Wisconsin
Capital Recovery Group announces dates for auctioning paper mill equipment in Wisconsin Rapids
After Billerud announced it would sell its idled Wisconsin Rapids property, the new owners will auction off equipment this month.
WISCONSIN RAPIDS – Paper machines and other equipment will be auctioned off later this month in Wisconsin Rapids.
Verso announced in June 2020 it would idle production at its paper mills in Wisconsin Rapids and Duluth, Minnesota, at the end of July because of a decline in demand for graphic paper. In March 2022, Verso officially merged with BillerudKorsnäs AB, who since changed its name to Billerud. Last month, Billerud announced it would sell the idled portions of its Wisconsin Rapids paper mill to Capital Recovery Group LLC.
PCR Rapids, a group made up of Capital Recovery Group, Rabin Worldwide and PPL Group, announced Friday it will start finding parties interested in buying the entire mill site or select portions. According to that announcement, the entire site stands on 1,400 acres along the Wisconsin River. PCR will own the land, but Billerud will continue owning and operating its hydroelectric facilities and the converting facility, employing 130 workers directly.
PCR will market paper machines and other operating equipment for sale. At the same time, the group will host a three-day public auction for spare inventory, maintenance equipment, rolling stock and more from April 23 through 25. Items up for auction include fabricating equipment, complete machine shops, welders, bulldozers, cranes, log loaders, forklifts, pumps, winders and more. The auction can be found at www.rabin.com. More information and appointments can be made to see items for sale by contacting Rabin Worldwide.
Who’s involved?
Capital Recovery Group is a global private equity firm that specializes in industrial assets and real estate. The company revitalizes idled or marginally productive assets and liquidates surplus. The company also provides realty services, including creating opportunity for repurpose, sale, leasebacks, real estate auctions, plant decommissioning, demolition and remediation management. It also offers auction services for industrial assets.
Rabin Worldwide Inc. is an industrial auction and real estate investment company that focuses on acquisitions and sales of industrial equipment and production facilities worldwide.
PPL Group is a private equity firm that offers liquidity solutions for companies through asset disposition, financing or direct investment. The company works with purchasing and selling commercial and industrial assets, real estate and facilities.
More about the sale: Wisconsin Rapids paper mill sale: Here’s what we know, what we don’t know and how we got here
Contact Caitlin at cshuda@gannett.com or follow her on Twitter @CaitlinShuda.
About 1,000 animal welfare activists who tried to gain entry on Saturday to a beagle breeding and research facility in Wisconsin were turned back by police who fired rubber bullets and pepper spray into the crowd and arrested the group’s leader.
It was the second attempt in as many months by protesters to take beagles from the Ridglan Farms facility in Blue Mounds, a small town about 25 miles (about 40 kilometres) southwest of Wisconsin’s capital, Madison.
Dane County Sheriff Kalvin Barrett said in a video statement that 300 to 400 protesters were “violently trying to break into the property” and assault officers. He said protesters have ignored designated areas for peaceful protest and blocked roads to prevent emergency vehicles from entering.
“This is not a peaceful protest,” Barrett said.
The sheriff’s department said a “significant” number of people were arrested out of about 1,000 protesters at the site but did not give an exact total as they were still being processed as of the afternoon.
Protesters tried to overcome barricades that included a manure-filled trench, hay bales and a barbed-wire fence. Some protesters did get through the fence but were unable to enter the facility, where an estimated 2,000 beagles are kept, the Wisconsin State Journal reported.
Wisconsin guard Andrew Rohde reflects on early March Madness exit
Wisconsin guard Andrew Rohde said the Badgers ‘thought we could do so many things’ in the NCAA Tournament before it ended abrupty with an upset loss.
Wisconsin men’s basketball has added a sharpshooting wing via the transfer portal.
Miami (Ohio) transfer Eian Elmer has signed with the Badgers, the team announced April 18. The 6-foot-7 wing will join UW with one year of eligibility remaining.
Elmer averaged a career-high 12.7 points and 5.9 rebounds while shooting 49.8% from the field and 42.9% from 3-point range in 2025-26. His production helped the RedHawks go 32-2 and earn an at-large NCAA Tournament bid.
“We are really excited to add another excellent addition to our spring signees,” UW coach Greg Gard said in a release. “Eian brings a wealth of experience and scoring punch as a 6-7 wing. … A terrific shooter, his skillset and production fit excellently into our plan as we build out next year’s team. Throughout our evaluation process, our staff loved his size, power and skill and truly believe he will thrive in our system.”
Elmer is Wisconsin’s third transfer portal addition since the end of the 2025-26 season, joining former George Washington guard Trey Autry and former Hofstra forward Victory Onuetu. UW also added Australian guard Owen Foxwell.
The additions of Autry, Onuetu and now Elmer leave Gard’s staff with three more roster spots to fill ahead of the 2026-27 season.
The Badgers are looking to replace much of their production from a 2025-26 team that went 24-11. Nolan Winter is expected to be the team’s only returning starter after John Blackwell and Aleksas Bieliauskas entered the transfer portal and Nick Boyd and Andrew Rohde exhausted their eligibility.
MILWAUKEE – Friday’s severe storms have passed. And with that, the threat of any severe weather has also passed for the immediate future as no storms or rain are expected for several days.
However, plenty of damage remains across southeastern Wisconsin as of Saturday morning, in addition to the ongoing flooding threat.
Several area rivers are at flood stage, and there are multiple river flood warnings in effect.
FOX6 Weekend WakeUp on Saturday begins at 6 a.m.
On the scene in the morning
What we know:
Farmstead damage in Franklin
FOX6’s Hayley Spitler is in Franklin on Saturday morning, April 18, getting a daylight look at the damage from last night’s storms.
Storm damage in Caledonia
Friday’s storms left quite the mark across southern and southeastern Wisconsin, including at L and L Farms and Greenhouse in Caledonia.
FOX6 Weather Extras
Local perspective:
Meanwhile, FOX6Now.com offers a variety of extremely useful weather tools to help you navigate the stormy season. They include the following:
FOX6 Storm Center app
FOX LOCAL Mobile app
FOX Weather app
Maps and radar
We have a host of maps and radars on the FOX6 Weather page that are updating regularly — to provide you the most accurate assessment of the weather. From a county-by-county view to the Midwest regional radar and a national view — it’s all there.
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School and business closings
When the weather gets a little dicey, schools and businesses may shut down. Monitor the latest list of closings, cancellations, and delays reported in southeast Wisconsin.
FOX6 Weather Experts in social media
The Source: Information in this post was compiled by the FOX6 Weather Experts.
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