KFIZ News Wednesday 7/13/16

DFP Official Enthusiastic About Retlaw Hotel Purchase

An official with the Downtown Fond du Lac Partnership says they are encouraged by the recent purchase of the Retlaw Hotel. Frantz Community Investors purchased the hotel during an online auction last month. Fond du Lac County Judge Richard Nuss approved the sale last week. The hotel had been in receivership. Dusty Krikau is the Director of Communications and Special Events for the DFP. She says the new owners run the Northland Hotel in Green Bay, which is similar to the Retlaw. She says they have seen the planned layout and it should be a wonderful project. She says the state’s historic tax credit program is important to the project because the new owners want to keep the historic character of the hotel in place.

FDL City Council Preview

Tonight the Fond du Lac City Council will be discussing whether to allow dogs in City parks. The City’s Advisory Parks Board recently voted 4 to 3 against recommending an ordinance change to allow dogs in parks. Also this evening the Council will consider a resolution for a new street that would be called Police Memorial Drive. It would include a square of right-of-way for a future memorial area to fallen police officers. The street would be between Camelot Drive and Martin Road.  The Council meets at 6 p.m. at the City-County Government Center.

Pokemon Go Concerns

The Pokemon Go game may seem innocent, but it is causing some concerns. The game involves collecting characters as you walk. Oshkosh Police advised those using the app on their smart phones that some areas are off limits. That would include private property, signed government facilities, and parks when they are closed. Police also warn in some areas of the country criminals are using the game to lure unsuspecting victims to areas. There’s also a warning that giving the game full access to your Google account could leave you vulnerable to identity theft. 

Intersection Closed For Water Work

Fond du Lac’s Public Works Department tells us the intersection of East Scott Street and Roosevelt Street will be closed starting today. It will remain closed until Friday July 22nd. It’s being closed to allow water boring operations in conjunction with the Well 27 Expansion Project. Traffic will be to Winnebago Drive.

Campbellsport School District Gets Transportation Aid

The Campbellsport School District is one of 128 districts across the state that received aid for above-average student transportation costs. The district got just shy of $40,000 last month through the program. The state’s Department of Public Instruction distributed $7.5 million in aid through the program.

Missing Boys Got Lost In Mine

Three missing Dodge County teens were found after spending 20 hours inside one of the mines in the Neda Mine District near Iron Ridge Monday afternoon. Sixteen-year-old Zachary Heron, 16-year-old Tate Rose, and 15-year-old Samuel Lein were pulled to safety around 12:45 that afternoon. Sheriff Dale Schmidt says the boys became lost inside one of the mining tunnels. He says their cell phone batteries died. He says they huddled up to stay warm and conserved energy until rescuers came in to find them. He says 75-100 people were involved in the search. A rescue team from the Milwaukee Fire Department actually found the boys in the mine. He says the boys weren’t in bad shape considering their adventure. He says they had some scratches and bumps, and were dehydrated. The Neda Mine is owned by the UW-Milwaukee.  It is used for research studies and has the Midwest’s largest bat colony with roughly 200,000 animals.  

Sheboygan Murder Suspects Caugh In Milwaukee

Three people were taken into custody Monday afternoon, suspects in a Sheboygan murder.  Those suspects are 22-year-old Donovan Cotter, 27-year-old Patrick Evans and 31-year-old Candace DeBlaey. They’re accused in the fatal stabbing of 38-year-old Phillip Spell of Sheboygan.  Sheboygan Police lieutenant Bill Adams says they have no more suspects. He says,” Very happy to have them in custody, we are continuing the investigation, interviewing them, but at this point we are not looking for any further suspects.”

Dodge County Judge Sentences Man On Felony Child Abuse Charge

A Dodge County judge sentenced a 24-year-old West Virginia man to more then seven months in the County jail on felony child abuse charge. William Streets pled guilty to the charge in April. It stems from an incident in March of last year when a Waupun daycare worked called police about bruises on a child. Streets admitted the bruises were from a violent spanking.  He’s also been placed on probation for three years.

Oshkosh Sex Offender Released

Oshkosh Police say a 38-year-old sex offender has moved to 1105 Jefferson Avenue in the city. Matthew Stahmann has convictions for exposure crimes in 2007 and 2nd degree sexual assault of a child charges in 2009. His victim in the later crime was a 15-year-old girl. He will be on GPS monitoring and is on extended supervision until December of 2024.