Door County Pulse Podcast

Andrew Kleidon talks with Pulse editor Debra Fitzgerald about two islands reported in the March 10 issue of the Peninsula Pulse. One of the islands is the creation of artist Lee Mothes, yet has all the trappings of a real place, including the ability to buy and develop land. The other island off the tip of the Door peninsula is, depending who you talk with, a stinking outpost with inhabitants that pollute the water and deplete the fishery, or a necessary sanctuary and nesting spot for colonial birds.

Andrew Kleidon is joined by Mike Orlock, author of the Peninsula Pulse’s film column Mike at the Movies, to round up all of the best picture Oscar noms before the Academy Awards.

Myles Dannhausen Jr. talks to the restaurateur about a new model he has launched for his food truck court in Baileys Harbor. They touch on Schoenfeld’s background, the barriers to entry in the industry, and how COVID forced some lasting positive changes on restaurants in Door County.

Andrew Kleidon talks with Pulse editor Debra Fitzgerald about the latest developments to save Potawatomi State Park Observation Tower, and recent UFO sightings Door County residents are talking about.

Gibraltar School is asking voters to approve a $29.8 million referendum to renovate and reconstruct the aging portions of the high school and the middle school gym. Superintendent Brett Stousland and school board president Stephen Seyfer join Myles Dannhausen Jr. to talk about the project.

Andrew Kleidon is joined by Destination Sturgeon Bay Executive Director Cameryn Ehlers-Kwaterski to talk about everything folks can look forward to this weekend when Sturgeon Bay celebrates Fire & Ice.

Pulse Editor Debra Fitzgerald talks with Darrick DeMeuse. The Sevastopol native and current resident makes his community a better place through his numerous volunteer efforts, yet does so quietly beneath the radar and behind the scenes. If you know a Difference Maker we need to talk with, email [email protected].

Andrew Kleidon talks with Pulse Editor Debra Fitzgerald about the new child care facility that will be constructed on the Sevastopol/Sturgeon Bay border, and several of the larger developments in various stages of planning in Sturgeon Bay, including Fleet Farm on Hwys. 57/42 and a 62-room, four-story hotel on Egg Harbor Road.

A little over a year since the James Webb Space Telescope was launched, Myles Dannhausen Jr. catches up with Dr. Heidi Hammel, one of the project’s leading scientists, to find out what we’re learning from the incredible photographs that Webb is creating.

Myles Dannhausen Jr. discusses the future of Scandia Village, the Sister Bay nursing home and retirement community that is now up for sale, with Andrew Kleidon. Plus a preview of this weekend’s Fish Creek Winterfest.

This year's Door County Reads features Raft of Stars by Andrew Graff. He joins Pulse assistant editor Grace Johnson to discuss the upcoming Door County Reads programming, his book and writing stories that are hopeful.

Hope and Brandon Bogenschutz – members of the new improv group, The Knobs – join Pulse assistant editor Grace Johnson to talk about the art of improv.

Mariah Goode, director of the County of Door's Land Use Services department, sits down with Pulse editor Debra Fitzgerald to talk about the county's role related to zoning and development and what local towns can do if they're interested in guiding not only where something is built but how it looks. They also talk about growth and existing ratios for what's protected versus what's developed on the peninsula.

Jerod Santek, artistic director at Write On, makes his first Pulse Podcast appearance and discusses new, free programming offered at the Writing Center with Pulse assistant editor, Grace Johnson.

When Dustin Renwick went to work at National Geographic in 2017, he almost immediately set out to find out what the magazine’s extensive archives might include about Door County, a place his family has visited for years. He joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to talk about what he found, how our forgotten archives can help connect generations and how he uses them to tell new stories.

Rep. Joel Kitchens (R-Sturgeon Bay) sits down with Pulse editor Debra Fitzgerald to talk about the new legislative session, his priorities and committee assignments, the budget that will be built this year, a CAFO expanding in Forestville, the recently released plans for Potawatomi State Park Observation Tower, and what Republicans may be planning for the state's abortion law.

Door Community Auditorium releases a slate of winter main-stage shows, coffeehouse concerts and talks. Plus, Andrew Kleidon and Myles Dannhausen Jr. discuss Ephraim’s decision not to expand alcohol licenses in the village and Sturgeon Bay’s tribute to Jim Benesh.

The Door County Granary project and the Sister Bay-Liberty Grove Fire Department both won big awards in the $1.7-trillion Omnibus Appropriations Act that Congress passed just before Christmas. Myles Dannhausen Jr. talks with Debra Fitzgerald about how these projects were funded and about Congressional earmarks in general. They also dive into Destination Door County's new Community Investment Grant program that will spend $1 million annually on local projects that benefit local people.

It looks like rental companies will be staying at the Sister Bay Marina after a December hearing brought dozens of people out in support of the operators. Myles Dannhausen Jr. talks to Andrew Kleidon about that issue, plus three big decisions coming up for Ephraim. But first they introduce a new column debuting in this week’s Pulse and the aerial photography of Dan Anderson.

When Lawrence University found a new director for its Door County campus, Bjorklunden, it brought home a familiar face. Tom McKenzie talks to Myles Dannhausen Jr. about returning to the county where he co-founded the Pulse and how locals can get to know the 441-acre campus south of Baileys Harbor.

Dan Kane, Door County Director of Emergency Management and Communications, talks with Pulse editor Debra Fitzgerald about the critical employee shortage at the county's 24-7 dispatch operation that receives about 50,000 calls for help annually, and what the county is doing to attract and retain employees while filling the gaps in the short-term.

The real estate market has changed quite a bit since the Door County Board of Realtors (DCBR) was first founded 60 years ago. Debra Fitzgerald talks with Mary Kay Shumway, DCBR treasurer, and Jeff Isaksen, DCBR president, about the past, present and future of Door County real estate.

Tom Groenfeldt has written about the arts, business and technology for the Peninsula Pulse, but he got his start in Door County many years earlier as an intern for the Resorter Reporter. He talks to Myles Dannhausen Jr. about his stint as Chan Harris’s roving summer photography intern whose job was to capture scenes for the cover and inside pages of the publication.

It's a phrase we all use, but what exactly does it refer to? This week in the Pulse we sought to determine where the line demarcating northern Door County is – and found that it depends on who you ask. Myles Dannhausen Jr. and Andrew Kleidon break it down.

If Door County is the Cape Cod of the Midwest, and the Cape is a far more thickly settled and visited place than Door County, what can Door County learn from the Cape about balancing environmental protections and economic progress? That's the conversation the Door County Environmental Council wanted to start when it guest-hosted the Cape Cod Commission's Erin Perry this fall. Andrew Kleidon talks with Deb Fitzgerald about that discussion and what Door County may be able to learn from the Cape's example.

The Sister Bay Marina Committee is considering eliminating commercial activity at the popular marina. That has ignited an avalanche of backlash from locals and visitors, including some of the 50,000 people who use the services each year to get on the water. Myles Dannhausen Jr. and Andrew Kleidon discuss the reasons behind the discussion, and what it might mean.

The fiction, nonfiction, poetry and photography winners of the Pulse's annual Hal Prize have been released in this year's 8142 Literary Review, which is hot off the press and available now. Grace Johnson, editor of the literary review, talks with Pulse editor Debra Fitzgerald about this year's contest winners (a local writer won the fiction category), the making of a literary journal and the local screening judges who decided which of the 686 submissions would be sent for final judging in each category.

Three weekends of Christkindlmarkt kicks off in Sister Bay over Thanksgiving weekend, and John Nelson of the Sister Bay Historical Society joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to tell us what to expect, new highlights, and what went into the creation of a hugely popular new holiday event.

Door County Sheriff Tammy Sternard talks with Debra Fitzgerald about the county's largest, tax-levy-supported department and how they enforce the law, community policing, mental health crisis call challenges, the county's jail population, and finding the employees needed for Door County's vital, public safety sector.

Andrew Kleidon is joined by Grace Johnson to talk about how she spends her winter: with books. Door County Reads is on the horizon, plus a sneak peak at a profile on Door County author Jill Stukenberg from the winter Door County Living magazine. After the break, a deep dive into the final evolution of the cheese board: the butter board. What is it, and why was it the best thing Kleidon tasted all year?

What if we didn’t design our communities around cars? That’s the question Nate Bell, a trustee for the Village of Sister Bay and an avid cyclist, has been thinking about a lot since he started biking in 2020. He joins the podcast to talk about changing thinking when it comes to connecting communities and steps the village hopes to take in the coming years.

A walk in the park is something most of us take for granted. Adam Peronto and Kinect M1 are trying to make it possible for those who can’t. Myles Dannhausen Jr. talks to Peronto about the Action Trackchair the organization hopes to donate to Peninsula State Park, and the experiences it provides for people with disabilities.

For Pulse Editor Debra Fitzgerald, election season brings adrenaline - and frustration. She joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to discuss how the national political discourse now infiltrates the letters page of a small-town local newspaper, and how she wades through the mess. They also talk about the election signs that now dominate the county roadsides.

It’s a weekend of frightening fun in Door County, and Andrew Kleidon and Myles Dannhausen Jr. break down what they’re looking forward to, and Andrew airs his Halloween grievances. Then, they discuss the fire at Mr. G’s and the art of Nathan Hatch.

The Director of HELP of Door County, Milly Gonzales, joins Myles Dannhausen JR. to talk about the struggle to stop and prevent domestic abuse in Door County, and the many ways it impacts the community.

Susan Kohout and Ann Morgan with the League of Women Voters of Door County sits down with Debra Fitzgerald to talk about the organization's nonpartisan work to inspire civic involvement and education, and how they're recruiting the next generation of civic leaders who are so important to local communities and to the health of a strong republic.

Myles Dannhausen Jr. and Andrew Kleidon talk upcoming Halloween events, Fall 50 runners, and last week’s improv show at Peach Barn. Plus, they recap a Fall Fest weekend that has become much more than crowds and drinking, Dannhausen says.

Andrew Kleidon is joined by Pulse reporter Sam Watson to talk about journalism, discovering Door County through writing, and how Watson tackles news reporting versus arts and entertainment writing.

Andrew Kleidon is joined by Third Avenue PlayWorks artistic director Jacob Janssen to talk about his return to Door County, his first season at TAP, the importance of bringing a community together through theater, and TAP’s upcoming Play Reading Club.

Myles Dannhausen Jr. and Andrew Kleidon talk Pumpkin Patch and broadband progress in Liberty Grove. Then, we remember Patty Williamson, who for 14 years wrote hundreds of articles for the Pulse and became our office grandmother. Patty died in September not long after turning in her final article.

Michelle Lawrie, new executive director of the Door County Economic Development Corporation, talks with Pulse editor Deb Fitzgerald about the rebuilding of the nonprofit organization, the various economic challenges Door County faces, and the different economic industries that contribute to the peninsula's GDP (gross domestic product). She also talks about the October awareness campaign for Door County's largest economic industry - manufacturing.

Jessica Hatch, Door County broadband coordinator, sits down with Debra Fitzgerald to give an update on what her office is doing to help bring fast, reliable, affordable broadband to all homes and businesses in Door County.

Disc golf has rapidly gained popularity on the peninsula, with a half dozen courses now open or in the works. Shane Solomon of the Night Owls Disc Golf Podcast joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to talk about the sport’s growth and potential in Door County.

When a young woman faces a life-changing decision, she calls upon her inner circle to gather for an outdoor camping trip. Sunflowered is on stage at Northern Sky’s Gould Theater, and Andrew Kleidon is joined by Lachrisa Grandberry, Molly Rhode, Alexis J Roston, and Aidaa Peerzada to talk about the musicals inception, workshopping, and world premiere this season.

DKAF is back in person for the first time since 2020, and Andrew Kleidon is joined by Alan Kopischke to talk about the history and mission of the event, some of the guest artists who have come to Door County to workshop their art, and the full schedule of events this week at Bjorklunden. Find out more and buy tickets at doorkinetic.com

There are roughly 29 known species of orchids at The Ridges Sanctuary in Baileys Harbor and Tony Kiszonas is now responsible for assuring their health, productivity and future. While that may be a bit of an overstatement, it's not far from the truth: Tony is the Ridges new Director of Research, the organization's first. Tony talks with Debra Fitzgerald about the research being done at the Ridges – including what smelling an orchid root can reveal about the plants.

Sister Bay residents are fighting to preserve the old village hall, while Liberty Grove makes plans to remove old fishing shacks from its new public waterfront. Myles Dannhausen Jr. and Andrew Kleidon discuss how the two communities are thinking about the price of preserving history. Plus, a look at the new issue of Door County Living magazine, which includes a look back at Door County through images from 1974, before the boom.

Are small towns too small to self-govern? Myles Dannhausen Jr. and Deb Fitzgerald dive into that question in a week when Sevastopol officials held a last-second meeting to reconsider a rezoning request along an important highway corridor, and Judge Todd Ehlers overruled the Egg Harbor Plan Commission’s denial of a Conditional Use Permit for Shipwrecked’s expansion.

In this episode, Grace Johnson is joined by the 2022 Hal Prize Poetry judge Adrian Matejka. Matejka was named the new editor of Poetry Magazine in 2022, is the author of seven books and his poetry collection, The Big Smoke, was awarded the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award and was a finalist for the National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize in poetry. The two talk poetry, how music inspires Matejka and the future of Poetry Magazine.

Peninsula State Park is in line for a host of upgrades this fall, including the repaving of some of its most-traveled roads. Superintendent Eric Hyde joins Myles Dannhausen Jr. to talk about new roads, a new playground, the totem pole, and more improvements coming to the state’s second most-popular-park.