Sept 27-29, 2004

Flood wall at Lawler Park to undergo repairs
Since the 1930s, the flood -wall along the bank of the Mississippi River at Lawler Park has helped to keep the river at bay. The wall stretches the length of the park, and down to the bottom of the river. It is thicker at the bottom to help protect the bank from the constant action of the current. Last fall, the city sent the local dive and rescue team down to inspect underwater sections of the wall. They found a hole in the structure, in a location roughly opposite the new gazebo, downstream from the boat ramp. The integrity of the wall has obvious importance to the park, said Koch, noting that some of the bricks in the walkway along the wall have settled. "It's not something we can ignore," he said. The city had hired Kramer Bros. Construction to repair the hole at a cost of $15,000. But divers working for Kramer found a new hole in the wall below the other hole. The newly discovered hole is bigger than the one found by search and rescue divers last fall. It runs to the north and back into the bank about two to three feet. The city council heard about the discovery at their Sept. 21 Committee of the Whole meeting. Alderman Jack Kluesner asked why the hole was not located before. Koch responded by explaining how the murky waters of the river make it nearly impossible to inspect the wall by sight; divers must work by feel, and so it is easy to miss something. The city is waiting for a new estimate and work schedule from the contractor.

Sutton family business, four generations and counting
Loyalty and business usually do not end up in the same sentence, but that is the case for Sutton Insurance in Prairie du Chien. When Bob Sutton's daughter Tarah Oldenburg decided to join her father's insurance agency in 2000, it extended the family business to four generations. The business name has changed over the years. First it was Sutton Insurance, then Kieser and Sutton Insurance, then Kieser, Sutton and Patterson, then Sutton Insurance, Inc. once again. Now it is called Murphy Insurance Group-Sutton Agency. But there has always been a Sutton. Bob's grandfather Amos started a real estate business in 1956. Bob's father George joined Amos at a later date. George added an insurance division onto their real estate business in 1957. They worked out of George's house on Court Street until they moved downtown to 105 West Blackhawk Avenue in 1967. Bob started working for his family business in 1977. He eventually took over the business in 1988.Sutton Insurance bought into The Murphy Insurance Group, which is based in Waunakee, Wis., in 1996. Linda was working for Murphy Insurance at the time and told her brother he should buy into the franchise, which was ranked the fastest growing businesses in Dane County in 1994 by the "In Business" magazine-a magazine that covers Dane County. Bob decided to buy into Murphy Insurance so he could concentrate more on sales and services while the franchise dealt with company issues. Sutton Insurance has two other employees besides Bob and Tarah. Kevin Mulrooney sells health and life insurance. The insurance business has had its lumps since 9/11. "You have to work hard to help out people," Bob said. High claims, larger re-insurance costs and a loss of revenue in the stock market caused premiums and deductibles to increase. "Companies had to get tougher to make money," Bob said.

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September 29, 2004

September 27, 2004