West of the I

From the Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office via Facebook about 5:50 p.m.:

The Kenosha County Courthouse 100th anniversary was celebrated Sunday afternoon.

The afternoon was begun with entertainment from members of the UW-Madison marching band. The ceremonial program included speakers and music. An ice cream social was available in Civic Center Park. An open house followed the program. Available for purchase was a commemorative ornament of the anniversary and a reprinting of the souvenir book of the Kenosha County Courthouse from 1925.

Salem Lakes residents will have a chance to give their opinion and make comment on an update to the village’s comprehensive plan.

Open houses will be held jointly by the village and the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission on Tuesday, Aug. 26, from 2-4 p.m. and 6-8 p.m at Village Hall, in Salem, Wisconsin.

You can view a summary of the plan update here.

At about 9:15 a.m., Bristol Fire and Rescue units are responding to a crash at Highway AH and 207th Avenue in Bristol.

Per dispatch: Deputies on scene. Single vehicle crash. One person reporting neck pain.

At about 11:25 a.m., Salem Lakes Fire/Rescue, Bristol Fire and Rescue, Wheatland Vol. Fire Department and Town of Randall Fire Department units are responding to a report of a possible structure fire in the 26400 block of 98th Street in Salem Lakes.

Per dispatch: This is being reported as a fire in a crawl space.

UPDATE 11:37 a.m. — Salem Lakes chief requests response from utility company and confirms there is a fire somewhere under the house.

DeWitt Park on Silver Lake remains under a swim caution after re-sampling by Kenosha County on Wednesday showed elevated E.coli levels there.

The State Department of Health recommends posting warnings at beaches when test results indicate an E.coli level of 235/100mL or more and closing a beach when test results exceed E.coli 1000/100mL.

The Wednesday result that prompted the caution at DeWitt Park was 649.0 E.coli/100 mL.

Give that AC a rest. It appears we will get a sustained break from the hot temps our area has been seeing for weeks.

The latest, local National Weather Service forecast says our area will have high temperatures no higher than 82 degrees over the next week. Five of those days are not expected to even reach 75 for a high temperature.

The cool down starts Thursday, with a high temperature of 78 expected.

So far, three’s little chance of precipitation through next Wednesday as well.

Note: This is a paid announcement from Silver Lake-Salem Jt. 1 School District — DH

The Silver Lake Salem School Board invites all community members to join us for an open discussion about the possibility of Riverview hiring a School Resource Officer (SRO) to support school safety and security during the  next regular board meeting.

Date: Tuesday, August 26, 2025
Time: 6:00
Location: Riverview Library

During the meeting, the District Administrator will provide a short presentation outlining the proposal, followed by an opportunity for the public to share their thoughts and ask questions during the public comment portion of the meeting.

The proposal includes a potential partnership with the Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department and the Village of Salem Lakes. Under this partnership, the district would fund the SRO during the school year using Fund 80, and the village would contribute to summer coverage.

Community members are encouraged to:

• Speak during public comment at the meeting
• Send an email to Board President Brian Hopkins at bhopkins@silverlakejt1.k12.wi.us
• Reach out to District Administrator Kim Taylor at ktaylor@silverlakej1.k12.wi.us or 262-889-4284 to share your thoughts or arrange an in-person conversation

We hope you will join us and share your perspective.

Silver Lake Salem School Board

Hoag Park beach on Paddock Lake is re-opened to swimming and DeWitt Park beach on Silver Lake is under a swim caution after re-sampling by Kenosha County on Tuesday.

The State Department of Health recommends posting warnings at beaches when test results indicate an E.coli level of 235/100mL or more and closing a beach when test results exceed E.coli 1000/100mL.

The result from Tuesday that prompted opening Hoag Park to swimming was 225.0 E.coli/100 mL

The result that prompted the caution at DeWitt Park was 921.0 E.coli/100 mL. That location was scheduled to be re-sampled Wednesday.

A project seeking to make improvements to Lance Park through a partnership between the Aquanuts ski show team and Twin Lakes is being withdrawn by the ski team.

A lawsuit filed earlier this month against the team and the village by Twin Lakes resident Bryan Neal was the reason for the withdrawal, said Mark Gurda, the team’s treasurer.

“Given the challenges surrounding the park improvement proposal, we regretfully must withdraw our offer to fund and execute these enhancements,” Gurda said in a statement during citizens comments at the Monday Village Board meeting. “We will decline and/or return donations specifically designated for this project and will protect our limited resources to ensure the Aquanuts can continue operating for years to come.”

The Aquanuts are a ski show team that performs free shows on Lake Mary off of Lance Park throughout the summer. The team also competes in competitions. (Note: A correction was made to this paragraph after first publication. — DH)

The Aquanuts’ proposal was first publicly presented to the board in January. The plan called for the seating area to be reconstructed to be larger and parallel to the lake shore instead of curved, install a new main pier, upgrade electrical and shoreline reconstruction, install sound towers and upgrade landscaping and plant new trees for shade.

All of the work was estimated to cost about $400,000. The Aquanuts raised funds and also received commitments for substantial “sweat equity” donations and a $100,000 grant from The Clinton Family Fund. That grant was contingent on the village matching that amount and the village committing to long-term use of the park by the Aquanuts.

The village had planned to use park impact fees to fund its $100,000 contribution. Those funds can only be used for park improvements.

In April, the Village Board agreed to a memo of understanding with the Aquanuts water ski show team aimed at formalizing how the project would work.

Earlier this month, the Board was considering a lease agreement with Aquanuts providing additional formalization of use of the improvements. At that meeting, Neal announced his lawsuit had been filed in Kenosha County Circuit Court.

Neal has been critical of aspects of the project in comments at meetings and in communications sent to the village and others, including westofthei.com.

In the complaint filed with the court, Neal alleges the village and Aquanuts did not comply with public bidding laws. In the MOU betrween the village and the Aquanuts, the complaint states, the village acknowledges the improvements being paid for by the village’s $100,000 would be subject to public bidding, but that the improvements contributed by the Aquanuts did not have to be bid because they were donations. Neal’s lawsuit challenges that conclusion.

Neal said after Monday’s meeting that he would not comment about the lawsuit since no action was taken at the board meeting and the village has not yet replied to the complaint.

The Village Board held an about 30-minute closed session about the lawsuit at Monday’s meeting. When the board reconvened village President Howard Skinner said there would be no action or discussion by the board on the project at this time.

Gurda told westofthei.com he did not foresee an attempt to revive the project. (Note: A correction was made to this paragraph after first publication. — DH)

“At this point in time, we don’t see it,” Gurda said. “We wish we could.”

“It hurts,” Aquanuts President Bob Koehler said about the decision to withdraw the project.

Here is video of Gurda’s statement to the board:

The National Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm watch for an area of Wisconsin that includes Kenosha County.

The watch is set to be in effect until 6 p.m., Monday.

Says NWS: “A severe thunderstorm watch is issued by the National Weather Service when conditions are favorable for the development of severe thunderstorms in and close to the watch area. A severe thunderstorm by definition is a thunderstorm that produces one inch hail or larger in diameter and/or winds equal or exceed 58 miles an hour. The size of the watch can vary depending on the weather situation. They are usually issued for a duration of 4 to 8 hours. They are normally issued well in advance of the actual occurrence of severe weather. During the watch, people should review severe thunderstorm safety rules and be prepared to move a place of safety if threatening weather approaches.”

Other counties in the watch are: Racine, Walworth, Dodge, Milwaukee, Waukesha, Jefferson, Ozaukee and Washington.

The 2025 Kenosha County Fair parade through the fairgrounds was held Sunday morning.

The parade started near the Marketplace building and made its way around the fairgrounds. Participating were fair royalty, fair officials, 4-H groups, Scouts, some businesses and many tractors and UTVs.

Providing some music was the Westosha Central (High School) Marching Falcons. Here’s a video sample of their performance:

Here are some more photos from the parade:

Here are more 2025 Kenosha County Fair Junior Fair Award winners:

Fishing Project Casting Contest
Carley Corelli Bristol Challenge 4-H Club Senior Trophy
Maxwell Frank Salem Pioneers 4-H Club Jr Trophy

Merit Award Winners
Andrew Nielsen Bristol Strivers 4-H Club
Owen Niccolai Paris Happy Workers 4-H Club
Lukas Gritten Salem Pioneers 4-H Club
Kaylee Stoll Salem Pioneers 4-H Club
Emmalynn Peterson Salem Pioneers 4-H Club
Danny Stohr Slades Corners Lucky Clovers 4-H Club

The 2025 Kenosha County Fair pie auction was held Friday evening in the Show & Sale arena at the fairgrounds in Wilmot.

Many of the items put up for this fun auction go well beyond being a pie. And even when a pie is up for bids, the bids are much higher than you’d think. All the proceeds go to the fair’s building fund. Typically, the animal barns contribute baskets that are auctioned off as part of a “battle of the barns.”

A lot of fun is had and the bidding can get fierce, but in a light-hearted way.

Here are some more photos from the event:

Saturday races at the 2025 Kenosha County Fair have been canceled, the fair announced around 8 p.m. through its Facebook page.

More information below:

Horse shows were held Friday and Saturday at the 2025 Kenosha County Fair.

We may have judging results later. Check back.

Meanwhile, here are some more photos from Saturday’s event.

The large animal auction for the 2025 Kenosha County Fair was held Saturday afternoon at the fairgrounds in Wilmot.

This is where a year of hard work pays off for young people in the beef, swine, sheep and goat projects as people bid to buy their animals.

Here are some more photos from the auction.