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Trempealeau County will have a new district attorney after November’s election.  John Sacia defeated current D-A Taavi McMahon in yesterday’s Democratic primary recall election to advance to the general election.  Sacia is a former assistant of McMahon’s but was fired after his reelection in 2016 for filing an intent to run in the recall election.  Sacia will be challenged by Republican Rick Niemeyer in the on November 6th.

Four plots of land in Chippewa Falls could be rezoned to allow for multifamily housing.  According to the Leader-Telegram, the land is on the southeast side of the city near the Happy Trail Dog Park.  The rezoning was discussed at a public hearing yesterday where no one openly opposed the changes.  A vote will be held on October 16th to finalize the plan. 

The Task Force on Elder Abuse is recommending new legislation, agency action and resources for police to fight elder abuse in our state Attorney General Brad Schimel says data from the Department of Health Services showed allegations of elder abuse neglect and exploitation increased 160-percent from 2001 to 2017.  The task force on elder abuse was created last year to address this growing public safety issue and today Schimel again urged people to report elder abuse whenever they see signs

The Green Bay Packers say apartments and townhouses will be built as part of the development of the Titletown District.  The team announced today that up to 150 apartments and nearly 100 townhouses will be built along Brookwood Drive beginning early next year.  The 45-acre development is just west of Lambeau Field.  In addition to the residential development, a four-to-five-story office building will also be constructed along with several hundred parking spaces below. 

An Eau Claire man is facing five counts of mistreating animals.  Court documents indicate Bryce Winchell admits to killing two of his dogs.  Police responded to a tip about Winchell beating his animals in September after the alleged abuse happened between July and August of this year.  If convicted, he faces up to 12 years in prison.

Vice President Mike Pence will be in Eau Claire next week.  He’s hosting a fundraiser for Governor Scott Walker’s campaign on Wednesday October 10th.  He’ll be in Green Bay during the day before heading to Eau Claire in the evening.  Pence was last in Wisconsin on August 30th.

The top Republican in the Wisconsin Assembly says there is no way the state will expand BadgerCare to cover everyone.  Assembly Speaker Robin Vos yesterday told a crowd in Madison that Democrat Tony Evers’ plan to expand the program to everyone in the state won’t happen.  Vos says the state can’t cover the costs of BadgerCare as is and adding more people to the system would make the program even more unaffordable. 

Downtown Eau Claire, Inc. (DECI) announced the winners of the fourteenth annual Jump-Start Downtown Business Competition during an Awards Luncheon. There were 5 applicants for the 2018 competition with 3 winners.  The grand prize award was awarded to Matt Pabich for Raggedy Man Goods & Gifts on South Barstow Street. Raggedy Man is a unique gift shop gift stop, The Honorable Mention Award was awarded to Tabatha Voss for The Broom & Crow. Located on East Grand Avenue, The Broom

Eight Wisconsin schools are being recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as top achievers.  The schools will be honored as National Blue Ribbon Schools at a ceremony next month in the nation’s capital.  The awards were announced yesterday by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.  All eight are elementary schools, including closest to us, Bannach Elementary in Stevens Point.

An Extraordinary Session of the state legislature is being called to allow the Senate to vote on a tax credit package for Kimberly-Clark.  Assembly Bill 963 was approved by the Assembly earlier this year, but stalled in the Senate.  Legislators will return to Madison on November 12th to begin their session.  Governor Walker says it’s a major step forward to achieving the goal of keeping Kimberly-Clark operating in Wisconsin.