Valley Sentinel - 10-28-2020

Spring Green, Wisconsin

Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2020 Vol. 1, No. 2 Free, Single-Copy

Bug Tussel cell tower coming to Spring Green Cell tower approved on Highway G Emilie Conlon, Editor-in-Chief The town of Spring Green Planning and Zoning Committee approved the building of a 250 foot cell tower off of Highway 14 at its Oct. 21 meeting.

The tower was approved unanimously at a joint meeting of the Planning and Zoning Committee and the Joint Extraterritorial Zoning Committee (JEZC).

The 250 foot tower would sit on the 35 acre field off Highway 14 and County Highway G, just behind Riteway Plaza and Culver’s in Spring Green.

The tower will be equipped with broadband internet, cellular service for Bug Tussel and AT&T and FirstNet emergency response services. According to the proposal from Bug Tussel, the tower would also have three additional places for other cellular providers to use for service in the future.

FirstNet response is a wireless network designed for use by first responders to utilize during an emergency when cellular service is unreliable or unavailable.

“For anyone who is not familiar with FirstNet, our first responders use that beneficial service that is basically some sort of augmented cellular type signal and what that allows them to do is be in touch with the hospital particularly while they’re traveling down Highway 60. Usually you would lose cell phone reception on your way to the hospital,” said Falteisek. “You don’t have to worry about that with FirstNet, so it’s a great asset for the community.”

At the virtually-held meeting, only one member of the public spoke, with Patrick Hagen questioning the benefit of the tower.

“As a citizen I would like to understand, whom does this benefit? This action this tower, whom does this benefit?” said Hagan. “For example I have friends living outside of Spring Green having trouble getting service. In what way does this strengthen the internet that is provided to our citizens.

A representative from Bug Tussel listed FirstNet as a vital part of the tower for first responders, in response to the question. The representative also said the tower will benefit AT&T customers with improved cellular service and adding an additional option for broadband internet in the area.

See Tower page 6

Area saturated with 4-6 inches of rain overnight Photos contributed by Don Greenwood The National Weather Service reported approximately 4-6 inches of rain falling over the River Valley area last Thursday night into Friday morning, leaving behind minor flooding and rushing water throughout Spring Green.

Top: The parking lot of St. John the Evangelist School saw minor flooding following the rain.

Parish Secretary and Accountant Sondra Anliker said the standing water from the parking lot did not infiltrate the building.

Bottom: A culvert beneath the intersection of County Highway G and Mercer Road flowing near capacity Friday morning.

Bars,restaurants adapt to ever-changing virus mandates Emilie Conlon, Editor-in-Chief As Gov. Evers’ early October order to keep bars and restaurants indoor capacity limited bounces through the courts, a few Spring Green places reflect on how the constantly changing COVID-19 mandates and restricts have affected them.

On Oct. 6 Evers released a mandate stating that bars and restaurants throughout the state would be required to return serving and hosting 25% of their indoor capacity.

The original order was set to take effect on Oct. 8 and end Nov. 6.

On Oct. 13 the Wisconsin League of Tavern’s filed a lawsuit to block the order, citing economic hardship restaurants ans bars.

Sawyer County Judge John Yackel sided with the tavern league, issuing a temporary restraining order blocking

the order on Oct. 14.

Barron County Circuit Court Judge James Babler repealed the restraining order, making the order effective again on Oct. 19.

While the Tavern League did not appeal the Circuit Court decision, The Mix up, Inc,a bar and restaurant near Eau Claire and the restaurants owner did.

On Oct. 23 the District 3 court of appeals again blocked the order.

While restaurants are not legally required to limit indoor capacity to 25% currently, Wynn Dedrick, owner of The Shed in downtown Spring Green, said the restaurant has continuously only allowed 25% capacity for indoor dining.

“We haven’t changed anything, we’ve been at 25% the whole time, we haven’t needed to go above that,” said Dedrick.

While the restaurant has remained at 25% capacity, and Dedrick has not

had to constantly adapt to the changing mandate, she said adapting to community need after reopening for carry out in March was the biggest challenge.

“We laid off everybody, after a week and a half we brought the kitchen staff back and we did carryouts, and then a month after that we brought the bartenders back,” said Dedrick. “Our first couple weeks on Friday nights we couldn’t keep up [with the number of orders].”

Dedrick said the restaurant has been lucky to be able to offer the patio for outdoor dining options, but wonders how that will affect service once the weather turns cold.

See Adapt page 5

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opinion/editorial

WednesdaY, Oct, 28, 2020

EDITORIAL

We believe in our readers

or: bad organization is bad, but that’s an editorial and not a news story —a drama There is a difference between an editorial and a news story. There is a difference between taking a position and impartially presenting others’ positions. In an editorial, we believe our community is best served by a common sense position being taken that inspires action and fosters solutions.

In a news story, it’s our duty to report on the actions that are taken, without inserting position or bias.

Many publications, especially community publications, now shy away from stories and editorials that are controversial. We believe this is a disservice to our community.

We believe that we can present facts and information—in a news story, and that our readers are intelligent and able to take that information and form their own opinions.

We believe that we can present our own perspectives (hopefully, with a fresh insight or two) where they might be valuable—in an editorial, and that our readers are intelligent, discerning and able to engage respectfully and constructively with the position taken, even if they don’t agree.

Our goal will never be to form our readers’ opinions for them through our reporting, we simply want to give them the pieces, or a darn good start, on aggregating information they can use to better inform themselves. We will seldom be more than a starting point for those readers with a deep interest in the issue covered.

In our inaugural edition, we published a story about Rep. Todd Novak being presented the “Outstanding Water Legislator of the Year Award” by the Wisconsin Water Alliance (WWA) for his “commitment to advancing sound water policy.”

Novak’s receipt of the award was a topic worthy of coverage. On the surface, it would appear a meaningful accomplishment. Even though there was a good argument to the contrary, the award was being publicized, so it would be useful to readers who might hear of the award to have the facts to put it in context.

The story was intended to cover Novak receiving the award—while acknowledging that the timing of which some might say is controversial and influential considering its proximity to a contentious election—the story was not meant to take a deep dive into the larger background, policies and members of the WWA. It would be a disservice to distill three or four years of often contentious history into one short news story.

While we wrote the article regarding Novak, we wanted to be sure—again,

with an election on the horizon—that his opponent, Kriss Marion, a Democrat and Lafayette county supervisor from Blanchardville, had an equal chance to share her thoughts on this award. So we sent questions to Novak and Marion, and reported on what we received in the print publication.

But in writing the story, we made the seemingly fatal flaw of mentioning Marion in the headline and not in the lede of the story (which is a legitimate oversight and a fair critique, sorry Marion—we’ll follow inverted pyramid next time) and the additional seemingly devious, intentional, biased (and, in reality, completely coincidental) choice to jump the article, to page 8, before Marion’s statement.

This, apparently, was too much.

We received a very harsh critique that seemed to strongly imply that our readers couldn’t possibly be trusted to follow the story all the way to page 8.

It’s been an interesting week, running the gamut from being accused of being shills for Novak, to being in the bag for Marion. Suffice it to say, we must be doing something right.

To be clear, a vast and overwhelming majority of our feedback has been positive, welcoming and has reinforced our belief in this community. Election season is but a season, and our community has so much more depth to offer and to celebrate.

Where critique is justified, we will be the first to admit it. As we said in our introductory column, we’ll surely make mistakes as we go, but we’ll learn from them if given the chance.

But we won’t ever take kindly to insinuations that our readers can be easily manipulated or misled. We want to ensure that it’s clear, no matter what side of the fence you’re on, that we won’t kowtow to pressure to frame our stories one way or another. (And while we’re at it, why are there only two sides to the fence? Perhaps it’s time to retire that metaphor and the two-party system represented in it? But that’s a different editorial.)

Basically, we won’t take direction from any powers that be or special interests, but we will listen to our community and use that feedback to better inform how we do things.

Without getting into the weeds, let’s take a quick look at the WWA. On the WWA’s website, the organization states that it is a non-partisan group dedicated to improving water resources throughout the state.

Claiming to be non-partisan could be viewed as maybe, possibly, perhaps suspicious, considering a couple of things: 1.) All five of the legislators that received this newly-created award are members

of the Republican party and are currently running for re-election, 2.) The current president of the WWA is Michael Huebsch, a former Republican Assembly speaker, Department of Administration secretary and Public Service commissioner. Huebsch has been in the news recently regarding alleged conflicts of interest uncovered in texts while he was making decisions as a commissioner.

Huebsch was a Public Service commissioner in 2019, when the regulatory board voted to approve the Cardinal-Hickory Creek transmission line project that would place large high-voltage transmission lines on a roughly 100 mile route through the heart of the Driftless Area.

Since being founded in 2017, the WWA has advocated for “reasonable” regulations for water resources and quality in the state. “Reasonable” could be considered by some as maybe, possibly, perhaps a signal that the organization supports the ability of businesses to pollute with wanton disregard and without concern for being held accountable.

The group has been largely involved in opposing policies that would regulate high capacity wells, feedlots and limit chemicals such as PFAS and phosphorus in groundwater.

It doesn’t take a reasonable person to notice that these very things have the ability to threaten to negatively impact water quality and safety in Wisconsin.

The WWA’s motives are questionable at best, considering two current board members have been fined and are embroiled in lawsuits for doing the exact opposite of protecting water quality.

WWA board member TJ Tuls, a manager at Emerald Sky Dairy in St. Croix County, has been fined $80,000 for a manure spill in 2017, which plaintiffs in that case claimed was responsible for the contamination of multiple nearby wells.

Louis Wysocki, another WWA board member and owner of Golden Sands Dairy in Juneau County, is currently involved in at least one lawsuit that claims pollution from the dairy persisted for over a decade and was responsible for contaminating nearly 200 wells of nearby homes.

The lawsuit started after a child in the area died from nitrate poisoning, which can be caused by well contamination.

The nearly 300 people in the lawsuit are asking for compensation to purchase treatment systems for their contaminated wells, purchasing bottled water or for compensation of damage to property value due to contaminated water. Some are seeking compensation for damages to their health due to nitrate contamination, like cancer or miscarriages.

It’s maybe, possibly, perhaps problem-

atic to be accepting an award from this group of obviously upstanding water conservationists led by Huebsch. We trust our readers understand sarcasm.

We get that people don’t like red tape—we just started a business, after all—but the wheels of our state economy will not cease to turn if we enact and strengthen protections for our water.

We asked both Novak’s office and his campaign for specific policy positions on high capacity wells, concentrated animal feeding operations, and PFAS. We did not get specific responses. If that changes before election day, we will ensure that our website is updated with them.

However, when an elected representative accepts an award from a group with clearly stated policy positions, it is reasonable to ask if the representative supports those positions as well.

It’s our belief that the community deserves to know what those positions are before election day.

Both of the candidates’ full responses are linked within the original WWA story on our website, www.valleysentinelnews.com. We trust our readers to be able to evaluate both candidates based on the topics that matter most to them and the information each campaign has provided throughout the election cycle.

We will always work to report on major issues—impartially—because we believe that our readers can take the information and form their own opinions and do their own research on a major political topic before heading to the polls, and not make decisions based solely on what appears on our front page.

While it might be easy for us, or anyone, to assume that no one rushed to cast their early ballot based on half of an article on the first page of Valley Sentinel last week, we still fully understand the position of responsibility we are in. In good faith, we updated last week’s story where the critiques were justified, added Marion to the lede and added context that should provoke independent inquiry without taking a stance. It’s an article, not an editorial, and—unlike some—we believe in you... and that you’ll read page 8.

The good stuff is always on page 8.

If you build it, they will come—insights into our newsroom Editor’s Column

tinel is out, and that is such a triumph. I know my job is to be a writer, but I find Emilie Conlon, Editor-in-Chief myself at a loss for words to express just how excited I am.

Wow—what a two weeks it has been.

I’m also incredibly proud of the work The last two weeks have been a rolland effort that our small, grassroots ercoaster, uphill battle and triumph all team has put in the last week, two wrapped into one, and honestly, my head weeks, six weeks, to make this amazing is still spinning a bit. product that we can finally hold in our To start, the first edition of Valley Sen- hands.

After the fact, I can revel in that pride and look back on the chunk of time that we’ve been planning for this with happiness, from throwing around the idea to COVID organically bringing all of the pieces together. While publishing our first edition is a major triumph, let’s circle back to that uphill battle I talked about earlier.

The paper that all of you are holding in your hands right now was quite literally forged in fire. It’s truly made of our blood, sweat and tears—happy, sad, frustrated, exhausted, excited tears.

See page 3

opinion/editorial

WednesdaY, Oct, 28, 2020

Page 3

By ‘it’ we mean a desk, and by ‘they’ we mean a newspaper Continued from page 2

Valley Sentinel is truly a grassroots startup operation, it was started by passionate people, armed with Macbooks and a copious supply of coffee in a home office (literally, we built the desk from scratch before we started—with filing cabinets, 2x8’s, espresso stain and way too much polyurethane).

As we’ve stated, we don’t have funding from any large corporation or special interest. We cashed in savings and retirement accounts to get this started because we believe in rural community journalism so passionately.

Literally, we started this with an idea, $1,775 in retirement savings, $750 in savings bonds and some serious determination—that’s it.

While this vision has been in our minds for the better part of a year, and we’ve been organizing for a few months, everything truly culminated into a single point last Monday night when we began finalizing our content and layout our first edition.

We had no dry run, we didn’t put together mock editions, what you saw last week is what we put together frantically from scratch, on very little sleep. If you thought our paper, website or newsletter looked good, it’s because we simply put the time in to make it that way. If you thought it looked bad, well then hopefully we’ll get more sleep next week.

To get our first edition out, we stayed up for two days to pull it off, all while balancing our day jobs and battling one of the worst colds I think I’ve ever had.

— Quick sidebar, about that cold—I had chills, a sore throat, a cough, nasal congestion, a runny nose and dulled sense of taste and smell. It only takes a quick Google search to know those symptoms are consistent with COVID-19 (yes, those are also symptoms of a cold or flu, but does regular sick even still exist during a pandemic?) — With the way I felt, and the symptoms I was experiencing, I was convinced that I had coronavirus. I quarantined and got tested, and *spoiler alert* I was negative and now basically back to 100%.

While testing negative for COVID gave me some peace of mind, it didn’t dull my symptoms or my need to get our first newspaper printed.

Going through this process for the first time, while sick, while staying awake for two days straight, knowing that I couldn’t just take the day off, reminded me of how much we are just starting out.

We have a wonderful team of interns and volunteers that give their time, skills and creative ability when they can and have the extra time, which is in short supply in our industry.

But ultimately, we only have a core group of a few people dedicated to working on this publication each week.

Throughout this process there were so many times that I wanted to give up, there were times that it changed me into a person who was stressed out, overworked and genuinely tired. There were times where I truly broke down and cried, because nothing about this has been easy. However, my belief in our communities steeled me through it, and

it only strengthens, through ups and downs, with each day. We are simply starting out, and we have so many big, engaging ideas that we hope to be able to share with our community, but for now, we are a small group that grows and changes everyday.

We want to thank David Giffey, he served in an honorary, advisory capacity as Valley Sentinel moved through its startup process, even though his schedule didn’t allow him to be actively involved in day-to-day editorial. After moving past publishing our first edition, David decided to step down from our editorial board. David’s insight was invaluable and we would like to thank him for his help and support.

To everyone that has picked up a copy, subscribed, and reached out with feedback and warm welcomes—thank you. We can’t even begin to express how grateful we are for your support.

Please stay in touch as we grow, we always want to hear your feedback and your ideas.

Wisconsin Should Invest in Education, Not Foreign Corporations Jon Erpenbach, D-Middleton Virtually, in person, or planning and executing hybrid models, students and educators across Wisconsin are showing up and doing the hard work.

Families are making sacrifices and hard choices in the face of this pandemic.

We should all take a lesson from this dedication and perseverance.

As of this writing, it has now been 190 days of inaction since the current leadership of the Assembly and Senate and their caucuses last answered the calls coming from every corner of the state, 6 ½ months without a single day of action on the most significant crisis

we’ve faced in generations.

During that time away, educators from across the state preparing for the school year have raised the alarm about the lasting impact enrollment changes during a public health crisis might have on schools that are the bedrock of our shared history and future – especially in smaller and rural communities.

Schools, like all of Wisconsin’s economy and way of life, would have been better served by a unified effort in the spring to limit this virus and its impact.

I salute the men and women who have dedicated their careers and lives to education and are continuing that work, in person and remotely, to this day. And I

stand with the Wisconsin parents who are making sacrifices at home and difficult choices for their children’s future.

Last week we saw a snapshot of the impact the ongoing pandemic is having on our schools. In the districts I represent all or of parts of, we saw enrollment drop by over 2600 students, nearly 3%.

Thankfully, Gov. Evers set the bar high for public education in his initial budget and general aid increases will help many of our schools and property taxpayers. Unfortunately, we could and should have done more. GOP budget choices included taking $500 million from the Governor’s special education

Contact us

PO Box 144 Spring Green, Wisconsin 53588 USA (608) 588-6694 editor@valleysentinelnews.com valleysentinelnews.com Editorial Editor-in-Chief Emilie Conlon Creative Director/ Editor Morgan Marlenga Managing Editor Quincy Aston-Lott

proposal to preserve a tax giveaway targeted primarily at millionaires. Those dollars would certainly help educators and families meet the needs of students often suffering the most curing the COVID crisis.

A pandemic that has seen the wealthy grow wealthier while the challenges for working parents have grown – much – more difficult has made our choices and priorities even more starkly clear.

Read the full column on www.valleysentinelnews.com

Deadlines: The display and classified

Valley Sentinel is published in Spring Green, Wisconsin every Wednesday by Lower Wisconsin River Valley Sentinel, LLC. ISSN 2694-541X (print) — ISSN 2694-5401 (online) Legal Editor Gerry Strang, esq.

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advertising deadline is Friday at noon for the following week. If you would like our design team to design the ad then please allow extra time for the creative process and proofing.

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Our team will be growing and changing as we settle into publishing regularly, please stay in touch. Thank you to all of our contributors, by name and by pen, for believing in our community.

Editorial Policy

On certain topics in areas of great community interest, the editors of the Valley Sentinel may take positions they believe best represent and serve the interests of the community. Any opinions or positions taken by the editorial board are separate and distinct in labeling and substance from the community journalism that appears in the rest of the publication and does not affect the integrity

Letter to the Editor Policy

Letters submitted for consideration are subject to fact-checking and editing for space and clarity.

Submissions must have a compelling local community interest. Letters to the editor must fit within a 500-word limit, and include name, city and phone number. Phone numbers are for office use only and will not be published. Letters of a political nature, without chance of rebuttal, will not be published the week before an election.

and impartiality of our reporting.

Est. 2020 igne conflatum “Forged in Fire”

Valley Sentinel is a free, weekly single-copy news publication, available on newsstands in the area.

Covering Arena, Lone Rock, Plain, Spring Green and the surrounding areas.

Column Policy

Editors may feature opinion columns written by public figures, members of the public or other publication staff. Columns reflect the opinions of the individual contributors and do not represent positions of the publication. Guest columns of an anticipated length more than 500 words should seek prior editor authorization.

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Community Discussion Policy

From time to time the editorial board may select letters to the editor of a particular compelling community interest where a public figure or accountable public action is the recipient of criticism and allow, in the same issue, the subject of the criticism chance for rebuttal, with expounded independent input. The format shall be point, counterpoint and expert analysis. This community discussion shall serve as a moderated dialogue that presents multiple views of important community topics.

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Community

WednesdaY, Oct, 28, 2020

Lone Rock awarded loan, grants to improve drinking water Emilie Conlon, Editor-in-Chief The village of Lone Rock has been awarded a loan for upwards of $600,000 from the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to address deficiencies in the village-owned drinking water systems.

Delta 3 Engineering, based in Platteville, applied for the DNR’s Safe Drinking Water Loan Program and was awarded $623,469. Of those funds, $374,082 is designated as grant funds, and $249,387 is a low-interest loan, said Barr Nies, Vice President for Delta 3.

The program offers loans to municipalities with interest rates that are ei-

ther 33% or 55% of the current market value, depending on the financial need, said Kevin Olson, DNR community financial assistant.

“The purpose of the program is to provide affordable financial assistance to municipalities for publicly owned drinking water infrastructure projects that are needed to protect public health and achieve or maintain compliance with federal and state regulations relating to water supply,” said Olson. ”The funding for this program is from the Wisconsin Environmental Improvement Fund (EIF) which is a state revolving loan fund that combines federal capitalization grants from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (SRFs) with state funding to provide affordable financial assistance to municipalities for publicly owned drinking water, wastewater, and storm water infrastructure projects that are needed to achieve or maintain compliance with federal and state regulations relating to water supply and wastewater treatment.”

The village can use funding from the project to address issues with water mains, service leaks, deficient fire flow, leaking fire hydrants and leaking water valves, said Nies.

Construction for the improvement project in Lone Rock was completed in this year.

In addition to receiving funding from the DNR, Delta 3 submitted a Community Development Block Grant for Public Facilities application, which awarded the village with $725,000 for the water project.

“The CDBG-PF and WDNR SDWLP grant funding and WDNR low-interest loan funding will significantly reduce the cost of the Project to the Village, and thus will significantly reduce the required water rate increase,” said Nies.

The DNR loan program had 39 applications from 34 municipalities for 2021. Of those 39 projects, low-interest loan rates were awarded to all with 19 projects receiving grant funding.

Sauk County hospitals at risk for reaching capacity due to COVID-19 Emilie Conlon, Editor-in-Chief Sauk County officials say hospitals in the county are at risk of being overrun with COVID-19 patients if cases continue to rise at the current rate.

Jeff Jelinek, Emergency Management director and incident commander for COVID-19 said if the virus continues to spread at the same rate daily, within 35 days the county’s number of cases and hospitalizations will have doubled.

This means that by Nov. 26, the county could see 1,568 new cases of the coronavirus, compared to the 642 new cases the county has seen so far this month.

Approximately 2.5% or about 16 cases of the virus have needed to be hospi-

talized in October. Of the hospitalized cases, approximately 13% of those have been admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU).

Based on the projection of cases doubling by this time next month, Jelinek estimates that 40 news cases could need to be hospitalized before Thanksgiving. Of those projected 40 cases that will need to be hospitalized, Jelinek estimates that roughly five will be admitted to the ICU. “If this happens, 50% of our ICU could be filled by COVID patients. This would leave five ICU beds for flu, car accidents, injuries, ect.,” said Jelinek.

“Some hospitals have been converting beds to ICU beds. COVID isn’t the only thing that our hospitals are treating.”

As of Oct. 26, Sauk Prairie Healthcare in Prairie du Sac reports having no patient infected with COVID-19, however the hospital does have rooms designed for COVID-19 patients that are isolated from non-COVID patients, have negative air flow systems and have a separate care team to limit the risk of cross contamination, said Amy Ryan, marketing and community Relations director for the hospital.

While the hospital does currently have any admitted virus patients, Ryan said the hospital is prepared for the potential by having personal protective equipment, hospital beds and staff ready to handle any virus patients.

“Sauk Prairie Healthcare, through our pandemic planning has developed

robust plans, including strong infection prevention systems to meet the increase in patient demands,” said Ryan.

Ryan said that despite planning, an influx of COVID patients can affect all areas of a health system.

“For example it could cause us to have to pause other services such as surgery,” said Ryan. “Additionally, when other health systems are also dealing with an influx, it can limit our ability to transfer patients to tertiary hospitals when a higher level of care is needed.”

For data on COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths in Sauk, Iowa and Richland counties see page 7.

To read extended responses visit www.valleysentinelnews.com

In other news Iowa County winter hours The Iowa County board set winter meeting hours at its monthly meeting on Oct. 20.

The board will now meet at 6 p.m. through March for board meetings.

Additionally, the board discussed changing the size and number of members on the board at Tuesday’s meeting, and determined the board will remain at 21 officials.

Town of Clyde absentee voting The town of Clyde will hold in-person absentee ballot 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 31.

Clerk Deanna Brennum is advising voters to bring personal pens and to wear a mask.

Brennum will be accepting absentee ballot drop off and doing new voter registration.

Voters should bring a photo ID and proof of residency.

Brennum asks for voters that plan to attend on Saturday to call or email ahead of time so an envelope can be prepared.

Sauk County introduces new administrator The Sauk County Board officially introduced its first county administrator at it’s board meeting Oct. 20.

The former Shawano County Administrative Coordinator, Brent Miller, was formally hired by the board in September, after voting to create and start the hiring process for the position in June. Miller started in the position last week.

“I’m very excited to be here,” said Miller at the board meeting. “I’m looking forward to hopefully meeting your goals and objectives for the county, the constituents of the county and the departments. I look forward to working with you on that.”

The previous administrative coordinator position was left vacant in March after Alene Kleczek Bolin resigned to take a position with the state. The administrative coordinator position was filled in the interim by Dave Bretl while the county created and hired the county administrator position.

Clarification In the Oct. 21 edition of Valley Sentinel an article with the headline “New developments, gadgets coming to Plain” incorrectly named the services Strand Associates would be providing to the village of Plain on a new housing subdivision and stated Kraemer Brothers would be developing the site.

Strand Associates will be providing consulting services to the village for the subdivision project, reviewing plans created by Logtown Development. Logtown Development will be developing buildable lots for the subdivision.

Valley Sentinel apologizes for the error and the online version of the story has been updated. We will continuously strive to provide accurate and good journalism to the community.

The online version of the article with the headline “Wisconsin Water Alliance presents award to Novak, Marion questions motive” published in the Oct. 21 edition of Valley Sentinel has been updated to provide more context, including the full statements provided by both Novak and Marion’s campaigns.

To view it please visit www.valleysentinelnews.com

COMMUNITY CALENDAR We care about the community and want to showcase your events, especially in times like these! Our goal is to keep the community in touch with events, people, life and businesses of the Lower Wisconsin River Valley.

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Let’s build community together.

Community

WednesdaY, Oct, 28, 2020

Page 5

Adapt: business find ways to push through COVID-19 Continued from page 1 “It might be a little different now that we don’t have a patio, so that’s now but people aren’t coming out like they were,” said Dedrick. “We’re getting a lot of carryouts, our carry outs have been phenomenal. They want to support us, they want to keep us here.”

Under state mandate, patrons are required to wear masks in restaurants when they are not eating or drinking.

Dedrick said about 95% of patrons have complied with the rule.

For the Slowpoke Lounge and Cabaret in downtown Spring Green, owners Michael Broh and Stacy Woods are in no hurry to up the number of people allowed in.

The restaurant has remained at allowing 25% capacity since reopening in June, which Woods estimates around 25 people.

“It’s brutal, like every place in town that relies on tourism traffic, we missed all the APT crowd and a lot of the cast and crew would hang out here, that was a big loss,” said Broh. “Based on what the Governor is saying and the numbers, we’re deep on the side of ‘let’s be careful’, but this isn’t what the bar isn’t intended for.”

Over the summer, the bar offered outdoor picnic tables in front of the building and an outdoor beer garden behind the building.

“Summer doesn’t hurt, people are more likely to be outside in the summer,” said Broh. “Giving people a place

Photo by Emilie Conlon, Editor-in-Chief Bartender Pam Miles hands a customer a drink at The Shed on Oct. 24. to go, those tables in the street made a big difference.”

Normally, the establishment would host around two or three live performances a week, which Bartender Robert Doyle said would yield about 90-100% capacity.

“It’s been weird, we can’t have the bands right now because of the pan-

Trick or Treat Lone Rock Sat. Oct 31st, 3-6 p.m Plain Sat. Oct 31st, 4-7 p.m

demic, it’s just really weird, not knowing what the future is going to be,” said Doyle. “The up and downs for us have really been not being able to have bands in here, I mean, we’re a music venue.”

While the business was closed from mid-March to June, Doyle said the owners found ways to provide work and

pay for him during the shut down.

Customer Joe Bradford said he and his wife Tara Bradford and some of their friends would visit the Slowpoke a few times a month.

“It definitely made us hesitant,” said Bradford. “It’s refreshing to be back out and nice to socialize.”

Bradford said he is looking forward to the bar starting up events again, especially trivia night.

Halloween Tips for Kids and Adults Turn your porch or front door light on!

Only go to houses with their lights on

Spring Green Sat. Oct 31st, 4-7 p.m

Wear a surgical or cloth mask! Not a costume mask

Use hand sanitizer or wash your hands regularly

Village of Arena Sat. Oct 31st, 4-7 p.m Have one person handing out the candy. Please do not leave bowls for kids to pick from.

Continue to practice social distancing by staying with your own family members

Have fun and be safe!

Trick or Treating is not a Village-sponsored event. These guidelines are to encourage safe practices and coordinate times.

Page 6

Community

WednesdaY, Oct, 28, 2020

Tower: Approved for late 2020, early 2021 building

Photo by Emilie Conlon, Editor-in-Chief Bug Tussel Wireless is proposing building a 250 foot cellular tower in the field behind Riteway Plaza and Culver’s on Highway 14 and County Highway G. The tower would be equipped with AT&T voice and internet, Bug Tussel internet and FirstNet.

Continued from page 1 Approval of the tower will not proceed to the village board, as the Planning and Zoning Committee and the JECZ allowed staff to sign off on the application, said Falteisek.

Construction will begin on the tower in late 2020 into early 20201.

—Adeline Holt, intern, contributed to this report.

Map via Bug Tussel Wireless A map depicting the coverage range of the proposed Bug Tussel cell tower to be constructed in Spring Green behind Riteway Plaza and Culver’s off of Highway 14 and County Highway G.

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Community

WednesdaY, Oct, 28, 2020

Page 7

COVID-19 Dashboard Wisconsin Summary Cases as of 10/26/2020

+27,158 from 10/20

10.2%

10/19 10/20 10/21

201,049 Positive Cases

89.8%

Day-to-day casecase totalstotals over 7 over days 7 days Day-to-day

10/22 10/23 10/24

1,777,892 Negative Cases

10/25

+74,079 from 10/20

0

10,000

Positive Cases

+85 from 10/20

30,000

Negative Cases

Iowa County

Richland County 449 Positive Cases

20,000

7,002 Negative Cases

+460 from 10/20

6.1%

93.9% +452 from 10/20

8 Deaths

+2 from 10/20

6,856 Negative Cases

458 Positive +106 from 10/20 Cases

1 Death

Same from 10/20

Sauk County 1,643 6.2% Positive Cases 24,649 93.8% Negative Cases

+260 from 10/20

+2,928 from 10/20

Graphic by Whitney Back

7 Deaths +1 from 10/20

Data From: https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/covid-19/index.htm

“The good stuff.”

Page 8

WednesdaY, Oct, 28, 2020

Outdoors/recreation

FLOW showing “Rhythm of the River” at drive-in Friends of the Lower Wisconsin Riverway The film takes a historical perspective on the free-flowing stretch of the Wisconsin that was designated 30 years the as the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway.

In this work, Erickson examines the riverway's role in Ho Chunk culture as well and how it could impact future preservation efforts of rivers throughout the world. The showing at the Starlite 14 will include the original HD documentary first seen on Wisconsin Public Television and an addition-

al half-hour of edited segments that includes the story of the early days of American Players Theatre near the Lower Wisconsin, the cedar canoes built by one man to traverse it, the fish art the river inspires and the history of Tippesaukee, an early European settlement along the river that dates back to 1838.

Erickson, director, producer, editor and proprietor of Ootek Productions, paddled into the sunset August 24 of 2020. With Ootek, Erickson produced 40 documentaries that blended ecology, conservation, history and the

human experience. Apart from Rhythm of the River, Erickson produced another documentary focused on the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway—Gather Like the Waters. He has also produced films focusing on the Wisconsin Dells, the history of polka in Wisconsin, endangered cranes, Sauk County native Aldo Leopold, and the 1820s lead mining in the Upper Mississippi region.

Gates open at 6 p.m. and remarks from local dignitaries including Lower Wisconsin State Riverway Board Director Mark Cupp will begin at 6:45 with the film starting at sundown, about

7 p.m. Adult admission is $10 and admission for children three years and up is $5. Proceeds from the event will go to Friends of the Lower Wisconsin Riverway.

If you go

Documentary showing of “Rhythm of the River” Gates open 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 29 Showing begins 7 p.m.

Starlite 14 Drive-in Theater Adult admission is $10, children under three years old is $5. Concessions will be available.

New study shows air quality improving in the dairy state Craig Czarnecki, DNR public information specialist

MADISON, Wis. – Wisconsin’s air quality is improving. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) 2020 Air Quality Trends Report has been released and confirms decreasing concentrations of most pollutants across the state.

The report, which includes air quality data through 2019, finds that concentrations of most pollutants for which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has set national air quality standards have decreased in all regions of the state since monitoring began. Due in part to these significant reductions, 95% of Wisconsin’s population lives in areas meeting all federal air quality standards.

The state’s air quality improved along the Lake Michigan shoreline, an area historically impacted by elevated ozone concentrations. The lakeshore areas have experienced an average reduction in ground-level ozone concentrations of 25% since 2001.

This notable decrease in ozone concentrations allowed the EPA to recently determine that several lakeshore areas are now meeting federal ozone standards, including parts of Door and Sheboygan counties.

The report also includes updated emissions data, which shows that air pollutant emissions in Wisconsin decreased substantially from 2002 to 2017. Some highlights include: A 63% drop in emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and a 58% drop in volatile organic compounds (VOCs), the compounds that form ground-level ozone;

Photo via, Wisconsin DNR The DNR’s 2020 Air Quality Trends Report confirms decreasing concentrations of most pollutants across the state.

An 89% drop in sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions; and A nearly 60% reduction in carbon monoxide emissions.

The 2020 report also includes updated maps of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) densities in the atmosphere, derived from National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) satellite data.

From 2006 to 2019, the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) on NASA’s Aura satellite observed reductions of NO2 across the entire state, with the

largest reductions found in the Milwaukee area.

The DNR Air Program attributes the decrease in pollutant concentrations to the implementation of a variety of federal and state pollution control programs. The greatest reductions are the result of cleaner burning and more efficient fuel combustion from highway vehicles and electric utilities.

“State and federal air pollution control programs, as well as voluntary actions taken by companies and citizens,

are responsible for the improvements in air quality in Wisconsin," said DNR air program director Gail Good. "The Air Management Program will continue to work with our partners to study and resolve remaining air quality concerns.”

The 2020 Air Quality Trends Report, along with historic reports are available on DNR’s Air Quality webpage. Current Wisconsin air quality conditions can be found on the Wisconsin Air Quality Monitoring data webpage.

Waterfowl hunters: help stop the spread of aquatic invasive species Jeanne Scherer, AIS outreach specialist, University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension MADISON, Wis. – During the 2020 migratory bird season, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) would like to remind waterfowl hunters to help prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species (AIS) in hunting areas and adjacent waters.

For example, mud can hide seeds, the bulbils of starry stonewort and the eggs or larvae of tiny invaders like spiny water fleas. The faucet snail, which carries intestinal flukes that can kill ducks if they consume them, is also of particular concern to hunters.

Luckily, just a few minutes of preventative action can protect our hunting tradition for generations to come. Before launching into and leaving a water body, hunters should: —Inspect waders, boats, trailers, motors and hunting equipment, including

Photo via, Wisconsin DNR Just a few minutes of preventative action can protect our hunting tradition for generations to come. boots, blinds and dogs.

—Remove all plants, animals and mud to the best of their ability.

—Drain all water from decoys, boats, motors, livewells and other hunting equipment.

—Never move plants or live fish away from a water body.

Additionally, waterfowl hunters

should remove all seed heads and roots when using vegetation for duck blinds.

It is important to note that it is illegal to use phragmites in counties where the plant is listed as prohibited by NR40.

In general, these counties include the western half of Wisconsin.

Learn more about how hunters can help on the DNR website under the

Hunter Resources tab.

To aid in AIS education, outreach modeled after the successful Clean Boats, Clean Waters (CBCW) program is targeting lake, river and wetland hunting access points for the fifth consecutive year. Although more limited this year, boat inspectors and educators are conducting a hunting version of the CBCW survey and talking to hunters about specific aspects of duck hunting that risk moving aquatic invasive species.

Members of Wisconsin’s AIS Partnership, including DNR staff, may also be available to provide presentations and other outreach for hunt clubs and other organizations virtually. They can also answer specific questions about AIS in your preferred hunting region.

For more information on aquatic invasive species, including where they are prohibited and restricted in Wisconsin, visit the DNR’s website.

Arts & Culture

WednesdaY, Oct, 28, 2020

A new series of APT’s ‘Out of the Woods” play readings American Players Theater SPRING GREEN, WIS: American Players Theatre (APT) is proud to once again partner with PBS Wisconsin to share a new series of “Out of the Woods” play readings, performed and recorded live.

This new series will kick off on Friday, November 6 with The Sins of Sor Juana by Karen Zacarías, and will be followed by Nathan Alan Davis’ Nat Turner in Jerusalem on Friday, November 13, and Lydia R. Diamond’s Smart People on Friday, November 20.

The play readings will be posted at 7:00 pm Central Time on those dates, and will be available to stream for free on demand through December 31, 2020 at pbswisconsin.org/apt. Each play will also stream in full at 7:00 pm CT on those dates on the PBS Wisconsin and APT Facebook pages for viewers to watch along together.

For the last few years, APT has been exploring the idea of just what makes “a classic.” In that vein, this reading series focuses on plays by playwrights who are Black, Indigenous or People of Color, and are created in collaboration with BIPOC directors and artists.

Artistic Director Brenda DeVita said, “People who’ve been in our audience for a while will be very aware of our growing exploration of new voices; of new stories; of asking ourselves again and again what does it mean to be a classic? And we were blown away by

Page 9

Viewing Schedule

the response from our audience –people who have been coming to APT for years, and from people who’ve never set foot on our property – about the first “Out of the Woods” play readings. And it was always our hope that we would be able to produce a second series of play readings written by BIPOC writers, and created by BIPOC artists. It feels vital in this moment to keep pushing ourselves to understand more deeply what it means to be human and to keep ourselves moving forward on our path toward a more equitable theatre space, and a more equitable world.”

This latest edition of the “Out of the Woods” series joins other virtual content APT and its acting company have been involved in creating, such as the Words from the Woods poetry-reading series; Six Feet Apart: Conversations with the Core Company; and The Empty Box: Tales of Royal Screw Ups And/ Or Extraordinary Scene Chewing from the APT Core Company. These videos can be viewed for free at www.americanplayers.org/news/video. APT also just concluded it’s premiere immersive audio experience, “If These Trees Could Talk” this past weekend, which gave audience members an opportunity to safely attend an APT event on the grounds for the first time this year.

APT is grateful for the sponsors whose support helped make this play-reading series happen: Arcadia Books, Dane Arts, Nancy A. McDaniel, Orange Tree Imports and Wilson Creek Pottery.

7 p.m. Nov. 6 The Sins of Sor Juana Juana Inés de la Cruz is a brilliant and controversial poet making waves throughout the Mexican Viceroy’s court – particularly with his wife – in the 1600s by writing about love, feminism, religion and other topics not deemed “appropriate” for women of the time. The Vicereine is so taken with Juana that she arranges an engagement to keep her in court, while the Viceroy plots to ruin her reputation.

Told by Juana from the perspective of two different worlds – the court and the convent – it’s the story of her battle for independence and intellectual freedom; weighty and funny and utterly relevant.

7 p.m. Nov. 13 Nat Turner in Jerusalem In 1831, Nat Turner led a slave revolt that has been credited by some with accelerating the onset of the Civil War. While he was in prison awaiting his execution, Turner dictated his story to attorney Thomas Gray, and it was published as “The Confessions of Nat Turner, the leader of the late insurrection in Southampton, VA.” In Nathan Alan Davis’ 2016 play Nat Turner in Jerusalem, Turner’s final night in jail is reimagined in a meditation on past deeds and future repercussions that The New York Times called “an earnest, gravely lyrical gloss on a document that will surely always evoke passionate and widely different responses.”

7 p.m. Nov. 20 Smart People Just before Obama’s first election, four of Harvard University’s brightest - a surgeon, an actress, a psychologist and a neuropsychiatrist - struggle with a society that considers itself “post-racial,” and is all too often proven wrong. Jackson, Valerie, Ginny and Brian are all interested in different aspects of the brain, particularly in how it responds to race. But they’re also on a quest for love, success and identity in their own lives. A fiercely funny play about social and sexual politics.

! t s 1 5 e h t n i Endorsed Jeff Skatrud Green County Sheriff

Jill Underly, Pecatonica School District Superintendent "Kriss works hard for small towns and has been a partner to our rural school district for years, hosting agribusiness field trips. She understands the relationship between strong communities and schools."

Ricky Rolfsmeyer Iowa County Supervisor "Kriss is a truly independent candidate who works with everyone, that's fairly rare right now."

Nancy Fisker Lafayette County Supervisor "Independent-minded, smart, and kindhearted Kriss Marion shows us everyday how important good local government is.

Working beside her on the county board is a privilege."

Joan Winn Rufenacht Green County Supervisor

Bob Boyle Lafayette County Supervisor

Sue Nelson Green County Supervisor

"Kriss will not allow the wrong voices to control what she knows the people of SW Wisconsin have asked of her to get done."

Paid For By Kriss Marion for SW Wisconsin

Arianna Voegli, Green County Clerk Erica Roth, Green County Supervisor Rita Buchholz, Lafayette Co Supervisor Bob Boyle, Lafayette County Supervisor Bob Laeser, Lafayette County Supervisor Mike Klein, Lafayette County Superviser Carmen McDonald, Lafayette Co Super Tim Burke, Frm Gratiot Village President Gary Signer, Gratiot Village President Tom Moore, Argyle Village President Gary McCrea, Benton Village President Denis Olson, Blanchardville Trustee Lili Cary, Blanchardville Trustee Ron Syse, Blanchardville Trustee Congressman Mark Pocan Senator Tammy Baldwin President Barak Obama Vice President Joe Biden

Marty Brewer, Richland County Chair Jeanetta Kirkpatrick, frmr Richland Board Chair Steve Carrow, Richland Co Supervisor Donald Seep, Richland County Supervisor Lee Van Landuyt, Richland Co Supervisor Melissa Luck, Richland County Supervisor Shaun Murphy-Lopez, Richland County Supervisor Shane Gibson, Sauk County Board Valerie McAuliffe, Sauk County Board Pat Rego, Sauk County Board Peter Kinsman, Sauk County Board Rob Nelson, Sauk County Board Joan Warner Davis, Iowa County Board Erin Gallagher, Darlington City Council Congressman Ron Kind Doug LaFollette, Secretary of State Sarah Godlewski, State Treasurer Josh Kaul, Attorney General Governor Tony Evers

"People know she is ready to hit the ground running in the Legislature, as an honest and committed reformer who will stand strong for open government, who will work across party lines if possible, and put the interests of rural schools and Main Streets on the agenda of the legislature and the Governor's office."

Page 10 WednesdaY, Oct, 28, 2020

Sports

Blackhawks defeat Platteville Hillmen at Saturday game

Photos by Emilie Conlon, Editor-in-Chief

The River Valley Blackhawk varsity football team defeated the Platteville Hillman 30-14 at Saturday’s away game.

The Blackhawks are back home this week, going against Mineral Point at 7 p.m. Oct. 30.

Top right: Wide Receiver Issac Prem, No. 25 reaches to catch the ball before being tackled by a Platteville Hillman.

Top left: Tight End No. 27 Zack Vickerman dives to catch the ball on Saturday.

Bottom: Coach Kevin Billington rallies Blackhawks players during a timeout in Saturday’s away game.

For more photos and video from Saturday’s games visit www.valleysentinelnews.com later this week

Sports

WednesdaY, Oct, 28, 2020

Page 11

Q&A: RV plans winter sports, says sports not responsible COMMUNITY for COVID-19 spread CALENDAR Recently, the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) released both their winter guidelines and a University of Wisconsin study that found scholastic sports were not a significant source for spreading COVID-19. Valley Sentinel spoke with River Valley School District’s Activities Director Jaime Hegland about how the District will handle winter sports and its data on the spread of coronavirus in athletics.

Valley Sentinel: What challenges do you expect the indoor winter sports season to bring and how do you expect that River Valley will rise to meet them?

Jaime Hegland: The challenge is that practices and competitions are indoors and all sports are considered contact sports. I believe we’ve done a good job implementing our safety protocols for the fall season. We’re currently working as a member of the Southwest Conference to develop our protocols for winter, which will be based upon the WIAA’s Winter Sport’s Guidelines.

VS: What are some ways you expect sports to be different this winter season?

JH: We’ll see different approaches to the “normal” operations during competitions; like the elimination of the jump ball in basketball, like the elimination of handshakes to start and end wrestling matches, like detailed sanitizing of equipment and apparatus in gymnastics. Obviously the seasons are shorter, so there will be less competition in general. The schedules will reflect less travel and likely the elimination of in-season tournaments. Wrestling for example, is only allowed to have dual meet competitions 6-7 days apart.

VS: What should the community expect spectating to look like? Should

they expect to spectate in person or should we all have RVTV bookmarked?

JH: Spectating at winter events has been a hot topic. As a conference we will work to incorporate a common approach within our operating protocols. I will continue to advocate for two spectators for each student-athlete and coach, but again, as a conference we feel it is important to agree on this topic. RVTV does a great job, Matt Snow works incredibly hard to provide as many viewing opportunities as possible for the River Valley Community.

VS: Has there been any similar discussion or do you expect River Valley and the SWC to hold a full winter season?

JH: We are planning to operate winter sports and other activities like the High School Musical as best we can. Although these activities aren’t required, I believe they’re essential to physical, mental, social, and emotional well-being of our students.

VS: How well do you think River Valley sports have responded to COVID for the fall season? Are there areas that need improvement before the winter season? Are there areas you think stand as a blueprint to emulate for other schools?

JH: I believe that River Valley has responded well! We are still having students attend in-person school (for those wanting) four days a week, we’ve completed most of the fall sports season.

VS: The WIAA and UW released a study recently that indicated Wisconsin school sports don’t increase COVID-19 cases. Do those findings appear to hold true at River Valley?

JH: Our data doesn’t show that school or sports increase the spread of COVID - 19.

Hopefully that doesn’t change...

Sports and activities this week

Varsity Football Mineral Point vs. River Valley 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30 River Valley High School JV Football River Valley vs. Mineral Point 5:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 2 Mineral Point High School Music Boosters Club Meeting 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3 Wisconsin Riverside Resort (Shifflet’s) Athletic Boosters Club Meeting 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 4 River Valley High School

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Page 12 WednesdaY, Oct, 28, 2020

Outdoors/recreation

Scenic views of the Valley

Photo contributed by Don Greenwood A photo of the Frank Lloyd Wright Visitors Center taken from Peaks Landing, showcasing the changing fall colors surrounding the Valley last weekend.

Vegetable from Venus?

Photo contributed by Steadfast Acres

Owners Steve Shoemaker and Elisabeth Minich of Steadfast Acres near Lone Rock found this unusual looking vegetable growing in a row of cabbages earlier this week.

Shoemaker said he believes the vegetable is a variety of romanesco cauliower, but is not entirely sure of the variety.