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RHINELANDER - You can now use water from the Crescent Water Spring without needing to boil it.
The Oneida County Health Department finished treating the spring with chlorine. The spring was treated after it recorded high bacteria levels.
Sanitarians say the bacteria formed because the cover on the spring box was old and leaking.
MANITOWISH WATERS - Barbara McFarland is the last surviving, founding member of Manito Art League. Their art show in Manitowish Waters is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.
"It's very eclectic; we have all kinds of three-dimensional work, as well as paintings in every media you can imagine," said McFarland.
The show today has nearly 100 artists. McFarland's love for art came from her mother. Mcfarland's mother was an artist and helped her create a passion at a young age.
TOMAHAWK, IRMA - Marcus Wydeven, 50, was a nearly 20-year employee of the Lincoln County Highway Department. He was also a husband, son, father, brother, coworker, neighbor and friend, but he died Tuesday afternoon after he was struck by a car while flagging traffic on Highway 17 in Merrill.
Wydeven is survived by his wife, sister, mother, son and two step-sons. Friends said he was soon going to be a grandfather.
"He was such a great person," said Kevin Koth, Wydeven's friend. "It's sad someone that young is taken away so quickly on a tragedy."
CHATTANOOGA, TN - The U.S. National Counterterrorism Center is reporting no apparent nexus to terrorism has been uncovered in the investigation of the fatal shootings in Tennessee, but intelligence officials are monitoring the investigation closely.
It also says there has been no credible claim of responsibility so far for anyone who might have influenced the gunman, who also was killed.
Those details were in a report the counterterrorism center circulated Thursday evening to U.S. law enforcement agencies. The Associated Press reviewed the report.
CHATTANOOGA, TN - The U.S. National Counterterrorism Center is reporting no apparent nexus to terrorism has been uncovered in the investigation of the fatal shootings in Tennessee, but intelligence officials are monitoring the investigation closely.
It also says there has been no credible claim of responsibility so far for anyone who might have influenced the gunman, who also was killed.
Those details were in a report the counterterrorism center circulated Thursday evening to U.S. law enforcement agencies. The Associated Press reviewed the report.
RHINELANDER - The Executive Director of Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) talked with leaders in Rhinelander Thursday afternoon.
Local leaders discussed their challenges and asked what opportunities they have with WHEDA, including finding resources for revitalizing downtown Rhinelander.
The city wants to upgrade its downtown while its main street gets torn up for a project in 2016. And the state might have resources to help.
EAGLE RIVER - Trees For Tomorrow in Eagle River wants to teach kids about science through hands-on learning. Its Science and Earth Exploration for Kids Adventure Series, or S.E.E.K. program offers just that.
About 15 kids ages eight through 12 go to S.E.E.K. each week. The camp has a new theme each day. Thursday's theme was animal CSI. Kids learned about animal adaptation and how to track animals.
"How can mammals actually blend into the woods as well as they can? Why can't we? And so it's all about answering those questions along the way, but in a way that's an experience to make sure it sticks in their minds," said Trees For Tomorrow School Program Coordinator Mary Beth Factor.
RHINELANDER - On Friday, July 10, the captain of the Pine Lake Fire Department passed away. A.J. Wege had been a member of the department since he was just 14 years old. Family members said that Wege loved what he did, and loved helping others.
We told you about Wege's battle with Cystic Fibrosis back on Father's Day of this year. About a year ago, he found out he needed a lung transplant, but over the past few months, his condition didn't get any better.
"He began to go through the process to get ready for that [the transplant], but he could never seem to get his health exactly where he needed to have it for eligibility for the lung transplant list," said Terri Hook, Wege's aunt.
LINCOLN COUNTY - A Merrill man could face prison time for selling meth.
Tomahawk police arrested the 27-year-old man yesterday afternoon. The man had meth, marijuana, drug paraphernalia and about 18-hundred dollars in cash on him.
Chief Al Elvins says his department worked with Merrill police, the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office and the North Central Drug Enforcement Task Force to track and arrest the man.
RHINELANDER - Rhinelander's oldest restaurant just got a new home.
Sportsman's Cafe moved from its old location on Thayer Street to Stevens Street.
Now, it's at the Claridge Restaurant at the Days Inn and Suites.
WISCONSIN - You might be tired after spending one day paddling a kayak, but one Lincoln County man plans on paddling for 13 days.
It's all to raise money for the American Cancer Society.
Vince Lofquist will paddle down the entire Wisconsin River for cancer research.
MCMILLAN, WI - A Wisconsin bicyclist training for an annual long-distance Iowa bike ride has died after being struck by a car while training for the event.
The Des Moines Register reports (http://bit.ly/1e21Ivv ) that 52-year-old Donna David, of Marshfield, Wisconsin, was cycling Monday on a paved county road in the central Wisconsin town of McMillan just before 6 p.m. when she was hit by a car.
She was training for the Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa, which begins Sunday in Sioux City, Iowa.
HORICON - A tanker truck carrying ethanol has erupted in a huge ball of flames after colliding with a car on a highway in Dodge County.
Sheriff Dale Schmidt says flames reached 20 to 40 feet in the air after the tanker rolled over on Highway 33 and caught fire about 8:30 a.m. Thursday near Horicon.
The driver of the semi escaped the burning tanker with minor injuries. Schmidt says the driver of the car was seriously injured and taken by medical helicopter to the hospital.
MERRILL - Merrill native David Jesperson will come back home after spending a year playing college basketball at Pepperdine University in California.
That's because he'll get to play for the UW Green Bay Phoenix.
"Being able to see all my family, friends, having family and friends come to games, that'll definitely be huge," says Jesperson. "Green Bay has always been the school I've been interested in playing [for], so when I found out about the new coach, and I already had a teammate that plays there—I played with him in AAU—so I already had that connection. And then when they contacted me it really just kind of really sparked my interest, and I took my visit and I loved it."
STEVENS POINT - The Bassmaster College Series in Stevens Point gave one fisherman the chance to make his family and community proud this past weekend.
Trevor Lo won the College Series Classic Bracket, which earned him an automatic berth in a fishing tournament at the top level.
"I get a ticket to the Bassmaster Classic, which is the biggest tournament on the face of the world for bass fishing," said Lo.
MERRILL - A highway worker doing his job died after being hit by a car in Lincoln County.
It happened just after 2-30 yesterday afternoon on Highway 17 in Merrill.
An 84 year old driver hit a a 50 year working for the Lincoln County Highway Department.
RHINELANDER - You can treasure hunt in your own backyard. All it takes is a GPS and a sense of adventure.
Eight years ago, Pete Rondello didn't know anything about geocaching. He and his son found a strange box at the top of a sledding hill. He found a new lifestyle that day.
"I went back home and looked it up. And, I said, 'Hey Chris, it's like a treasure hunt for grown-ups!'" said Rondello.
SOUTH CAROLINA - Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker keeps moving as he rolls out his campaign for president.
Wednesday Walker turned up at a Harley Davidson dealership in South Carolina.
It's one of four states Walker will visit following his Monday evening announcement that he's running for president.
ANTIGO - A 100-foot-long, 20-foot-high fiberglass tank was transported from Wisconsin Rapids to Eagle River Tuesday, as crews navigated the tank through a number of northern Wisconsin counties.
Perkins STC was working with Wisconsin Public Service (WPS) as well as cable and telephone companies to get the tank through the area. It's on its way to Saskatchewan, Canada.
It's the second time in 2015 that WPS has helped move a tank through the area.
MADISON - Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel has asked a federal judge to declare state budget provisions requiring food stamp recipients to undergo drug testing are legal.
The budget Republican Gov. Scott Walker signed on Sunday contains language requiring food stamp recipients to undergo drug screening. If they fail the screen they must go through drug testing and treatment.
Schimel filed a lawsuit Tuesday in Milwaukee against a number of federal food officials noting one of them sent an email to the state in email warning that states are prohibited from imposing any additional eligibility conditions on food stamp recipients. The lawsuit alleges federal law says states shall not be prohibited from testing welfare recipients for controlled substances.
WAUKESHA - Gov. Scott Walker's presidential campaign will take him outside of Wisconsin often. When he's gone, Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch will be the top elected official inside state lines.
This week alone, Walker will campaign in Nevada, South Carolina, New Hampshire, and Iowa. Expect a busy travel calendar in what could be as long as a 16-month presidential campaign.
How could that change Kleefisch's role? According to her, not much.
MINOCQUA - The Minocqua Public Library wants you to donate books you don't want to keep. The library will sell these books at its sale on August 11 and 12.
You can donate books, DVDs, and audio books any day of the week. If you have a lot to donate, the library staff can help you park in the back for easier unloading.
Do you remember the names Scout and Atticus Finch? Fifty-five years ago they appeared in Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird." Decades later they're back—and as popular as ever.
Lee's second novel, "Go Set a Watchman," follows up on Lee's hugely popular first book. In the new novel, Scout, the main character, is grown up and goes back to her southern home in the middle of the Civil Rights Movement. People in the Northwoods and all over the world can't wait to read it.
"The demand has been pretty impressive," said MaryTaylor, a librarian at the Minocqua Public Library. "People are talking about it."
RHINELANDER - Some contractors struggle to find skilled workers here in the Northwoods. There is a high demand for them now that home construction is back in high gear.
To meet the demand, Nicolet College is starting a Carpentry Apprenticeship Program this fall. It's geared toward people with little to no experience.
"They're paired up with a journey worker, someone that already has all the skills that a carpenter would need to have to be effective in the workforce," says Nicolet College Dean Brigitte Kumbier. "So they partner them up and the apprentice learns from the journey worker and after a four year period of time they earn the journey worker credential."
ANTIGO - Shoppers in downtown Antigo can now find more available parking spots. It's all thanks to the city and a community group named Antigo First teaming up to update the outdated street design.
Now, city crews are getting rid of Antigo's bump outs along Fifth Avenue.
"They are finally coming out –not all of them," says Antigo First's president Roseann Hoffman. We have six or seven that are scheduled to come out. The city is tearing them out right now today."
RHINELANDER - Half of Wisconsin's mussels and clams fall under endangered or threatened species. A group of volunteers went out Tuesday morning to survey mussels in local waterbeds.
The program was sponsored by the Oneida County Aquatic Invasive Species Program. There's very little information on the state's mussel population, and volunteers say they are very important to local ecosystems.
"Native fresh water mussels are actually very vital to stream ecosystems," said UW-Green Bay graduate student Jesse Weinzinger. "They filter water. They are good indicators to water pollution because they are very sensitive to change."
STEVENS POINT - The best college bass fishermen in the country competed in Stevens Point on Lake Du Bay and the Wisconsin River Flowage over the past six days in the 2015 Carhatt Bassmaster Challenge.
Texas A&M won the national championship on Saturday, but Victor Lo of the University of Minnesota won the bracket challenge Tuesday.
The bracket was made up by the individuals of the top four finishing teams in the championship.
RHINELANDER - Many people in the Northwoods will spend this weekend in the classroom when the 52nd annual School of the Arts kicks off at James Williams Middle School in Rhinelander Friday morning.
This year's event will see a change from past years, as organizers shorten it from five days to three. They hope the weekend schedule will make the event more accessible for people who work during the week.
"We have a three-day format. We're having classes all day Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and people have a choice of 35 different classes that they can take, and each class meets for a certain time each day," says School of the Arts Director Lynn Tarnoff.
RHINELANDER - Tom Jorden spent two decades cooking fine cuisine, but he always wanted his own kitchen.
Chef Tom and Rhonda Jicinsky's new deli brings a new twist on cuisines to downtown Rhinelander.
CT's Deli on Brown Street features sandwiches, soups, and in-house smoked meats.
MADISON - A Wisconsin appeals court says a man who killed his young daughters to hurt his ex-wife was properly convicted.
Prosecutors charged Aaron Schaffhausen with killing his three girls at their River Falls home in 2012. He pleaded guilty but maintained he was insane.
A jury determined, however, that he didn't lack the capacity to understand his conduct was wrong.
