GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - The 14th annual Farmers' Market on Broadway kicked off along the downtown streets of Green Bay Wednesday.

Over 100 vendors set up shop along Broadway between Walnut and Dousman, extending to Hubbard Street.

Whether you are looking for fresh fruits and veggies or kettle corn and craft beer, there is something for everyone.

Dave McClure Jr. owns "O So Good Kettle Corn." He says setting up for the event has gotten easier over the years.

"We have all family, so it's an all family business but we have it down pat. These guys have been doing it longer than I have."

Candice Boutelle owns Tall Bean Coffee in Manitowoc and says the weather couldn't be more perfect.

"Oh yeah, I think it will be busy. People are excited for it to be going again and there's going to be people who are ready to enjoy the sunshine and see what everyone has to offer. It's just a really fun event," said Boutelle.

The market takes place every Wednesday through the end of September from 3-8 p.m. and is free to the public. 

Find more information at www.onbroadway.org/farmers-market.

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - An upcoming construction project will affect access to two Green Bay hospitals.

Bellin Hospital's Maintenance Operations Team Leader Chris Lyga says work on a stretch of South Webster Avenue from south of Porlier Street to Mason Street will affect both his facility and St. Vincent Hospital.

Construction is expected to begin Monday, June 12.

Crews plan to replace both utilities and pavement along Webster, which will lead to traffic lane and sidewalk closures. 

Lyga believes the project will benefit Bellin.

"It will improve the look of the entire stretch in front of both hospitals by using red, paved concrete instead of sod.  There will also be better traffic lights on Webster that will make the traffic flow much more efficiently."  

Webster will not close entirely during the project.

Lyga notes the effort will be done in stages.

"They will be closing the southbound lanes of Webster first, and that will be from June until August. The northbound lane is going to have traffic going in both directions."

Lyga says those patterns will then reverse, with work expected to last into the fall.

The hospital and its parking lots will remain open throughout the construction process.

Lyga urges people to avoid using Webster by taking alternative routes to the hospital.

"If you're coming from the east heading west, you can take Eliza Street to Van Buren Street.  If you're coming from the west, you can take the Monroe exit off of Mason Street, Porlier Street, and then turn north on Van Buren."

Those alternate routes will take people to the rear of the hospital.

Lyga says patients and employees should allow for extra time to arrive for appointments and their shifts, respectively.

He notes construction will not affect this year's Bellin Run, which will be held June 10.

MANITOWOC, WI (WTAQ) - Fourteen volunteeers were at Manitowoc's Parkview Haven apartment complex Wednesday to help move items out of the building.

Eighty-eight people were displaced by a fatal May 10 fire, all of them at least 55 years of age.

The Salvation Army of Manitowoc County is coordinating the effort to reconnect residents with their belongings.

Kyle Bryntesen is the group's business development director.

"The residents don't have the assistance.  A lot of these people are single individuals, no family in the area or anyone to help, so they've reached out to us to help them move their belongings." 

He says it's important that people keep the fire survivors in mind.

"The initial response is great, because it's on the top of everyone's mind, but we all go back to life.  We kind of forget about the things that are going on."

One of the volunteers is Manitowoc Fire and Rescue's Jeff Keehan.

He notes it was a difficult day for the tenants, including one man whom he was helping.

"Today, to have 14 people walking in and out of his apartment with all his belongings getting carried out and not knowing quite where they're going or what we're doing with them."

Officials believe it will be another 4-6 weeks until the residents can return home.

FLUSHING, NY (WTAQ) - Milwaukee Brewers starter Junior Guerra notched his first win of the season with a strong performance to keep the New York Mets down for the count, 7-1.

Guerra threw six complete scoreless innings and was backed up by seven Brewers runs within the first four innings, which turned out to be more than enough.

Eric Thames and Keon Broxton hit home runs in the fist and second innings, respectively.

Mets starter Jacob deGrom was the victim, responsible for all seven runs, which goes against his usual trends.

His ERA prior to the game was 3.23 and he carried a 4-1, now 4-2, record.

The Mets got a late RBI from Michael Conforto to prevent a shutout.

The Brew Crew can split the four game series with a win this afternoon.

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - The season is underway for the Green Bay Bullfrogs. The roster is made up of college level players hoping for a break and maybe a ride to the professional level.

But while the players change from year to year, one fixture at Joannes Stadium has been part of the Bulldogs franchise since day one.

It's opening night and the fans are streaming into Joannes Stadium for another summer of Green Bay Bullfrogs baseball.

There's an excitement in the air to go along with the smell of brats and burgers.

While the players are getting ready on the field....one fan is settling into his seat on the 1st base side. That's Larry Smith....in section 104, row 4, seat 25.

"My dad kind of bred it into me. I have 6 olders brothers and we all played baseball"

Larry's love affair with the game went from there. He played for years as a kid, on this very field, and had major league dreams.

"I was expected to go to the pros when I was young, and I had an injury which negated that. But I still want to follow the game....I still want to be part of the game"

And so he is. Larry Smith has been a season ticket holder at Bullfrogs games since the frogs were tadpoles.

That goes back 11 years. Bullfrogs General Manager Sieera View is amazed.

"He has not missed a game. We play 36 home games. It's nuts"

He doesn't sit there quietly either.

"Larry is really the whole part of our fan base on the first base side. He starts the "lets go frogs" chant when we need the most momentum"

And Larry takes that passion with him on the road. He's not just a homer.

"I'm actually known at some sites. I walk in the gate and they go "hey, there's the Bullfrog guy, Larry"

Since at this level the players are rarely in town for more than one season, Larry has seen hundreds of Bullfrogs come and go. But he's got a soft spot for one team

"Actually my very favorite was the first team. They were a great team, great manager. But, every year I start over and watch them progress"

And that's the foundation of his love affair with the game....watching the players grow and move on... .

"They start out pretty raw because they're young yet. But these coaches really train them well and they move and they grow up and they do a good job"

So Larry Smith is ready to see where this summer takes the Bullfrogs.

But win or lose, pennant winners or celler dwellers, you'll find him cheering on the team until a higher authority tells him differently.

"I don't know, until God stops me. I'm going to keep coming as long as I can. I love the game"

ALLOUEZ, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) - A man is in custody after a several hour standoff with deputies in Allouez.

East River Drive was blocked off between Somerset Drive and East Briar Lane while authorities responded to a welfare check at about 7 last night.

Brown County Sheriff’s deputies say a family member called 9-1-1 when the man became very emotional and started tearing the home apart.

Deputies say when they arrived to the duplex the man barricaded himself in the upstairs with several knives and a crowbar.

Eventually, Lt. Kevin Pawlak of the Brown County Sheriff’s Department tells WLUK, the man was safely taken into custody.

“Our negotiator really did a fine job. He would make a few demands and our negotiator would make a few demands. They worked it out. Eventually he asked him to make a phone call to a loved one and he promised if that happened he would come out. Fortunately, he did”

Deputies say two other adults and two children were in the duplex.

However, they were able to safely make it to a neighbor's house during the standoff.

BROWN COUNTY, WI (WTAQ) The 53-year-old Green Bay man accused of sexually assaulting horses in multiple Northeast Wisconsin counties has pleaded not guilty to his Brown County charges.

Sterling Rachwal faces misdemeanor counts of Intentionally Mistreating Animals, Disorderly Conduct, and Resisting/Obstructing an Officer in connection with an alleged February 17 horse assault at a Town of Eaton farm.

A pre-trial conference is scheduled for July 6.

Rachwal has also been charged with two misdemeanors in Manitowoc County court for reportedly violating a horse on April 29. 

A settlement conference is set for June 21, with a plea date scheduled for July 19.

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - Green Bay Police is warning of a scam in the area.

Officers responded to a home on the city's west side Wednesday morning for a fraud complaint.

The 90-year-old female resident told officers a man came to her door, stating he was with the water department and was in the neighborhood to tend to a water main leak.

The woman, who lives alone, let the man into her house.

He instructed her to remove the items from under her sink and leave the water running.

While she was doing this, the man walked throughout her home, took an undisclosed amount of money, and left when the woman was not looking.

Police urge residents to watch out for their neighbors/elderly relatives and report suspicious activity.

They note any worker who arrives at your home should have identification, such as a business card, and a telephone number of a supervisor who can verify their reason for coming to the door.

Anyone with information about the scam is asked to call Green Bay Police at 920-448-3208 or Crime Stoppers at 920-432-STOP.

PIERCE, WI (WTAQ) - Vandalism has been reported at Kewaunee County's Krohn's Lake.  

Officials say numerous picnic tables and garbage, including broken beer bottles, was thrown into the lake Thursday morning.

Authorities say anyone caught vandalizing county property will be ticketed and could be arrested. 

Anyone with information on the vandalism is asked to call the Kewaunee County Sheriff's Office at 920-388-3100. 

OUTAGAMIE COUNTY, WI (WTAQ) - The 28-year-old Oshkosh woman accused of hiding a gun the night of a fatal officer-involved shooting in downtown Appleton is due back in court June 8.

Dree Sullivan did not yet have an attorney during her Thursday court appearance on an Aiding a Felon charge.

Sullivan reportedly hid a gun under her car during the May 21 incident at Jack's Apple Pub.

ASHWAUBENON, WI (WTAQ) - It's a day Officer Don Penza will never forget.

Thursday morning Penza was escorted on his last ride with Ashwaubenon Public Safety...a department he's been a part of for 36 years.

The convoy of fire trucks, ambulances, and patrol vehicles cruised to Penza's home, then traveled to Ashwaubenon Middle and High School where he's served as a DARE-Liaison Officer for 20 years.

Penza says he feels overwhelmed.

"I caught little wind of it last night but I didn't expect this experience."

Hundreds of students and staff waved and cheered along the street as the fire truck Penza was riding in passed by.

As it pulled up to the front of the high school, the marching band was in full force.

He took time to shake hands and hug people he had impacted over the years.

Ashwaubenon High School Principal Brian Nelsen says Penza will be hard to replace.

"The relationships that he's been able to develop with kids, staff, and the community has really been remarkable and so we're going to miss him," said Nelsen.

Ashwaubenon Public Safety Chief Eric Dunning, says Penza has a deep passion for his job and will be greatly missed.

"He deeply cares about his job and most people would have probably retired 5 years ago but I think the love for his job and what he does every day, that's why he's hung around as long as he has," Dunning said.

As for the future, Penza says he hopes to relax a bit and continue coach pole vaulting in the area.

The "last ride" has been a tradition with Ashwaubenon Public Safety for 17 years.

MENASHA, WI (WTAQ) - In the early hours of Thursday morning, Menasha Police responded to a second shots fired incident in just over 48 hours.

Officers were called to the 600 block of Sixth Street around 3:30 am.

Nobody was injured, and police are investigating.

It came just two days after a Tuesday shooting at 821 London Street. 

Police Chief Tim Styka says "it's our belief that the weapons used at both scenes were different. We have no real connection for the people that live in the area where this one took place versus the area where the other one had taken place.  There's no common associated people with either one."

Anyone with information about either incident is urged to call Menasha Police at 920-231-8477. 

NEENAH, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) - Business leaders in northeast Wisconsin say they're having a difficult time finding qualified workers to fill information technology positions.

Governor Scott Walker and UW-System leaders unveiled a plan Thursday afternoon to try to change that.

For the next three years, UW-Oshkosh will test a pilot program called 1+3.

It will allow students to earn 30 or more UW System credits toward a computer science or information systems degree before they graduate high school.

Ray Cross, the president of the UW System, tells WLUK....

“Businesses are clamoring for talent right now, just clamoring for it.”

Northeast Wisconsin Educational Resource Alliance projects businesses in our region will need to fill 3,000 IT jobs between now and 2021.

Rustin Keller, the COO of JJ Keller & Associates, is all for it.

“JJ Keller alone employs over 200 people in the IT field and we're constantly searching for IT talent.”

Governor Walker says the new program will help fill the positions.

“This is a huge jump start to get more people into the pipeline as quickly as possible. That's important because that means more jobs, higher demand, higher wages, better careers right here in the state of Wisconsin.”

In its first year, the new program will only be offered at Neenah, Fond du Lac, Middleton, Oshkosh West and Oshkosh North High Schools.

Teachers must be trained and certified to teach the college level courses.

“A lot of juniors and seniors, once we start to look into colleges, you don't realize how expensive it is and it's now taking kids four or five years to complete a degree and the opportunity to be out in three is kind of like mind blowing,” said Gabby Mullally, a junior at Neenah High School.

If all goes well, the goal is to expand the program to other parts of the state and other career fields in the future.

NEW YORK, NY (WTAQ) - The Brewers were able to salvage a split with the New York Mets in their mid-week series after beating them 2-1 Thursday afternoon.

Chase Anderson pitched a gem for Milwaukee tossing seven shut-out innings and only allowing three hits while striking out seven.

Jacob Barnes would take over in the 8th inning and allow the lone Mets run on a Wilmer Flores solo home run.

Corey Knebel came in in the 9th to get save number four on the year.

Hernan Perez and Nick Franklin were responsible for driving in the two Brewers runs. Perez hit an RBI double in the 3rd inning and Franklin had an RBI single in the 4th.

Milwaukee will now return home for three series against the L.A. Dodgers this weekend and will have a tough task tonight as they'll take on former Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw. Brewers will counter with Jimmy Nelson.

Pregame on WTAQ is 6:35. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10.

APPLETON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) - UPDATE: The man fatally shot by a police officer in an Appleton bar May 21 was unarmed and shot by accident, investigators say.

However, Lt. Jay Steinke will not face criminal charges for the death of Jimmie Sanders, Outagamie County District Attorney Carrie Schneider has ruled.

Schneider says Steinke had responded to a report of a person with a gun at Jack's Apple Pub, 535 W. College Ave.

According to investigators, Steinke was firing at Henry Nellum, who had a gun and was trying to run out of the bar, toward Steinke's direction.

Steinke was bumped as he was shooting by people trying to run out of the bar, according to investigators.

Schneider says bullets hit Sanders in the back and also hit the bar and cash register inside the building.

Sanders and Nellum did not know each other, Schneider said.

Schneider also said she plans to charge Nellum for causing Sanders' death.

Nellum has already been charged with attempted homicide for allegedly firing shots during a fight with another man.

That fight was what eventually drew police to the scene, investigators say.

Another woman, Dree Sullivan, has been charged with allegedly taking Nellum's gun and hiding it after the shooting.

The Green Bay Police Dept. led the investigation since an Appleton officer was involved in the shooting.

*****

UPDATE: Outagamie County District Attorney Carrie Schneider says she will not charge Appleton police Lt. Jay Steinke in the fatal shooting of Jimmie Sanders on May 21.

*****

Investigators plan to release the results of an investigation into a fatal police shooting Friday morning in Appleton.

On May 21, 33-year-old Jimmie Montel Sanders, was fatally shot by Lt. Jay Steinke of the Appleton Police Dept. at Jack's Apple Pub, a downtown bar.

Police had responded to the bar for a report of a fight.

Two other people were injured in the fight. Henry Nellum has been charged with attempted homicide as a result of the fight.

Prosecutors say he pulled out a gun and it went off at some point during the fight.

Dree Sullivan has been charged with harboring or aiding a felon for allegedly taking Nellum's gun and hiding it.

Neither police nor prosecutors have said whether Sanders had a weapon at any point during the incident.

The Green Bay Police Dept. has been investigating the shooting since an officer was involved.

Representatives of the Appleton and Green Bay police departments, as well as the Outagamie County District Attorney's Office, are expected to attend the 11 a.m. news conference.

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - The former developer of Green Bay's Hotel Northland opens up to WTAQ's Jerry Bader Friday, about the controversial redevelopment project downtown and what went wrong.

Mike Frantz, of Frantz Community Investors, says plans for the historic building started to go off the rails when he and current Northland owner, Keith Harenda, began having disagreements.

"You know the reasons for the default and subsequently, the lack of the cure of the default and the withdrawal of the senior lender, were really the major issues that the Harenda group and I had."

Frantz says according to the bank, the construction contract for the $44 million project didn't align with the appraisal, which lead to the default of the senior lender of the historic project.

"It was the lower level of the hotel that was not in the construction contract and that lower level did, in fact, generate some significant revenue which is what the appraiser used capitalize the evaluation of the property," said Frantz.

Wanting to stick with the facts, the former Hotel Northland developer says according to court documents, there were four reasons the senior lender pulled out of the deal.

"Two of them was because of the circumvention of disbursement agreement, one had to do with the management company, and one had to do with a bank account," Frantz said.

Frantz goes on to explain a text message he sent Green Bay Mayor Jim Schmitt, telling him he was "working with the wrong guys," referring to now Hotel Northland owner, Keith Harenda.

"What I worded strongly there with the mayor, was my disagreement with Keith and his group about the way the senior lender was treated and subsequently pulled out of the deal.

After confusion on who the owner of the property was, a judge ruled on April 14 that Keith Harenda was the sole owner of the hotel.

Officials hope the Hotel Northland will be open for business by this fall.

Frantz says his company is now currently working on a redevelopment project along the river in Wausau called "Riverlife."

The 17 acres project includes new apartments and commercial mixed-use buildings.

MENASHA, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) - The subject of a standoff in Menasha is still at large, but a two-year-old child is OK, police say.

On Friday around 5:30 p.m. a Village of Fox Crossing officer saw a traffic violation near Appleton Road and Ninth Street.

The officer initiated a traffic stop and the vehicle pulled over in the 1100 block of Geneva Road, near London Street.

During the traffic stop, police say a male passenger and a two-year-old child left the vehicle and went inside a nearby apartment.

Officers say the man gave them a fake name and it was discovered the man had active warrants for his arrest.

Authorities tried to contact the man inside the apartment, but the man refused to communicate with them.

Police then wanted to get the two-year-old out of an upstairs bedroom safely.

Officers say since they could not enter the bedroom from the inside, they were able to use a ladder and carried the child from the second story of the apartment.

No one was injured but officials say the man with the warrants is still at large.

TOWN OF CENTER (WTAQ) - Two people were injured after a two-vehicle crash in Outagamie County.

The accident happened near the intersection of County Highway A and Pleasant Road in the Town of Center around 6:30 p.m. Friday, according to officials. Two people were taken the hospital for non-life threatening injuries.

The investigation continues.

BROWN COUNTY, WI (WTAQ) - Four people were taken to the hospital after a boat crashed into the shore near the Leo Frigo Bridge.

The incident was reported around 8:30 a.m. Saturday.

Officials with the Brown County Sheriff say the boat struck the rock breakwall before coming to shore.

Three males and 1 female were transported to a local hospital.

One male had serious injuries, the others were treated and released.

The crash is under investigation.

TOWN OF SCHLESWIG, WI (WTAQ- WLUK) - The Manitowoc County coroner says a woman is dead after a car crash Friday evening.

The crash happened on Louis Corners Road, south of County Highway XX in Schleswig around 6:45 p.m.

The coroner says 28-year-old Shana Lackershire died at the scene of the crash.

Lackershire was the only person in the vehicle.

Officials say traumatic injuries including a skull fracture from the crash may have caused Lackershire's death. It unclear is she was intoxicated.

She was not wearing a seat belt and both airbags deployed inside the vehicle, officials say.