Thursday, August 23, 2018 • Vol. 134, No. 8 • Oregon, WI • ConnectOregonWI.com • $1.25
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Oregon Observer The
Oregon School District
Preparing the referendum push Community meetings begin next month SCOTT DE LARUELLE Unified Newspaper Group
Photo by Alexander Cramer
Julie Anderson, the curator of the Little Free Libraries at Brooklyn’s Recycling Center, shows off the inside of the kids’ library, made out of an old microwave sitting atop a repurposed grill.
Reading, recycled
Brooklyn Little Free Libraries offer used books in style It’s a project she took over a couple months ago at the behest of Russell Cichy, the Town of Brooklyn’s treasurer. At the time, the libraries What: Little Free Libraries weren’t in the best shape: the kids’ Where: Brooklyn Recycling Center, one was home to a hornet’s nest and N8790 Benson Road the adult one was leaking. When: 24 hours a day, 7 days a “Nobody’s gonna take a book from a moldy library,” Anderson said, week so she cleaned out the old washing Info: townofbrooklyn.org machine, threw away the offending books, sprayed it down with bleach and asked for help lining the inside. Now the inside is clean and fresh, means a repurposed microwave on a grill stand for the kids’ library and full of newly donated books that are an old washing machine atop a treadmill stand for books for adults. Turn to Libraries/Page 16
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Unified Newspaper Group
When Town of Brooklyn residents drop off their recycling, they can come back with an unexpected treasure, as the two “Little Free Libraries” outside the recycling center made out of recycled appliances are filled with books for both kids and adults. Julie Anderson curates the libraries, puzzling over which books might appeal to potential patrons and making sure they’re all in good shape. She’s also in charge of maintaining the “premises,” which in this case
Village grew slightly more than county New construction down .5 percent from last year ALEXANDER CRAMER Unified Newspaper Group
Oregon’s growth fell off a bit from last year but was still well within its fiveyear norm, according to data released by the state last week. The growth slowdown means the village won’t
have as much flexibility to increase its tax levy as it did last year, when it increased the levy by $375,170, with $153,075 of that coming from net new construction, which was at 3.24 percent. State statute prevents local governments from increasing their tax levies more than their percentage of new construction, meaning that’s one of the few ways to raise revenue. For Oregon, that number, released in a report
by the state’s Department of Revenue last week, was 2.7 percent, slightly higher than the county’s 2.6 percent increase. Net new construction takes into account data from Jan. 1 through Dec. 31, 2017, and it’s certified Aug. 15. Of the roughly $30 million in new construction, $25 million was residential, and $5 million was commercial. Village administrator
Turn to Growth/Page 13
Oregon’s net new construction 2012: 1.29 percent 2013: 1.86 percent 2014: 2.25 percent 2015: 2.24 percent 2016: 2.71 percent 2017: 3.24 percent 2018: 2.72 percent
Turn to Outreach/Page 13
What: Oregon School District community referendum meetings When: 6-7:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 17; 1011:30 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 6; and 6-7:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 15 Where: Rome Corners Intermediate School, 1111 S. Perry Pkwy. Info: 835-4000, email superintendent Brian Busler at bsb@oregonsd.net
Village of Oregon
Jaycee Park fundraising hinges on naming rights Attorney: Village will need policy to ensure fairness ALEXANDER CRAMER Unified Newspaper Group
With the first part of a $4 million plan to renovate Jaycee Park West planned for next spring, community leaders are almost ready to begin raising money, mostly through naming rights to its various facilities. Before they can do that, the village will need to create a policy to ensure fairness in how it sells those
naming rights, its attorney said. Monday, the board unanimously approved an updated concept plan, including new pickleball courts. That leaves only the fundraising before the village can break ground on the project’s first phase, which is estimated to cost $1.5 million. The village has promised $500,000 for the first phase of the project and offered to match another $500,000 in private fundraising. Judy Knutson, a Park Board member who spoke for the Jaycee Park West
Turn to Jaycee/Page 8
Inside Get ready for Panthers football season with our annual Football Guide
2018
FOOTBALL GUIDE Team Previews Inside Badger South outlook: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Oregon Panthers: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Stoughton Vikings: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Madison Edgewood Crusaders: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Big Eight outlook: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Verona Wildcats: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Madison West Regents: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
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ALEXANDER CRAMER
Gearing up for their third referendum push since 2014, Oregon School District officials have begun their information campaign with community meetings and presentations around the area in preparation for the Nov. 6 vote. The board has set up
If you go