Latest on Elijah Vue case and 4 other stories you might have missed in October

MANITOWOC – Updates in the Elijah Vue case and a $12.5 million federal grant to update Manitowoc County rest stops were two of the top watchdog stories for Herald Times Reporter readers in October.

Here's the latest on five stories you may have missed last month.

Elijah Vue's mother and her boyfriend charged with child's death.

The case of 3-year-old Elijah Vue's death has been closely watched by readers in Manitowoc County and across Wisconsin.

Elijah's mother, Katrina B. Baur, and her boyfriend, Jesse Vang, were both charged with felonies in October in relation to the child's death after his skeletal remains were found on private property Sept. 7.

Most recently, Vang was bound over for trial after a preliminary hearing Nov. 6. He is charged with physical abuse of a child causing death, hiding a corpse and obstructing an officer.

His next court date is an arraignment Nov. 18 at Manitowoc County Courthouse.

During an arraignment Oct. 30, Baur pleaded not guilty to charges of chronic neglect of a child-consequence is death, neglecting a child and obstructing an officer.

Her next court date is Dec. 20 for "further proceedings."

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Interstate 43 rest stops in Manitowoc County to get updates

An article published Oct. 23 shared news that a $12.5 million federal grant will be used to update two rest stops along Interstate 43 in Manitowoc County.

The grant comes from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Infrastructure For Rebuilding America grant program, which awards "competitive grants for multimodal freight and highway projects of national or regional significance to improve the safety, efficiency and reliability of the movement of freight and people in and across rural and urban areas."

The grant will be used to rebuild the rest area buildings for Rest Area 51 Maribel and Rest Area 52 Denmark. The work is expected to start in 2025.

Savor Manitowoc features Cozy B's Diner in Two Rivers

Readers loved seeing the food and atmosphere that Cozy B's Diner in Two Rivers had to offer.

Published Oct. 29 as part of the Savor Manitowoc series, the article highlighted two sandwiches — the grilled tuna melt and the Philly cheesesteak.

Savor Manitowoc is an award-winning series that features local restaurants. Patti Zarling, my colleague, and I choose a restaurant to sample their offerings and share their experience with readers.

The series started in 2018 and the team has since tried more than 50 restaurants in Manitowoc County.

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Municipal and school budgets give preview to 2025 property tax bills

Local municipalities and school districts are all working to pass a budget for 2025 and get the tax levies in order before property tax bills go out in mid-December.

Manitowoc Public School District passed its 2025 budget Oct. 22 during a special school board meeting. The typical taxpayer will see a 9.9% increase in the tax rate from the school district.

Manitowoc County passed its 2025 budget Nov. 12 during the County Board meeting. A full rundown of that budget will be published later this week.

The City of Manitowoc has not approved the proposed 2025 budget yet. The Common Council will meet for its regular meeting Nov. 18.

Manitowoc school board reconsiders closing district office

As reported in the Watchdog Wednesday series Oct. 16, the Manitowoc School Board reconsidered its plans to relocate the District Office as administrators work to create a long-range facilities plan.

The decision to delay the relocation came from the district's Finance & Facilities Committee, and was confirmed with a unanimous vote during the Oct. 8 school board meeting.

Contact Alisa M. Schafer at [email protected].