A Glance at the Year Ahead

One can never predict what the big stories will be in a year’s time; after all, it’s the unexpected events and issues that make the best stories.

But there are always early clues, and looking ahead through 2009 there are a few dates and storylines to have on your radar.

At the County Board level, District 20 Supervisor Marc Savard has said he plans to make alcohol abuse and drunk driving an issue in the year ahead. Both the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and the Green Bay Press Gazette have focused major investigative reports on the subject this year, including profiles of recent Door County tragedies. In a state where citizens love to imbibe, often throwing caution and common sense to the wind, it will be interesting to see if Savard can spark any action by his fellow board members.

In February, Egg Harbor voters will decide if they want to spend $7.9 million on a new marina. The village board approved the project in July, but much has changed since then. The project was permitted, then unpermitted, and finally re-permitted in November. But a new ordinance was passed by village voters Nov. 4, which requires the village to now go to referendum for any capital improvement project over $1 million. A hearing will be held Jan. 21, and the question will be on the Feb. 17 primary ballot.

A sobering reminder of a long struggle will hit us March 19, as the United States marks six full years in Iraq.

Local municipalities will take new form in April, as several board positions come up for a vote. While many local board seats go unchallenged each year, at least one longtime seat-holder, Chairman Bill Casey of Liberty Grove, has announced he will not seek another term.

By the end of July the Door County Tourism Zone will release its room tax collection reports through May of 2009, giving us two full years of collection data to analyze. While it may still be too early to determine if marketing efforts by the Door County Visitor Bureau are showing returns, the detailed data will provide a better, more accurate look at the peninsula’s tourism trends than has ever been available.

Room tax reports include collection breakdowns specific to each municipality, showing the relative importance of visitor dollars to community economies. The reports also include the number of room nights filled, occupancy rates, and average daily room rates. Though not a perfect barometer, the data will provide a much more accurate and usable picture than the state’s annual survey.

The war in Afghanistan, or Operation Enduring Freedom, will be eight years old Oct. 7. The U.S. is expected to increase troop levels in the country in the year ahead, with more than 40,000 Americans likely on the ground when the operation enters it ninth year.

Maybe this is the year the U.S. Postal Service finally makes a decision on what to do with its Ellison Bay outpost, and further north, Liberty Grove will continue discussing a $14 million marina proposal.

Finally, on a larger scale, keep an eye on your newspapers in the months ahead. The industry that has been the nation’s primary source of in-depth reporting and digging since its founding is undergoing rapid and far-reaching transformation, a trend that will no doubt continue in the year to come. In 2009, the production of news will likely be major news itself.