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Article posted Thursday, January 29, 2015 11:16am

WHAT HAPPENED

• The Sevastopol Board of Education passed two referendum resolutions. The first authorized the school district budget to exceed the state revenue limit by $1,500,000 for three years for non-recurring purposed. The second resolution called for providing a referendum election this spring to vote on exceeding the revenue limit by $1.5 million. Sevastopol last approved a three-year revenue cap override in 2013, amounting to $1.15 million for the 2013-14 school year, $1.35 million for the 2014-15 school year and $1.75 million for 2015-16.

• Representatives from the counties in Northeast Wisconsin Technical College’s (NWTC) District voted in favor of placing the issue of a proposed expansion before voters on the April 7 ballot. “We’re at capacity,” said NWTC president Dr. H. Jeffrey Rafn. “We need to make changes to support industries that need more trained workers and Wisconsin residents who need more economic opportunities.” The proposed expansions and upgrades focus on relieving critical work force shortages in trades and engineering, but it would include expansions in business, IT, public safety and rural health education as well. NWTC is requesting $66.5 million for improving its three campuses (Green Bay, Sturgeon Bay, Marinette). The increased space – 160,000 sq. ft. of new space and 240,000 sq. ft. of renovated space – will increase capacity by an additional 1,000 full-time equivalent students. The referendum will increase the tax levy by $7.50 per year for a $150,000 house for 15 years. Details and updates regarding the referendum will be posted on NWTC’s web site at NWTC.edu/LeadTheWay.

COMING UP

• Overhead utility service burial will begin Feb. 2 in the Village of Sister Bay along Bay Shore Drive. Utility crews from Wisconsin Public Service, KS Energy Services, Frontier and Charter Communications will be placing all overhead electric, telecommunications and cable lines underground. There is no service interruption anticipated throughout the project for the general area, and both the new underground and overhead services will be in place until the work is completed. Work is scheduled to be completed by the end of May. Traffic will remain 2-way throughout most of the project. For updated information, visit sisterbaywi.gov for more information; this page will be updated as the project progresses.

The League of Women Voters of Door County is sponsoring a candidate forum at 7 pm on Feb. 5 in the Sturgeon Bay City Council Chambers for residents of Sturgeon Bay District 1 to meet the three candidates running to represent District 1 on city council. Candidate forums are held to help voters select the most qualified, best-suited person for the office. It has long been the policy of the Door County League of Women Voters to conduct one candidate forum per race. Since there is a primary, the forum for candidates running for this office is being held before the primary election on Feb 17. The date of the spring general election is April 7. The candidates include Kelly Catarozoli, Gerald Pelrine and Dan Wiegand (incumbent). The recorded forum will be shown on the Sturgeon Bay access channel and available to view online.

Wisconsin’s public school open enrollment application period runs from Feb. 2 to April 30 for the 2015-16 school year, allowing parents an opportunity to send their children to any public school district in the state. Traditionally, children in Wisconsin are assigned to public school districts based on the location of their parents’ home. Open enrollment application is the only tuition-free opportunity for most parents to apply for their children to attend a public school in a school district other than the one in which they live. Parents are urged to apply online directly from the open enrollment website http://oe.dpi.wi.gov/. The online application will be available from midnight Feb. 2 until 4 p.m. on April 30. To assist parents in submitting open enrollment applications, a directory of public school districts is available on the DPI website at http://dpi.wi.gov/directories. More information is available from local school districts or from an open enrollment consultant at DPI, 888.245.2732 or [email protected].

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ Bureau of Natural Heritage Conservation is seeking bald eagle photos to possibly be featured on the new Wisconsin Endangered Resources license plate. Bald eagles, once listed as endangered on both state and federal endangered species list, have since recovered after regulations were put in place to protect the species and following a ban on the pesticide DDT. The remarkable recovery of our nation’s symbol in Wisconsin represents the success of conservation efforts by the state and our partners. The contest will run from Jan. 29 through Feb. 8, 2015. DNR staff will review all submitted photos. Should a submitted photo meet size requirements for the license plate, DNR will contact the entrant to let them know their photo was chosen. DNR reserves the right to not choose a photo from the submissions if they do not meet size requirements. To enter photos, go to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Facebook page after Jan. 29 and click the “License plate contest” tab. People can also enter the contest by sharing their photos on Facebook or Twitter with hashtag #ereagleplate. There is no limit to the number of times a person may enter. Photographers must be at least 13 years of age and submit only photos they have the rights to distribute. DNR employees and their immediate families are also eligible to submit photos.