Rock County Sheriff's Office Press Release - School Bus Safety

With the new school year fast approaching, the Rock County Sheriff’s Office wants to remind all drivers to adhere to all laws regarding the approach of a designated school bus. School bus transportation is safe; however, according to the National Coalition for School Bus Safety, 17,000 children are injured annually in school bus-related traffic accidents nationwide. Nearly one-fourth of these accidents occurred while children were boarding or exiting the school bus. Wisconsin law is clear in that as a driver, if you approach a legally marked bus with flashing red warning lights, you must:

• Stop at least 20 feet from the bus. This applies both to vehicles approaching from the rear and from opposing lanes. 
• All lanes of traffic must stop for the school bus except in opposing lanes if the highway is divided with a center median. 
• No vehicle may proceed until the bus resumes motion and turns off its flashing red warning lights. 
• The stop arm on the bus is an added communication device for other drivers, but lack of the extended arm is not a reason to pass a bus whose red lights are still flashing. 

For parents of students riding a school bus, it is important to have your children adhere to the following guidelines. These guidelines will help ensure a safe trip between home and school. 

At The Bus Stop:

• Always walk to the bus stop. Never run. Walk facing traffic. 
• Have your child wait in a safe area away from traffic and the road. 
• Stay away from the bus until it comes to a complete stop and the driver signals for your child to board. Watch for red flashing lights and the stop sign to be extended, and cross only when all traffic has stopped. Look left, right, and left again before crossing. 

Exiting the Bus:

• When being dropped off, have your child take 10 giant steps away from the bus, remember that the bus driver can see your child better when they move away from the bus. 
• Have your child always use the handrail when entering or exiting the bus and have them always remain seated until the bus stops. 
• If you leave something on the bus, never return to the bus to get it. The bus driver may not see you come back, and they may begin moving the bus. Also, if you drop something near the bus, tell the bus driver before you attempt to pick it up so they will know where you are. 
• Be aware of traffic on the roadway. Drivers are required to stop for all legal school buses; however, not all do. Have your child watch carefully before crossing the roadway. Remember that in rural areas the speed limit is higher which makes it more difficult for a driver to stop quickly. 

The start of a new school year is exciting for both students and their parents. Rock County Sheriff’s deputies will be out enforcing all traffic laws regarding school buses. Nonetheless, it is important for students to practice safe habits to have a safe school year.

Robert D. Spoden
SHERIFF

Rock County Sheriff's Office - Be Aware of Possible Driveway Maintenance Scams

The Rock County Sheriff’s Office is reminding all citizens to be cautious of companies soliciting home maintenance services such as driveway sealing. While the Sheriff’s Office has not received recent complaints of fraud, complaints have been generated out of Lafayette and Green Counties.

Sheriff Spoden reminds you to be vigilant when companies come to your home and solicit business. Please do not contract with companies if you are unsure of their legitimacy.

City of Milton Utility Bill Changes

The City of Milton is pleased to announce a change to all future utility bills.  Beginning next week, July 15, residents will receive a paper utility bill in a regular letter size envelope.  This will replace the postcards that have been sent in the past.

The new bills will provide more information to residents about their utility usage and will allow the City to provide other valuable communications to the community on a bi-monthly basis.  The new bills will also include a courtesy envelope to send payments.

Along with the new paper utility bill, the City is offering electronic payment options and the option to go paperless.  A sample bill and information regarding electronic payments can be found on the City’s website, www.milton-wi.gov/UtilityPayments.

For additional information contact Dan Nelson, Finance Director / Treasurer, at 608-868-6900 ext. 3 or by e-mail at dnelson@milton-wi.gov.

• Sample Utility Bill
• Electronic Payment Information

Community Visioning Charrette for the Junction Square Plan and Comprehensive Plan Update

SAVE THE DATE: 

JUNE 22, 2015, 6:00-8:00PM

Community Visioning “Charrette” 

for the Junction Square Plan 

and Comprehensive Plan Update

What: The City of Milton is hosting a Charrette to discuss the Junction Square Plan and the Comprehensive Plan Update

When: Monday, June 22 from 6pm-8pm 

Where: Milton West Elementary, 825 W. Madison Avenue

The City of Milton is creating a plan for Junction Square and is updating the citywide Comprehensive Plan. As part of the planning process, the City is hosting a visioning “charrette” to provide you with an opportunity to learn about preliminary plan ideas, share your input, and describe your vision for the future of the city.  Some of the topics to be discussed include: 

• Junction Square public space improvements 
• New vision for Junction Square
• Communitywide vision for the City of Milton

This will be a lively, informal, and highly-interactive event with multiple opportunities for you to share ideas.  

Please join us!

If you have any questions, please contact: City Administrator Al Hulick at (608) 868-6900 or AHulick@milton-wi.gov.

Parkview Drive Construction

The City of Milton will be repaving Parkview Drive this summer. Prep work has started, which includes concrete and utility improvements. The actual repaving work will begin on July 7th and should be concluded (weather permitting) by July 21st. During the project, Parkview Drive will remain open at all times. Additionally, the public parking lot along Parkview Drive near the Splash Pad will be repaved and restriped, but will remain open as well during the project.

If you have any questions about the project scope or timeline, please feel free to contact the Department of Public Works
at 868-6914 or City Hall at 868-6900.

Press Release - Attempted Telephone Scam Involving Back Taxes and Foreclosed Property

On June 9, 2015, the Rock County Sheriff’s Office received a report from the Rock County Treasurer’s Office of an attempted phone scam involving unpaid taxes and foreclosed property. The victim received a call from an unknown person claiming to be from the Rock County Treasurer’s Office and demanded the victim provide their credit card information over the phone in order to pay overdue taxes. The caller told the victim if they did not provide their credit card information, the Sheriff’s Office would foreclose and sell their property. According to the victim, the caller was extremely aggressive in trying to obtain their credit card information.

The victim did not give out any credit card information and reported the attempted scam to the Treasurer’s Office immediately.

Sheriff Spoden would like to remind everyone that Rock County will never ask for credit card information over the phone for any reason. The Treasurer’s Office also does not call citizens until they are at least three years past due on their taxes and they never take payments over the phone. The Treasurer’s Office uses a third party payment source called Gov Tech Services Inc. to collect all credit card tax payments. For more information on tax payments you can visit the Rock County Treasurer’s Office website at www.co.rock.wi.us/treasurer.

If you receive a phone call from someone claiming to be from Rock County and they ask for any credit card information, do not give any information out and call the Sheriff’s Office to report the incident.

ROBERT D. SPODEN
SHERIFF

Press Release - Wisconsin Heat Awareness Day, June 11th

Heat can kill. That’s why Wisconsin Emergency Management, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services and the National Weather Service are reminding people of the dangers associated with extreme heat and to promote community safety and health. Heat Awareness Day is Thursday, June 11th.

Summer heat waves have been the biggest weather-related killers in Wisconsin for the past 50 years, far exceeding tornadoes, severe storms and floods combined. Heat is also a major weather-related killer in the United States. People at higher risk of a heat-related illness include:

• Older adults
• Infants and young children
• People with chronic heart or lung problems
• People with disabilities
• Overweight persons
• Those who work outdoors or in hot settings
• Users of some medications, especially those taken for mental disorders, movement disorder, allergies, depression, and heart or circulatory problems.

Many victims of heat-related deaths are socially isolated maintaining little contact with family and friends. This is why it is vitally important to check in on family, friends, and neighbors during extreme heat, especially those who are particularly vulnerable, like families with very young children, the elderly, and people who are on medications that could make them more susceptible to injury from extreme heat.

Many cities and counties across Wisconsin open Cooling Centers during periods of extreme heat. These centers are a great place for people to come into an air conditioned facility and get some relief from the heat. ReadyWisconsin will post a list of open Cooling Centers on our website at readywisconsin.wi.gov.

Stay informed on impending heat dangers by following us on Facebook and Twitter:
www.facebook.com/readywisconsin and www.twitter.com/readywisconsin

For more information, visit http://ready.wi.gov/news/2015/Heat_Awareness_Day_2015.pdf