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Thursday, January 17, 2019 • Vol. 137, No. 26 • Stoughton, WI • ConnectStoughton.com • $1.25 adno=52882
Stoughton Area School District
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City of Stoughton
Hwy. 138 land sale rejected
Alders unclear on parcel’s value, development future ALEXANDER CRAMER Unified Newspaper Group
Photo by Derek Spellman
Stoughton High School science teacher Francis Kelley talks with SHS student Thomas Unitan about a computer coding project in TEALS class Tuesday morning. The first semester of the popular new class is wrapping up this week.
Breaking the code
New SHS class gives students view into new world SCOTT DE LARUELLE Unified Newspaper Group
Computers are the future. But it’s not just knowing how to use them that’s important anymore, but how to make them do things. That’s where computer coding comes in. This school year, Stoughton High School students are getting a chance to learn about one of the biggest job markets in the country, while having some fun working on computers. And
they are signing up for the new class in droves. TEALS (Technology Education and Literacy in Schools), founded in 2009 by former high school computer science teacher and Microsoft engineer Kevin Wang, helps high schools build computer science programs by combining computer science professionals with classroom teachers and teamteach classes to develop a computer science curriculum. At SHS, the class is taught by Fran Kelley, with a goal to teach principles
and practical application of computer science, including coding, with professionals offering help and advice along the way. Kelley, who also teaches physics and Fab Lab courses, said 26 students signed up for the first semester of the class, which is wrapping up this week. “(That’s) a ton, definitely my biggest class,” he told the Hub Monday. “We’ve got pretty broad interest, with freshmen all the way up until seniors.”
Turn to TEALS/Page 8
Town of Dunn
Updated comp plan will align with county zoning ALEXANDER CRAMER Unified Newspaper Group
The Town of Dunn has begun updating its comprehensive plan to match the county’s newly revised zoning ordinances. As part of that update, the town is looking for public participation. Ben Kollenbroich, Dunn’s planning and land
conservation director, told the Hub the town is using this opportunity to look at a few things that have come up in planning discussions in the past, like revisiting the town’s language defining duplexes. Dunn is using the same tools for public input as it did when it last updated its comprehensive plan in 2017. Information will be
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posted on the town’s website, town.dunn.wi.us, as well as in the town’s newsletter. Elements of the plan will be discussed and updated monthly at its Planning Commission meetings. Residents can also submit a comment in writing to the commission or Town Board. And there will be a public hearing before the plan is adopted later this year.
Dane County adopted its first comprehensive revision of zoning ordinances in early January, giving towns that use the county’s zoning like Dunn until the end of 2019 to align themselves with the new language and policies. Kollenbroich said the town is acting quickly to
Turn to Dunn/Page 16
Inside Icebergs skate to 3-2 win in unexpected overtime against Lakeshore Lightning. Read more about the 2-1 overall week for the Icebergs hockey team: Page 9
The Common Council rejected a land sale to the developers of Kettle Park West just across U.S. Hwy. 138 from that controversial development. Only one alder supported the sale, with the other 10 opting instead to “have a conversation” about what the city wants to see on its western gateway before it sells the land, Mayor Tim Swadley told the Hub. “We already have a substation there, which isn’t an ideal situation,” Swadley said. “We want to make sure we put something there that when people
Inside City picks new SU director Page 5 • Wiessinger resigns from Council • City signs lease with MSB Page 16 approach Stoughton from 138 — which quite a lot of them do – it represents the city (well.)” The city’s comprehensive plan calls for the land
Turn to 138/Page 16
Riverfront buildings lacked insurance Blacksmith Shop coverage started Dec. 28 ALEXANDER CRAMER Unified Newspaper Group
Buildings in the city’s riverfront redevelopment area had been sitting without insurance for years, city risk manager AJ Gillingham told the Redevelopment Authority last week. That included the lone remaining building, the century-old “blacksmith
shop,” which is in the midst of a conflict because part of it fell down in a storm after buildings around it were razed. Some city leaders have hoped to save the building for its historic value. Since the city didn’t own any of the buildings in the area, it was technically unable to take out insurance on the buildings or land despite having and paying for policies on the buildings for years until they were demolished, after passing ownership to the RDA.
Turn to Insurance/Page 8