Category: Headlines

Door County’s crops and cattle are in far better shape than a lot of the drought-stricken Midwest, but they’re still feeling the heat. As of July 22, the U.

After over two years of discussion, the Liberty Grove Town Board voted 3-2 to re-pave and widen Isle View Road according to recommendations made by Steven Parent of Baudhuin Incorporated engineering firm.

Digital technology has changed communication, medicine, entertainment and almost every aspect of modern life. Although the thought of farming often conjures pictures of one-tractor fields and rustic red barns, agriculture has also been profoundly changed by the digital shift.

As the sun set over Green Bay on July 21, a crowd gathered in Peninsula State Park to see the evening show. This wasn’t American Folklore Theatre. It was a performance of nature that takes place throughout the summer at Welcker’s Point, when hundreds of bats fly out of the bat houses on Welcker’s shelter building into the woods for their nighttime feast.

The Skyway Drive-In Theatre in Fish Creek is a picture of the 1950s, inside and out. The playground keeps the attention of squirming kids, old box speakers line the lot and the original carbon-powered lamp house still sits next to the bulb-powered one that replaced it to project the films.

With state approval, it won’t be long before Door County’s Community Programs and Social Services departments merge into one Department of Human Services.

After working as an avian rehabilitator in locales as far away as Ireland and as close as Milwaukee, Rob Hults is relocating to Jacksonport where he’ll be opening up Open Door Bird Sanctuary.

Door County’s school districts are banding together to make shopping for health insurance a little easier and, hopefully, a little cheaper.

At the Door County Community Foundation’s Celebration of Giving, Anne Emerson accepted the 2012 Philanthropist of the Year Award. She was welcomed to the podium July 18 with applause and a standing ovation from almost 200 Door County philanthropists, graciously accepting the award with recognition of other local activists, community love and a few tears.

Pilots flying into the Ephraim-Gibraltar Airport currently have to rely on outdated technology – a windsock – to know what way the wind is blowing. But next year, airport commissioners hope to get in line for installation of an Automated Weather Observation (AWO) system to give incoming pilots accurate, accessible information on local weather conditions.

The First Lady of Wisconsin recently hiked to the top of the state’s tallest sand dune, which just happens to be in Door County. On July 18, Tonette Walker visited Whitefish Dunes State Park as part of her Walk With Walker initiative, which promotes exploration of Wisconsin’s parks, trails, and landscapes.

Expect to see the Door County Sheriff’s Department making a big splash on the lake this summer. The department recently acquired a new 500-horsepower Donzi police boat that comes equipped with the technology needed to fight maritime crime.

July is a time of transition for two Door County school districts as both Tina Van Meer and Linda Underwood Schweigert, the incoming superintendents for Gibraltar and Sevastopol schools, respectively, began their new positions at the beginning of the month.

Door County’s senior residents turned out en masse for a July 11 discussion of Social Security and Medicare reform. The discussion, which took place at Stone Harbor Resort in Sturgeon Bay, was part of a series of national town hall meetings that are being hosted by AARP, called “You’ve Earned a Say.

Cherry growers aren’t the only ones who could benefit from Gov. Walker’s request for federal agricultural aid. The governor also asked for help for the state’s maple syrup producers, who suffered high losses due to this spring’s extreme weather.

Wisconsin is looking to the federal government for help with this year’s fruit crop loss. Governor Walker requested a federal agricultural disaster declaration for the state, which, if approved, would make low-interest federal loans available to farmers whose orchards and vineyards were hit by the weird spring weather.

At only 24 years old, Jake Erickson has already crossed off a lot of life’s major milestones. This February, he landed his first big job as coordinator of the Door County Sexual Assault Center in Sturgeon Bay, and in late June he was lucky enough to marry and move in with the love of his life.

Sean Ryan doesn’t expect this “year of heat” to adversely impact the July 21 and 22 Door County Triathlon in Egg Harbor. Ryan, the event’s director, isn’t downplaying the issues that extreme heat creates.

There’s a lot of potential in 140 characters, something many local businesses and organizations have realized. “Twitter is much more conversational than any of the other social media platforms out there,” said Barbara Luhring (@barbaraluhring) of 3W Design Group.

Lake Michigan-Huron is low – in fact, the Army Corps of Engineers reports June was about a foot and a half below average depths – but there might be a way to fix it.