Local News Briefs Wednesday 5/27/15

The Division Chief of Fire Prevention for Fond du Lac Fire and Rescue says the house fire at 331 Linden Street Sunday morning started accidentally. Troy Haase says some home construction work was going on and some rags covered with chemicals weren’t disposed of properly. He says any rags used when varnishing, staining or to clean chemicals up need to be dried outside and sealed in a bag away from the home or you do have a chance of spontaneous combustion. He reminds homeowners to make sure you have proper ventilation whenever you are doing staining or varnishing or fumes can build up and even a furnace kicking on can start a fire. Haase says they had a fire in an industrial park in a steel shed because fumes built up from staining. 

Strong Armed Robberies Reported In Oshkosh

The Oshkosh Police Department is investigating three strong armed robberies that occurred early on Monday morning in the 100-200 block of W. Irving Ave. from 1 a.m. until 2 a.m.  In all three incidents a male individual who had been drinking was jumped by a group of individuals. In all three incidents the attackers were males, in two of the incidents they were described as being black and in the third the race of the individuals wasn’t identified conclusively. Cash, a wallet and phones were taken. If anyone can identify the suspects they are asked to call the Oshkosh Police Department at (920) 236-5700.

Former Oshkosh Teachers Aide Gets Prison Sentence

The former Oshkosh teacher’s aide who had sex with a 14-year-old student has been sentenced to five years in prison. Twenty-seven-year-old Lindsey Quednow was sentenced in Winnebago County Court Tuesday on repeated sexual assault of the same child and child enticement charges. In addition to the prison term she will serve 15 years of extended supervision and 10 years of probation. According to prosecutors the two met while she was working as a teacher’s aide at the Merrill Middle School. The sexual relationship started last July when the two began working together at the same restaurant. Their sexual encounters took place at her Oshkosh home.

Mercury Groundbreaking

Mercury Marine officials will break ground today for a 45,000 square foot EDP plant at their Fond du Lac headquarters. Mercury Marine President John Pfeifer and local dignitaries will attend the ceremony this morning. The new EDP system will double the capacity of the current system.

FDL City Council Preview

The Fond du Lac City Council will be asked tonight to approve four special use permits, one of which could lead to some new business at a mostly-vacant industrial site. Jor-Mac Company of Lomira is interested in buying the site at 475 South Seymour Street. Community Development Director Dyann Benson says Jor-Mac is a metal fabricating business and they are interested in doing business in Fond du Lac. She says they will keep their business in Lomira with the expansion to Fond du Lac. Last May Jor-Mac acquired Empire Coating, an established provider of custom powder solutions. She says Empire Coating will be moving in with them. They will also rent out some of the office space. The property is at the intersection of South Military Road. The Council will also consider a special use permit that would allow the Congregation of the Sisters of Saint Agnes to put up solar paneling for the Motherhouse on County Highway K. The Council meets at 6 p.m. at the City-County Government Center. 

NFDL Schools Superintendent Reflects On State Budget Funding

North Fond du Lac Schools Superintendent Aaron Sadoff says he’s encouraged that public school funding in the state budget won’t be as dire as first thought. Aaron Sadoff says he recently watched some of the Joint Finance Committee’s meetings on television. He says some funding has been restored and instead of a $127 million cut their will be no cut for the first year in the budget. He says choices were made he says the JFC and the Governor chose lowering property taxes over roads, construction and education in the state budget. He says there could even be a slight increase for public education in the second year of the state budget. He says it’s a process. He says the goal of educators is still to make learning a great experience even in light of funding cuts.

Grothman Bill Would Eliminate Obamacare Marriage Penalty

Legislation introduced by Congressman Glenn Grothman would eliminate the marriage penalty for Obamacare. Grothman says there are too many marriage penalties that discourage people from getting married. He says subsidies under Obamacare aren’t there for low-income married couples. Under the President’s health care law premium subsidies are available, through tax credits, to low and middle income families to pay for health care coverage. But combined income has to be less than 400 percent of the federal poverty level or roughly $62,000. Congressman Grothman says his bill would require that the premium subsidies be calculated using each individual’s income rather than collectively. The bill would also adjusting subsidy eligibility levels to ensure couples with the most need still will receive subsidies.

Health Care Consortium Will Save MPTC Employees And Taxpayers Money

The director of finance for Moraine Park Technical College says employees of the college will be seeing a little more in their paychecks over the next few months. MPTC Finance Director Carrie Kasubaske says employees will be getting raise of 1.62 percent for base salary for all employee groups which is in line with the consumer price index. She says they also have joined a health care consortium with five other colleges effective July 1st. She says it will be a seamless transition for employees because the plan won’t change that much and the networks will stay the same. The consortium will help them save money for taxpayers and their employees. She says they expect to save about $2 million in the first year alone and $386,000 of that will be for the Moraine Park District.

Leadership FDL Teams Educates About Clean Water

The Fondy Five Leadership Fond du Lac team is getting the word out that “Clean Water Starts in our Backyard.” Jill Wendt of the team says a flier included in City Water bills is being sent out giving tips about conserving water and making sure that what ends up in Lake Winnebago is clean water. The first mailing went out with the April bills and overall the mailing will reach about 17,000 households. She says one way to conserve is through the installation of rain barrel in your yard. She says they also want to make sure that the fertilizer you use in your garden or salt on your driveway and walks during the winter doesn’t end up running off into storm drains. She says people can learn more through the video the Lake Winnebago Quality Improvement Association put out, which is featured at the Fond du Lac County website.

Registration Still Being Accepted For RMC Foundation Golf Outing

The Foundation for Ripon Medical Center is still accepting golfers for its Wednesday, June 3 Charity Golf Outing at the Woodlands course at the Golf Courses of Lawsonia. The outing will begin at 10 a.m. with registration and a shotgun start at 11:30 a.m. A prime rib dinner will begin at 5 p.m., followed by raffles and auctions, concluding the day’s activities. This year’s outing will help raise money for the future development of healing gardens at Ripon Medical Center. To learn more or register call Shawn Fisher at (920) 926-4959.