What Happened in Door County?

• Uniformed deputies from the Door County Sheriff’s Department were on hand at the Nov. 29 meeting of the Door County Board of Supervisors after threats were made against county employees.

County Board Chairman Leo Zipperer would not comment on the nature of the threats, though he said he did not believe them to be serious.

“I decided that I should report it and leave it up to the Sheriff’s Department to decide if there was validity to it,” he said. “Even if it was an idol threat, I needed to proceed on the side of caution.”

Door County Sheriff Terry Vogel confirmed the report.

“There is an investigation going on, however the seriousness of it and in fact even if it took place is still being investigated,” Vogel said.

No incident took place at the board meeting.

• The Door County Sheriff’s Department is investigating vandalism that occurred in Ephraim over the Thanksgiving holiday. Incidents occurred at the Anderson Dock, the Waterbury Inn and Joe Jo’s Pizza & Gelato.

According to Investigative Sgt. Connie Schuster of the Door County Sheriff’s Department, the same orange spray paint was used with the words “Freaky Deeky” appearing at Anderson Dock and the Waterbury Inn as well as anarchy symbols. Lights on the Waterbury Inn sign and at Joe Jo’s were spray painted as well as the American flag at Joe Jo’s and a soda machine and fence at the Waterbury. Sgt. Schuster said in cases such as this the Sheriff’s Department contacts local hardware stores to see if anyone bought orange spray paint and increases patrols in the area to prevent further incidents. Whether the culprit was local or in the area for the holidays remains unknown, Schuster said.

• The owners of Julie’s Park Café and Motel in Fish Creek regretfully removed 200-year-old black locust trees in front of their restaurant this month.

One of the trees cracked in the Sept. 29 windstorm, and a further inspection from Dave’s Tree Service revealed that the trees were rotting in the middle

“There was a good chance they could fall over in a heavy wind event,” said Sande Solomon, who owns the restaurant with her husband Shane. “With so many people walking by there all year, we didn’t think it was smart to risk somebody or their property getting hurt.”

The Solomon’s have not decided what will replace the trees.

• Sister Bay utility bills will be going up in 2012. The village board approved a 3.62 percent rate increase, so an average residential customer using 10,000 gallons of water per quarter will pay about $1.97 more per month. The increase is effective Jan. 1, 2012 and will show up on April utility bills.

• The Egg Harbor Village Board approved a four percent sanitary sewer rate increase effective Jan. 1, 2012. The rate will increase $5 for each Resident Equivalency Unit, Village President Nancy Fisher said.

• The Door County Real Property Listing Office started printing 2011 tax bills Dec. 2. Property owners can expect to receive their bills by mid-December.

• The Town of Baileys Harbor approved it proposed 2012 budget of $1,255,238 Nov. 29. The mill rate went up by about a penny, Town Clerk Doug Smith said.

• Peninsula State Park Superintendent Kelli Bruns said she’s looking into a report of a black bear being seen in the park. In the 1970s, it was estimated that as many as 50 black bears were roaming Door County.