Local Menasha Headlines

APPLETON — Time Warner Cable today announced it will add 50 workers to its Appleton operations center. The company said the positions are in customer care. It now employs about 800 people in Appleton. Full Story: Post Crescent

HORTONVILLE — An armed, suicidal man was safely taken into custody about 8 p.m. on Wednesday after initially refusing police orders to drop his handgun. Police had been searching for the 45-year-old man based on suicidal threats when he got out of his vehicle with a loaded handgun near S. Nash and Nye streets and pointed it at his head, Chief Michael Sullivan said. Police unsuccessfully negotiated with the man for about 20 minutes. The man, however, yelled obscenities and told officers to shoot him. Full Story: Post Crescent

MANITOWOC — Manitowoc County Circuit Judge Gary Bendix on Wednesday sentenced Zachary S. Gauthier to four years in prison followed by 10 years of extended supervision for two felony counts of homicide by negligent operation of a vehicle. Gauthier, 18, of Whitelaw, was the driver in the March 21 town of Manitowoc crash that killed 16-year-old Lincoln High School sophomores Zachary D. Zahn and Chelsie M. Harding, both of Manitowoc. Full Story: Post Crescent

GREENBUSH — A 14-year-old Mt. Calvary boy was seriously injured Sunday in a snowmobile accident near Pine Road and Sheboygan County V in the Kettle Moraine State Forest. According to Lt. Mark Rupnik of the Sheboygan County Sheriff’s Office, Connor Weber was driving his snowmobile at about 2:20 p.m. Full Story: Post Crescent

Participating bars in the Tavern League of Wisconsin SafeRide program will offer free rides home tonight in cabs. Brian Striegel, owner of Camelot, 1700 E. Wisconsin Ave, said 30 establishments are enrolled in the program. Patrons should contact the bartender on duty to arrange a ride. Full Story: Post Crescent

APPLETON — An 89-year-old man found dead Thursday in a private pond in Center, a small town north of Appleton, was identified as Bryce Spoehr. Outagamie County Coroner Ruth Wulgaert said Spoehr drowned after his ATV plunged through the ice. Full Story: Post Crescent

CENTER — The Outagamie County Sheriff’s Department Dive Team has recovered the body of an 89-year-old man from a small private lake on Rock Road in Center, a town north of Appleton. Authorities say the man is the owner of the lake and a nearby home. Staff Sgt. David Spaeth said they think the man was clearing snow off the frozen lake for recreational purposes using an ATV equipped with a plow. Full Story: Post Crescent

APPLETON — Police say a Menasha man bit an officer and spat at two others after his arrest in a Christmas Day disturbance at an Appleton apartment. Donnell T. Reed, 30, was charged Wednesday in Outagamie County Court with strangulation, battery to an officer, two counts of discharging bodily fluids at an officer, criminal damage to property and disorderly conduct. Full Story: Post Crescent

Eddie Bauer will close by Jan. 31 in the Fox River Mall. The shop is nearing the end of its lease, and the mall chose to use that space for another retailer. “We’re making room for some changes that will happen next year,” said John Burgland... Full Story: Post Crescent

Three children were arrested late Tuesday in connection to the burglary of a paper converting business. Police were dispatched about 10:20 p.m. for an alarm at Mondi Akrosil, 206 Garfield Ave. Officers checked the perimeter of the building and found two 12-year-olds and a 14-year-old on the company property and attempting to flee. Full Story: Post Crescent

When Meghan Parkansky was searching for personalities to feature in her documentary, “eXtreme, Loyal, Victorious: The Packers’ Fan Experience,” she remembered the heart-warming story of Neenah resident Anna Walentowski. Anna, a 14-year-old who has a rare genetic disorder known as Alexander disease, met ex-Packers great Brett Favre... Full Story: Post Crescent

HARRISON — Mayor Tim Hanna of Appleton and Mayor Don Merkes of Menasha say they expect the long-term boundary agreements approved in 1999 with Harrison town officials would be honored by the potential new village as well. The Wisconsin Department of Administration’s Incorporation Review Board earlier this month signed off on Harrison’s petition... Full Story: Post Crescent

Thursday’s snowstorm didn’t carry the punch in the Fox Valley that some people feared, but the wet and heavy snowfall that blanketed the region was enough to set a record. Appleton received 10.5 inches of snowfall on Thursday, according to the National Weather Service. The city’s previous snowfall record for Dec. 20 was 5.4 inches, set in 2008. Full Story: Post Crescent

MENASHA — School officials plan to seek approval from Menasha Joint School District voters in April for a $29.9 million expansion-renovation of the aging Menasha High School. The Board of Education gave unanimous consent last week to draft a referendum resolution to be considered at its Jan. 14 meeting in order to get the building referendum question on the April 2 ballot. Full Story: Post Crescent