FREE PRESS AMERY
1892 - 2017
125 YEARS STRONG
TUESDAY, MARCH 14, 2017
VOL. 121 NO. 38 www.theameryfrepress.com $1.00
SPORTS: Clayton girls fall in semi-finals at state PAGE 21
No vacancy: Study pinpoints Amery’s housing predicament BY JESSICA DE LA CRUZ EDITOR@THEAMERYFREEPRESS
Le Tour D’Art, bicycle-themed works by acclaimed artist and local gem, Gregg Rochester. From his home on Griffin Street, Rochester is inventing an art form like no other. What began with painting fashion, and clothing, and shoes has broadened in scope. He took to painting bikes out of a love of cycling.
Management Analyst David Chanski presented details of Amery’s housing study at this month’s City Council meeting, a project almost a year in the making. It confirmed housing shortfalls that many had already suspected. A myriad of information was documented in the survey, shedding light on an aging local population, a disproportionately aged housing inventory, and a lower-income population that, without options, is stretching its housing budget beyond its means. The complete study is available on the city website, amerywisconsin.org. Highlights include: •Thirty percent of Amery’s residents are 64 or older, and that number is on the rise. •As of 2010 the city had almost 1500 housing units, a number that has remained relatively flat. •Sixty-four percent of Amery housing is owner occupied, thirty six percent are renter occupied. •Amery housing is forty percent single family, forty percent multi-family, and twenty percent mobile homes. •Roughly eighty percent of Amery homes are approaching 40 years or older. •Three quarters of Amery residents have been here at least ten years. One third have been here at least twenty. “So people living in Amery
SEE BIKE PAGE 36
SEE STUDY PAGE 2A
JESSICA DE LA CRUZ | AMERY FREE PRESS
A bike Rochester recently commissioned for Peter Henry at The Farm Table sit’s in the front window at Hungry Turtle Institute. Rochester says one of the things he loves about the bike is his trademark landscape on the bike’s rear wheel. Le Tour D’Art will be on display through May at the Hungry Turtle Institute.
Two-wheeled treasures on display in Rochester’s Le Tour D’Art BY JESSICA DE LA CRUZ EDITOR@THEAMERYFREEPRESS.COM
Friday night at Amery’s Farm Table and Hungry Turtle Institute was a feast for the senses, with local food, music by Teague Alexy, and an art exhibit that appealed to the inner child in all of us. Hundreds gathered to see a local presentation of
County homeless shelter pushes for new lease amidst cloud of criticism
Discussions will take several months, shelter staying put for now BY JESSICA DE LA CRUZ EDITOR@THEAMERYFREEPRESS.COM
After missing the February 1 deadline to renew their five year lease with Polk County, the status of Polk County’s largest homeless shelter remains in limbo for now, resting in the hands of the County’s General Government
Committee. Serenity House, as it’s called, has occupied the site of the former Polk County Jail since 2008. The eighteen bed facility operates under a conditional-use permit for ‘transitional housing,’ and is frequently at capacity. It’s also the main office for the Polk County Salvation Army, and countywide Backpack
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program. Director Duana Bremer says she sent the county a letter of intent prior to the deadline, but that was not sufficient. Upon missing the deadline, County Administrator Dana Frey says he had no option but to require the organization to request a new lease, which they did. But it opened a window for some
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local residents to voice concern. Local District Supervisor Chris Nelson says that many of his constituents are frustrated by what they perceive as Serenity House residents causing problems in the community. He says that theft, loitering, and criminal mischief are common concerns.
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SEE HOMELESS PAGE 2A
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