NEW CONSTRUCTION BOOSTS CITY’S ASSESSED VALUE
Despite the country’s prolonged economic woes, the City of Eau Claire is worth $4,466,344,900, an increase of about 1.9 percent from last year. The city’s 2009 assessment reflects changes due to economic construction and remodeling. Very little of the increase is due to economic adjustments. Residential property accounted for 25 percent of the increase. The real estate market has been under stress for the last few years, but home values have remained stable (though sale prices in many neighborhoods have declined). Commercial property accounted for 70 percent of the increase due to new construction and remodeling projects including Phoenix Parkside, The Livery, Luther-Midelfort, and Sonic Drive-in.

CHIPPEWA COUNCIL VOTES DOWN FARMERS MARKET PROPOSAL
The Chippewa Valley Main Street Plan, which proposed to close a portion of Bridge Street for the farmers market, was recently shot down by the city council. Three voted against it, one voted for it, one abstained, and two weren’t present. Originally, the idea was to block it off from noon to 7pm, Thursdays, from June 11 through Oct. 29, but some downtown business owners objected to the proposal, saying it might impede traffic flow and cause parking issues. Despite their defeat, the Chippewa Falls’ farmers market will still be held Thursday afternoons and Saturday mornings on the former Chieftain Oil parking lot.

LOCALS ENCOURAGE LEGISLATORS TO EXAMINE SCHOOL FUNDING
Budget cuts due to revenue caps are affecting students statewide, but Eau Claire community members had the chance to voice their opinions in the Eau Claire Area School District’s Save Our Schools effort, from June 1-5. Members of the Eau Claire Association of Educators invited community members to share stories about how budget cuts have affected the learning of their children, by completing postcards that were hand delivered to state legislators in Madison in order to encourage continued work on the issue of funding public schools in Wisconsin. Educators and administrators will travel to Madison on June 16 to meet with area legislators to discuss these issues.

STOUT TO HAVE VIDEO GAME DESIGN DEGREE THIS FALL
Even with the poor economy, video game sales keep climbing. That may have had some sway in UW-Stout’s decision to add the state’s very first bachelor’s degree in game design this fall. A committee recommended the degree combine math, science, and art, focusing on artificial intelligence, 3D graphics, and character design. Twenty high school students, 15 transfer students, 20 students in computer science, and more than a dozen in art and design have shown interest in the major. Stout will also be offering a new major in property management as an effort to increase the number of majors offered to undergraduates at the university.

PROTEST PETITION FILED AGAINST JAIL EXPANSION, YET AGAIN
As expected, though a bit later than anticipated, the property owners near the proposed jail expansion have filed a protest petition yet again. When the city council reviews the proposal at a public hearing June 22 and then votes on June 23, the petition will require a super majority vote. That means “yes” votes by 75 percent, or eight of the 11 council members, will be required for the zoning changes to go into effect. The divisive local issue may have seemed “a done deal,” but Citizens for Accountable Jail Expansion have been hard at work proving otherwise, and this petition has potential to halt the proposal again.