WINONA, Minn. – A court hearing in the murder case against Adam Fravel has been postponed until September 22 because there remains evidence that that the state crime bureau hasn’t released. Fravel’s attorney, Zach Bauer, said he has yet to receive a packet 400 pages of information as part of the legal discovery process. Also, Bauer said, additional state crime lab test results won’t be available until mid-August. Judge Nancy Buytendorp agreed to the two-month extension. Meanwhile, Fravel remains in jail in lieu of $2 million bail for the March murder of Maddi Kingsbury of Winona, the mother of his two children.

Earlier: Boyfriend of Maddi Kingsbury arrested on murder charge

MINNEAPOLIS – The attorney for the Minneapolis police officer convicted in the 2020 death of George Floyd expressed disappointment that the Minnesota Supreme Curt declined to hear an appeal. The attorney, William Mohrmann, had argued that news coverage had made a fair trial impossible. “This criminal trial generated the most amount of pretrial publicity in history,” Morhmann told the Associated Press. “More concerning are the riots which occurred after George Floyd’s death and led the jurors to all express concerns for their safety in the event they acquitted Mr. Chauvin.” Mohrman said to expect an appeal now to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Earlier: Chauvin loses appeal in George Floyd murder

CHICAGO – Construction of a power transmission line through the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge on the Iowa-Wisconsin border should not have been blocked by a lower court, a federal appeals court ruled. The U.S. Court of Appeals said the record was too skimpy for the 102-mile line to have been blocked. Environmentalists and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service had opposed the Cardinal-Hickory Creek line linking Dubuque, Iowa, and Madison, Wisconsin, as an intrusion in the pristine wildlife refuge. Several companies sponsoring the project, including Dairyland Power of LaCrosse, noted that the line mostly would follow an existing highway and railroad through the refuge. They also noted that the line was designed to deliver clean wind energy reliably from Iowa to meet Wisconsin needs. The line is almost completed, albeit for the wildlife refuge section.

Through the Driftless region. The Cardinal-Hickory Creek transmission line is a $500 million project through southwest Wisconsin.

WINONA, Minn. – Winona police have delayed a second summer check on liquor establishments for compliance with the law against serving minors. Police spokesperson Jay Rasmussen said the checks will resume after a leadership change is completed at the Alliance for Subject Abuse Prevention. The ASAP organization has been a key participant in the checks. Three checks had been planned before college classes begin in August.

Earlier: One night in Winona: Bar service to minors

Earlier: 10 Winona bars pass compliance check; 6 fail

ELBA, Minn. – An air search was being arranged for an Elba man missing 1-1/2 days after fleeing his house when officers responded to a call to check on his welfare. Sheriff Ron Ganrude said that dogs would also be employed for the search. Missing was Bruce Allan Wiza, age 59. It was believed he was in the immediate vicinity. The house is in Elba itself, in the 1300 block of North Main Street Wiza’s wife had called police about 11:30 p.m., Monday, to say that she had arrived home and that her husband wasn’t there – even though his car was outside. As deputies were en route, she called back that she had found him in the house. Deputies proceeded anyway to make what’s called a “welfare check.” When the deputies arrived, Wiz fled the house out the back. A quick search didn’t find him, but it was late and dark, and the deputies hoped that Wiza would return on his own. He was wearing a black T-shirt and jeans but apparently neither shoes or socks. He left his phone and wallet behind. His wife had no explanation but  said that  there had been household tensions. A search beginning the next morning yielded no clues. A larger search effort the second day was concentrating on the thick woods that surround Elba. The town, population 130, is on the Whitewater River a couple miles downstream Whitewater State Park. The area has many campgrounds with outbuildings.

Wiza. An image from a family occasion.

WINONA, Minn. – The Fire Department reported 35 emergency medical calls plus 12 fire calls in recent days:

> Tuesday, July 18: 4 medical calls plus 1 fire call.

> Monday, July 17: 4 medical calls plus 2 fire call.

> Sunday, July 16:   3 medical calls plus 1 fire call.

> Saturday, July 15: 7 medical calls plus 2 fire calls.

> Friday, July 14: 5 medical calls plus 2 calls.

> Thursday, July 13: 4 medical calls plus 4 fire calls.

> Wednesday, July 12: 8 medical calls plus nofire calls.

Earlier: Emergency, fire crews 42 calls

WINONA, Minn. – A 14-year-old girl at a summer camp reported being molested by a fellow camper, a boy, aboard a bus on a field trip. The incident was reported to police about 11:30 p.m. after the bus returned to the Winona State University dorm where the teens were being housed. The girl, from Winona, said she was fondled both through and under her clothing. Ten or 12 teens were on the bus. The incident was between St. Charles and Winona.. Criminal charges were possible, police said.

1924 dedication. The bandshell celebrates its 100th anniversary next June.

Number Winona sites swells to 54, albeit four delistings

WINONA Minn. – The Lake Park bandshell has been accepted to National Register of Historic Places, becoming the 52nd Winona County to be recognized. The chair of he city’s Heritage Preservation Commission, Emily Kurash Casey, said she was the acceptance by the National park Service, which administers the register. It’s a recognition of Winona’s   long history of investment in the arts and architecture, Kuash Casey said. The bandshell was built n 1924 and remains a venue for orchestra and band concerts. Nationally there are 95,000 historic sites listed. Winona County has had 52, albeit four were removed when they were demolished:

> Garvin Brook Bridge. On former Road 62 downtown from Stockton, 1990 to 2016.

> E.L .King house. On Highway 61 south of Homer, 1982 to1990.

> James P. Pearson steamboat. A.k.a. the Julius Wilkie in Levee Park , 1975 to 1986.

> Stockton Mill. On Eighth Street, 1975 to 2009.

Summer home of Winona Symphony. In current finely detailed paint trim.

Earlier: New $1 million goal for bandshell update

Earlier: City puts $300,000 into centennial bandshell update

Earlier: City seeks historic status for bandshell

Earlier: A Winona crowning glory awaits renovations

ST. PAUL, Minn. –- The Minnesota Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal from convicted killer-cop Derek Chauvin, the white officer who choked George Floyd, a black man, to death on a Minneapolis street in 2020. In its one-page order, the Court didn’t explain its decision. The decision leaves Chauvin’s 22 1/2-year sentence in place.

Earlier: Killer-cop Chauvin appeals to state Supreme Court

BYRON, Minn. – The body found in a retention pond behind the Byron police station has been identified as that of a cheese-processing plant employee missing two weeks — 39-year-old Wade Gordon Jr. of Rochester. He had been seen last about 2 a.m. on July 7. He was leaving his job two miles away at the Ornua cheese plant. He was on foot. His car was left in the Ornua parking lot. The mother of his children reported him missing he next morning. It was unlike him not to come home, she said. A preliminary autopsy found no signs of foul play. Nor did the autopsy identify a cause of death.

Earlier: Body found in Byron pond; no immediate identification

Gordon. How did he die? Why? When? Questions linger.

BAY CITY, Wis. – The Army Corps awarded an $8.7 million contract to Newt Marine Service, of Dubuque, Iowa, for a navigation and ecosystem near Bay City. The project aims to address habitat losses due to sediment build-up, wind-driven wave erosion, changes in navigation channel depth, and loss od aquatic vegetation.  The Corps said a new peninsula will redirect sediment to provide a deep-water habitat for fish. Willows, floodplain trees and grasses will increase habitat diversity and quality. The project is expected to run from Spring 2024 to Fall 2026.

Guiding Isabelle Creek. Darker blue is mew habitat dredging. Greens are for long-term sediment settling. The navigation channel swings down from upper left and across the bottom.

WINONA, Minn. – A Winona man, Ivan Nathaniel Irons, 40, was arrested after police found a handgun at his place – even though he is a felon prohibited from possessing a firearm. The arrest, about 1:40 a.m. in the 800 block of Front Street, followed a bizarre series of events. This, according to police records, is what happened:

> An acquaintance called police that Irons had sent a text message that he had a gun and threatened to shoot the person. He also threatened suicide.

> Officers went to the Front Street address. Irons met them outside. He admitted to sending a text and mentioning a BB gun. He denied any real guns inside the house. He denied being suicidal.

> Officers were allowed inside. In a laundry room they found a loaded magazine clip with 9mm rounds. At that point they were told to leave, that searching was no longer wanted.

> With a search warrant, officers went back and found a black 9mm handgun behind a storage tote near where they earlier found the loaded magazine clip.

> Two children were home. One of them reported being aware of the threats.

> Irons was booked at jail about 4;30 a.m. Next stop: The judge for a parole violation.

Irons. No gun, he said. Then cops found one. Also a loaded magazine clip with 9mm rounds.

Historic site. A large proscenium-arch stage is the heart of the building. Masonic theatrical rites included 98 hand-painted scenic drops.

Tally for heating, cooling system now $3 million

WINONA, Minn. –  The Winona City Council voted 5-1 to spend $1 million more than had been projected for further improvements at the historic Masonic Temple, which in recent years has been home to the city’s Senior Friendship Center. Earlier the Council budgeted $2 million for a new boiler and cooling system, but the lowest bid came in at $3.1 million. Restoring the Masonic Temple has been a pet project of City Manager Chad Ubl, who said he doubted that seeking new HVAC bids would find a lower offer. The $3.1 million bid was from Winona Heating & Ventilation. Renovations project have been costly ever since the city acquired the historic building in 1979.  Renovations had cost $3 million even before it was realized that a new heating, ventilation and cooling system was needed.

How they voted

On Historic Register

The Masonic Temple, built in 1909, has been a ward of city since the Masons relocated to Rochester in 1979. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places un in 1998 for its significance in art and social history. The Neoclassical building, in red brick and stone in the Beaux-Arts tradition, was designed by Philadelphia architects Warren Laird and C.F. Osborne. Mahogany finishes and furnishing reflect Masonic ideology. Landmark features include a ballroom and theater. In 1997 the Theatre du Mississippi began performances in the building.

COOK, Minn. – Nine cars of a Canadian National freight train, two of them loaded with propane and butane, derailed north of Cook on the line from Duluth to International Falls on the Canada border. There was fire. Nor were there injuries. No leaks or spills were immediately apparent, said a St. Louis County Emergency Management agent. The railroad, headquartered in Montreal, didn’t respond to queries about the train’s destination. The CN has routes through central Wisconsin with a 50-mile branch to Bluff Siding across the Mississippi River from Winona.

Hotel site.  When the riverfront bustled with sawmills and steamboat landings, in the 1880s, the city allowed an old railroad to build a yard of five-abreast tacks on city land. Fast-forward: The saw mills are ancient history. Only a single track remains in use. It gives the Union Pacific access to Bay State Milling and dozens of industrial customers all the way to the Far East End. The city wants to reclaim four sidetracks, now abandoned, for an upscale riverfront hotel fronting on Levee Park.  Image: Steve Lunde

At issue: Old tracks from Johnson to Walnut streets

WINONA, Minn. – The City Council voted unanimously to proceed to take out an abandoned railyard along the Levee to make room for a proposed riverside hotel. For decades everybody had assumed the old yard, now weed-infested, hadbelonged to the Union Pacific Railroad — and railroads are notorious for never ever giving up real estate. Recently it was discovered that a forgotten 1886 city ordinance had granted only an easement for the rail yard. In short, UP doesn’t own the land. By amending the 1886 ordinance, the city could revoke UP’s claim to the land. It’s a four-block section from Johnson Street, behind Winona 7 movie house, to Walnut Street. The Council’s next agenda will have the reclaim-the-easement on its agenda for final consideration.

Earlier: A hotel on the Winona Levee? Still yakking

Earlier: Port to would-be hoteliers: Stop dallying

Earlier: Levee hotel project wins $601,000 state grant

Earlier: Shape of Levee Park’s future: A work in progress

Levee Park.Across the top, showing as dark, is the Mississippi River. Alongside is the city’s signature Levee Park alongside. Lower is the single-track Union Pacific industrial spur. Below that, obscured by weedy overgrowth, are the four abandoned tracks that the city seeks to remove for upscale hotel The hotel would occupy the entire parking lot behind the Winona 7 movie house and the abandoned rail yard, while leaving the UP’s active single-track spur in place to deliver and pick up freight at industrial customers downriver. These are moving switching operations on weekdays, usually in the morning.

Good ‘ol days: More trans-con Winona rail traffic due

BYRON, Minn. – Responding to a call about suspicious noises around a retention pond behind the Byron police station, officers made a check. They found a body – a man apparently in his 30s or 40s. The area was cordoned off. The state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension was called in. The regional medical examiner’s Office was called to identify the remains and determine the cause of death. Immediate speculation was about a Rochester man, Wade Gordon Jr., 39, who was last seen walking away from his job a couple miles away.

RED WING, Minn. – A Red Wing man on a small scooter was injured critically in a collision with a straight truck on Highway 61 west of the downtown retail district. Police assessed the injuries to David Ryan Egan, 35, as life-threatening. He was taken 45 miles to a Rochester hospital. The accident was about 6:55 a.m. at the Bench Street corner. The truck driver, See Vang, 31, of St. Paul, who was driving a 2023 Ford F650, was unhurt.