Verona Press The
Thursday, September 26, 2019 • Vol. 55, No. 19 • Verona, WI • Hometown USA • ConnectVerona.com • $1.25
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City of Verona
Safety first Retiring chief sees department transformed JIM FEROLIE Verona Press editor
Eight years ago, the Verona Joint Fire District had a part-time chief, four full-time firefighters and a 35-yearold fire station with no room to put up interns or volunteers overnight. If there was a call in the eve- Giver ning or on the weekends, people
would drive to the station, wait for a four-person crew to arrive, get into their gear, then start heading to the incident, all of which could take 10 to 20 minutes. By that time, it wasn’t uncommon for another fire department to already be there. Putting an end to the safety risk of those inconsistent response times was the No. 1 goal of the new chief that year, Joe Giver, whom the commission overseeing the district hired from the small village of Dousman. As Giver prepares to retire at age 61 – officially Jan. 2, but in reality
Turn to Giver/Page 14
City of Verona
Photo by Kimberly Wethal
Planners ask for help with zoning rewrite A muddy morning
A child holds onto his shoes while making his way through the mud pit during the annual Tri 4 Schools Family Mud Run on Saturday, Sept. 21, at Hometown U.S.A. Festival Park.
JIM FEROLIE Verona Press editor
Most people don’t look at a city’s zoning code until they’re trying to build something, and even then, they often don’t understand it. The City of Verona is hoping to change that with a rewrite of its zoning code, which is 23 years old. The code rewrite,
Turn to Workshop/Page 13
Inside
If You Go What: Workshops for upcoming zoning code rewrite When: Noon, 1:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. Oct. 7 Where: Verona City Center, 111 Lincoln St. Info: Call 845-0909 or email katherine.holt@ ci.verona.wi.us
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The annual Tri 4 Schools Family Mud Run was held on Saturday, Sept. 21, at Hometown U.S.A. Festival Park. The obstacle course had children and adults climbing over rock walls, running through hurdles like football players, going through
Inside
a bounce house and finishing it off with a crawl through a mud pit near the end of the course. The proceeds from the event go toward the elementary school the child attends to help fund physical activity programs.
See more photos of the Tri 4 Schools Family Mud Run Page 16
Jesus Lunch gets OK to start meetings at Harriet Park Similar program drew controversy in Middleton in 2016 JUSTIN LOEWEN Verona Press correspondent
A religious-themed meal that sparked controversy in 2016 is coming to Verona. The Middleton-based “Jesus Lunch,” organized by a group of self-described moms, is scheduled to take place at Harriet Park for the next six Wednesdays starting Sept. 25. The group provides free lunches for high school
students alongside readings of Christian scripture. The City of Verona’s Park, Recreation and Forestry Commission voted unanimously Sept. 18 to approve the use of the Harriet Park pavilion for the lunches. Commissioner Charlotte Jerney initially expressed concern over whether city property should be used for religious purposes and said if a vote passed, the Jesus Lunch organizers should have to pay a park fee. Commission chair Mike Bare reassured Jerney that all church groups must pay a fee for using parks. T h e r eg i s t r a t i o n f e e i s $40 per 50 people for city
residents, $60 for nonresidents, according to the City of Verona website. “ T h e r e ’s a c o u p l e o f churches every summer that have service (at Harriet Park) on Sunday, and they’ll have games and b o u n cy h o u s e s f o r t h e kids,” parks and urban forestry director Dave Walker said. “It’s not unusual for us to rent to church groups.” The Middleton lunches drew protests in 2016. Jesus Lunch organizers leased the pavilion of Middleton’s Fireman’s Park, which is next to Middleton High School, and held meals during the students’ lunch hour. Harriet Park is
similarly close to Verona’s high school. At that point, the Middleton-Cross Plains School District had an agreement with the City of Middlet o n t o l e a s e F i r e m a n ’s Park during school hours. Though it was non-exclusive, some saw that as a conflict. The school district ended the agreement in May to avoid further controversy, according to a 2016 Wisconsin State Journal story. The Jesus Lunch organizers originally announced in a Facebook message they would start the lunches here Sept. 11, but they had to wait for the commission to meet.
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