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The Extra

  • The Wausau School District is getting ready for the first day of school with a new mobile app to improve communication between the district and parents. The Aspirus Ironwood Hospital kicked off a multi-phase renovation project to update technology and remodel patient rooms. And after a Northwoods vet clinic that spayed and neutered pets closed earlier this summer, humane societies are grappling with a problem that’s two-fold. They’re dealing with an overpopulation of pets, and they’re struggling to get those pets fixed before giving them up for adoption.
  • Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers announced $10 million in grant funding Tuesday to help homeowners treat, replace and reconstruct private wells. Then, late summer is a common time for blue green algae blooms to appear. But as the climate changes, these blooms are becoming more common, even on lakes scientists wouldn’t have predicted. Finally, scientists in Georgia have found three female sturgeon with mature eggs – a sign that the prehistoric fish may be reproducing in Georgia for the first time in 50 years.
  • Wisconsin Republican Assembly speaker Robin Vos fired Michael Gableman Friday, ending a 14-month, taxpayer-funded inquiry into the 2020 election. Then, Christopher Terrell Anderson pleaded guilty in Oneida County Court Friday to murdering Hannah Miller. And Gov. Tony Evers stopped in Rhinelander Friday to make his case for re-election ahead of Wisconsin’s general election in November.
  • Turnout in Wisconsin’s primary election reached nearly 26 percent, the highest it’s been for a non-presidential primary in 40 years. Vilas County is hoping to take the first major step toward creating a drug treatment court later this month. And nearly 6,000 vials of the Monkeypox vaccine have been allocated to Wisconsin.
  • Tim Michels won Wisconsin’s GOP primary to face Gov. Tony Evers in November. Mandela Barnes won the state’s Democratic Senate primary. And two incumbent Northwoods sheriffs will hold onto their offices, fending off challenges from within their own departments. Then, Rhinelander City Administrator Zach Vruwink announced his resignation Monday. He’s the sixth administrator to leave since 2015. Finally, Gov. Evers announced the Department of Corrections has selected a site for a new youth prison.
  • Voters are taking to the polls today to decide the primary races for Wisconsin governor and U.S. Senate. Then, Wisconsin is set to receive nearly $31 million to fight the opioid epidemic, as overdose deaths rise. And the Vilas County ATV Alliance plans to build a challenge trail within the county forest.
  • A fire early Monday morning heavily damaged a building that housed long-time Minocqua business Copy Cat Printing. Police said no one was injured in the fire. It shut down traffic in the area for several hours Monday morning. Wisconsin’s primary election is quicky approaching. Voters will decide the Republican candidate for governor, the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, and the Vilas and Lincoln County sheriffs. Finally, ten students who are incarcerated at McNaughton Correctional Facility graduated with a heavy machinery certification from Nicolet College last week.
  • Absentee voting is underway for Wisconsin’s August primary. In the race for Vilas County sheriff, Captain Gerard Ritter is running against current Sheriff Joe Fath. Fath says he’s running for a third term because he’s excited for the department’s upcoming projects. Hear his perspective today, and then tune in tomorrow to hear from Captain Ritter. As the election gets underway, election clerks in the area express concerns for safety and security. Finally, Rhinelander got a clearer picture of what a new skate park could look like after Over It and ArtStart presented a feasibility study to city council.
  • The Wisconsin Elections Commission will roll out a new public information campaign in the next few months aimed at teaching people about how elections work. Meanwhile, four people with disabilities have filed a lawsuit asking a federal court to ensure they can get help returning ballots, after the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled earlier this month that only a voter can return their absentee ballot in person. Then, the price of gas has dropped 70 cents in the past month. And a new mural is coming to Rhinelander’s Hodag Park.
  • Northwoods counties are back at the medium COVID community level. Cases in the region have dropped slightly, but remain steady statewide. Then, Wisconsin’s Republican gubernatorial candidates debated Sunday. And U.S. Senate candidate Tom Nelson dropped out of the Democratic primary race to face Republican incumbent Ron Johnson in November. Finally, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature added the monarch butterfly to its red list of threatened species last week.