Verona Press The
Thursday, June 13, 2019 • Vol. 55, No. 4 • Verona, WI • Hometown USA • ConnectVerona.com • $1.25
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Verona Area School District
Tornado Fifth Anniversary
Kissing Back to school normal goodbye Five years later, tornado is a distant but vivid memory
The Verona Area High School and Exploration Academy Charter School Class of 2019 was dismissed for the last time on Sunday, June 9. Held at Epic Systems, the commencement ceremony for the Verona Area School District included speeches from students Michael Fischer and Nicole Phelps. Following the commencement ceremony, graduates were led outside to the commons area on the Epic campus, where they were given the chance to toss their caps in the air and meet up with family members and friends. Email reporter Kimberly Wethal at kimberly.wethal@wcinet.com and follow her on Twitter @kimberly_wethal. Graduate Kenny Umanzor Canales blows kisses to the crowd while walking across the stage during the Verona Area High School graduation ceremony on Sunday, June 9, at Epic. Photo by Kimberly Wethal
Fireman’s Park scheduled to open for season June 19 Some projects still under construction until July KIMBERLY WETHAL Unified Newspaper Group
The
Photo by Kimberly Wethal
The splash pad at Fireman’s Park has been completed. Along with it, the playground and the shelter adjacent to it have also been built. Prior to the large amounts of rain during the spring, which halted the project until the ground dried off, construction crews battled sub-zero temperatures during late January and early February. During those days, the site was shut down completely, thought that didn’t knock the overall timeline back as a warmer November and December had allowed them to get ahead of schedule. Walker said the department will hold a grand opening sometime in July, once all projects at Fireman’s Park are complete.
Verona Press
He said he expects the usage of the park to increase, with the addition of a larger shelter and more activities available to patrons at the park. “There’s just a lot more to do there than there ever used to be,” he said. “We’re excited to see it open, too, and it’ll be a good summer down there.” Email reporter Kimberly Wethal at kimberly.wethal@wcinet.com and follow her on Twitter @kimberly_wethal.
There is no longer much evidence that a tornado touched down on the northwestern side of Verona five years ago – unless you count the colors of house siding. Prior to the early morning hours of Tuesday, June 17, 2014, much of the neighborhood’s homes were a muted shade of neutral colors. And many of them still are – minus those in the pathway of the EF-3 tornado, which have since been repaired and painted in much bolder tones – reds, greens and blues. Shannon and Ryan Meyer, who live at the corner of Lone Pine Way and Tamarack Lane, were among the residents who took advantage of the forced remodel. When their roof was ripped off as the couple and their two daughters were still sleeping upstairs, they could feel raindrops on their heads as they fled to the basement. Even though they went with a deep red when they replaced the roof, they keep mementos of the old home front and center. “We have photos of the damage on the living room wall, and our daughters drew pictures of the home,” Shannon said. In the five years that have passed, a lot of healing has taken place. It’s not just the mended roofs, replaced glass, growing young trees and renovated elementary school, it’s also in the people who remain spooked when the wind picks up but have, for the most part, seen their lives go back to how they were. No injuries or deaths were reported, but the storm did massive amounts of damage in both the town and city of Verona. In addition to the $4 million needed to repair Country View Elementary School, there were 19 homes suffering major damage and eight families temporarily dislocated after their homes were deemed uninhabitable. In all, 84 homes sustained some sort of damage, including a pair on Tamarack Way that had insurance claims topping a combined half-million dollars, American Family insurance agent Brian Wagner said. Between Verona and the west side of Madison, Dane County Emergency Management estimated the storms had racked up a collective $15 million in damage that week, spread throughout 250 homes and businesses. The aftermath of the tornado brought in more than 100 police officers from 16 nearby precincts to help with security and ensure that people who weren’t supposed to be in the area after the storm stayed away.
Turn to Tornado/Page 12
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A relatively rainy and damp spring has slowed construction on a huge upgrade of Fireman’s Park, but it’s not expected to prevent people from getting out into the water next week. The park will open for the season on Wednesday, June 19, with many of its upgrades ready for public use, city parks director Dave Walker told the Press last week. Those improvements include the shelter, the beach area, a 3,600-square foot splash pad and the playground. The basketball courts and the trail that connects to the bike and pedestrian paths along County Hwy. M to the north will still be under construction until July, Walker said. Crews have been working during the recent stretch of nice weather to get everything done, Walker said. “The core of the park, the central part, is slated to be completed in the next two weeks,” he said. “They’ve really been going to town the last few weeks.”
KIMBERLY WETHAL
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