is it 3 yards? Is it 4 yards? It is kind of hard to see sometimes if it is across the field.
“The guys in the booth do a great job.”
The Northwestern game was played six days after head coach Paul Chryst was fired. Thus, it was the first game Chryst was not involved in preparing the game plan. Chryst hired Engram as the wide receivers coach at Pittsburgh in 2012 and brought him on as UW’s offensive coordinator after last season.
"He mentored me to get this opportunity to be able to call plays,” said Engram, who appeared to get choked up talking about his former boss. “It was a tough deal, but we understand the business side of this sport. I thought everybody in this building did a great job of rallying.”
The UW players, who were stunned and angered by the firing, desperately need the victory at Northwestern.
Ditto for the coaches.
Engram on Tuesday was able to joke about his interactions with Leonhard in preparing to face the Wildcats.
“We put a play in and he told me if I don’t call it he was going to fire me,” Engram said. “I called it. Pretty smart guy.”
So, did the play work?
“No,” Engram said. “We missed it. It was open but we missed it. (But) I have my job for another week.”
Working from the sideline.
|
2022-10-12T13:48:32Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Badgers offensive coordinator Bobby Engram will remain on sideline
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/12/badgers-offensive-coordinator-bobby-engram-remain-sideline/10472932002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/uw/2022/10/12/badgers-offensive-coordinator-bobby-engram-remain-sideline/10472932002/
|
Port Washington-Saukville School District superintendent plans to retire at the end of the school year
The Port Washington-Saukville School District is searching for its next superintendent after current Superintendent David Watkins announced he is planning to retire at the end of the school year.
Watkins has been superintendent since July 2021, when he was hired to replace Barry Weber, who retired after 21 years as the district's superintendent. Before coming to the Port Washington-Saukville School District, Watkins was the superintendent of the Saint Paul School District in St. Paul, Minnesota.
The School Board on Oct. 3 unanimously approved his resignation, which takes effect June 30, 203.
In a Sept. 30 letter to the School Board, district staff and community members, Watkins noted that his wife's father died in July 2021 and that his father died in October 2021.
"These losses have provided us with an opportunity to reflect and prioritize our thoughts around the future," he wrote. "This last year of reflection has helped me look at things with a more objective lens and appreciate my journey in education.
"Thirty years in the field of education have provided me with many memorable moments. Even though my wife and I have been met with an emotional return to Wisconsin, I want to thank the PWSSD community for making my professional time here a highlight during a very difficult personal time. My time in PWSSD has helped balance out the emotions of our return to Wisconsin."
The district's human resources department will communicate the next steps for finding the next superintendent "in the coming weeks," Watkins said in his letter. A number of questions are under consideration, including whether to fill the position with an internal or external candidate, recruitment options and the potential use of an outside consultant, community input and more.
In a letter to the community, School Board President Brenda Fritsch said that under Watkins' leadership, the district has established a human resources department, re-worked school board committee meetings, created a school board executive committee, overhauled the employee handbook, established an improved process for policy updates and utilized a new hiring process for key district roles.
"We have also focused on communication throughout our district by upgrading software for staff and students for greater uniformity and access, working on updating our District website to be more user friendly and phone app ready, and by providing better access to Board meetings by moving to on-line access and School Board document sharing," Fritsch wrote.
Watkins also created a strategic planning process for the district, according to Fritsch, which she said will allow for improved student achievement and will "provide a tool for future budget decisions." Fritsch also said that, during Watkins' tenure, each district building has added a building leadership team to define the needs of their students and buildings.
"These teams not only have autonomy in their building’s direction, but are also collaborators in the district vision. We believe this team allows for greater voice, greater vision, and greater success overall for our students," Fritsch said.
Fritsch said the board also appreciated Watkins' vision to include all stakeholders in those processes, to use data to assist in direction and decisions and to provide the district "a solid foundation and positive direction" for the district's staff, students and community.
|
2022-10-12T16:25:05Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
Port Washington-Saukville superintendent announces retirement
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/northshore/news/port-washington/2022/10/12/port-washington-saukville-superintendent-announces-retirement/10469419002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/northshore/news/port-washington/2022/10/12/port-washington-saukville-superintendent-announces-retirement/10469419002/
|
Milwaukee area's newest brewery, Lion's Tail Brewing, brings Neenah beer to Wauwatosa starting Friday
A taste of Neenah beer will soon be available in Wauwatosa, when Lion's Tail Brewing opens its second location on Friday.
The brewery's Milwaukee-area home is the former Wisconsin Garden and Pet Supply store at 8520 W. North Ave. The second location comes after seven years of operation at the Neenah location, 116 S. Commercial St.
The Wauwatosa space was built to combine two separate buildings, one the former gardening center and the other the pet store, with a new indoor space.
The former gardening center is still recognizable as most of it was utilized to create a beer garden for more than 100 customers at a time.
"We really made this an integrated space," said Nick Leak, vice president of operations and marketing for Lion's Tail. "The gardening center made for a perfect space where people can sit outside, and come right into our bar."
Lion's Tail kept the outdoor roof of the gardening center, where customers can now sit and stay protected from rain and snow. Heaters will expand the outdoor section's season into winter.
"As long in the season people are sitting outside, we will keep the space open," Leak said.
Inside a large, wrap-around bar has about 20 tapped beers, all brewed by Lion's Tail.
In the past, a driveway occupied space between the gardening and pet buildings. The new building in that spot includes a hallway with large bathrooms.
In the old pet store is a small bar with high-top tables, murals and a sitting area that overlooks the spot where brewing tanks will go. Lion's Tail plans to eventually brew beer in Wauwatosa.
"The pet store side is who we want Lion's Tail to become, where we're focusing more on urban Lion's Tail," Leak said. "We’re really excited to lean toward the future. This space is meant to be exciting, Instagrammable, and make it feel more modern."
The pet store side will be available for rental by large parties. The six taps at the back bar are customizable for parties as well.
"We're excited to be here. Tosa felt a lot like Neenah," Leak said. "It has this community feel and it's family oriented, dog friendly and walkable. We saw a lot of Neenah, just bigger and more urban. Knowing our customers, we thought it was easier than downtown and we think we'll be successful."
Lion's Tail beer has an array of brews, with 70 different releases so far in 2022. They brew about 2,500 barrels a year, according to founder and brewer Alex Wenzel.
Lion's Tale's popular beers include IPAs, Oktoberfest, cream ale and lagers.
Fruit beers and food trucks
One of the most popular brews is the Juice Cloud IPA.
"It’s a bestseller," Wenzel said. "It’s a New England hazy, not bitter, and fruity. Fruit beers are what we are known for."
That includes a line of "slushee beers," like "Mega Cherry Slushee" made with seven different cherry varieties, and "Aloha Punch Slushee," a kettle sour with seven kinds of fruit, and made with 3 pounds of fruit per gallon.
"That gives it all a full mouth feel, that's why we call them 'slushees,'" Wenzel said.
Other offerings include non-alcoholic beers, gluten free beer, and seltzers.
"We'll have something for everyone," Leak said. "Even people who aren't into beer, but we hope to convert them. We have so many beers that don't quite taste like beer."
For food offerings, customers can order pizza or giant pretzels from neighboring Sendik's via a QR code that is available at Lion's Table.
The brewery will also host food trucks multiple days a week. One of the first food trucks to visit will be Heirloom, which used to park outside the gardening and pet store.
It will be at Lion's Tail Oct. 26 and at times in November.
Leak said they learned about Heirloom from community feedback, which they plan to continue to lean on in the future.
"We’ve been working hard to be a part of the community," Leak said. "We want to integrate with the community, meet the neighbors and be a part of the community."
Lion's Tail Brewing opens at noon on Friday. For more information visit lionstailbrewing.com.
|
2022-10-12T16:25:23Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
New Milwaukee-area brewery Lion's Tail opens Friday in Wauwatosa
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/2022/10/12/new-milwaukee-area-brewery-lions-tail-opens-friday-wauwatosa-neenah-beer/8236970001/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/2022/10/12/new-milwaukee-area-brewery-lions-tail-opens-friday-wauwatosa-neenah-beer/8236970001/
|
SistaSista Clothing and Jewelry is taking a second shot on South Milwaukee — this time as part of the city’s downtown strip at 916 Milwaukee Ave.
When owner Andrea Skys, a South Milwaukee resident, closed her hometown women’s clothing store at 2412 10th Ave. in December 2021 after about a year in business, tears were shed.
“We loved to be out in South Milwaukee, we live there, and our kids go to school there,” she said. “We wanted to be there long-term, but it didn’t work out with the landlord. We never wanted to leave South Milwaukee; it was our last resort.”
Skys said she had tears of joy when she announced the Oct. 22 grand re-opening. Many local businesses shared the news on social media, welcoming Skys back to her hometown. Residents also reached out, excited for her return.
“You can’t find that everywhere,” Skys said.
She said the city was also very helpful, specifically Assistant City Administrator and Economic Development Director Patrick Brever, in making this location a reality. A location Skys said she tried to rent two years ago.
“(Patrick) took it to be as important to him as it is to me and made it happen,” Skys said.
The grand opening will take place at noon with raffles, door prizes and a treat table with refreshments.
Going forward, Skys plans to be open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. The store will be closed Sunday and Monday.
Where’d she go after closing in South Milwaukee?
After closing, Skys wanted to stay relevant and as a member of MKE Black she participated in pop-up events outside the Fiserv Forum. MKE Black is a non-profit providing a directory of Black-owned businesses in the Milwaukee area.
In April 2022, she moved into a space at The Collective Marketplace in Glendale — a seller space where the owner “pulled unique business owners and entrepreneurs under one roof,” Skys said.
“(At The Collective Marketplace) you don’t have to physically be there,” she said, comparing it to a manned kiosk. “I just have to keep changing out inventory.”
Skys also found space in the Clock Tower Building at 2266 N. Prospect Ave. in Milwaukee that same month. She is keeping all three locations open.
“We’re pretty much the same,” skys said of her new hometown location. “We want plus-sized women to have a different mindset — to feel comfortable in their skin.”
The beginnings of SistaSista
Her experience working with clothes at Target and a desire to help plus-sized women “feel sexy” and that “they are enough” as they are led Skys to start selling at vendor events in 2018. She opened her first location near Brady Street in Milwaukee in 2019.
While there, Skys said she watched long-term businesses shut down due to the pandemic.
“I’m grateful, so grateful God allowed us to stay open,” she said.
Her faith and family helped her persevere and the support was a motivator. “If I fail, my family fails,” Skys said.
Skys is also giving back to the community. She focuses on hiring people from the communities where she has stores. She also offers a “back to work program” where moms going back into the workforce can get brand new clothes for free with proof of an upcoming interview.
“They’re your clothes,” Skys said.
Offerings and pricing
SistaSista Clothing and Jewelry sells clothing for women ranging from small to 4XL and children sizes newborn to 14. Skys also sells stainless steel hypoallergenic earrings, necklaces and bracelets she designed which is, “a passion that turned into a dream.”
She is hoping to add men’s products like beard oil, watches and more, eventually selling an entire men’s line.
Prices start around $5 and go up to $60 for everything from everyday wear to business attire. Skys is working with a vendor to add formal wear to her shelves.
“We want to make sure we get a good price so we can sell it for a good price,” she said.
Skys purchases her inventory from wholesalers with one of her biggest sources being LA Showroom, a collection of fashion designers, manufacturers and distributors in California. Skys orders samples before making a full line purchase.
“We make sure that we buy quality clothing,” she said.
While she is still working as an operation pharmacy manager, Skys hopes to one day make SistaSista Clothing and Jewelry her full-time job.
If it happens, she said it’ll be “through God’s grace.”
For more information, visit www.sistasistaclothingandjewelryshop.com.
|
2022-10-12T18:50:28Z
|
www.jsonline.com
|
SistaSista Clothing and Jewelry to reopen in South Milwaukee
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/south/news/south-milwaukee/2022/10/12/sistasista-clothing-and-jewelry-reopen-south-milwaukee/10464038002/
|
https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/south/news/south-milwaukee/2022/10/12/sistasista-clothing-and-jewelry-reopen-south-milwaukee/10464038002/
|
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.