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A decade later, group combating binge drinking in La Crosse ends mission

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Funding for Changing the Culture coalition ended

In 10 years of activity, a community coalition in La Crosse believes it has helped cut down on binge drinking in the area.  

The Changing the Culture group had a celebration Tuesday to mark both the group’s anniversary and the unofficial end of the coalition’s mission.

Retired police chief Ed Kondracki says young people in La Crosse don’t seem to get as drunk as they did a decade ago – drunk to the point of nearly dying.

“During the first couple hours of one Oktoberfest, at least a half dozen people needed trach tubes just to survive the night,” Kondracki recalled.

State funding for the coalition runs out at the end of the month.

The group counts among its successes new policies discouraging social hosting for underage parties, increased party patrols and increased education for bartenders.

Overall, the group has worked to cut down on excessive alcohol use.

“People finding intoxicated young folks in their yard, in their bushes, even in their living room on the couch or on the floor, those kinds of stories have diminished,” said Kondracki, who’s active in the ‘Parents Who Host Lose the Most’ campaign.

The coalition says the Family Zone at the Maple Leaf Parade will be maintained by the local Boy Scouts, starting this fall.

A native of Prairie du Chien, Brad graduated from UW - La Crosse and has worked in radio news for more than 30 years, mostly in the La Crosse area. He regularly covers local courts and city and county government. Brad produces the features "Yesterday in La Crosse" and "What's Buried on Brad's Desk." He also writes the website "Triviazoids," which finds odd connections between events that happen on a certain date, and he writes and performs with the local comedy group Heart of La Crosse. Brad been featured on several national TV programs because of his memory skills.

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