Wednesday 6.20
A consultant unveils a plan to sink Stoughton Road between Buckeye and Pflaum into a trench and build bridges for local streets to cross over it. The consultant was hired by an east-side neighborhood group to redesign the freeway.
Angela Roloff, the former community relations manager for Monona Terrace, is sentenced to three months in jail for embezzling $110,000 from the city and Friends of Monona Terrace, a support group.
Friday 6.22
Gov. Jim Doyle and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty announce a new deal on tuition reciprocity. The state of Wisconsin agrees to cover the difference for students attending higher-priced University of Minnesota schools. The deal will cost Wisconsin about $7 million a year.
Monday 6.25
The U.S. Supreme Court weakens a key provision of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform law. On a 5-4 vote, the court sides with Wisconsin Right to Life, which sued for the right to air issue ads right before an election. McCain-Feingold banned issue ads, a prohibition that Wisconsin Right to Life said violated its free speech.
Tuesday 6.26
The U.S. Department of Energy awards the UW-Madison and its partners, including Michigan State, $125 million to build a new bioenergy research lab. Gov. Jim Doyle wants to chip in $50 million in state money for the facility, which will develop alternative fuel sources. (See story, page 8.)
A 71-year-old Middleton man reports being robbed at gunpoint of his gambling winnings, after returning home from the Ho-Chunk casino. The man, who was a regular at the casino, was carrying a large amount of money, but police won't say how much.
The state Senate passes a $66.1 billion budget for 2008-2009. Democrats, who control the Senate, include a health-care plan that would cover nearly everyone in Wisconsin but require a $15.2 billion payroll tax. The budget now heads to the GOP-controlled Assembly, which is expected to kill the plan.
Kathleen Kohlman, 72, of Madison dies in a fire in her trailer on the south side. The Fire Department is investigating the cause of the blaze.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission asks a federal judge to order the city of Madison to turn over an internal report on Bob D'Angelo, former Overture Center president. The commission is investigating charges that D'Angelo sexually harassed employees. In December, the city released a redacted version of its report, which absolved D'Angelo of any wrongdoing.
Wednesday 6.27
Gov. Doyle names Madison trial attorney John Markson to the Dane County Circuit Court bench. Markson replaces Judge Robert DeChambeau, who retired.
Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz and Dane County Exec Kathleen Falk propose a regional transit authority, which would be able to levy a half-cent sales tax. The funds raised would pay for commuter rail, bus service, paratransit and road maintenance. Under the deal, Cieslewicz agrees to support Dane County's application for federal funds for a commuter rail line from Middleton to Sun Prairie. A streetcar system, which Cieslewicz favors, could be built later.
