Service Award—Town of Peshtigo Fire Chief Mike Folgert, left, presented retiring Firefighter Bryan Peth, right, with a plaque recognizing his 41 years of service to the department at the Peshtigo Town Board meeting on Tuesday, March 19. Peth, a retired Wisconsin State Trooper, joined the Town of Peshtigo Volunteer Fire Department in 1971 and has been involved with it ever since. He comes by his interest in firefighting naturally. It’s a family affair. His father, Leonard Peth, was a member of the department for about a dozen years, and got both his sons involved. Peth’s brother, Leonard, Jr. also was a Town of Peshtigo firefighter for 15 years, and his wife, Roseann, served on the department for 20 years before she retired some 15 years ago. Peth said during his working career, in addition to more than 27 years on the State Patrol he served as town clerk, worked as a limited term employee for the DNR, was employed at Marinette Marine and Scott Paper Company, and sold and designed fire trucks, first for 3D Manufacturing and then for their successor companies, American LaFrance and DeLaet Power Products of Tillada, Wis. He currently drives bus for Peshtigo School District.

Town Stresses Important Hearings March 27, April 3

There are two extremely important public hearings coming up that town residents should attend, Peshtigo Town Chair Herman Pottratz announced at the monthly town board meeting tuesday, March 19.

The DNR is holding a hearing from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 27 at Oconto City Hall to begin the master planning process for the Green Bay West Shore area and other state-owned lands along the west shore of Green Bay in the counties of Marinette, Oconto and Brown. Pottratz declared this includes the entire Oxbow area near Peshtigo Harbor and everything along the shoreline around it.

“DNR Area Wildlife Supervisor John Huff and Planner Yoyi Steele will be there, and they have to listen to you whether you agree with them or not,” Pottratz said. He urged anyone with ideas on how the area should be used to show up for the hearing and have their say. The DNR owned parcels along the west shore of Green Bay cover about 10,800 acres which contain three state natural areas and include the Green Bay West Shores Wildlife Area, Charles Pond, the Peshtigo Harbor Forest Area, the Peshtigo River Delta Marshes, the Bloch Oxbow, and the 757-acres of Badger Gift Lands.

At 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 3 Marinette County Highway Department is holding a public hearing at Little River Golf Course on the long-awaited improvements planned for County BB/Shore Drive. “This meeting will determine what’s needed there,” Pottratz declared. He said the job started with a cost of $1.5 million, and now the projected cost is $3.5 million. “They want to put in ditches,” he declared, adding that will take parts of yards along the right of way and add greatly to the cost. “I don’t think they’re needed, but that’s my opinion,” Pottratz said, adding the area is extremely sandy, and water drains away almost immediately in any case.

“Show up for the hearing!” Pottratz repeated. “Let’s see if we can get this job done right and save everybody some money!”

Town Clerk Clarence Coble reminded everyone to vote on Tuesday, April 2. There are choices for Circuit Court Judge, Supreme Court and State Superintendent of Schools. Pottratz noted elections cost a great deal of money, and urged everyone to get their money’s worth and vote.

Coble happily reported that if everything works out this will be the last election he has to deal with until 2014.

Fired Chief Mike Folgert presented a distinguished service plaque to Bryan Peth, who retired from the department last week after 41 years of service.

Folgert said Peth was the training officer when he joined the force. “He taught me everything I don’t know today,” Folgert commented with a chuckle.

The board agreed reconstruction of Krause Road is the major road project they plan to undertake this year, in addition to .2 miles of overlay on Oakridge Lane and on Bonnie Lane. They want to wedge and perhaps seal coat Hale Road in hopes of getting another decade out of it before major work is needed.

As to Krause Road, the most urgent portion is from BB to the curve by Schmela’s Farm. They will put out a request for bids and see how much they can do with the money available.

The board agreed without dissent to back a resolution asking the DNR to allow them to stop testing groundwater at the old dump site. Pottratz said other towns in the county are adopting the same resolution and they hope to have it approved by everyone at the next meeting of the Marinette County Unit of Wisconsin Towns Association, which will be held in Wausaukee at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 18.

The closed Peshtigo Landfills are on Heath Land and Kozuzek Road, and mandatory testing has been done since they were closed in 1990. The testing was originally supposed to have been required for only five years, according to the resolution unanimously approved by the board. Testing has consistently shown over the years that there is no ground water contamination coming from the closed landfills. The resolution states halting the testing would stop unnecessary expense for town taxpayers, and if the DNR wants to continue the testing they can do so at their own expense. Pottratz said the tests cost about $3,000 a year.

Pottratz said in fact he has been told that if the town wants to, they could peel back the top cover, haul out the ashes from debris burned when the old dumps were operating, and then reclaim the properties as usable real estate.

The board agreed to again contract with Kleen Maintenance for mowing in 2013. There was brief discussion on a possible need to increase the contract to provide for mowing between the divided highway sections, and a half joking comment from Coble that “crushed stone and Roundup works really well.”

After a bit of discussion on an increase in cost because of some postal regulation changes the board approved a motion to put out the regular newsletter. Last year printing and mailing cost $200, and they expect the price to be higher this year, but are not sure how much.

Supervisor Denise Wiedemeier reported the recycling center will accept small batteries now, but not large ones. They are planning to schedule a Cleanup day or weekend in May.

Pottratz said the Plan Commission will have a couple of public hearings on some proposed changes, but do not want to hold them in winter.

At the start of the meeting Treasurer Vilas Schroeder reported the town will have $5,938 left over from last year, and asked the board where they wanted him to allocate it. Supervisor Mark Monnette first suggested roads, because that budget has been hit hard this winter.

Pottratz commented the fire department has been working hard to raise money for a new fire truck and suggested they should give them the surplus. That suggestion was approved without dissent. Pottratz and Supervisors Dan Staudenmaier, Wiedemeier and Monnette all voted in favor. Supervisor Pat Ravet was absent. Schroeder noted the firefighters have already accumulated $111,000 toward the truck.

There were 10 persons in the audience, but none of them wanted to speak during time for public comment. Coble, who drives school bus, thanked the Road King representatives for plowing several roads early that morning. Another informal comment was that it was nice to see that the roads had been winged back after people talked about it at the last meeting.

The agenda had included reference to plowing snow onto roadways and leaving large piles of snow to block visibility at driveway intersections.

“It’s been terrible this year,” Pottratz declared. “Most everybody has been trying to keep things open.

Monnette said sometimes snow banks along roads have grown to over six feet this winter. They thaw a bit and shrink down, and then it snows again. He predicted there will be many roads under water when it starts thawing in spring. That led to some comments from Staudenmaier about standing water on Old Peshtigo Road where it passes his property. He said at the time the road was rebuilt he had offered free sand from his property to raise the surface to a safe level, but at the time he was told that was not needed. They’ve been fixing the road there ever since, he commented.

Folgert reported the Fire Department held a lot of training sessions in the past month, including WPS classes dealing with electric and gas emergencies, and a session sponsored by Ford Motor Company on hybrid vehicle fires. There were five calls during the month, one to a house fire, three to vehicle crashes, and one for an accidental false alarm.

The next meeting, on Tuesday, April 16, will begin with the annual meeting at 7 p.m., followed immediately by the regular monthly meeting of the board.

Recent stories, opinions and photos

Issue Date	Department	Headline
05-16-2013	Front Page	Mike, Anita Folgert Are Recipients Of Touhey Award
05-16-2013	Front Page	Predicts New Learning Center Will Be “A Shining Light” For Marinette Schools
05-16-2013	Front Page	Tourism Draws Millions For State, 4 County Area
05-16-2013	Front Page	Water & Sewer Committee Moves Ahead With Loan
05-16-2013	Front Page	Commend City Officer’s Work On Murder Case
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Lorna M. Techmeier
05-16-2013	Obituaries	James R. Schaut
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Nora E. Salewsky
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Ralph R. Runge
05-16-2013	Obituaries	James P. Reindl
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Uta Rasmussen
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Virginia Ellsworth Plier
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Ursula J. Peters
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Walter J. Moucha, Sr.
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Kasimir Melnyk
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Bernadette E. Meek
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Shirley Jean Johnson
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Julie N. Jeske
05-16-2013	Obituaries	George L. Hayden
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Patricia L. Gomber
05-16-2013	Obituaries	James A. Erickson,
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Frank M. Dudek
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Judith A. Carrillo
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Shirley Ann Bishop
05-16-2013	Obituaries	Donald M. Allard
05-16-2013	Sports	Marinette Golfers Win Menominee Meet; Bieberitz Is Medalist
05-16-2013	Sports	Track Regionals To Begin May 20
05-16-2013	Sports	Peshtigo Captures M-O Conference Crowns
05-16-2013	Sports	Coleman Finishes Perfect�Again!
05-16-2013	News	Set Babysitting Class for May 25
05-16-2013	News	Town Peshtigo Sets Cleanup Day
05-16-2013	News	Marinette Legion Brat Fry Dates
05-16-2013	News	Church Dinner, Auction May 19
05-16-2013	Perspectives	From our readers
05-16-2013	Perspectives	Tales from the old-timer
05-16-2013	Perspectives	Country Cousin
05-16-2013	Community - Wausaukee	Grand Germany Tour Sept. 15-24
05-16-2013	Community - Wausaukee	Wausaukee Blood Drive is June 10
05-16-2013	Community - Wausaukee	Wausaukee Memorial Services Slated May 27
05-16-2013	Community - Wausaukee	Wausaukee Students Help Plant Nursery Stock Trees
05-16-2013	Community - Crivitz	Jeff Diges Memorial Bike Run June 29, Hold Pool Tourney
05-16-2013	Community - Crivitz	TB Rescue Bake, Rummage Sale
05-16-2013	Community - Crivitz	Co. Elderly Golf Scramble July 12
05-16-2013	Community - Crivitz	Crivitz Sister Cities Future On Line At May 22 Meeting
05-16-2013	Community - Coleman	Coleman High School Graduation is June 1
05-16-2013	Community - Coleman	2 Top Coleman Seniors
05-16-2013	Community - Coleman	Fine Art Nite at Coleman School
05-16-2013	Community - Coleman	Coleman Services for Memorial Day
05-08-2013	Front Page	Marinette Police Memorial To Officers Lost In Duty
05-08-2013	Front Page	City Adopts New Sewer Rates, Fire Dept. Fees
05-08-2013	Front Page	Co. Move Toward Medical Examiner Model Rejected
05-08-2013	Front Page	Centenarian Marks Birthday May 5th
05-08-2013	Front Page	Folgerts Chosen For Touhey Award Recipients
05-08-2013	Front Page	Million Dollar Bail Set In Homicide Case
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Irene Zoellner
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Lila V. Tippett
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Clarence E. Treptow
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Dennis L. Tachick
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Roger K. Schiefelbein
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Sharon A. Ronan
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Robert Ranallo, Sr.
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Jerry Rakowski
05-08-2013	Obituaries	James Prefontaine
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Spencer B. Patz
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Lila E. Miller
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Patricia Mathey
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Helen J. Lemery
05-08-2013	Obituaries	William H. Keller
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Alice Johnson
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Ronald Cedric Henning
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Algin T. Hendricksen
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Paul G. Grunwald
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Cheryl Lynn Gallo
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Gyneth Gadtzke
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Crystal Ann Gabriel
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Curtis P. Frank, Sr.
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Della A. DeStarkey
05-08-2013	Obituaries	Daniel P. Barney
05-08-2013	News	Girl Scout Carnival at Peshtigo June 2
05-08-2013	News	5th Annual EMS 5K Walk/Run
05-08-2013	News	Brazeau Annual Fundraiser July 27
05-08-2013	Community - Wausaukee	Wagner Board Meets May 14
05-08-2013	Community - Wausaukee	SC Fire, Rescue Auxiliary May 13
05-08-2013	Community - Wausaukee	Lions To Clean Hwy. 180 May 11
05-08-2013	Community - Wausaukee	Legion Post 66 Meeting May 11
05-08-2013	Community - Crivitz	CHS 5K Run/ Walk is June 1
05-08-2013	Community - Crivitz	Legion Trap 22
05-08-2013	Community - Crivitz	Middle Inlet Plans for Memorial Day
05-08-2013	Community - Crivitz	Middle Inlet Plans 33rd Annual Reunion
05-08-2013	Community - Coleman	Area Cadets at State Challenge Academy
05-08-2013	Community - Coleman	Parkway Ladies Start
05-08-2013	Community - Coleman	Comins Graduates Basic
05-08-2013	Community - Coleman	Graduates Basic
05-08-2013	Sports	Wausaukee Golfers Win 9-Hole M-O Tournament
05-08-2013	Sports	Bulldogs Grab M-O Lead
05-08-2013	Sports	Marines Shine At Home Invite
05-08-2013	Sports	Coleman Clinches M-O Title Share
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Patricia J. Waschbisch
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Bessie Riley
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Russell D. Thurow
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Anne Schumacher
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Janette B. Perry
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Marilyn Mc Keefry
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Timothy J. Lynch
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Donald J. Kubiak
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Marilyn Mc Keefry
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Reino L. Lampinen
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Lonnie L. Kasbaum
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Dave Gajeski
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Gyneth I. Gatzke
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Virgil L. Erdman
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Albert J. Demers
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Bernard L. Courchaine
05-02-2013	Obituaries	David Campbell
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Roy Bylund
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Dale P. Bundy
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Gerda M. Barrick
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Antoinette A. Bacon
05-02-2013	Obituaries	Bonnie R. Artz
05-02-2013	Front Page	Peshtigo Woman Murdered
05-02-2013	Front Page	Crivitz High School Ranks 22 in Survey
05-02-2013	Front Page	Heyer Changes Plea in Murder
05-02-2013	Front Page	City Parks, Recreation Director Marquardt Takes County Job
05-02-2013	Front Page	Public Hearing On 4 Ordinances Precedes May 7 Council Meet
05-02-2013	Perspectives	From our readers
05-02-2013	Perspectives	Tales from the old-timer
05-02-2013	Perspectives	Country Cousin
05-02-2013	Sports	Oconto Falls Girls Dominate Invite
05-02-2013	Sports	Suring Cruises To Track Sweep; Cops 22 1st Place Marks
05-02-2013	Sports	Bulldog Booster Bash On May 4
05-02-2013	Sports	Coleman Improves To 6-0
05-02-2013	News	Walking Club To Paddle on River
05-02-2013	News	Pound Senior Club Meeting is May 6
05-02-2013	Community - Wausaukee	Car, Lightning Cause Outages
05-02-2013	Community - Wausaukee	SC Fire, Rescue Auxiliary May 13
05-02-2013	Community - Wausaukee	Ladies Luncheon at Assembly Church
05-02-2013	Community - Wausaukee	Eight Wausaukee Music Students Advance to State
05-02-2013	Community - Crivitz	Crivitz High School 2013 Graduation Ceremony May 18
05-02-2013	Community - Crivitz	OWI Task Force Town of Stephenson
05-02-2013	Community - Crivitz	List Theme for July 4th Parade
05-02-2013	Community - Crivitz	CYI Summer Youth Programs
05-02-2013	Community - Coleman	Smarter Than 5th Grader at Coleman
05-02-2013	Community - Coleman	Pound Senior Club Meeting is May 6
05-01-2013	Front Page	Suspect Will Face Homicide Charges In Marinette County
04-25-2013	Obituaries	Roger C. Winter
04-25-2013	Obituaries	Alfred W. Weissgerber
04-25-2013	Obituaries	Josephine H. VandenBush
04-25-2013	Obituaries	Julius Torzala
04-25-2013	Obituaries	Anna Szkolny
04-25-2013	Obituaries	Sylvin J. Steffes