A small town in Wisconsin pushes out a planned data center project

Organizers participated in a day of action in Menomonie
 in December. (Photo by K. Gregerson via Next City)

Three thousand years ago, it was David the shepherd boy vs. Goliath the Philistine giant. A 21st-century version of the proverbial battle goes something like this: Menomonie, Wisconsin. pop. 16,843 vs. Balloonist, LLC and its undisclosed tech-giant backer. Spoiler: Menomonie wins.

When Menomonie residents discovered their city council had already entered into closed-door talks with Balloonist last July, they had to hustle to get organized. Marianne Dhenin of Next City reports, "It was only weeks before the city council voted to annex and rezone the land to move the project forward. Organizers were fighting an uphill battle."

In the course of their fight to keep the $1.6 billion data center from spreading across 320 acres of farmland near the edge of town, Menomonie residents tapped into "grassroots community organizing and support from a growing statewide coalition," Dhenin writes. As they learned how to push Balloonist out of their town, residents created a toolkit for other small towns facing unwanted hyperscale data center proposals.

Menomonie residents who opposed the project "took to social media and the streets to raise the alarm about the data center proposal and organize community members," Dhenin explains. "They met to share information, staged demonstrations, and began attending city council meetings in growing numbers. . . . By September 2025, there were over 10,000 Menomonie residents and allies in a Stop the Menomonie Data Center Facebook group."

The town's resistance was so intense that Mayor Randy Knaack "announced at a Sept. 22 city council meeting that he had notified Balloonist that the city would not be moving forward with a development agreement," Dhenin reports. In January, the Menomonie City Council "voted unanimously to place additional regulations on data center projects."

Once a stalwart Republican, this Wisconsin dairy farmer is reconsidering his position because of ICE and immigration

Dairy cows wander and graze on O'Harrow Family Farm acreage.  

For decades, being a Wisconsin dairy farmer and voting Republican went hand in hand for Tim O'Harrow and his family. But GOP immigration politics and Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions are no longer in sync with the O'Harrows' experience and what they feel is moral, reports Sabrina Tavernise for The New York Times. Some family members are considering shifting their political alliances.

"Immigrant workers are the lifeblood of the O’Harrow farm, a four-generation family enterprise with 1,600 cows in northeastern Wisconsin," Tavernise writes. "But many of them will not travel to Mexico to see dying parents, or drive to nearby towns to visit siblings... because they are afraid of being swept up in the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown."

The second Trump administration's approach to immigration doesn't make good business sense to Tim O'Harrow or his son, Joel, who runs the farm. Tavernise explains, "These workers oversee America’s milk. By one estimate, dairies that employ immigrant workers produce 79% of the nation’s milk supply, and the price of milk would double without them."

Tim O'Harrow knows conflicts over undocumented immigrant farm workers aren't a new problem. He's been talking to politicians in Washington and in Madison, Wisconsin, the state's capital city, for 20 years, asking them to create a visa system or path to citizenship for these vital workers. But politics have gone the opposite way.

"Washington has failed to make any meaningful changes, and Republican voters continue to be anti-immigration, particularly those in Wisconsin," Tavernise reports. "That has left the O’Harrows in an uncomfortable place — stuck between what they see as an obvious truth, that immigrants are essential to America’s food supply, and a national political mood hurtling in the other direction."

Tim O'Harrow told the Times, "I don’t know that I’m a Republican anymore. I don’t know what we are anymore.”

Both Tim and his son told the Times they would be open to voting for a Democrat in future elections. Tavernise writes, "And for the first time in 20 years, a Democratic primary will be held in their district, a sign that the party believes it has a chance to flip what has been a solidly Republican seat."

For more explanation on why a stalwart GOP family would consider voting for a Democrat, read the full story here.

Wisconsin utility regulators review plans for how to pay for data center energy needs

Microsoft’s new AI data center campus in Mount Pleasant, Wis.
(Microsoft graphic via Canary Media)

Utility regulators in Wisconsin are scrutinizing the state's first energy plan to power AI campuses. Meanwhile, consumer and environmental groups dispute the need and consumer benefits for supporting data center developments.

The biggest debate right now is how much of their energy infrastructure costs data centers will be required to pay. Kari Lydersen of Canary Media reports, "Wisconsin’s largest utility, We Energies, has offered its first major proposal before state regulators on the issue."

The proposal, which is open for public comment, contains two options for data centers to choose from, both of which outline that "data centers would pay most or all of the price to construct new power plants or renewables needed to serve them," Lydersen explains. The first option, defined as "full benenfits" requires data centers to fund 100% of their needs. The second option, called "capacity only," requires data centers to pay 75% of their costs. "Other customers would pick up the tab for the remaining 25%."

The We Energies decision is also likely to set a precedent for other Wisconsin utilities managing data center energy plans. Bryan Rogers, the environmental justice director for the Milwaukee community organization Walnut Way Conservation Corp, told Lyderson, "As goes We Energies, so goes the rest of the state.”

Consumer and environmental groups are speaking out against the capacity-only option, arguing that "it is unfair to make regular customers pay a quarter of the price for building new generation that might not have been necessary without data centers in the picture," Lyderson writes.

We Energies says "everyone will benefit from building more power sources," Lyderson reports. Jeffry Pollock, a Wisconsin Industrial Energy Group trade adviser, told regulators that "the utility’s own modeling of the capacity-only approach showed scenarios in which the costs borne by customers outweigh the benefits to them."

Although Wisconsin has seven big data centers under construction, the state "has no laws governing how the computing facilities get their power," Lyderson writes. Wisconsin lawmakers are debating two bills that define data center energy division, but "until a measure is passed, individual decisions by the state Public Service Commission will determine how utilities supply energy to data centers."

Without federal funding, humanities programs have an uncertain future. Rural places will feel the loss first.

A revitalized high school library funded by Humanities
Montana. (Humanities Montana photo via the Yonder)

Many rural states that depend on money from the National Endowment for the Arts to fund humanities programs have had those dollars cut by the Department of Government Efficiency, reports Nhatt Nichols for The Daily Yonder. The immediate loss of federal money has left communities in some of the most sparely populated parts of the country seeking private donor support, which adds another layer to their challenges.

Humanities Montana is one example of a statewide arts initiative facing the complete loss of NEH support. The program "is one of 56 regional humanities organizations that bring humanities programs to underresourced communities including in rural areas," Nichols writes. "In 2024, over 17,000 people attended a Humanities Montana program, with more than half residing in a rural county."

Montana isn't the only one. "In Alaska, a note on their program’s website states, 'Late on the night of April 2, the Alaska Humanities Forum received a letter from DOGE officials informing them that their NEH operating grant approved by Congress had been illegally terminated effective immediately,'" Nichols reports. "Wisconsin Humanities also has an announcement on its website, noting that 'the loss of NEH funding will likely result in Wisconsin Humanities closing its doors soon.'"

Finding donors within smaller communities will be an ongoing challenge for Humanities Montana. Nichols adds, "The NEH funding provided most of their operating budget; in 2023, the NEH made up 80.9% of their $1,011,229 budget."

Money isn't the only concern. The director of Humanities Montana, Jill Baker, told Nichols, "Our mission is to bring untold stories that can help bring people together and find the humanity in one another. At this moment, that’s a real challenge in and of itself. My worry is that without the public humanities, our divides will grow, we’ll have less opportunities to gather together and have simple civic conversations, to learn from one another.”

Quick hits: He's not Santa, he's Belsnickel; 'phantom' towns; how music can reframe memories; going out for a walk

A local constabulary lends the town's Belsnickel
a hand. (Photo via Lancaster Farming)

Belsnickel may not be as famous as Santa (or as clean), but he gives Christmas gifts to children in Manheim, Pennsylvania. A Belsnickel is "a crotchety, fur-clad gift giver related to other companions of St. Nicholas in the folklore of southwestern Germany," reports Dan Sullivan of Lancaster Farming. A Belsnickel is tasked "to carry out duties somewhat similar to Santa, ferreting out the naughty and nice and dispensing just punishment or reward. Traditionally, Belsnickel carried a switch in one hand as corporal punishment for the bad kids and a pocketful of treats for the good ones."

When financial times are tight, not as many Americans buy new cars or repair the vehicles they have. "Pinched by inflation, higher interest rates, and supply-chain woes, Americans just haven’t been buying as many new vehicles lately," reports Spencer Jakob of The Wall Street Journal. U.S. consumers choosing to keep aging autos may sound "like great news for auto parts and repair companies. . . . [but] there are some surprising signs that Americans are choosing cheaper options or even deferring purchases of the goods and services that keep them running. . . . Skimping has rarely made less sense, though. . ."

Cartographic 'phantoms' are mapped towns where there isn't a town. (Illustration by Piper Olsen, L&S)

Most mapped towns exist but not all. "The Wisconsin state map is full of phantoms," reports Alli Watters of Letters & Science at the University of Wisconsin. Cartographer Howard Veregin spends his days scouting possible phantom towns, which includes exploring some of the state's most rural places. On one phantom sleuthing day, Veregin works to verify a mapped town called "Walker." He comes upon a friendly cranberry truck driver and this conversation ensues:

Truck driver: Good morning. Looking for something in particular?
Veregin: Well, I’m looking for cartographic phantoms.
Truck driver: What’s a cartographic phantom?
Veregin: It’s a community that is listed on a map, but it doesn’t exist on the ground.
Truck driver: This place exists.
Veregin: Sure, but it doesn’t really look like a community. What is it?
Truck driver: Well, this is our family cranberry farm. We’ve been farming cranberries here for 125 years. I’m a fifth-generation cranberry grower. Most of this area is private property. . .

"Veregin’s suspicions were confirmed. . . . He had found yet another cartographic phantom."

Beginning the new year a little wiser never hurts. In simplest terms, surviving 2025 is the first goal. Field & Stream experts "weighed in on four survival myths that could get you killed," reports Jim Baird. Many people think humans can live off nature's food and survive -- that's not true. "The myth here is that you can survive off them for an extended length of time. But the reality is if you are only eating 'survival foods,' you’ll start feeling sick and weak after a day or two." Another myth is if you kill large game "you're set" because you'll have all the protein you need. Not true, you can also get sick and die from eating too much protein without adequate fat. Read four debunked survival myths here.

Music may subtly shift emotional memories.
(Adobe Stock photo)

As a new year begins, people often reflect on how life has gone over the past year or years. Sometimes there are memories people wish they could change, and while history isn't alterable, music can help shift how people feel about past experiences. "Listening to music can change how you feel about what you remember – potentially offering new ways to help people cope with difficult memories, writes Yiren Ren, a cognitive brain science researcher at the Georgia Institute of Technology for The Conversation. "Our [research] results suggest that music acts as an emotional lure, becoming intertwined with memories and subtly altering their emotional tone. Memories may also be more flexible than previously thought and could be influenced by external auditory cues during recall."

Walking alone or with a buddy can be great exercise. 
(Adobe Stock photo)

Ernest Tubb twanged about "Walking the Floor over You." Johnny Cash confessed, "I Walk the Line." Aerosmith cranked the amps to "Walk this Way." Besides belting out catchy tracks, these musicians were onto something -- walking is an outstanding activity. "Walking can help meet the U.S. surgeon general’s recommendation that adults get at least 2 1/2 hours of moderate-intensity physical activity every week," reports Laura Ungar of The Associated Press. "This helps lower the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, dementia, depression and many types of cancer. . . .While it’s not the only sort of exercise people should do, it’s a great first step toward a healthy life."

Opinion: When even 'losing by less' helps, Democrats must engage rural voters. Wisconsin's Baldwin shows the way.

Tammy Baldwin campaigning in the Badger state.

If Democrats want to gain votes in rural America, they need to be present to win. In tight races, even cutting into Republican margins can swing an election -- "Just ask Sen. Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat from Wisconsin," writes Karen Tumulty in her opinion for The Washington Post.

Last year, Baldwin kicked off her re-election campaign in conservative Richland County, Wisconsin, where Trump soundly won in 2020. But Baldwin also won the county. She's had a history of reaching out to rural communities, listening to their issues and touting her wins. Tumulty adds, "She cites bringing home $1.1 billion in federal funds to expand high-speed internet across Wisconsin and millions more to address the shortage of available child care that is particularly acute in rural areas."

Baldwin's strategic success with rural voters may be unusual, but other Democrats are catching on. "This year, Democrats up and down the ticket are waking up to something Baldwin recognized long ago: That Democrats cannot afford to ignore rural America, even as it has swung harder to the right," Tumulty adds. 

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who joined Baldwin's "One Year to Win” state tour kickoff, told Tumulty, “Elections in my state and here in Wisconsin often come down to a percentage point or less. You got to show up everywhere. You got to make sure that you’re meeting people where they are in communities like this that maybe historically haven’t voted your way.”

The Harris-Walz ticket also has taken from Baldwin's playbook. Tumulty writes, "They've made a point of campaigning in places like southern Georgia and western Pennsylvania, where they have little chance of winning outright but hope to cut into Trump’s margins. . . . It is the rare Democratic politician like Baldwin who can still win in rural areas. But in battleground states where polls show the race as tight as it is, even losing by less could make all the difference."

Quick hits: A good job for bots; farm safety for kids; double-dairy delights; blueberry contests; what's in your cart?

Dos Rios is also a destination for migratory birds along the Pacific flyway.
(California State Parks photo)

Filled with sunlight and the sounds of nature, California's newest state park steps back in time and into the future all at once. "The park opened this summer, emerging among the never-ending rows of agriculture the valley is known for. It's a lush 2.5 square miles now bursting with hundreds of thousands of native trees, bushes and animals," report Jonaki Mehta, Christopher Intagliata and Ailsa Chang of NPR. "But it isn’t like most state parks. In addition to bringing much-needed green space to an underserved area, its unusual design uses nature-based climate solutions that reinvigorate native wildlife. . . .By restoring the natural floodplain, the park will also help mitigate flooding that threatens residents in the area."

Busy farms can be full of dangers for adults and children. But particularly for farm kids, safety needs to be stressed and modeled, reports Jennifer Shike for Drovers, a beef industry publication. "The leading cause of injury and death for all ages on farms is large equipment. That's why Tawnie Larson from the Kansas Agriculture Safety and Health program urges farm and ranch owners to allow only youth with proper training and experience to drive large equipment. . . . Her advice to adults is simple. Demonstrate how to do things safely when children are young. Then, as they get older, take them to formal tractor safety training."

Caramel Popcorn Mascarpone Ice Cream Sundaes
(Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin photo)

What does joy in July look like for dairy lovers? Ice cream. What do dairy lovers from Wisconsin do in July? They add cheese to their ice cream! You don't have to be from the dairy state to do it. Go ahead, live large -- combine mascarpone cheese or even a cheddar with delicious heavy cream. Try scoops of cheddar apple pie ice cream or a mascarpone caramel ice cream sundae. Not ready to go that far into your dairy dream? A stop at any dairy shack is a delightful way to revel in summer -- while it lasts. 

Photo by Joanna Kosinska, Unsplash

Summer isn't just for animal fairs, it's time for produce competitions. The states of Maine and New Jersey have their blueberry dukes up and are seeking the "best berry" award. "The small blue fruit known for its antioxidants and other health benefits is New Jersey’s top crop. Meanwhile, nearly 100% of low-bush blueberries are grown in Maine," writes Matt Enright of Lancaster Farming. "But which state has the better berries? It depends on who you ask. . . . Ben Perrin, who’s been growing organic Maine blueberries for over 35 years, says it’s no contest. . . . Bill Mortellite notes New Jersey growers were the first to cultivate blueberries, so their farmers there have the most experience." 

How many of us have stood in a grocery store checkout line convinced that watching paint dry is more interesting -- only to have our eyes and minds wander over to the carts around us, quietly taking inventory of what's in the cart compared to the purchaser? "To better understand our relationship to the food we buy, we asked readers to send us their grocery receipts. . .and selected 27 people from across the U.S. to focus on," report Priya Krishna, Tanya Sichynsky and Aliza Aufrichtig of The New York Times. In combing through their receipts. . . we saw how identity, income and geography inform what makes it into the cart. . . .70% bought at least one bag of chips." Go ahead. Take a look.

Autonomous robots can tackle weeding and other field
work. (Photo by Aigen via The Guardian)

Robots can get a bad rap for stealing jobs humans need, but in the searing heat of summer, some bots are doing jobs no person wants. "Clint Brauer watches a team of bright yellow robots churn up and down the rows, tirelessly slicing away any weeds that stand in their way while avoiding the growing crops," reports Cary Gillam of The Guardian. Standing 4 feet long and 2 feet wide "the battery-powered machines pick their way through the fields with precision, without any human hand to guide them. . . . Baurer sees the robots as critical tools to help farmers reduce their reliance on chemicals and be more protective of their health and the environment."

As more Americans chose to eat more cheese, farmers look for ways to increase milk fat content

Jersey cows produce milk that is high in butterfat and
has a golden hue. (Wis. Jersey Breeders Association photo)

What's better than cheese? More cheese. That's what many Americans are telling the U.S. dairy industry. But heightened demand for rich-tasting young gouda and spunky blue cheese comes with a catch -- dairy farmers need their cows to produce fattier milk, reports Kirk Maltais of The Wall Street Journal. "Just five years ago, dairy farmer Melvin Medeiros said his herd consisted entirely of Holsteins, which are the black-and-white spotted cows. . . . Now about 70% are brown Jersey cows, which are smaller but produce a fattier milk."

In dairy-producing states such as Wisconsin and Vermont, loving cheese is threaded throughout the culture, but the rest of the country is catching on. "Cheese consumption is at an all-time high, with Americans eating an average of 42 pounds a year in 2022, according to the most recent data available from the Department of Agriculture," Maltais writes. "That is up 17% over the previous decade." Although butter sales declined in 2022, consumption is still up 9% compared to a decade ago. 

Beyond switching cow breeds, what else can farmers do to "squeeze" fattier milk from their herd? It comes down to keeping cows comfortable and providing a richer diet. "Cross-ventilated barns ensure animals don't get too hot," Maltais explains. "Keeping cows cool helps them get fatter — and produce fattier milk. Medeiros adds oilseeds like cottonseed and canola to their feed."

Michael Hutjens, professor emeritus of animal sciences with the University of Illinois, told Maltais, "We're seeing a lot more money invested in fans and sprinklers." Maltais reports: "Hutjens said breeding and genetics could help push up fat levels in milk even more."

Wis. puts on top court a judge who broke norms by taking positions on big issues; some rural counties shifted her way

Janet Protasiewicz, center, celebrates her victory.
(Photo by Mike De Sisti, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

In the latest twist on Wisconsin politics, "Voters on Tuesday chose to upend the political direction of their state by electing a liberal candidate to the State Supreme Court, flipping majority control from conservatives, reports The Associated Press. Thus, the court is likely to reverse the state's 1849 abortion ban and "end the use of gerrymandered legislative maps drawn by Republicans," reports Reid J. Epstein of The New York Times. "Janet Protasiewicz, a liberal Milwaukee County judge, overwhelmingly defeated Daniel Kelly, a conservative former Wisconsin Supreme Court justice who sought a return to the bench."

The race was officially nonpartisan but Democrats lined up for Protasiewicz and Republicans for Kelly. Some rural communities that voted for Barack Obama in 2012 and then twice for Donald Trump returned to the "Democratic" column. Abortion-rights supporters credited the U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade, which reactivated the state's old abortion law, for the shift. "Rural voters moved 5 points toward the Democratic candidate compared to the 2020 presidential and 2022 U.S. Senate elections," The Daily Yonder reports. But that was not as much a shift as was seen in metropolitan areas.

"Judge Protasiewicz, 60, shattered long-held notions of how judicial candidates should conduct themselves by making her political priorities central to her campaign," Epstein writes. "She made explicit her support for abortion rights and called the maps, which gave Republicans near-supermajority control of the Legislature, 'rigged' and 'unfair.'. . . The contest, which featured over $40 million in spending, was the most expensive judicial election in American history. Early on, Democrats recognized the importance of the race for a swing seat on the top court in one of the country's perennial political battlegrounds."

"Justice Kelly, 59, evinced the bitterness of the campaign with a testy concession speech that acknowledged his defeat and portended doom for the state," and said Protasiewicz was "not a worthy opponent," Epstein reports. "In an interview at her home before the results were known, Judge Protasiewicz (pronounced pro-tuh-SAY-witz) attributed her success on the campaign trail to the decision to inform voters of what she called 'my values,' as opposed to Justice Kelly, who used fewer specifics about his positions."

Tom Vilsack, who saw Trump as a real threat to Democrats, has some advice for them

Vilsack rides a Democratic donkey into the sunset in a
Des Moines Register illustration by Mark Marturello.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, who has unique perspectives to offer, has some ideas for his fellow Democrats as they regroup following an election that saw much of their traditional base abandon them for a candidate with mostly vague promises and no government experience.

"If the Democrats are interested in winning statewide races, winning presidential races, winning gubernatorial races, winning congressional seats, they can’t get crushed in rural areas," Vilsack told Alan Bjerga of Bloomberg News. "And what’s really frustrating is, they’ve got a pretty good message, if they delivered it."

Vilsack is the only original member of President Obama's cabinet left, and knows the American heartland that Hillary Clinton lost this month. He is a native of Pennsylvania and was a two-term governor of Iowa, spanning the states that spelled victory for Donald Trump. He discussed his ideas with Kathie Obradovich of The Des Moines Register.

Vilsack said he wasn't as surprised at Trump's win as most Democrats because he had significantly discounted polls that showed Clinton leading: “I travel in different places than most people do and so I was exposed to a tremendous amount of on-the-ground indications of strong support for Trump-Pence in rural areas.”

He had these suggestions for Democrats: Do a better job “of explaining to people on a regular basis the benefits of government;” properly frame and deliver their message for helping people and regions in economic transition; strengthen supporting organizations such as labor unions, perhaps by letting the public buy memberships in them; constantly build new leadership; do a better job of using social media; and “find an overarching theme or connecting message” that connects the diverse elements of the party. “There’s no message that a rural voter would necessarily say, hey, they’re speaking to me. They’re speaking about me. They’re speaking for me.” A few months ago, Vilsack said "I just sometimes think rural America is a forgotten place." Not so much now, it seems.

Waukesha, Wis., outside Great Lakes basin, gets approval to draw water from Lake Michigan

Delegates for governors of eight Great Lakes states unanimously voted on Tuesday to allow Waukesha, Wisconsin, to pump 8 million of gallons of water per day from Lake Michigan.

Absent any legal challenges, the city will become the first U.S. community located entirely outside the Great Lakes drainage basin to receive a diversion of lake water under the Great Lakes Compact, an agreement among states.

The compact was approved in 2008 to protect the largest source of fresh water in the world from diversions outside the basin. Waukesha County straddles the subcontinental divide between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins, making the city eligible to apply for lake water.

Waukesha asked for 10 million gallons per day of Lake Michigan water several years ago after its water supply became contaminated by naturally occurring radium, The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported. In addition to limiting daily withdrawal to 8 million gallons, Waukesha must also restrict its water service area to the city's borders, submit to performance audits and return an equal amount of the water pumped from the lake. It will return as fully treated wastewater discharged to the Root River, a tributary of the lake, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.

In the months leading up to the historic vote, 38,000 citizens from around the Great Lakes basin offered their opinions on the request, 99 percent of whom opposed Waukesha's request, The Plain Dealer noted. In addition, 11 of Michigan's members of Congress urged Gov. Rick Snyder to veto the diversion request.

To qualify for an exception to the compact, Waukesha had to prove it had no feasible alternative to Great Lakes water to meet its needs. Some environmental groups argued that the city failed to meet that standard, contending that Waukesha could update its water treatment plant to remove radium from its deep groundwater wells like some of its neighboring communities have done. The environmental groups fear approval will set a dangerous precedent for future diversions, leaving it vulnerable to water-thirsty areas in the Southwest. Waukesha Mayor Shawn Reilly disputed that in an op-ed piece in the Journal Sentinel.

Three rural Wisconsin newspapers combine to make new weekly

Three weekly rural Wisconsin newspapers -- the Arcadia News-Leader, Whitehall Times, and the former Galesville Republican -- have combined to form a new weekly, the Trempealeau County Times, reports Chuck Rupnow for the Eau Claire Leader-Telegram. The three weeklies were bought by News Publishing Co. of Black Earth, which produces 20 other weekly papers, including the Banner-Journal in Black River Falls, and 16 shopper publications in Wisconsin and Iowa, reports Rupnow.

Chuck Blaschko, CEO of Blaschko Enterprises, called the decision to sell the Arcadia newspaper to News Publishing "a good business decision. ... From our standpoint, the majority (about 95 percent) of our business involves commercial printing, so it's not so bad," said Blaschko to Rupnow. "Combining the three papers provides a broader base for advertisers in the county, which should be good." Blaschko said the Arcadia paper has been in the family for about 55 years, since Chuck's father, Harold Blaschko, bought it from Albert and Elsie Gauger, grandparents of Chuck Gauger, who ran the Whitehall paper and now serves as general manager of the Trempealeau County Times. (Read more)

New rules in place for Wisconsin wind farms

The Wisconsin Public Service Commission has established guidelines for locating wind farms, reports Craig D. Reber of the Telegraph Herald. The new rule could pave the way for development of Wind Capital Group's proposed White Oak wind project, on hold for two years. "We believe that passage of the PSC's rule will certainly set the conditions in place that make development of wind facilities much more possible in Wisconsin," said Tom Green, Wind Capital senior manager of project development.

Some residents of Smelser Township had reservations about having wind farms nearby and enacted a moratorium on them. they sought an 1,800-foot minimum setback requirement to minimize what they call the "noise, safety and health risks" to their families and their homes, writes Reber. Others cited concerns about falling property values because of the size and location of the towers, which are as tall as 400 feet. The commission adjusted the requirements on two issues: setback distances and compensation to neighboring residents. Municipalities must establish a setback distance on non-participating residences that is greater than 1,250 feet. Owners of non-participating residences within a half-mile of a wind turbine will be paid by the wind system owner.

Ron Brisbois, economic development director for the area, said, "This is an opportunity that not a lot of townships in Wisconsin have [but] you can't just plop down a wind farm anywhere. You have to have the wind and the substations." (Read more)

Gannett Wisconsin papers, mostly rural, consider centralized copy-desk and layout to reduce jobs

Gannett Co.'s 10 newspapers in Wisconsin are considering centralization of their copyediting and layout functions to save money by reducing jobs. "Publishers discussed the idea at a meeting last Wednesday that addressed several topics -- including consolidating work, according to a meeting agenda I've obtained," reports former Gannett reporter Jim Hopkins in his Gannett Blog.

According to Hopkins, the document, says the nation's largest media company is "looking at severance costs, which are significant. They will be meeting to walk through the process. At this time, we’re not sure if there are any showstoppers." Hopkins writes that a tipster tells him that the papers already share copyediting. The papers are The Post-Crescent at Appleton, The Reporter at Fond du Lac, the Green Bay Press-Gazette, the Herald Times Reporter at Manitowoc, the Marshfield News-Herald, the Oshkosh Northwestern, The Sheboygan Press, the Stevens Point Journal, the Wausau Daily Herald and The Daily Tribune at Wisconsin Rapids.

The move, Hopkins writes, "would not be surprising. The company has made clear that it's now favoring newspapers in its portfolio that are clustered together. Proximity makes it easier to share resources," one reason the company sold the Norwich (Conn.) Bulletin, the Rockford (Ill.) Register Star, the Utica, N.Y., Observer-Dispatch and The Herald-Dispatch in Huntington, W.Va., to GateHouse Media last year. A local investor later bought the Huntington paper. "Geography makes the 10 Wisconsin newspapers good candidates for consolidating work," Hopkins notes. "Eight of them are small afternoon dailies, within about two hours of each other." Only the Green Bay and Appleton papers, at 55,000 and 51,000, respectively, have circulations above 21,000. (Read more)

Rural voters are on Obama's bandwagon

"Barack Obama’s win in Wisconsin Tuesday underscored his rising popularity among rural voters, a constituency that some political observers say has been neglected by national Democrats," writes Neil H. Simon, a Washington reporter for Richmond-based Media General News Service.

Simon cites the analyses of the Center for Rural Strategies, which categorize counties as rural, exurban or urban, based on boundaries of metropolitan areas. They showed Obama getting 37 percent of the rural vote on Super Tuesday, 51 percent the following week in Virginia and Maryland, and 55 percent in Wisconsin last Tuesday. For the Wisconsin analysis, from the Daily Yonder, click here. Exit-poll results, based on precinct locations, showed a similar trend.

The center's vice president for communications, Tim Marema, told Simon that rural voters may just be part of a national Obama bandwagon, because the candidates “have not really made the types of substantive overtures to rural people that would explain the change.” Whatever the reasons, “Rural support is essential support for Democrats to get elected,” U.S. Rep. Rick Boucher of rural Southwest Virginia's 9th District, an Obama supporter, told Simon.

“Elected officials who support Obama said that in rural America, a Clinton at the top of the ticket can be a burden,” Simon reports. However, Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, who supports Hillary Clinton, told him that rural voters in his state want more specifics than Obama offers. “People who are of the struggling, working class support (Clinton) and you find a lot of those folks in rural areas,” he said. “She's talking in very direct, practical ways.” (Read more)

Obama posts marginal exit-poll edge among rural voters in winning Wisconsin presidential primary

Barack Obama probably carried the rural vote in winning Wisconsin's Democratic presidential primary tonight, according to the exit poll for the National Election Pool composed of television networks and other major media outlets.

Pollsters deemed 33 percent of their sample precincts to be rural, very close to the state's rural-population figure of 32 percent in the 2000 census. At those precincts, Obama got 53 percent of the poll respondents and Clinton got 45 percent. Applying the error margin of 4.51 percentage points for the sample of rural voters (472) to each candidate's figure, at the standard 95 percent confidence level (19 out of 20 cases), it's possible Clinton carried the rural vote, but not likely.

Among the 45 percent of voters that the pollsters considered suburban, Obama led 54 to 46. Among urban residents, he led 62-35. With 99 percent of the statewide vote counted, Obama led Clinton 58.7 percent to 41.2 percent, with 0.1 percent voting for "uninstructed" delegates.

By geographic area, Clinton won only in the largely rural northwestern part of the state, and by only 51-47, well within the much larger error margin for that sample (20 percent of the statewide total). Clinton also had marginal edges among other subsamples: 52-47 among white Democrats (the primary was open), 51-48 among the 12 percent of voters who said the race of the candidate was important, and 50-47 among the 35 percent who said national economic conditions are poor. Obama carried white voters overall, 52-46, just outside the error margin.

Road salt running low in Midwest and New England

It's been a rough winter for parts of the Midwest and New England, and those storms have strained local supplies of road salt, reports The New York Times."With so many municipalities in need of salt, suppliers cannot ship it out quickly enough," Katie Zezima writes. "Public works departments are left waiting for days or weeks to receive their orders."

Those in charge of snow removal and road safety, such as Dennis Lutz, the director of public works for Essex, Vt., (in a Times photo by Karen Pike), have been scrambling to keep their supplies up. The crunch has forced them to buy from smaller suppliers at higher prices. Zezima reports that Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, has been spending more than $66 per ton of salt, up from the $39.29 the county usually pays. The county "is now limiting salt use to hills, curves and intersections," Zezima writes. "The county is putting sand on roads, but some say it is less effective than salt." (Read more)

Some Wisconsin municipalities are using beet juice to thaw roads instead of salt, reports The Associated Press. Mike Hoeft of The Green Bay Press-Gazette reports that neighboring Ashwaubenon has stopped spreading salt on secondary roads and that many rural areas will get sand instead of salt. Around Chicago, suburbs are rationing salt, too, making for long commutes into the city on icy roads, reports The Chicago Tribune. The Tribune also notes that deliveries of more salt are being slowed thanks to ice jams stalling salt barges on the Illinois River.

Proposed ethanol plants not welcome some places

Many small towns across the nation's Farm Belt have spent the past few years trying to lure ethanol plants to their communities. While the plants can bring jobs and other economic development, they can bring some odd smells and other nuisances. Because of such drawbacks, some rural communities don't want the plants anywhere near their homes, reports The New York Times.

"In Kansas, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota and even Iowa, the nation’s largest corn and ethanol producer, this next-generation fuel finds itself facing the oldest of hurdles: opposition from residents who love the idea of an ethanol distillery so long as it is someplace else," Monica Davey reports from Sparta, Wisc. In the town of 9,000 near the Minnesota border, residents have opposed plans for a Coulee Area Renewable Energy plant. Months earlier, city officials had approached the company about bringing a plant to the town at a site across the water from a park, in photo by Andy Manis for the Times. Now, residents are "worried that its emissions would taint the milk-based products made at nearby Century Foods International, one of the community’s biggest employers," Davey writes. "They even argued over whether the plant would reek like burned molasses or blackened popcorn or fermenting beer."

More than 700 Sparta residents signed a petition asking for a referendum on the ethanol plant, but the City Council voted against it, report the local weekly newspapers, the Monroe County Democrat and The Sparta Herald. Two residents filed a lawsuit asking for an injunction to halt any action on the plant, but the suit was dropped last month when lawyers for the residents, the city and Coulee Area Renewable Energy reached an agreement — a tentative one that no side cared to explain, the Herald reports. In addition to the protests in Sparta, Davey reports, "At least three proposed plants have halted construction recently, industry officials said, including one in Reynolds, Ind." That's the same town that Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels nicknamed BioTown U.S.A. (Read more)

West Virginia has highest frequency of deer-vehicle collisions in the country

A collision between a vehicle and a deer is more likely in West Virginia than in any other state, according to State Farm Insurance claims data from all of 2006 and early 2007. The insurer said a vehicle driving through West Virginia has a 1 in 57 chance of colliding with a deer — compare that to an individual's 1 in 150 chance of being audited by the IRS or 1 in 250,000 chance of being struck by lightning in the next year. Nationally, 1 in 216 vehicles will collide with a deer.

The risk is greater during the deer mating and migration season of October, November and December. George Hohmann of the Charleston Daily Mail writes, "In recent months, West Virginia wildlife officials have said the state's drought conditions this summer also increase the danger for deer to roam closer to major roadways. The need for new food sources is pushing them nearer to residential and metropolitan areas." (Read more)

States with the highest chances for deer collisions:

1. West Virginia, 1 in 57
2. Michigan, 1 in 86
3. Wisconsin, 1 in 99
4. Pennsylvania, 1 in 100
5. Iowa, 1 in 109

Across the country, the total number of deer-vehicle collisions rose 6.3 percent last year, State Farm said. The average cost of the property damage caused by a collision was $2,900. For the full news release from State Farm, go here. A columnist in The News & Observer of Raleigh, N.C., argues that hunting season helps reduce such collisions.