Green Bay News

GREEN BAY – Green Bay Police Chief Tom Molitor is stepping down.

Mayor Jim Schmitt says the chief has submitted a resignation letter.

The mayor’s office says the chief’s last day will be July 31.

It’s Molitor’s second retirement from the force, and Schmitt says the chief is just ready to retire.

Molitor started working for the department in 1980. He retired in 2011.

The chief came out of retirement in July of 2012 to serve as interim chief, replacing Jim Arts. Molitor was offered and accepted the position of full time chief in January of 2013.

One month later, Green Bay’s city council granted him an exemption to the city’s residency requirement. Policy states all department heads must live within city limits. Molitor lives in Abrams.

FOX 11’s Laura Smith is working on this story and will have a full report tonight on FOX 11 News at Five.

MADISON (AP) – Gov. Scott Walker says a long-awaited announcement about terms of a deal to pay for a new $500 million arena for the Milwaukee Bucks could come soon.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Thursday that Walker told reporters at a news conference in Waukesha that he was hopeful a Bucks deal could be announced at 3 p.m.

Walker, team officials, state and local Milwaukee government officials have been negotiating for weeks on a deal to pay for the arena in order to keep the NBA team in the state.

The new arena would be part of a $1 billion development that also includes office space, restaurants and bars.

The Journal Sentinel previously reported the deal will include at least $250 million from taxpayers and $250 from current and past Bucks owners.

LA CROSSE (AP) – City leaders in La Crosse are considering whether to make it illegal to have upholstered furniture in outside spaces.

The Common Council is expected to make a decision Thursday on the proposed ordinance banning indoor furniture on outdoor decks, porches, roofs or balconies.

The Judiciary and Administration Committee voted 7-1 Tuesday to recommend the ordinance to the full council. But some council members questioned whether the measure is overreaching and if the issue warrants new legislation.

Gary Padesky, the only committee member to cast a no vote, says the plan “just reeks” of harassing students in the area of the city that includes the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.

The La Crosse Tribune reports that fire officials say upholstered furniture in outside spaces presents a fire hazard and safety issue.

TOWN OF WOODLAND (AP) – Investigators are looking into whether drugs played a role in the death of two people in Sauk County.

Coroner Greg Hahn says that’s the way they’re leaning, but the cause of death determination won’t be made until the toxicology results are received. And, that could take more than a month.

The sheriff’s department says 55-year-old Richard Mauer and 51-year-old Diane Rogers were found outside a home in the Town of Woodland Monday night. Deputies say suspected heroin and prescription medication were recovered.

FOND DU LAC – Someone vandalized dozens of mailboxes in the Fond du Lac area.

The Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Office says about 50 were vandalized east of the city Wednesday morning. Another seven were damaged in the city.

Most of the damage happened in the area of highways H and K, and Grandview and Rinehart roads.

MADISON (AP) – A group of University of Wisconsin-Madison professors is appealing to the UW Board of Regents to preserve tenure protections and standards of shared governance.

More than 360 professors have signed a letter that says the university would suffer significant competitive disadvantages if the Legislature adopts the Joint Finance Committee’s recommendation to eliminate tenure protections.

The professors say the job protection that tenure offers ensures faculty members are “free to pursue knowledge and express ideas without fear of dismissal.” The group also urges regents, Chancellor Rebecca Blank and System President Ray Cross to defend shared governance, which allows faculty, staff and students to guide campus policy.

Blank said in a statement that the higher education community did not have input before the changes were adopted by the committee.

SUAMICO- Barkhausen Waterfowl Preserve has many summer programs to enjoy.

Matt Kriese of Barkhausen joined Good Day Wisconsin.

Click on the videos to learn more.

NEW YORK (AP) – Subway has joined the list of companies dropping artificial ingredients.

The sandwich chain known for its marketing itself as a fresher alternative to hamburger chains tells The Associated Press it will drop artificial flavors, colors and preservatives from its menu in North America by 2017.

Whether that can help Subway keep up with changing attitudes about what qualifies as healthy remains to be seen.

The purging of artificial ingredients is quickly becoming the norm among major food companies, which are facing pressure from smaller players that tout their food as more wholesome.

Subway’s announcement comes at a challenging time for the chain.

Last year, sales for Subway stores in the U.S. averaged $475,000, a 3 percent decline from the previous year, according to industry tracker Technomic.

NEW YORK (AP) – One of reality TV star Josh Duggar’s sisters says in a television interview airing Wednesday that she was a victim of her older brother, who has been accused of sexual misconduct as a teenager.

In a Fox News Channel interview, Jessa Duggar says she wants to defend her brother. She says accusations that he is a child molester or pedophile are “so overboard and a lie.”

The Associated Press generally does not identify victims of sexual mistreatment. But Jessa Duggar is speaking publicly, in an interview that Fox’s Megyn Kelly also conducted with Duggar’s parents, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar. The Arkansas family is featured in TLC’s series “19 Kids and Counting.”

The Duggar parents said Josh Duggar fondled his sisters when he was a teenager. He apologized for unspecified bad behavior when he resigned last month as a Family Research Council lobbyist.

In another excerpt provided by Fox, Michelle Duggar said there was “so much grief in our hearts” when they heard about the abuse.

“As parents we felt we’re failures, you know?” she said. “Here we tried to raise our kids to, to do what’s right and know what’s right. And yet, one of our children made really bad choices.”

As parents, they were devastated, she said.

Arkansas police last month said they had destroyed a record outlining a nearly decade-old investigation into Josh Duggar. Published reports from news outlets that obtained the report before it was destroyed said Duggar was accused of fondling five girls in 2002 and 2003. No charges were filed. Police began investigating Duggar in 2006 following a tip from a family friend.

“19 Kids and Counting” is one of TLC’s most popular shows, coming off a season of strong ratings after featuring the weddings of Jessa and her sister Jill. TLC immediately pulled reruns of the show off the air when the allegations concerning Josh Duggar surfaced two weeks ago. The network has said no decision has been made about whether the series will continue.

Jim Bob Duggar is a former state representative in Arkansas. Some of the state’s Republicans have expressed support for the family, including GOP presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, whose campaign kickoff was attended by Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar.

TOWN OF DOVER, Wis. (AP) – Racine County sheriff’s deputies say they’ve arrested a woman who escaped from a minimum-security prison, as well as the person who helped her flee.

Authorities say the woman left the Robert E. Ellsworth Correction Center near Union Grove about 8 p.m. Wednesday and fled in a vehicle driven by another person.

Deputies stopped the vehicle in the Town of Yorkville and the inmate was arrested after a brief foot chase. The driver fled the scene, but was later stopped by deputies and arrested.

Both suspects are in the Racine County Jail.

ADDISON, Texas (AP) – Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry launched his presidential campaign four years ago as an instant front-runner – a proven job-creator with solid conservative credentials, formidable fundraising prowess and perhaps enough cowboy swagger to take Republicans by storm.

Then came “Oops” and Perry’s tumble from powerhouse to punchline.

Now he’s back, hitting Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina hard and early, and studying up on policy to become better prepared.

A senior adviser to Perry tells The Associated Press that the former governor will make the widely expected announcement that he’s in the 2016 race on Thursday in Dallas. The adviser requested anonymity to speak ahead of the formal announcement.

As Perry returns to presidential politics, the question remains: Will he get another solid chance?

“It’s going to be hard to make a first impression a second time,” said Ford O’Connell, a Republican strategist in Washington.

Despite his brain freeze on a Michigan debate stage in November 2011 – he forgot the third federal agency he promised to close if elected, then muttered “Oops” – Perry still has the policy record that made him an early force last time.

Perry left office in January after a record 14 years as governor. Under him, the state generated more than a third of America’s new private-sector jobs since 2001.

While an oil and gas boom fueled much of that economic growth, Perry credits lower taxes, restrained regulation and limits on civil litigation damages. He also pushed offering economic incentives to lure top employers to Texas and repeatedly visited states with Democratic governors to poach jobs.

Perry was thought to be a cinch for four more years as governor in 2014, but instead turned back to White House ambitions. His effort may be complicated this time by a felony indictment on abuse of power and coercion charges, from when he threatened – then carried out – a veto of state funding for public corruption prosecutors. That came when the unit’s Democratic head rebuffed Perry’s demands that she resign following a drunken driving conviction.

Perry calls the case against him a political “witch hunt,” but his repeated efforts to get it tossed on constitutional grounds have so far proved unsuccessful. That raises the prospect he’ll have to leave the campaign trail to head to court in Texas.

Perry blamed lingering pain from back surgery in the summer of 2011 for part of the reason he performed poorly in the 2012 campaign. He has ditched his trademark cowboy boots for more comfortable footwear and wears glasses that give him a serious look.

Perry also traveled extensively overseas and studied policy with experts and economists at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution. He met such business moguls as Warren Buffett and Rupert Murdoch.

Lately, Perry has traveled to Iowa, which kicks off presidential nomination voting, more than any GOP White House candidate.

“People realize that what the governor did in the high-profile debate, stumble, everyone has done at some point in their lives,” said Ray Sullivan, Perry’s chief of staff as governor and communications director for his 2012 presidential bid. “I think he’s already earned a second look, particular in Iowa.”

“I think he’s kind of been freed up to be Rick Perry again,” said Brendan Steinhauser, a Texas political consultant who was director of state and federal campaigns for tea party-backed FreedomWorks before managing the re-election campaign of veteran Sen. John Cornyn last year. “That’s going to give him a lot of freedom to do what he does best, which is talk to voters one-on-one, shake hands, do the small meetings.”

As an underdog, Perry has visited out-of-the-way places in Iowa, often traveling with a single SUV rather than the busloads in his 2012 entourage. Steinhauser said Perry shouldn’t “start out trying to be larger than life.”

One thing Perry hopes to emulate from 2012 is his fundraising, when he amassed $18 million in the first six weeks. He has strong donor contacts nationwide as a former Republican Governors Association chairman. However, his indictments may cause some to hesitate to write him checks.

Perry’s camp notes that many past Republican candidates, including Mitt Romney in 2012, rebounded to win the party’s presidential nomination after failing in a previous bid. But O’Connell, the GOP strategist, said the 2016 field is “extremely talented and deep” compared to four years ago.

“For him to win the nomination,” O’Connell said, “he’s going to have to be great, but a lot of people are going to have to trip and fall along the way.”

TOWN OF MENASHA – School is almost out for many students and local officials want kids to think safety first this summer.

FOX 11’s Emily Deem spent the morning in the Town of Menasha to learn more about bike safety, water safety and more.

Biking Safety
· Wear helmet – I will bring one
· Bikes are the same as vehicles – must obey all the rules of the road
· Lock and license your bike
· Lights and reflectors
· Riding gear – no flip flops, be careful of backpack straps

Water Safety
· Never go swimming alone
· Swim in lake/river only with adults present
· Wear swim shoes in lakes/rivers
· Wear life jacket if boating
· Lock your bike at the pool – very popular place for stolen bikes

Playground Safety
· Always tell parents/babysitter where you are going
· Don’t go alone, have a buddy
· Dress appropriately – no drawstrings, necklaces, bike helmets
· Pushing and shoving can be dangerous
· Little kids can play differently than big kids

General Safety
· Never answer the door if home alone
· If someone calls, take a message – tell mom/dad busy
· Pick up toys at night – don’t leave anything out
· Lock doors and close garage!

Summer Safety Night – Thursday June 25  4:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. at Town of Menasha Municipal Complex 2000 Municipal Dr. Neenah, WI

WILSON, Wis. (AP) – The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is asking for more information from Kohler Co. on potential environmental impacts of its proposed golf course along Lake Michigan.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports the agency sent a letter to Kohler on May 22 looking for more details on the project. The 18-hole course in the town of Wilson would join the company’s properties in Sheboygan County, including other golf courses.

Kohler sent a preliminary environmental impact report to the agency in April. The agency wants more information on local archaeology, waters, wildlife and wetlands.

Kohler spokesman Todd Weber said in an email that the company feels “very good about the direction” of the project.

Project opponents have called for more details on environmental impacts.

We’ll get close to 80 Thursday and it will be a bit more humid.

We have a chance for isolated showers and thunderstorms throughout the day.

Severe weather isn’t expected.

Click here for Director of Meteorology Pete Petoniak’s full forecast.

ROTHSCHILD- A woman is dead after a house fire in Rothschild, which is in Marathon County.

The fire broke out around 9 p.m. Wednesday.

Firefighters said they could see light smoke coming from the eaves when they arrived.

Officials believe the fire started in the kitchen and spread.

There is extensive smoke and water damage to the home.

MILWAUKEE (AP) – Police say a 3-year-old Milwaukee boy has died after he was found with serious injuries from suspected abuse.

Milwaukee police said Aiden Archer died Wednesday. He was taken to a hospital Monday after police responded to a report of a sick or injured person and found he had numerous serious injuries.

A news release from police says the boy’s 24-year-old mother and her 27-year-old boyfriend were still in custody Wednesday after their arrests Tuesday. Milwaukee police say charges will be brought against them in the coming days.

APPLETON – For much of the week, from nine in the morning until nine at night, you’ll see people plugging the meters in downtown Appleton.

But it won’t be that way for long.

Appleton’s Common Council approved some changes to parking downtown Wednesday. It all focuses on the parking meters.

The council voted 14 to 1 to cut back on the times people will have to plug the meters. The vote will also mean changes to some meter pricing.

These are recommendations from a parking study the city had done recently.

At the Appleton Beer Factory, general manager Leah Fogle told FOX 11 it’s normal to hear customers complain about parking.

“We get it quite a bit, because we’re right downtown and we don’t have a parking lot. So we’ll give them recommended places,” she said.

A lot of businesses face similar problems, where metered spots and parking ramps might be the only options.

Fogle told us it’s particularly tough on bars and restaurants, because the meters are enforced from 9 am to 9 pm Monday through Saturday.

But in a few months, things will be different.

“Basically, it’s gonna change the hours of enforcement from ending at 9 o’clock to ending at 6 o’clock,” explained Mayor Tim Hanna.

Most meters are 75 cents an hour with two hour time limits, but that is going to change for some meters.

“We have a number of on street parking lots that are very under used,” said Hanna.

The meters north of Washington Street, a block off College Avenue, will soon cost 20 cents an hour with 12 hour time limits.

Mayor Tim Hanna told FOX 11 these are changes businesses have asked for.

“The reduced hours of enforcement is something that we’ve been hearing for years. So I think this is going to be a pretty easy decision for the council,” he explained.

Fogle told us it will be better for her business and her customers, particularly when it’s dinner time.

“People not worrying about the meters, not running outside, checking the meters, getting their quarters to make sure they have parking for the night. So it’ll definitely be good for us,” she said.

The city’s public works director told us a drawback is the city will lose about $100,000 over 6 months after the meter changes go through.

However, she said the city plans to make further changes to ramp parking to help make up for that loss.

GREEN BAY – The kickoff for On Broadway’s farmers market season comes just a week after some big development news in the district.

DDL Holdings LLC, a partnership of Titletown Brewing Company and Smet Construction, announced it was purchasing the rest of the Larsen Green property. The 15 acre site is where Walmart wanted to put a Supercenter last year.

According to On Broadway leaders, the farmers market could help draw developers to the area.

“We have a lot of developers looking at our district, going ok what can we do down here and they see successful events like this that are bringing over 200,000 people over 18 weeks down to the downtown area,” said Tara Gokey, the executive director of On Broadway, Inc.

New businesses like Monkey Tailz and the Prohibition Spirits & Lounge are proof. Both are experiencing their first farmers market as Broadway businesses.

“We saw what future developments were coming or what had been planned, what the city’s vision was for the downtown area,” said Brian Miller, owner of Monkey Tailz.

Other businesses and developers looking to take advantage of the area have plenty of opportunity with the Larsen Green announcement.

“I’m glad they’re from our area, so they have our community in mind when they’re building something,” said Glen Sherman, the owner of Prohibition Spirts and Lounge. “I think they know better than maybe a corporate entity knows.”

There is no set plan yet for what will be built on the Larsen Green site, only that it will be a variety of development. However, FOX 11 got plenty of ideas from people at the market on what should go on the property.

“I would love a Trader Joes or Whole Foods,” said Jeannie Patz of Coleman. “I think that would be great.”

“Something to do with the Packers,” said Ryan Labine of Green Bay.

“It would be nice to have one anchor, something in there that’s going to make it a destination place,” said Sherman.

While we don’t know the Larsen Green plans at the year’s first farmers market, we might know by the last. DDL Holdings and the city plan to come up with a development agreement in the next six months.

DDL Holdings has said it plans to renovate the old Larsen Canning buildings. The group has said other possibilities include a hotel, grocery store, and residential options.

PULASKI – The Pulaski School Board and its superintendent, Milt Thompson, agreed to part ways.

The school board allowed Thompson to resign from his position.

The school board met in a closed session for more than an hour Wednesday night.

There was no public comment on the issue.

Thompson was put on administrative leave earlier this spring but the district would not say why.

APPLETON – The Appleton Common Council has decided to hold off on whether to bring plans for a new library to referendum Wednesday night.

The referendum question will be put on hold until the next meeting.

The city plans to build the library on the Fox River Bluffs.

In order to build the library, the city would have to knock down a church and a banquet hall on the bluffs site.

Mayor Hanna says the city is still negotiating with those property owners.

The project is estimated to cost $30 million.

The referendum question would be on the April 2016 ballot.