University Lake School's Molly Seidel set a new Division 3 state record in the 3,200 as she won her fourth state title in that event, as expected, while competing on Day 1 of the WIAA state track and field meet in LaCrosse.

Seidel's time of 10:21.93 obliterated the mark she set last year, 10:33.15. Second place came in at 11:01.48, and third place was well more than a minute behind. She will attempt to win a fourth straight title in the 1,600 Saturday and become the second female track athlete in Wisconsin to win four straight titles in two events.

Seidel, committed to Notre Dame, also has four cross country titles to her credit and will finish her career Saturday as perhaps the most decorated runner in state history. View a look back at Seidel's career.

In Division 1, Arrowhead's Cami Gilson took second in the pole vault despite tying a school record with a jump of 12-6. Defending champ Alex Flucke of Ashwaubenon cleared the same height and did so with fewers misses.

In other events, the Arrowhead 4x800-meter relay (Tayler McCormack, Taylor McDowell, Jackie Dubnicka, Teagan Seneczko) took second  place behind a Neenah team that set a state record, and Oconomowoc (Olivia Radtke, Hannah Heidvogel, Mandy Prom, Carly Hall) took fourth in the same event. Zach Poker of Oconomowoc took third place in the shot put, and Russ Sandvold of Arrowhead took fourth in the 1,600 despite eclipsing the time that won him the state title in that event last year (4:11.39).

Ben Bierman of AHS took seventh in the 1,600 but was disqualified for a false start in the 800. Numerous area entrants qualified through Friday preliminaries, including Kettle Moraine hurdler Alex Sharrock, who owns the top time in the 300 hurdles and second-fastest in 110 hurdles.

Menomonee Falls senior Jenna Woodon found sophomore Anna Smalley in the 90th minute on Saturday, giving the visiting Indians a 1-0 victory in a WIAA Regional Final at Arrowhead.

The win was the 17th of the season for the Menomonee Falls girls soccer team, a school record.

Arrowhead junior goalie Michela Ongaro turned away the Indians several times prior to the overtime score.

Dominic Pino, a seventh grader at Templeton Middle School knows a thing or two about history.
He could tell you all about the Roman Empire, World War II, or Egyptian pyramids, but if he keeps it up, he may be reading his own name in those same history books.

Pino placed second in the nation at the National History Bee in Washington D.C. on May 12, an event that aired nationally from Mount Vernon on the History Channel at 7 p.m. on June 1.

The seventh grader advanced to the national competition by way of winning one of 33 regional competitions in March. The regional covered three rounds, U.S. history, world history up to 1945, and world history after 1945.

 Janine Emmer, a former standout at Slinger High School and Ripon College, has been named the new varsity girls basketball coach at Kettle Moraine High School.

Emmer will be a guidance counselor at Kettle Moraine. She currently holds down that position at Watertown High School.

At Slinger she was a standout basketball player and then played basketball and volleyball at Ripon College. She's been an assistant coach at Concordia University the last 5 years. 

 Oconomowoc's girls fastpitch softball team committed eight errors, five in the first two innings as they lost to host Watertown in the opening round of the WIAA Division 1 sectional Monday afternoon, 12-4. It was the third time this season that Watertown defeated the Raccoons.

Watertown had 12 hits in the game compared to just four for OHS.  Brianne McGuire had two hits to pace Oconomowoc.

Watertown scored three runs in the first inning and three more in the second to take a 6-0 lead. Only one of those runs were earned.

OHS finished the season with an 18-6 record.

 City of Delafield - The Common Council may consider later this summer amendments to a local ordinance that places a limit on the amount of money that can be spent on a city financed capital project without voter approval in a referendum.

Ald. Michele De Yoe said tonight she will discuss with the City Administrator and City Attorney in July or August possible changes to the ordinance. She said the Common Council can increase the $1 million dollar limit, redefine what projects are included in the spending limit, or do nothing to change the local law.

De Yoe said she is concerned that some routine, non controversial projects are beginning to approach the referendum-requiring threshold of $1 million.

For example, city officials estimate it will cost about $900,000 to rebuild, resurface, and add sidewalks, to less than  one mile of a city street.

De Yoe said she wanted to wait until later in the summer to propose any changes because the Common Council is now dealing with a number of other issues.

Citizen activist Jim Zahorik, who led the referendum campaign in 2005 that created the ordinance,  said last week he would support increasing the spending limit from $1 million to $1.5 million.

However, Zahorik told the Common Council Monday night that he has changed his position and believes the council should maintain the existing limit.

Zahorik later said he changed his mind because he received telephone calls from more than a dozen city residents who objected to his support for raising the limit.

The line was long and slow moving at Greenland School this morning to cast a ballot in the recall election. It was just under an hour wait time when polls first opened at 7 a.m. and no let up in sight. 

Today's election is monumental and we want to hear what you think about it!

What was it like at the polls? Busy, eh? How long did you have to wait in line?

Is there anything that influenced your vote?

Who are you hoping wins?

All comments are welcome!

Drop me a line: abudde@jcpgroup.com

If you feel comfortable doing so, feel free to state what community you live in.

Retired New Berlin teacher and Village of Wales resident Jeff Krumrich spent Tuesday morning on the corner of Highway 83 and 18 reminding people to vote and supporting Governor Scott Walker. Krumrich said he received lots of supportive honks and comments. Krumrich plans to come back out to the intersection later in the day.

A steady stream of traffic flows into the Genesee Town Hall parking lot for voting today.

Waukesha Sheriff's Deputy Sal Tamez keeps traffic moving smoothly at the Genesee Town Hall for Tuesday's voting.

"This is so exciting," one resident said as she pulled out from the parking lot. "Everyone is voting!"

Town of Genesee election worker Connie Kurth helps residents find their ward for voting as lines formed outside the Town Hall Tuesday morning.

A line of Town of Mukwonago residents weaves through the fire station and back toward the Town Hall as residents head to polls to vote in Tuesday's recall election. Poll workers said the first voter was at the poll at 6:15 a.m. By the time the poll opened at 7 a.m. the line was out the door and into the parking lot. About 600 voters had cast their ballot in the first two hours.

Oconomowoc High School teacher, Jeremy "Pete" Peterson recently received the Milwaukee Section's 2012 High School Chemistry Teacher of the Year Award.

 Town of Eagle clerk Lynn Pepper is reporting that the town has already reached 25% voter turn out during this election. 

Voting has been smooth and steady.

 The Village of Hartland had a big turnout of voters Tuesday morning at 11:30 a.m. at the Village Hall. In wards 1-6, last names beginning with A-L,  a total of 790 voters had cast ballots. 

There was about a 5-minute wait in line at that time.

There also was a lot of traffic around the Village Hall during the lunch hour.

 Local election officials in Republican dominated Lake Country are reporting large presidential election size voter turnouts in the state's historic and intensely contested gubenatorial recall election.

The heavy turn out in the region is good news for incumbent Republican Scott Walker who is being challenged by Tom Barrett, the Democratic mayor of Milwaukee. Some pundits have termed the election a toss up and predicted the outcome would be determined by which campaign does the best job of turning out their voters.

Village clerks in Nashotah, Chenequa and Merton, all Republican strongholds, reported nearly 50 percent of their registered voters had cast  ballots by noon.

"It reminds me of presidential election turnouts, except that I think there is more interest and vehemence in this one," said Nashotah Village Clerk Cynthia Pfeifer, a 19 year veteran of local elections.

Merton Village Clerk Tom Nelson said there were 50 to 60 people waiting in line to vote when polls opened at the Village Hall at 7 a.m.

City of Delafield Deputy Clerk Ellen O'Brien expressed surprised when she learned that 1,600 voters in the city of about 8,000 residents had cast ballots by 11 a.m.

The large turnout caught some election officials in the Town of Lisbon by surprise. In a fire station, one of the town's three polling places, election officials had made arrangements for one of book of voter lists and a single line for voters to wait in, a formation sometimes used in non presidential and local elections.

"If I would have known there was going to be this size of a turnout, we would have set up the presidential election formation," said Election Inspector Teresa Pelt.

Pelt said  the "presidential formation" would have provided  multiple lines and voter lists books which would have allowed voters to cast their ballots more quickly.

According to one voter, the waiting line at the Lisbon fire station once  wrapped almost half way around the building.

In most elections, it is usually stay at home moms and small business owners who cast their ballots during the mid morning hours in Lake Country, according to Nelson.

But he said in this election voters of  all ages and both genders are casting ballots early.

"I have seen a lot of young voters and I have seen a lot of men that you usually don't see in the morning," Nelson said.

Pfeifer said one college age voter is driving from Madison to Nashotah to cast a ballot in her hometown because the U.S. Postal Service failed to deliver her an absentee ballot.

Ryan Schultz, 19, of the City of Delafield said he voting in his "first big election" since becoming old enough to vote. He was one of the few voters who said during an interview that he voted for Barrett rather than Walker.

 Village of Dousman clerk Penny Nissen reports that Scott Walker beat Tom Barrett 845 to 305 in the recall election for Wisconsin Governor. Hari Trivedi received four votes.

Rebecca Kleefisch got 813 votes while Mahlon  Mitchell received 306 votes. There were two write in votes for Lieutenant Governor. 

Turn out was 83% for the village.

Scott Walker won in the Village of Wales during today's historic recall election with 1,167 votes over Tom Barrett's 429 votes. Trivedi got three votes.

Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch retains her position with 1,130 votes over Mahlon Mitchell's 434.

Voter turnout was 86% for this election. 

 Scott Walker received a landslide of votes in the Village of North Prairie today, beating Tom Barrett 963 to 253, respectively. 

Rebecca Kleefisch beat Mahlon Mitchell, 949 votes to 245.

Voter turnout was 84%. 

Electors residing in the conservative enclave of the Village of Oconomowoc Lake showed their confidence in Gov. Scott Walker with 299 votes cast in his favor. More surprisingly, 55 of its residents voted for Tom Barrett.

 Scott Walker wins over another Lake Country municipality, having received 1,727 votes over Tom Barrett's 636 in the Town of Ottawa today. Trivedi received six votes. 

Rebecca Kleefisch won with 1,691 votes over Mahlon Mitchell who received 633 votes. 

Voter turnout for the town was 83%, much higher than most elections, Clerk Melissa Klein reports. 

 Walker and Kleefisch score a landslide win in the Town of Eagle with 85 percent voter turnout while stomping Barrett and Mitchell in the Village of Big Bend where voter turnout was 84 percent in today's recall election. Walker scored a victory in the Village of Eagle as well where 84 percent of voters hit the polls.

Clerks say the entire day went smoothly.

High voter turnout is making for a long night for staff in the City of Oconomowoc. A clerk just reported that it will be "another hour or two" until results are tallied.

Governor Walker won handily in the Village of Summit, tallying 2,053 votes to challenger Tom Barrett's 618.

Meanwhile, Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch earned 2,018 votes in the village, defeating democratic challenger Mahlon Mitchell. Mitchell tallied 631 votes.

Some 81 percent of village voters turned out to vote.

 Walker and Kleefisch claim victories in the Village of Mukwonago and Town of Vernon with 80 percent voter turnout in the Village and 83 percent in Vernon. 

The City of Oconomowoc may be the last municipality to report vote totals tonight.

With just results reported from Wards 7-9, Walker continues his trend of taking a commanding lead with 1,274 votes to Barrett's 536.

 The WE Energies power outage map shows that nearly 50 customers near Highway E and Road X are currently without power. The call came in to WE Energies around 7:25 a.m. this morning. 

WE Energies reports that the outage is due to a squirrel contact with equipment causing a short. 

Power should be restored between 9 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. this morning. Crews should be on scene at the moment. 

 WE Energies reports that power was restored to around 50 customers at 8:40 this morning after a squirell caused a short around 7:25 a.m. 

 A man in his 40's was taken to Waukesha Memorial Hospital last night after the Mukwonago Fire Department spent nearly 20 minutes extricating him from his mangled car on Highway NN near Rolling Hills Elementary school. The accident occurred at 8:20 p.m. 

Fire Chief Jeff Stien stated that the man had been driving straight along Highway NN when somehow his vehicle crashed into a tree so hard that the tree was nearly touching the vehicle's firewall.

The victim was the only occupant in the vehicle.

No further details are available at this time. Check next week's Mukwonago Chief for more information. 

 The Waukesha County Sheriff's Department is still on the scene of an accident on Highway 67 at  Highway ZZ near the Town of Ottawa. According to information from the Waukesha County dispatch website, the accident occured around 4:16 this morning.

Details are slow coming in, but preliminary reports state the accident involves a semi truck. 

Information will be posted as it becomes available. 

A milk tanker driver died at the scene of a crash around 4:16 this morning on Highway 67 in the Town of Ottawa, the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department reports. 

The driver had been southbound on Highway 67 when the driver apparently failed to negotiate a curve and flipped the semi tanker. 

Highway 67 is still closed to traffic and will remain closed for hours, according to the Sheriff's Department. 

Southbound Highway 67 motorists are being detoured west on Highway ZZ. Northbound Highway 67 motorists are being detoured east on Highway ZZ. 

The Sheriff's Department reports that there was minor milk spillage. The Department of Natural Resources and the State Patrol were also on scene.

Check back for more information as it becomes available. 

 A Waukesha County Sheriff's Deputy is reporting that Highway 67 will be closed for likely another 40 minutes as crews finish cleaning up after a deadly accident this morning in the Town of Ottawa that took the life of a milk tanker driver.

The flipped milk tanker has been up righted and the load is being transferred. 

Highway 67 in the Town of Ottawa reopened after about six hours as crews uprighted a milk tanker that flipped early this morning, killing the driver. The accident occurred around 4:16 a.m. just north of Highway ZZ.

A judge Thursday ordered convicted killer Darren Wold to pay the victim's family nearly $74,000 in restitution payments for the care of his child.

Wold appeared in Waukesha County Circuit Court wearing an orange prison suit on Thursday afternoon for the purpose of determining his present and future earning potential as well as his finanical resources available to make restitution payments.

The hearing was over in a matter of minutes as Wold and his defense team provided no evidence that Wold would be unable to make the payments imposed on him by the court in April.

Wold said only, "I have nothing to say," when asked by the judge for a statement.

Wold, who earned a life sentence for the 2009 murder of Oconomowoc's Kimberly Smith, was embroiled in a bitter custody dispute with Smith over their son when he allegedly hired a hitman from California through a friend to kill Smith.

He will now pay restitution to Laurie and Robert Zanotti until his son turns 18. Laurie Zanotti is Smith's sister, who now cares for Smith and Wold's son, now six years old.

The Waukesha County Sheriff's Department has announced that a 22-year old Hartford man is the victim of a roll over accident that occurred just after 4 a.m. this morning on Highway 67 in the Town of Ottawa. Flight for Life was called, however the driver of the truck was pronounced dead at the scene. 

The man had been a trucker for Gundrum Trucking out of Slinger.

It appears from the initial investigation that the driver was southbound on Highway 67 when he failed to negotiate the curve.

The Department of Natural Resources was called to the scene for minor milk spillage. The Wisconsin State Patrol is assisting with the investigation. 

The roadway was shutdown for approximately six hours.

Only months after a $930,000 referendum failed, the Hartland-Lakeside School District announced another $600,000 operating referendum will go before voters in August.

The referendum question voters will see when they head to the polls on August 14, will ask taxpayers for the authority to exceed the School District's revenue limit by $600,000. If approved, the School District could levy up to that amount beyond its authorized revenue limit for five years.

According to a press release from the School District, "This amount was included in the December 2011 tax bills under the revenue limit law for budget year 2011-12, but now requires voter approval to be included in the 2012-13 budget. Therefore the referendum will not increase taxes."

The School District stated that with the implementation of Act 10 for the 2011-12 school year, that the District was able to trim some $1.2 million out of its budget through restructuring salaries and benefits for employees. But it contends that even with those cuts, it must buoy its revenue limit in order to maintain its current level of programming and services.

"The referendum asks for funding to help maintain small class sizes, meet the State of Wisconsin educational standards, and keep important programs in place for our students," the press release said.

Voters rejected a similar referendum in February that sought $930,000 to maintain the School District's current level of programming and services.

The district has worked in recent years to cut expenses through a variety of cost-saving measures, including the implementation of a pay-for-performance model for teachers, healthcare and benefits changes, and the consolidation of primary grades at Hartland North and elementary grades at Hartland South.

The School District announced it will hold informational meetings on Wednesday, July 11 and Wednesday, August 1 at 6:30 p.m. at North Shore Middle School.

The Hamilton Chargers varsity girls softball team defeated Watertown on Thursday 4-3 in the WIAA Division 1 Sectional Final at Arrowhead.

Hamilton got a seven inning pitching performance from Sydney Sprinkel. She allowed two hits, both to Brenna Seeber.

Jenny Shernell hit a solo homer in the top of the first inning for Hamilton (16-9).

 The Waukesha County Sheriff's Department has released the name of the milk truck driver who died after his tanker tipped over on Highway 67 yesterday morning. 22 year old Kurt Klink from the Town of Addison died after the tanker he was driving failed to negotiate a curve and tipped over on Highway 67 near Highway ZZ yesterday morning around 4:15 a.m.

Inital reports yesterday stated that the man was from Allenstown. That information was incorrect. 

The Lake Country Lutheran/University Lake School soccer team, despite a team of just 12 players for much of the year, earned a berth in the state tournament for the first time in program history with a 4-2 win over Aquinas in Saturday's sectional final, 4-2.

Ellen Tyler scored twice for the Lightning (19-2-0), who will battle St. Mary Central (22-1-2) in the WIAA Division 3 semifinals at 9 a.m. Friday at Uihlein Soccer Park in Milwaukee. Check out a feature on the team from two weeks ago.

Kettle Moraine, competing in the Division 1 sectional final, fell to Waukesha West on Saturday, 1-0. The Lasers have fallen to West in the sectional final each of the past two seasons.

 The host Pewaukee Muskies grabbed the headlines in the Land O' Lakes Western Division baseball league Sunday by scoring three runs in the last of the ninth to defeat Menomonee Falls, 8-7.

Pewaukee is now 6-1. West Bend leads the league at 7-1

Greg Harder and Tim Mertins delivered the big hits for the Muskies in the ninth.

Other scores Sunday saw Oconomowoc whip North Lake 17-1, Sussex trounce Monches 17-1, West Bend defeat Hartland 15-4, Lannon edge Merton in 10 innings 9-8 and the Brookfield Blue Sox upset the Brookfield Bulldogs, 6-5.

On Friday night Monches stopped North Lake, 4-1.

 Village of Sussex - The Waukesha County Sheriff and village officials are considering elevating the postion of village police service director from the rank of lieutenant to Captain.

In addition to being in charge of the village's 24 hour police patrol, the lieutenant  is also in charge of the daily operations of the sheriff's substation in Sussex.

Deputies who are specifically assigned to the communities of Merton, Sussex, and Lisbon  work from the substation in addition to sheriff's detectives and deputies assigned to other duties in the county.

The communities that have specific deputies assigned to them pay the sheriff's office for the additional police patrols. The police service contract with the Village of Sussex is one of the largest and oldest contracts in the sheriff's department.

Village trustees have occassionally expressed frustrations about police service directors who are assigned to the village for a few years before being promoted to captain assigned new command and supervisor duties.

Village Administrator Jeremy Smith said that since captain is a higher rank than lieutenant and there are fewer captains in the department, a captain serving as village police services director would be less likely to get promoted and reassigned.

Sheriff Dan Trawicki said he would be willing to consider the change in his chain of command if the village is willing to pay for the $14,000 starting salary difference between a lieutenant and captain..

Village of Merton Administrator Tom Nelson said there is a possibility his village board might be willing to share some of Sussex's additional expenses for the new captain. The Village of Merton presently pays a share of the lieutenant's salary for supervising the deputy assigned to the village.

Coincidentally, Village Police Service Director Lt.Torin Misko is the next lieutenant in line for a promotion to captain.

Following the opening of the new "Life on the Farm" daily experience at Old World Wisconsin, the museum will offer additional farm-related events June 15-17, according to a news release.

"Life on the Farm" features the opportunity for visitors to experience what life was like living and working on a 19th-century Midwestern farm and will be offered on a daily basis throughout the operating season. 

Additional Farm-Related Events include the following

After-Hours Barn Dance on Friday, June 15 from 6 to 9 p.m. Adults $10; children (5-17) $7; 4 and under are free.

The barn dance will be held in the upper loft of the historic Clausing Barn. All ages are welcome; no experience necessary. Snacks available for purchase at the dance; the Clausing Barn Restaurant will also be open until 6:30 p.m. with light meals and snacks available. Reservations are required; available through noon Friday at www.oldworldwisconsin.org or (262) 594-6301.

Rousing with the Roosters Breakfast Workshops on Saturday, June 16 from 6:30 to 9:30 a.m. (while this event just sold out, additional dates available are July 7 and 28, Aug. 25 and Sept. 15)

Visitors looking to extend the "Life on the Farm" experience may explore the way an 1880s farm day began, as they prepare a sunrise meal, feed farm animals, tend the gardens and enjoy a breakfast on the Koepsell farmhouse porch. Museum admission is included. 

Father's Day Dairy Breakfast PLUS "Men at Work" event on Sunday, June 17 with seating from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The museum opens for the "Men at Work" event from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

In conjunction with June being Dairy Month in Wisconsin, Old World Wisconsin is hosting a Father's Day Dairy Breakfast featuring dairy-made selections plus hearty entrees. Adults  $18; children (5-12) $9; 4 and under FREE.  

Reservations required for the above events and can be made at www.oldworldwisconsin.org or (262) 594-6301.

All dads receive free museum admission on June 17.  "Men at Work" features jobs traditionally performed by men in the late 1800s, including the blacksmith, shoemaker and wagon shops, plus horse-drawn omnibus rides, and even a wooden spoon maker.

Kettle Moraine School District (KMSD) will host Search Institute trainer Jim Conway from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 12, in the Kettle Moraine High School library.

What would you do if you knew that only 23 percent of young people feel valued by adults in the community? Conway will build a shared understanding of young people’s strengths and needs in the community. Parents, youth leaders, coaches and community members are invited to review survey findings and participate in a workshop to build potential in youth.

 Village of Sussex - The Community Development Authority and the Village Board tonight unanimously approved the village spending $60,000 to begin the process of purchasing 120 acres of farm land for NAI/MLG of Brookfield to develop into a commercial park.

The money will be paid to the developer in the form of a Community Development Grant. The grant funds come from real estate tax revenues generated from tax increment financing districts, according to village officials.

The money will be used to conduct engineering and environmental studies of the site and close the real estate transaction with Johnson Bank, the owner of the land located on the west edge of the village near the intersection of  Hwys.164 and VV.

The $60,000 will be paid back to the village when the land acquistion is completed, according to village officials. Village trustees have until September 28 to make a final decision whether to purchase the land.

However, village officials have refused to disclose the price of the land.

The village intends to create a new tax increment financing district to pay for the purchase of the land and provide streets, sewer, water and other public utilities for the private development. 

Representatives of MLG, including Chairman of the Board Michael Moody, assured village officials the project could be successful because of what he described as a pent up demand for commercial parks that include industrial sites of two to ten acres.

"Built it and they will come," said Mooney, citing the famous phrase from the baseball movie "Field of Dreams"

However, about a half dozen residents spoke in opposition to the grant proposal. They argued the village should not use public funds to purchase land for private developers.

When residents tried to question village trustees about the project, the village attorney said "it is against the law" for trustees to answer the citizen's questions during the meeting.

The development authority and the village board meetings occured less than 30 minutes apart. During the meetings there were few questions and no debate about the grant proposal that was made public late Friday afternoon.

Prior to the votes, there was more than six months of private negotiations between the village staff and the developers.

 One person was taken to Froedert Hospital after being ejected from a large utility truck when it rolled over on I-43 yesterday just north of Highway 83 in Mukwonago around 12:18 p.m. yesterday afternoon. A second occupant who was able to exit the vehicle after it came to a stop on the side of the road was taken to Waukesha Memorial Hospital. 

The left lane of the freeway was closed until just before 4 p.m. 

Mukwonago Fire Chief Jeff Stien said that the ejected occupant was categorized as a level red patient, while the other occupant was a level yellow. No fruther information on injuries was available at this time.

The Village of Mukwonago Police Department is investigating the cause of the crash. No other vehicles were involved in the accident. 

Check next week's Mukwonago Chief for more information.

The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection is asking Wisconsin residents to be on the lookout for potential phone scams originating from Jamaica.  The Consumer Protection Bureau has already received more than a dozen written complaints this year from Wisconsin residents who were contacted by Jamaican scammers.

When most people think of Jamaica, they imagine a tropical paradise, not a scammer’s paradise.  But time and time again, Jamaican scammers call Wisconsin residents looking for easy money through phony stories about Publishers Clearing House sweepstakes winnings, lottery prizes and free cars, according to a consumer alert from the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.

One telling sign of a scam is if your caller ID notes that a questionable call is coming from a phone number with an “876” prefix – this is the area code for Jamaica.  The process for making a call to and from the island is just like calling state-to-state, so many call recipients may not realize that the contact is actually coming from overseas.

The scammers often claim to represent Publishers Clearing House, “Mega Millions” or a similar organization.  Their goal is to convince American residents to wire money or send the card number from a MoneyPak “Green Dot” pre-paid debit card overseas to cover the fees on a phony lottery sum that is supposed to be delivered to their home.  The scammers request anywhere from $20 to more than $1,000 for these delivery fees.

In other variations on the scam, callers have claimed to be from Bank of America or have used an opening line about “lowering interest.”  The scammer may also engage the call recipient in a conversation about religion or family in order to earn the person’s trust.

The scammers are not simply cold calling – they are also using online mapping technology to add legitimacy to their calls.  When scammers claim that the “prize patrol” is in the call recipient’s neighborhood right now, they can describe the area in detail using free web-based mapping tools.

To avoid being the victim of a Jamaican phone scam, Consumer Protection offers the following tips:

If you receive a phone call from an 876 area code that asks you for payment in order to secure a prize, hang up immediately and file a complaint with the Consumer Protection Bureau.  If you have caller ID, record the incoming phone number and the time of the call.

If the scammers reach you once they may call repeatedly, so check your caller ID before you pick up.

Any request for a wire transfer or pre-paid debit card for a product or service is likely a scam.

The scammers will not provide any legitimate documentation prior to requesting your prize delivery fees.  This is illegal in Wisconsin.  A promoter who represents that a consumer is eligible or has been selected to receive a prize must provide the consumer with a written prize notice with specific disclosures before requesting or accepting any payments.

For additional information or to file a complaint, visit the Consumer Protection Bureau at datcp.wisconsin.gov, send an e-mail to datcphotline@wisconsin.gov or call toll-free at 1-800-422-7128.

Tim's Auto Parts, 502 E. Wisconsin Ave., is celebrating 30 years in business today with a cookout  from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. that will benefit the Oconomowoc Food Pantry.

A $3 donation for the pig roast will go to help our less fortunate neighbors.

 Representative David Craig (R-Town of Vernon) invites constituents of the 83^rd Assembly District to area listening sessions in Vernon, the Town of East Troy, Waterford, Muskego, Hales Corners and the Town of Waukesha. 

Sessions will be held:

Vernon; 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. on June 27 at Vernon Town Hall, W249 S8910 Center Dr.

Town of East Troy; 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. June 27 at East Troy Town Hall, N 9330 Stewart School Rd. 

Waterford; 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on June 28 at Waterford Town Hall, 415 N. Milwaukee St.

Muskego; 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. on June 28 in the Aldermen's Room at City Hall, W182 S8200 Racine Ave. 

Hales Corners; 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. on July 2 at Hales Corners Village Hall, 5635 S. New Berlin Rd.

Town of Waukesha; 6:45 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. on July 2 at Waukesha Town Hall, W250 S3567 Center Rd. 

For more information please contact Representative Craig’s office (toll-free) at 888-534-0083 or email him at Rep.Craig@legis.wisconsin.gov.

 The Wisconsin Department of Transportation will start reconfiguration work on the Highway 59/83 roundabout beginning on Monday, June 18. 

The DOT said that all work will be done with the intersection open to traffic in an attempt to minimize disruption to area businesses and residents. Semi trucks will be detoured during the work.

Signs are currently in place near the intersection alerting motorists to the upcoming work. 

More details will be announced as they become available. 

There’s nothing like the feeling of cleaning out a messy area,  standing back and admiring the order we've just created.

But when it comes to the garage and workroom there is always that dilemma: What to do with the old paints, pesticides and other toxic products that have outlived their usefulness?

This Saturday, Waukesha County residents can collect all those cans and bottles that should not be pitched in the garbage and have them disposed of properly. From 8 to noon, you can take them to the special household hazardous waste collection at the City Department of Public Works in Delafield, 111 Main St.

Among the items that will be accepted are unusable chemicals, pesticides, wood preservatives, solvents, oil-based paints and mercury-containing products.  Latex paint and non-hazardous materials will not be accepted.

The county also has four year-round collection sites in Muskego, Waukesha, Menomonee Falls and Franklin.

For more information, including a list of acceptable household hazardous waste materials, visit www.waukeshacounty.gov/recycling or call (262) 896-8300.

The program is funded by Waukesha County and Veolia Environmental Services in partnership with the local municipalities. Proof of residency is required.

Those interested in learning the rudiments of Swahili, both East African travelers and others just interested in learning a new language, are invited to attend a free course in Basic Swahili which will be taught for 13 weeks, starting Wednesday, June 20, at 7 p.m., at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, 145 East Lisbon Rd., Oconomowoc.

Each weekly class will run about an hour and is free of charge. For more information, contact Tom Schober at (262) 965-2424 or tgs@execpc.com.

 Reconfiguration of the Highway 59/83 roundabout will begin Monday, June 18 to accommodate specialized Over Size/ Over Weight (OSOW) vehicles that use this route to support local manufacturers. The good news is that the work will be accomplished without the need to close off any lanes of traffic. 

However, there will be restrictions placed on trucks and a detour route is posted for this time frame. Work will be suspended during the morning and afternoon peak traffic periods to ensure worker and motorist safety.

The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (DOT) states that once the work is completed, OSOW and lowboy trucks will have an easier time navigating through the intersection. 

Changeable massage signs are currently in place and alerting motorists of this upcoming project.

The project is targeted for completion by June 29. As with all road construction projects weather conditions may impact project completion. The project's cost is not yet available from the DOT. 

 West Bend and Pewaukee continued to be the hottest baseball teams in the Land O' Lakes Western Division on Sunday as both scored victories. West Bend downed the Brookfield Bulldogs 8-5 and Pewaukee stopped Sussex 9-4. West Bend leads the league with an 8-1 record and Pewaukee is second at 7-1.

Other games on Sunday saw Lannon defeat Oconomowoc 8-1, Menomonee Falls blank Hartland 10-0 and Merton defeat the Brookfield Blue Sox 7-2.

Games on Saturday saw the Bulldogs whip Oconomowoc 12-0, Monches trounce Hartland 16-3, Sussex pound Lannon 13-2 and the Falls stop the Blue Sox 11-2.