Thursday, March 5, 2020 • Vol. 135, No. 36 • Oregon, WI • ConnectOregonWI.com • $1.50
Interim chief presents 60 day plan Pagenkopf details goals for strengthening community relationships EMILIE HEIDEMANN Unified Newspaper Group
Oregon’s interim police chief unveiled her 60 day plan to trustees at the Monday, March 2, Village Board meeting. Jennifer Pagenkopf told the board her plan implements the strategies former chief Brian Uhl left behind last February. Some immediate goals include continuing efforts to strengthen the department’s relationship with the Oregon School District and restoring the department’s image with the community. That was one of the top goals Uhl had when he was hired in 2015, with the department having been rocked by scandal under former police chief Doug Pettit. But Uhl came under
village scrutiny for his behavior and comments last fall. Pagenkopf ’s long term goals include hiring an OPD mental health office and working with the vill a g e ’s n ew Advisory Council on Diversity and Inclusion. But that’s contingent Pagenkopf upon whom the Police Commission hires for the permanent chief. Trustees Monday authorized village administrator Mike Gracz to prepare a recommendation for that hire to the board at its April 20 meeting, and the board plans to then make a recommendation to the commission. Also Monday, Pagenkopf was officially sworn in as the acting police chief by village president Jeanne Carpenter after the board approved a letter regarding her appointment.
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ConnectOregonWI.com adding a paywall Print subscribers and online members will get full access JIM FEROLIE Observer editor
For more than a decade, non-subscribers to the Oregon Observer have been able to access most of our content for free on ConnectOregonWI.com. Beginning April 1, this will no longer be the case.
All three websites for Unified Newspaper Group’s weekly newspapers – the Observer, the Stoughton Courier Hub and the Verona Press – will be behind a paywall, meaning for most of our content, readers will need a subscription. There will be exceptions, such as important breaking news, some submitted items and stories that are being covered regionally. Print subscribers will
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Oregon School District
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This drone photo taken late last year shows the footprint of Forest Edge Elementary School, which is set to open for new students and staff on Wednesday, Sept. 2.
Construction looking up at school ‘Green-focused’ K-6 Forest Edge on pace, on budget to open this summer SCOTT DE LARUELLE Unified Newspaper Group
Perhaps one day, they’ll be able to harness the seemingly endless energy of its elementary school students. Until then, Forest Edge Elementary School (FES) will perhaps make a name for itself as the first “Net Zero” school built in the state, meaning it will produce more energy than it uses. Construction is set to be mainly
completed in July, with staff slated to move in during late August to prepare for the students’ first day of school on Wednesday, Sept. 2. That work has continued steadily throughout the winter months, with both construction and budget on schedule, Oregon School District superintendent Brian Busler told the Observer last week “The weather has been terrific from a construction standpoint,” he said. The building is designed to efficiently use energy, featuring solar panels, geothermal heating and cooling, and being strategically located to take advantage of natural light. In the past few weeks, work on those
On the Web To find out more about the Forest Edge Elementary School project, visit
oregonsd.org/build modern features has begun in the bowels of the foundation, with operators drilling out boreholes for the geothermal equipment, according to the latest update from J.H. Findorff & Son construction company. As its form slowly takes shape, workers have been installing fiber cement siding in the west courtyard, which will continue through the rest
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ReVoiced will perform in Oregon Show is March 6, part of PAC Spotlight Headliners Series
Series spearheaded by Oregon High School Performing Arts Center director Nate Mendl, ReVoiced is taking the stage at 7:30 p.m. at the PAC, located on 456 N. Perry Pkwy. EMILIE HEIDEMANN ReVoiced is the second artist in Unified Newspaper Group the Spotlight Headliners Series, which will conclude Friday, May 1, ReVoiced, a five-man a capella with percussion comedy act Buckgroup that has re-imagined — or ets N Boards. The series kicked off “re-voiced” — popular songs with Oct. 12, 2019, with R&B and jazz a Motown flair, is coming to Oregon Friday, March 6. Turn to Headliners/Page 7 As part of a Spotlight Headliners
If You Go What: ReVoiced performance When: 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 6 Where: Oregon High School Performing Arts Center, 456 N. Perry Pkwy. Tickets: $20 for adults; $18 seniors 65 and older; $10 students 19 and under Info: 835-4492 or email pac.director@ oregonsd.net
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