2011: News from the year in review
Readers of the County Post West will remember 2011 as the year when Rory Kuenzi was twice sentenced to prison, a city official was investigated, convicted of embezzlement and sentenced to prison, hundreds of protestors marched outside city hall, State Sen. Luther Olsen survived a recall, meetings of the I-S School Board became stormy and Lake Weyauwega was drawn down.
The year was also significant for the County Post, especially for the newspaper's WaupacaNow website.
Over the course of the year, the number of unique visitors to WaupacaNow and the number of page views more than doubled. This summer, WaupacaNow reached over 14,000 visitors and more than 100,000 page views per month.
Waupaca
In January, Judge Philip Kirk sentenced Rory Kuenzi to 23 years in state prison. Then 26 years old, Kuenzi had been convicted two months earlier of hit-and-run involving death and of homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle after a four-day trial.
Kuenzi killed Kevin McCoy on Oct. 23, 2004, after driving from an underage drinking party at a home on Butts Road in the town of Farmington. McCoy was 20 years old at the time of his death.
Kuenzi returned to court on Nov. 29, 2011, and pleaded no contest to three felony counts of cruelty to animals causing death. In January 2009, Kuenzi and two other rural Weyauwega men, Robby Kuenzi and Nicholas Hermes, were accused of using their snowmobiles to run down and kill deer in the town of Lind.
Kirk sentenced Kuenzi to 11 years in prison in the animal cruelty case. The second prison sentence is to be served concurrent with the first sentence.
On Feb. 22, the first of several demonstrations were held in Waupaca to protest Gov. Scott Walker's bill to eliminate collective bargaining rights for public workers and state budget cuts to schools. Organized by unions representing Wisconsin Veterans Home staff, more than 600 people came to the first protest.
On March 3, the number of protesters in Waupaca's city square more than doubled as teachers, police, social workers, county highway workers and local citizens came out to declare their opposition to the legislation. Speakers addressed the crowd through a bullhorn, pointing out that Republicans proposed balancing the troubled state budget by slashing spending on education and public services, while cutting taxes for corporations.
The crowd chanted "Recall Walker!" and "Recall Olsen!"
On April 18, Wisconsin Democrats filed petitions to recall State Sen. Luther Olsen, R-Ripon. Almost 24,000 signatures were collected in favor of Olsen's recall. In the 14th Senate District, 14,733 signatures were required.
State Rep. Fred Clark, D-Baraboo, ran against Olsen in the recall election. Before the general election, Clark had to defeat Rol Church, a Wautoma Republican running as a Democrat, on July 12.
On Aug. 9, Olsen won with a district total of 26,554 votes to 24,365 votes for Clark. In Waupaca County, Olsen also defeated Clark by a vote of 7,495 to 6,111.
Statewide, a total of nine state senators faced recall elections. Two incumbent Republicans lost their recall races, but the GOP held its Senate majority by one seat.
On June 29, Kirk sentenced Jim Ash to three years in state prison. Ash, the former Waupaca Parks and Recreation director, had been charged and convicted of felony theft at a single hearing on April 21.
Ash was accused of stealing more than $200,000 in funds from the city of Waupaca and from donors to park and recreation programs.
Iola-Scandinavia
Among the top local stories has been the ongoing conflict in the Iola-Scandinavia School District.
In February, District Administrator Joe Price told school board members that the district faced a $150,000 budget shortfall due to declining enrollment and cuts in state financial aid.
In March, a citizens group led by Dennis Kennealy threatened to recall the entire I-S School Board if the members did not agree to delay a vote on the 2011-12 budget. The citizens group wanted the board to reconsider plans to cut teaching staff in order to balance the budget.
Parents and students were also angered by a proposal to split the high school band to accommodate the growing number of participants. The school board voted against the proposal in March.
Other issues that have split the I-S School District over the past year include administrative wages and benefits, and a proposal to eliminate freshman athletics.
Although the recall never materialized, two incumbent school board members were ousted in the April election. Randy Frye was defeated by Jeffrey Oppor, and Dan Loken lost to challenger Bruce Beyersdorf, whose election resulted in another controversy when Beyersdorf was told he must resign as head track coach in order to serve on the board.
In June, a Community Advisory Committee was formed, chaired by Mike Koles, to "provide independent research, ideas and potential strategies to the I-S School Board that address contemporary education issues and enhance youth development."
Also in Iola news, Central Wisconsin Electric Cooperative moved its headquarters from Iola to Rosholt in the spring of 2011. CWEC serves around 8,000 members in Marathon, Shawano, Portage and Waupaca counties.
Weyauwega-Fremont
After a decade of discussion and planning, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources began drawing down Lake Weyauwega on June 17.
The estimated cost of the drawdown is $68,000. Most of that cost will be to reimburse North American Hydro, which produces electricity at the dam, for a loss of income during the drawdown.
Due to thick weeds and sediment, Lake Weyauwega was seldom being used for recreational activities. The goal of the drawdown is to dry out the lake for about nine to 10 months, killing off the unwanted vegetation.
In July, the Fremont Wolf River Fire Department celebrated 100 years of history.
When it was organized in 1911, the department was equipped with a power fire engine and 500 feet of hose, which were used for more than a quarter of a century.
In 1938, the village of Fremont united with the towns of Fremont and Wolf River to buy equipment, and by October of that year, they purchased a new fire truck, which was housed in the village.
According to their contract, each town was to appoint 22 firemen to assist at fires, with the department being known as the Fremont Rural Fire Department.
In September, Fremont Elementary was among eight schools in Wisconsin to be named a Blue Ribbon School.
On Nov. 17, an open house and ceremony were held at Fremont Elementary to celebrate the school's success.
The year was also significant for the County Post, especially for the newspaper's WaupacaNow website.
Over the course of the year, the number of unique visitors to WaupacaNow and the number of page views more than doubled. This summer, WaupacaNow reached over 14,000 visitors and more than 100,000 page views per month.
Waupaca
In January, Judge Philip Kirk sentenced Rory Kuenzi to 23 years in state prison. Then 26 years old, Kuenzi had been convicted two months earlier of hit-and-run involving death and of homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle after a four-day trial.
Kuenzi killed Kevin McCoy on Oct. 23, 2004, after driving from an underage drinking party at a home on Butts Road in the town of Farmington. McCoy was 20 years old at the time of his death.
Kuenzi returned to court on Nov. 29, 2011, and pleaded no contest to three felony counts of cruelty to animals causing death. In January 2009, Kuenzi and two other rural Weyauwega men, Robby Kuenzi and Nicholas Hermes, were accused of using their snowmobiles to run down and kill deer in the town of Lind.
Kirk sentenced Kuenzi to 11 years in prison in the animal cruelty case. The second prison sentence is to be served concurrent with the first sentence.
On Feb. 22, the first of several demonstrations were held in Waupaca to protest Gov. Scott Walker's bill to eliminate collective bargaining rights for public workers and state budget cuts to schools. Organized by unions representing Wisconsin Veterans Home staff, more than 600 people came to the first protest.
On March 3, the number of protesters in Waupaca's city square more than doubled as teachers, police, social workers, county highway workers and local citizens came out to declare their opposition to the legislation. Speakers addressed the crowd through a bullhorn, pointing out that Republicans proposed balancing the troubled state budget by slashing spending on education and public services, while cutting taxes for corporations.
The crowd chanted "Recall Walker!" and "Recall Olsen!"
On April 18, Wisconsin Democrats filed petitions to recall State Sen. Luther Olsen, R-Ripon. Almost 24,000 signatures were collected in favor of Olsen's recall. In the 14th Senate District, 14,733 signatures were required.
State Rep. Fred Clark, D-Baraboo, ran against Olsen in the recall election. Before the general election, Clark had to defeat Rol Church, a Wautoma Republican running as a Democrat, on July 12.
On Aug. 9, Olsen won with a district total of 26,554 votes to 24,365 votes for Clark. In Waupaca County, Olsen also defeated Clark by a vote of 7,495 to 6,111.
Statewide, a total of nine state senators faced recall elections. Two incumbent Republicans lost their recall races, but the GOP held its Senate majority by one seat.
On June 29, Kirk sentenced Jim Ash to three years in state prison. Ash, the former Waupaca Parks and Recreation director, had been charged and convicted of felony theft at a single hearing on April 21.
Ash was accused of stealing more than $200,000 in funds from the city of Waupaca and from donors to park and recreation programs.
Iola-Scandinavia
Among the top local stories has been the ongoing conflict in the Iola-Scandinavia School District.
In February, District Administrator Joe Price told school board members that the district faced a $150,000 budget shortfall due to declining enrollment and cuts in state financial aid.
In March, a citizens group led by Dennis Kennealy threatened to recall the entire I-S School Board if the members did not agree to delay a vote on the 2011-12 budget. The citizens group wanted the board to reconsider plans to cut teaching staff in order to balance the budget.
Parents and students were also angered by a proposal to split the high school band to accommodate the growing number of participants. The school board voted against the proposal in March.
Other issues that have split the I-S School District over the past year include administrative wages and benefits, and a proposal to eliminate freshman athletics.
Although the recall never materialized, two incumbent school board members were ousted in the April election. Randy Frye was defeated by Jeffrey Oppor, and Dan Loken lost to challenger Bruce Beyersdorf, whose election resulted in another controversy when Beyersdorf was told he must resign as head track coach in order to serve on the board.
In June, a Community Advisory Committee was formed, chaired by Mike Koles, to "provide independent research, ideas and potential strategies to the I-S School Board that address contemporary education issues and enhance youth development."
Also in Iola news, Central Wisconsin Electric Cooperative moved its headquarters from Iola to Rosholt in the spring of 2011. CWEC serves around 8,000 members in Marathon, Shawano, Portage and Waupaca counties.
Weyauwega-Fremont
After a decade of discussion and planning, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources began drawing down Lake Weyauwega on June 17.
The estimated cost of the drawdown is $68,000. Most of that cost will be to reimburse North American Hydro, which produces electricity at the dam, for a loss of income during the drawdown.
Due to thick weeds and sediment, Lake Weyauwega was seldom being used for recreational activities. The goal of the drawdown is to dry out the lake for about nine to 10 months, killing off the unwanted vegetation.
In July, the Fremont Wolf River Fire Department celebrated 100 years of history.
When it was organized in 1911, the department was equipped with a power fire engine and 500 feet of hose, which were used for more than a quarter of a century.
In 1938, the village of Fremont united with the towns of Fremont and Wolf River to buy equipment, and by October of that year, they purchased a new fire truck, which was housed in the village.
According to their contract, each town was to appoint 22 firemen to assist at fires, with the department being known as the Fremont Rural Fire Department.
In September, Fremont Elementary was among eight schools in Wisconsin to be named a Blue Ribbon School.
On Nov. 17, an open house and ceremony were held at Fremont Elementary to celebrate the school's success.
More from Community News
- Seniors caught with pot will graduate (1)
- St. Jude Walk slated in Scaninavia
- Spring Cruise Car Show Friday
- Students learn from Food for America
- Main Street options debated (1)
- Vets Home to hold open house
- Tea Party event in New London (2)
- Benefit set for crash victim's family
- Senior Tribute Concert at WHS
- Book Swap at Lincoln
