Stevens Point Current: Forums set for school referendum and meetings planned to discuss Business 51 concerns
Stevens Point Current is a new regular column in the Stevens Point Journal by Service Journalism Reporter Erik Pfantz that will cover a range of topics in city and county governments and local school districts to highlight the many items that flow past our local decision-makers.
If you have items you would like to see highlighted in this column, please reach out to Erik at epfantz@gannett.com.
Committee to decide on 'corrective action' against County Board supervisor
The Portage County Executive/Operations Committee will meet Feb 6 to decide whether to forward its recommended “corrective action” to the County Board for District 25 Supervisor Dave Peterson following violations of the Code of Conduct policy detailed in Sept. 2023 complaints.
At its Jan. 9 meeting, the committee decided its corrective action would be to ask Peterson to follow the Code of Conduct and to view what District 7 Supervisor Dave Ladick described as “webinars” made by the Wisconsin Counties Association on how to perform the role of a county board supervisor.
Some other corrective options could lead to hearings and other official proceedings, according to the county’s outside council. The committee’s discussion while making the choice centered around Peterson’s lack of experience.
Ladick said it was “highly unusual” for a first-term supervisor to be a chair of a committee. District 11 Supervisor Stan Potocki said the Land and Water Conservation Committee is more challenging for a chair to manage.
Some of Peterson’s confirmed violations include “lack(ing) dignity and respect” when addressing staff and members of the public, a vague or misleading agenda item for an October 2022 Land and Water Conservation Committee meeting and lacking fairness in comments like, “farmers take precedence over science.”
The committee confirmed 25 pieces of evidence after breaking the complaints down into dozens of individual instances and analyzing them one by one at a Dec. 12 meeting that took over five hours.
School District Community Forum
The Stevens Point Area School District is holding community forums on its proposed $14 million operational referendum at 6 p.m. Feb. 7 and March 13 in the Stevens Point Area Senior High auditorium, 1201 North Point Drive.
The referendum’s primary goals are to attract and maintain quality staff, continue to offer diverse academic programming, continue to provide ongoing maintenance of software and hardware so students are using current technologies and increase mental health support services in the schools, according Sarah O’Donnell, the district’s director of communications.
The school funding question will appear on the April 2 ballot.
Property owners along Business 51 invited to discuss project
Stevens Point is requesting meetings with property owners adjacent to the north and central segments of Business 51 and has scheduled 10 hours of availability between Jan. 31 and Feb. 1 for 30-minute meetings.
“You will be able to ask the project team questions, view drawings of the proposed improvements, and discuss potential design concerns you may have,” Scott Beduhn, the city’s director of public works, wrote in a Jan. 15 letter. “For business owners, we would like to better understand your business functions that may be impacted by the proposed project.”
To schedule an appointment during the office hours, call 715-346-1564 or go to tinyurl.com/BUS51Meetings.
The proposed design for the north segment, between North Point Drive and Fourth Avenue, includes a two-lane divided road with a raised median. The proposal for the central segment, between Fourth Avenue and Patch Street, is a two-lane road with a center two-way left turn lane.
The average annual daily traffic count for the Business 51 corridor was between 9,000 and 13,700 in 2017 and a 2020 forecast predicted an annual count in 2045 to be between 10,300 and 15,700. The Sixth Edition of the Highway Capacity Manual, published in 2016, recommends two-lane roads with left turn lanes at roughly 18,000 vehicles per day and four-lane roads with left turn lanes at roughly 36,000 vehicles per day.
Plover Area CVB launches Go for It Grant Program
The Plover Area Convention and Visitors Bureau launched a grant program Tuesday to support projects or events that ultimately promote tourism to the area.
The Bureau allocated $120,000 for the 2024 Go for It Grant Program. It is accepting applications on a rolling basis and is interested in supporting projects including things like recreation and sporting facility developments, music events, car shows and tours.
“The Go for It Grant Program underscores our commitment to supporting and fostering positive change within our community,” PACVB Executive Director Malorie Paine said in a news release. “We look forward to receiving innovative and impactful proposals that will make a lasting difference."
More information on the grant program, eligibility and application process can be found at comeovertoplover.com/grants.
More local news: Street reconstruction project on Stevens Point's north side adds roundabout and extends sidewalk
More local news: Portage County Board votes down April referendum to fund Health Care Center
Erik Pfantz covers local government and education in central Wisconsin for USA-TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin and values his background as a rural Wisconsinite. Reach him at epfantz@gannett.com or connect with him on X (formerly Twitter) @ErikPfantz.
This article originally appeared on Stevens Point Journal: Stevens Point Current: School referendum forums, Business 51 meetings
