The Water Street Business Improvement District has replaced their plan for a 5th Avenue Beach Launch (for tubin' and such) with a 5th Avenue River Lookout. After heeding advice from the city police and fire departments, this new development plan will exclude a pathway to the water. “The plan didn’t really mix with the typical activities of Water Street – the excessive drinking, especially,” says Lisa Aspenson, BID member. “You can still get down to the water, but the idea is that, without stairs, we’re not inviting them to.” BID is planning on raising funds to build a deck-like structure with a railing and seating attached to serve as a scenic river lookout point for bicyclists on the trail. To further improve the look of the area, BID hopes to surround the structure with some new plantings – replacing trees that are of little value with nicer (possibly native) varieties. While they have yet to get approval from the police department, Aspenson says they’re confident that law enforcement will endorse the plan as a safe alternative. The plan will come before the city’s Parks & Waterways Commission on March 26, and based on their reaction could immediately move to the city council, and start construction in early summer.

A lookout sounds like a really cool idea, but so did a beach launch. As for the safety/drunk-idiot-in-the-river factor of either structure, we'll leave it to you.

Hey, the city’s about to add more traffic cameras, but not the kind that capture evil people running red lights in their fancy imported sports cars. The cameras will monitor cars and control the redness and greenness of the lights, increasing safety and hopefully improving the Awesome Traffic Flow Efficiency Equation (ATFEE). This, by itself, is both boring and uninteresting news.

But, as the Leader-Telegram points out, it marks a new direction in the city’s traffic sensor technology, and I gotta be honest, the old tech sounds really damn cool. Most of the city’s lights are controlled by underground wire coils that produce a magnetic field. When your car/scooter/hovercraft enters the magnetic field, the street knows you are there, and the lights change accordingly. Sure, these new cameras are more effective and less prone to environmental damage, but .... underground magnetic field-producing coils! Very retro-future-ish.

But hey, safety counts for something, I guess. One of the intersections to get the new cameras (this summer) is Washington Avenue and South Farwell Street. The plan is to make the intersection more pedestrian/bicycle friendly because it sucks pretty bad right now. The L-T interviewed Aaron Ellringer from Just Local Foods (located on that corner), and he said, "People can't send their kids to the store to get eggs because of the traffic at this corner."

The city also plans to remove the concrete island on that intersection, ending the “right turn no stop” freedom of cars turning from Washington onto Farwell.

The initials “EC” are frequently used to represent this fair city. They’re also used in conjunction with other initials to indicate groups within the city, like the recently formed ECLUCK. While the part-acronym cleverly suits the purpose of this group, it should be emphasized that ECLUCK’s main interest lies in what those first two initials represent for its residents. “E-CLUCK” stands for Eau Claire Leaders for Urban Chicken Keeping. The group is still in its infancy – more of a discussion than an organization. ECLUCK does have a Facebook page, which links the keeping of urban hens to progress toward sustainability, much like community gardening. The group’s first obstacle is an Eau Claire City Ordinance that reads: “No person, firm, or corporation shall keep, feed, or breed any domestic fowl.” According to one of the members of the ECLUCK discussion, Paul Kaldjian, “The ultimate goal is to have it a permissible activity in the city with the city’s full support.“ Kaldjian touted the health and economic benefits of “controlling your own food.” An educational benefit also exists. Kaldjian stated, “We’re becoming advocates for farmers by teaching our kids where food comes from.” At this early stage, the group seeks other ‘like-minded’ people. Those who feel EC could stand for “evolving conventions” can join the discussion at ECLUCK’s Facebook page.

Previously ...

ArtsWest 31, the library's annual juried art show, features 55 works by area artists. The pieces were chosen from more than 150 pieces submitted for consideration. Selections for this year's show were made by Alan William Nugent, owner and curator of the Abode Gallery in Stockholm, Wisconsin. (L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library; normal library hours)

Quite possibly Eau Claire's biggest weekend for local rock 'n roll, this year's Decadent Cabaret night number two features music by Drunk Drivers, Deaddogs, Duncan Ninja, an Afghan Whigs tribute set, the Jim Pullman Band, The Jaggernauts, Mors Mortis Machinatio, Fathom, The Excellent Adventure, and Meridene. It’s more rock that is legally allowed, so don’t be a jerk and tell the cops. Doors open at 6:30pm. Show at 7pm, $5. Details. 2009 photos.

SAM I AM: Green Eggs & Ham Breakfast Party | Help celebrate Dr. Seuss' birthday while supporting the  River Source Family Center all at the same time. Come enjoy the Dr. Seuss-style breakfast, activities and party favors. (Central Lutheran Church; Sat/8:30am)

STAGE: Guys & Dolls | Gamblers Sky Masterson, Nicely-Nicely Johnson, Nathan Detroit, and his fiancée of fourteen years, Adelaide, clash with the beautiful Save-a-Soul missionary Sister Sara in the Tony Award-winning hit. The show features classic songs like “Luck Be a Lady Tonight,” “Sit Down, You’re Rocking the Boat,” “If I Were a Bell,” and the title song. (State Theatre; Sat/7:30pm, Sat/1:30pm)

ART: ArtsWest 31 | ArtsWest 31, the library's annual juried art show, features 55 works by area artists. The pieces were chosen from more than 150 pieces submitted for consideration. Selections for this year's show were made by Alan William Nugent, owner and curator of the Abode Gallery in Stockholm, Wisconsin. (L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library; normal library hours)

Saturday: See it all. Sunday: As well.

In this episode: The safety of our sheds are in crisis and we discuss the pros and cons of pretend internet baby sales. Also, we give away a $50 gift certificate to vinyl shop Longplay Replay and 2 tickets to Micon Cinemas. (If you'd like to enter a contest, go here.) This episode is supported by Deborah Becker of State Farm Insurance.

Watch it on Vimeo.

Digital camera-equipped reader Bruce Warren emailed in to comment on Kinzy Janssen’s recent column on Wisconsin's drinking culture. Bruce is anonymously quoted in the column, telling a story about seeing quarts of “FAMILY SIZE” beer upon moving to Eau Claire. From the column:

• I wasn’t ready to confirm the existence of a distinct “drinking culture,” even when presented with first-hand accounts of Wisconsin “culture shock.” A customer at a café told me that, upon moving here, he found beer emblazoned with the words, FAMILY SIZE. Now a seasoned resident of the state, he laughed and shook his head resignedly as if to say, “That’s Wisconsin for you.” Read more.

And he was kind enough to send some pictures to prove it – taken at Galloway Grille, were a family size Walter’s Beer quart bottle is on display. Thanks Bruce!

Also, note that this is a bottle that once contained “beer ... that is beer."

Some nutty Rooskie haxorz Russian cyber thieves just about pwn3d the county almost stole over $1 million from Eau Claire County’s Alliance Bank accounts last January. According to the Leader-Telegram, they rigged 44 fraudulent money transfers through the city’s wire transfer and payroll deposits systems, all of which were thwarted. Bank officials noticed odd dollar amounts and the unusually high number of transfers to unfamiliar banks, so they activated their fast response digital hacker defense systems did not approve the transactions.

Not the highest of high tech espionage (nor the most espionagey), but Alliance Bank must have been pretty proud to stop a $1 million dollar theft. Perhaps it helps heal the wounds left by that guy whole stole $1,000 (by hand, not hacking) from the bank back in October.

The noble staff of the Eau Claire Regional Arts Center had to deal with a slight case of “chimney collapse” yesterday, as part of a brick smoke stack on the Farwell Street side of the building up and fell off. It hit the sidewalk in what we presume to be a cacophony of rubble, dust, and brick chips. But as no one was there to hear it, we can’t say with absolute certainty that it actually made a sound. Thank your chosen deity (or lack thereof) that no one was hurt.

We’d like to say the raining of bricks was due to a raucous, foot-stompin’ rehearsal of Guys and Dolls, but the official word is, “The chimney is old and part of it fell off. The rest of the structure is solid.”

The brick incident (or “brincident” as everyone cool is calling it) highlights certain things about the nature of ERAC and the State Theatre, in particular, how it’s funded and who’s responsible for things like “old useless chimney upkeep.” From the official Brincident Press Release:

• “We have a long list of facility needs, and this obviously moves to the top of the list, as safety concerns always do,” says Ben Richgruber, Executive Director. Among those needs are heating and ventilation updates, rigging and stage repair, and other deferred maintenance projects. When the State Theatre was renovated in the eighties, the full construction costs were never raised. According to Richgruber, the added debt has been carried over since then, and has made capital projects and building repairs difficult to fund.

So if you ever thought of donating to the region’s art center, now is a great time.

Get ready to break out the green tights this summer – the Chippewa Valley Renaissance Faire is back after a one-summer absence. The faire grounds have been acquired by Wisconsin Festival Grounds Incorporated, who plan to add various improvements to the look and feel of the festival, while building off of the considerable work of the previous owners. They’ve brought in people who have run similar shows for years in places like Boston and Chicago. Basically, they feel that the foundation for success is already laid; they just need to provide the talent and create the atmosphere to make it happen.

The new owners plan on using the grounds as a “multi-event space,” saying the  Chippewa Falls location could not only be used as a Renaissance Faire, but also a Wild West Show, a Halloween Scream Fest, and a possible place to host concerts. The 128-acre site near Hallie Park boasts 50 buildings and shoppes, three pubs, six stages, a horse arena, and several food vendor locations. Not to mention tons of parking space, a nice-sized campground.

The Renaissancey part will run from May 22 until June 20. Check out the new site.