WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2017
Serving Polk County’s St. Croix Valley since 1897
VOL. 119 NO. 30 www.osceolasun.com $1.00
SPORTS: St. Croix Falls girls basketball wins conference title. PAGE 12
Village vote launches Discovery Center project
How much money is the district asking for? BY SUZANNE LINDGREN EDITOR@OSCEOLASUN.COM
If approved in the Spring Election, increases to the Osceola School District’s levy cap could add $267 to the annual tax bill of a $100,000 home by the 2020-’21 school year. That’s a projected maximum. The school board could opt to levy for less in any given year depending on variables such as pupil count, state aid and property value. “The referendum is asking for authorization up to $950,000 (annually) over the revenue limit,” explained the school district’s business manager, Jenifer Frank. “The board will still review the budget and needs an-
nually.” For example, increases to per-pupil aid in Governor Scott Walker’s proposed state budget (subject to change until the budget is approved, likely in July) could impact the district’s budget for next year. But the school board won’t know for sure until October, after numbers come in for enrollment, property values and state aid. If the April 4 referendum passes, taxpayers would see increases beginning in December 2017. Annual levy increases would stop after the 2020-’21 school year, but the levy would not return to pre-referendum SEE DISTRICT, PAGE 10
OHS Variety Show will benefit Wyatt Olson BY SUZANNE LINDGREN EDITOR@OSCEOLASUN.COM
Every year since 2000, students at Osceola High School have practiced and prepared for the annual variety show, honing their performances for the stage. They sing, play instruments, tell jokes. And every year, the proceeds benefit a cause. This year, the Drama Club had planned on using money from donation-based admissions to help fund their production of “Beauty and the Beast” next fall. The play is a significant undertaking and a goal the club set years ago. But a few weeks ago, Drama Club advisor Kevin Carlson asked club members whether
Polaris donates $100,000
SUZANNE LINDGREN |THE SUN
If approved, the referendum could add $267 to the annual tax bill of a $100,000 home by the 2020-’21 school year. That’s at the high end of projections. The school board could opt to levy for less in any given year depending on variables such as pupil count, state aid and property value. This graph is based on projections by the Osceola School District.
they’d rather send this year’s proceeds to OHS sophomore Wyatt Olson, who was diagnosed with colon cancer last November. Carlson heard a resounding yes. “The kids were unanimous,” he said. “They SEE SHOW, PAGE 11
SEE DONATION, PAGE 11
Tapper’s delight; early season Syruping season arrives early this year BY SUZANNE LINDGREN EDITOR@OSCEOLASUN.COM
Wyatt Olson
It’s too soon to tell whether unseasonably warm temperatures have brought a bonus syruping season or simply an early arrival, but serious hobbyists aren’t waiting to find out. With temperatures above freezing last Thursday, Dale Dressel, who lives in Dresser, put in 100 taps and had 12 gallons of sap by day’s end. By the next afternoon he had 35 gallons more. For Dressel, who keeps logs of temperatures and how much he gathers every day, that’s a lot of sap for
the second day of the season. “The best I’ve ever done is over 100 gallons in a day,” he said Friday afternoon. “But it’s not the end of the day yet.” Syruping is always an unpredictable pursuit, but this is the earliest the Dressels, who typically make enough syrup to last the year and give as gifts, have tapped. “We thought last year was weird,” said Dale’s wife, Marcia Dressel. “We made ‘Leap Day Syrup.’” Her husband concurred. “Last year was the first time I’ve made syrup in February,” he said, “and I’ve been doing this all my life. Last year we tapped SEE SYRUP, PAGE 10
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Dale Dressel at the entrance to his boiling shack. Behind him sits an evaporator.
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An important first step in the construction of the new Discovery Center took place last Tuesday when the Village Board unanimously voted to begin site preparations on Fourth Avenue and Kent Street, the two streets bordering the Discovery Center site on the north and east. “These upgrades are an important first step in preparing the site for construction of the Discovery Center,” said Board President Gary Beckmann, “and they will also benefit other aspects of our downtown.” The reconstruction includes widening and aligning Fourth Avenue, upgrading utilities, adding more street parking, incorporating the extension of utilities into the Discovery Center site and grading the site. Benefits for downtown shoppers and businesses include increased public parking, heightened safety along the street and a complete
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