4/13/22 Hometown Broadcasting News Wednesday
13 April 2022 News
Gerred Appointed Interim FDL County Executive
The Fond du Lac County Board Tuesday evening chose an interim County Executive who will serve through the June 7th special election. County Director of Administration Erin Gerred will serve in that capacity replacing County Board Chairperson Marty Farrell who has served as Acting County Executive since Allen Buechel’s death on March 26th. Farrell recommended Gerred for the appointment saying she was extremely qualified and since she wasn’t running for the post in the special election could remain neutral.
Meanwhile County Clerk Lisa Freiberg says there will be no primary election on May 10th for County Executive. She says James Hess, Doug Iverson, and Sam Kaufman filed declarations of candidacy with her office, but Kaufman was the only candidate to return nomination forms by yesterday’s deadline with the required 500 signatures to obtain ballot status. Kaufman’s name is the only one that will appear on the ballot for the June 7th special election for County Executive.
FDL Man Charged With Arson
A 40-year-old Fond du Lac man recently made his initial appearance in Fond du Lac County court on arson and criminal damage to property charges for allegedly setting his home on fire on October 26th of 2020. Arin Hansen was released on a $10,000 signature bond but part of his court conditions includes allowing police and firefighters to do home checks to make sure he does not possess matches, lighters, candles, gasoline, aerosol cans and accelerants. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 26th. When firefighters arrived at Hansen’s home in October of 2020, he was on the front porch yelling that his house was on fire. The blaze did cause significant heat and smoke damage inside the home. It also melted the vinyl siding on the front porch making the home uninhabitable. A pet dog also perished in the fire.
Fox Point Man Charged With Sexual Assault Of A Child
An 18-year-old Fox Point man is facing a first degree sexual assault of a child under 13 years of age charge in Fond du Lac County court. Jack Watson made his initial court appearance Tuesday. He was released on a $5,000 signature bond and has a preliminary hearing on June 9th. According to the criminal complaint Watson met the victim through Instagram, but their main source of communicating was through messaging on Snapchat. He said they started communicating this past January. Eventually they began meeting at a hotel in Ripon for sex. When they first started the victim told Watson she was 14 and would turn 15 in March, but she was actually 11 turning 12. The victim was interviewed by police last Sunday. Watson was taken into custody that evening.
Ripon Common Council Notes
The Ripon Common Council took care of business quickly on their agenda last evening. The Council approved resolutions that will write off nearly $30,000 in uncollectable ambulance debts and just over $2,500 in uncollectable city water and sewer bills. The Council also approved a resolution for an agreement with the DNR extending principal forgiveness for a $150,000 Safe Drinking Water Loan that will fund a program to replace lead service lines in the city. The Council met in closed session after the meeting to discuss a possible property acquisition. The Ripon Common Council will hold a reorganizational meeting next Tuesday night to swear in the Mayor and four council members who were up for election on April 5th.
Toney Alleges Elections Law Violations
Fond du Lac County District Attorney and State Attorney General candidate Eric Toney has filed a complaint with Democratic Governor Toney Evers seeking the removal of five members of the Wisconsin Elections Commission. Toney is a Republican candidate for Attorney General. Toney is asking Evers to remove two Republicans and three Democrats from the board because they did not allow special voting deputies into nursing homes in 2020 to assist residents with voting. The other district attorneys have decline to file charges against the commissioners. Toney says he doesn’t have jurisdiction to file charges, so he’s asking Evers to remove the board members. Toney held a press conference at the State Capitol Tuesday to announce actions taken against the Wisconsin Elections Commission after his review of the Racine County Sheriff’s Office investigation into the WEC for their actions alleging violations of state election laws during the 2020 election.
FDL Fire Chief Retires
It’s the last day for Fond du Lac Fire Chief Peter O’Leary today. O’Leary is retiring after 13 years with the city, but his time in the fire service dates back to 1979. He was a firefighter in Wheaton and St. Charles, Illinois and was the fire chief for Durham, New Hampshire before becoming Fond du Lac’s Fire Chief in 2009. During his time as Fond du Lac’s Fire Chief the department has gotten International Accreditation, achieved the gold standard in city fire insurance status, developed a state-of-the-art Public Safety Training Facility, and modernized its equipment. At the end of March the Fond du Lac Police and Fire Commission named Assistant Chief Erick Gerritson Interim Fire Chief effective April 14th. A national search will be conducted to find O’Leary’s successor.
Samaritan Clinic Raffle
Tickets are on sale now for the Agnesian HealthCare Foundation’s annual Samaritan Cash Raffle with the top prize of $50,000. The 2022 virtual drawing is scheduled for noon on Wednesday, May 11th on the Greater Fond du Lac Region’s Facebook page. Twenty cash prizes will be given out. The SSM Health Samaritan Clinic provides health care to around 500 underinsured patients annually. The clinic works to provide a full spectrum of care, helping individuals to navigate insurance options, finding a primary care provider and working with local community resources if other needs arise. This year celebrates the 30th anniversary of Samaritan Clinic. Tickets are available for $50 each, four for $150 or nine for $300. They are available at a number of businesses in the Fond du Lac area, at the St. Agnes Hospital Information Desk, and the information desk at Waupun Memorial Hospital.
JEM Grants
A couple of area tourism efforts have been awarded Joint Effort Marketing Grants. The Wisconsin Tourism Department this week announced the 12 grants totaling $280,607. Green Lake Renewal Incorporated which operates the Town Square Community Center in Green Lake has been awarded $1,000 for the Dino Daze event on June 11th. The Beaver Dam Chamber of Commerce was awarded a $7,381 grant to help stage the Wisconsin Arts and Peony Festival in early June. With five rounds of grants throughout the year, the JEM grants are part of an ongoing program to ignite projects and grow economic impact.
GO Transit Office Closed Friday
The GO Transit office in Oshkosh will be closed this Friday in observance of Good Friday. City of Oshkosh buses will continue to operate on the regular schedule on Friday. The GO Transit office will reopen for regular hours on Monday. For more information on GO Transit visit their website, follow them on Facebook and Twitter, or call 920-232-5342.
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