The Broadsheet: Rice Lake's Alcatraz
Headlines from the Barron News-Shield March 1, 2023 edition, plus some extra, newsy recommendations from the editor.
Hello readers,
During my days working in Rice Lake, I inherited a computer file known as “archival news files” from a retiring editor. At the top of the list were a series of stories about “Alcatraz.” Once in a while Alcatraz would be mentioned during a city meetings. I basic knowledge of the the situation—a polluted area in an old industrial area of the city known as “Alcatraz.” But for years there never seemed to be any update on the Alcatraz situation.
So, I was surprised when “Alcatraz” came up at the latest Barron County Executive Committee meeting. The fact that it was on the agenda was unusual—it was a simple tax write off that the County has been doing for years. But the new County Treasurer, Sarah Sommerfeld, felt that write offs should be approved by County Board members. The agenda item stirred a brief discussion, as Barron County Economic Development director Dave Armstrong was in attendance and had been working on the “Infamous Alcatraz” issue for years. Read more in this week’s Top Story.
Headlines
About 75 years of Barron County ownership of a strip of land along the Red Cedar River in Rice Lake was recently found to be incorrect, according to County officials. The land in question is along the south side of the river below the Rice Lake dam to the Wild Rivers Trail. It’s a strip about 200 feet, according to Barron County Administrator Jeff French.
Thirteen employees in Rice Lake are among more than 200 positions being cut by Marshfield Clinic. The health care provider, which has locations across central and northern Wisconsin, detailed the layoff of 222 workers in a letter to the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development on March 1.
Several improvements to the Chetek Dam area are going out to bid, with the approval of the Barron County Property Committee on Monday, March 6.
The project includes landscaping for erosion control, improving walkways and brush removal.
A $350,000 top prize-winning ticket sold in Turtle Lake on Friday, March 3, according to the Wisconsin Lottery. The winning ticket was sold at Express Lane, 638B US Hwy 8, for the SuperCash! Drawing.
Urban Rural Column
I think have gotten more calls and comments about my Lehigh column than any other article I’ve written for the News-Shield. Who doesn’t like an interesting bit of history? If you haven’t read it yet, check it out at urbanruralcolumn.wordpress.com. If you have read it, check it out again for some extra photos and a postscript at the end of the article.
Editor’s Picks
JUST FOR FUN: Speaking of Wisconsin place names, the Milwaukee Record is doing a bracket of Wisconsin cities. Rice Lake lost in the first round to Stevens Point. Sorry, I would have rallied Rice Lake supporters last week, but I just stumbled upon this. These annual bracket contests are kind of dumb, but also kind of fun. I am interested to see if it will be Madison vs. Milwaukee, or if a Cinderella city will take down the top seeds.
That’s all I’ve got for this week. Thanks for reading. If you need to catch up on local news or are looking for more Editor’s Picks, check out the archives at newsshield.substack.com.
Subscribe to the Barron News-Shield to read all the news of the week.
—Ryan Urban