Spring Green, Wisconsin
Thursday, July 25, 2024 | Vol. 5, No. 15 FREE, Single-Copy
Inside this edition
Interview with 2024 Spring Green Musician in Residence
Arena Board discusses new EMS and fire agreements
Wandering the Driftless: Plants That May Ruin Your Summer
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Spring Green Musician in Residence program interviews 2024 selectee Nicholas Botterman PLAYLIST STREAMING NOW
Sh*tty Barn 2024 Season Preview Sh*tty Barn Sessions
PLAYLIST STREAMING NOW
Rob Steffen, Contributed Recently, the Spring Green Musician in Residence program announced it had selected Fox Valley area musician Nicholas Botterman as the 2024 Spring Green Musician in Residence. The program interviewed Botterman about the upcoming residency: What got you into making music in the first place, and what was your first instrument? Watching live music & growing up with friends who had musicians in their family got me curious about playing music & especially drums. Drums were & still are my first love. Who were some of your inspirations when you first started playing, and who are some of your current inspirations? Growing up I was inspired by Incubus, Bob Marley, No Doubt, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Prince, Dr.Dre, Third Eye Blind & last but not least Hanson. Currently I really enjoy Glass Animals, Fugazi, Last Dinner Party, 21 Pilots, Lord Huron &
Photo via the Spring Green Musician in Residence Program Nicholas Botterman, second from left, lead singer and drummer for band Traveling Suitcase, pictured here, is the 2024 Spring Green Musician in Residence. The Weeknd. When did you start writing your own material? Around 10 years old, the night I got my first drum set I was singing melodies &
drumming along.I would write songs on my bell kit for band class to transcribe to woodwinds or friends who played guitars. Eventually having to get into acoustic & other instruments to map out the
concerts in my head. How did the current band come together? Most of my life I have lived in Wisconsin or Colorado. On my first of many inspirational returns to Wisconsin I linked up with longtime friend /musical collaborator Brandon Domer (bass, keys & co-founder) to show him songs I wrote while living in Telluride. There was instant chemistry & we started writing more. Traveling Suitcase had a revolving door of many band members that helped the band shape itself the last decade.The constant creation & foundation always Brandon & I. Like many second chances, my latest return from Colorado in 2023 sparked that old pattern of calling Domer & saying “Well the Mt’s did that thing again & I want to sing”. We celebrated this tradition by finally finding consistent guitar players that have been intertwined through other members & projects.
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River Valley School Board holds first meeting of 2024-2025 school year, discusses referendum survey results Luukas Palm-Leis, Editorial Intern The River Valley School District Board of Education met on July 11 for its first meeting of the 2024-2025 school year. The board discussed the results of a survey regarding the failed April 2 referendums, heard a report on the school forest and updated Title IX policies.
Referendum Survey Response
The board reviewed community feedback regarding the district’s April 2 referendums. The district received 499 responses to the survey, with 84% of respondents having voted during the referendums. During the election both referendums failed. For Question 1, which included secure entrances, tech education space
updates, ADA compliance upgrades and a second middle school gymnasium 46% voted in favor 54% voted against. For Question 2, which included the addition of a performing arts center and secure entrance to the high school, 34% voted for, 66% voted against. 57% of survey respondents voted yes for Question 1 and 40% of survey respondents voted yes for Question 2. Regarding question 1, 66% of “no” respondents felt the referendum would raise their taxes too much, 59% felt the additional gymnasium was unnecessary, 46% felt the maintenance items should be embedded within the yearly budget and 45% felt that Plain Elementary should remain a school.
Regarding question 2, 66% of “no” respondents felt the referendum was unnecessary, 56% felt that it would raise taxes too much, 53% felt that there were other performing arts spaces that the district could utilize and 47% felt that there was no other fundraising to help with the cost. “Reading some of those comments, it’s kind of frustrating to see that a lot of our public was not going out and getting information to base their judgment and decision on,” Jeff Maier, Area 3 (Town of Clyde) board member, said. FEH Design, the company the district has been consulting with for the capital improvements, provided a summary of the survey that noted that: “There is
majority support for safety & security, ADA compliance, and maybe some facility maintenance items,” and that there would be a positive vote if limited to those categories. The summary also advised that a gymnasium or performing arts center would not be supported unless significant funding was sourced from elsewhere.
River Valley School Forest
The board recognized area business owner Dick Powell for this month’s recipient of the district’s Community Spotlight. Scott Lancaster from the Wisconsin DNR and Powell have been helping the
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