3/7/22 Hometown Broadcasting News Monday
7 March 2022 News
Winter Weather Advisory
A Winter Weather Advisory remains in effect until noon today. Among the counties included in that advisory are Dodge, Fond du Lac, Green Lake, Marquette, and Winnebago counties. Two to four inches of snow was expected with that snow creating slippery roads for the morning commute.
Ripon Grant Application Rejected By The State
Ripon will have to use some of its American Recovery Plan Act funds to fund the balance of the Grace and Lloyd Mitchell Senior Activity Center/ Trailhead Project. The city was hoping to get a $1.2 million Neighborhood Investment Fund Grant to make up the difference in funding that wasn’t already in place for the $2.5 million project. City Administrator Adam Sonntag says they received word late Thursday that the city’s application wasn’t accepted. He says he felt the city’s application “Truly fit the spirit and guidelines” set by the state’s Department of Administration. The state also turned Ripon down for CDBG and Stewardship Grants for the same project. Governor Evers Thursday made stops in Kenosha, Fond du Lac, and Green Bay to highlight several of the recipient’s projects. Out of the nearly $213 million in awards the City of Fond du Lac received $3.6 million, the City of Waupun received a $4.9 million grant, and Winnebago County got a grant for $10.3 million. The City of Juneau got a $10.6 million grant and Dodge County is receiving $3.2 million. The City of Milwaukee and Milwaukee County received over $25 million in grants, and the City of Madison and Dane County got nearly $21 million.
Notice of Award-Neighborhood Investment.pdf (wi.gov)
Catalyst Charter School In Ripon Closing
The Catalyst Charter School at the Ripon Middle School will close following the current school year. District Superintendent Mary Whitrock says it has had declining enrollment over the past few years as more parents decided to have their kids go through the traditional rather than project-based learning curriculum. She says it was a worthwhile and innovative effort. She says it did have a positive impact on the Middle School overall. She says even though they will have only one middle school they will try to preserve as many of the learning strategies as they can from Catalyst into the middle school. The Catalyst Governance Council voted this past Tuesday to close the school and the School Board will vote on whether to accept that decision at their Monday, March 21st meeting.
Anonymous Donation Aids FDL County Sheriff’s Office
The Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Office is getting more tools for its law enforcement efforts thanks to a large donation from an anonymous donor. The ongoing donation was actually made to the Badger Sheriff’s Association which launched the Safety First Initiative last year to fund requests from the 72 county sheriffs’ offices in Wisconsin. The Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Office will use the money they are receiving to fund two requests they made. They were able to purchase a rifle-rated ballistic shield which has already been placed in service. The other request was for support for a third canine for the department’s K9 Team. The request will partially fund that effort. A new canine handler will be selected and trained. Sheriff Ryan Waldschmidt says they are grateful to the anonymous donor.
Congressman Grothman On Ukraine Invasion
Congressman Glenn Grothman says he would like to see a quicker end to the fighting in the Ukraine. The federal lawmaker from Glenbeulah says each day more lives are lost both military and civilian in the Ukraine and the longer the struggle continues the more likely Russian leader Vladimir Putin is to use more force. He feels economic sanctions being used against Russia are having an impact, but Russia also has the ability to retaliate and cripple us financially as well. Meanwhile he says the Russian people aren’t getting the full picture of what is happening because they are being led to believe the invasion of the Ukraine is a liberation effort.
Dallman Bills Before The Governor
Four bills authored by State Representative Alex Dallman are currently being considered by Governor Evers to be signed into law. One bill would allow private zoos to operate on a level playing field with public zoos. Another would create a program through the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, to identify areas that are deemed “shovel-ready” for the development for workforce Housing. Another bill ties the weeks of eligibility for unemployment benefits to the current unemployment rate. Dallman says similar legislation worked out well for Florida and Georgia. A fourth bill would require the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to publish more information on its website about projects receiving funding from the Transportation Infrastructure Loan Program.
Agnesian Raffle Success
Thanks to the continued support of resident in Waupun and surrounding communities, the Agnesian HealthCare Foundation raised nearly $20,000 to help support the areas of greatest need at SSM Health Waupun Memorial Hospital, which may include technology advancements, specific program or department needs, employee support, and more. The virtual raffle drawing conducted this past Wednesday was shown on the SSM Health Greater Fond du Lac Region’s Facebook page live. Shawn Fisher, Agnesian HealthCare Foundation Executive Director says, “We appreciate everyone who stepped forward to help us achieve our goals.” You can read more about the effort by clicking here.
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