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A company in Bloomer may be laying off dozens of employees soon.  Iron Mountain Trap Rock Company recently announced it’s reducing its workforce at its Chippewa Sand facility and that over 30 employees may be affected.  Layoffs at the company originally started last October and were only supposed to last about six months but that time frame has expanded for an unknown reason.

Multiple parks in La Crosse are closed or are closing because of flooding.  The city says Riverside Park is closed and Pettibone Park, Copeland Park, the Veterans Freedom Park Boat Landing, and multiple trails will be closed soon because of rising flood waters.  The city hasn’t given any timetable as to when the parks will re-open.

The plan to build a new visitor and admissions center at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire is one step away from being finalized.  Reports say the plan commission unanimously approved rezoning land for the project last night, now all that’s left is for the city council to approve it.  If the plan is approved construction is expected to start this year with the building opening in 2020. 

It looks like Eau Claire’s Memorial High School won’t be getting a brand new football field after all.  A group of donors last night withdrew their million-dollar offer to lay field turf at school.  Eau Claire’s school board initially voted down the donation, then agreed to accept the money with some strings attached.  A few minutes after that second vote, the donors emailed and withdrew their offer.  

Prosecutors are adding homicide charges to the list of counts against a western Wisconsin man involved in a deadly December crash.  The District Attorney in Jackson County filed homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle charges against 24-year-old Donald Ames.  Police say he was drunk back in December when he rolled his pickup truck on County Road G in the Town of Northfield.  His passenger, Tyler Pientok, died in that crash.  *Photo Credit: WEAU 13 NEWS

Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul says there’s no need for Steven Avery to get a new trial.  Avery is serving a life sentence for the murder of Teresa Halbach.  He became famous as part of Netflix’ Making a Murdered documentary.  Avery’s attorney is challenging some forensic evidence in the case.  Kaul told the court yesterday that none of the ‘new ‘evidence or questions about evidence warrant a second trial. 

The big dogs say they are going forward with appointments. The University of Wisconsin is assuming that Republican lawmakers will win the court fight over their December reforms.  The UW board yesterday said it will swear-in Scott Beightol and Torrey Tiedeman at this week’s regents meeting.  Governor Walker appointed the two in his final days in office.  But they were fired by Governor Evers after a judge struck down the law that protected their appointments.  UW Regents say that law

The Bucks are one win away from bringing the Eastern Conference playoffs through Milwaukee.  The Bucks walloped the Brooklyn Nets last night, 131-121.  The win puts Milwaukee one victory away from clinching home court advantage throughout the playoffs.  

A Manitowoc man faces two life sentences after being formally charged today with two counts of first-degree murder.  Karl Hess is being held on a one-million-dollar bond for the robbery and deadly shooting of Richard Miller and his daughter Jocelyn last fall.  Hess allegedly told police he was having financial problems and knew Miller had money.

April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month.  The Kids Count Data Center of Wisconsin shows that overall, child abuse and neglect cases reported remained virtually the same from 2016 to 2017, but there has been a steady rise each year since 2011.  Over 42-thousand cases of child abuse were reported in Wisconsin in 2017, about 140 fewer cases than in 2016.