August 2012 Elmwood Village Board Report

Project Appleseed coming to Elmwood






Submitted by Rick A. Talford

Citizen Journalist



ELMWOOD, WI - The Elmwood Village Board met on Monday evening, August 13th at the Auditorium. Trustee Mike Sand was absent. The meeting began at 6:55 PM. In public input, Trustee Neil Boltic spoke to the members of the board. He discussed an upcoming “Conceal and Carry Class” that will be held at the Rod and Gun Club. The Revolutionary War Veterans will be giving a class called “Project Appleseed” This is a class that will provide historical information, as well as a marksmanship qualifying. If a person reaches a score of 210, they will receive a patch. The fee is $70.00 for adult males, $10.00 for females and $5.00 for kids. September 22nd and 23rd are the scheduled dates for the event. You may contact the Rod and Gun Club or go online for tickets. It was suggested that you not get your tickets by mailing, due to it takes six to eight weeks for processing an order.



The appointments for the Nursing Home Board were next up, with Delorse Radtke and Julie Cognetta being selected for the positions. The Elmwood Fire Dept. will be holding their annual fund raising picnic at the fire hall on September 8th and 9th. The Board approved a picnic license and operators licenses for the event. The street on the side of the fire hall will also be closed for the two days.



The Sandbar and Tiffany’s Tavern will be having a street dance on August 25th on Main Street. The street will be closed off for this event. The Board also approved lifting the open container ordinance until midnight. The street will be re-opened by 1 AM.



Trustee Brian Buck then spoke to the Board, asking if there could be a change in dates for September and October board meetings. He is coaching the Hudson JV Team, and will not be available for the regular dates of those meetings. The members discussed this briefly, and decided not to take any actions. The meetings will stay as scheduled.



Trustee Trisha Knops then began a discussion on the needs for a permit and amendment ordinance for “Outdoor Bands”. “This has brought in complaints from the citizens”, she stated. The Board is going to look into creating an amendment for the noise and fencing issues, as well as providing public notice of these events. There will be a modest fee of five to ten dollars for the permit, is what is being speculated at this time. The need for an officer to be on duty will be looked into also. President Bill Stewart added, “This will go for the citizens having yard parties with music as well” The item was tabled, and will be sent back to the Licensing Committee for further review.



Bill Warner was on hand from the Pierce County EDC (Economic Development Center), with Greg Webber from Genesis. The two men spoke to the members of the board. Genesis is adding onto their building, for more production work area, and more warehousing space. The project had already began the day of the this meeting. The South side of the building will need more grading and storm water control, as required by DNR. Warner explained to the members that this would be a modest project with the cost being about $300,000. A request of approx. $44,000 from the Village was the proposal at this time. This will all go towards the TIFF District that has already been created. The communications between the village and the other interested parties has already begun through emails.



Committee and Board Reports followed. Trustee Knops provided a bit more information from the Licensing Committee meeting that was held. There have become some added issues with the ordinance on outdoor activities, and fencing. Owner of the Longbranch, Bob Rupakus has asked that the restrictions be changed for him. Any event outside of the taverns has required a fenced in area, for any alcoholic beverages to be allowed. Rupakus was provided the “OK” by the board to hold a few events for a bean bag game to be played on the side of his bar. This has become a bit of an issue since, being it has been more than a few times, and there have been complaints. The ordinance currently requires that a temp. fence be put up for any temporary events. A permanent fence must be erected for continuous use. Rupakus is questioning the words “Shall and May” in the current requirements, and the board needs to make it extremely clear on how they will go forward with this ordinance, as well as the wording within. President Bill Stewart added, “A business that is right next to the highway, a residential area, and the street that goes directly to the school, needs to be held at a higher standard”. The Committee is going to continue looking for more information from other communities, and will have another meeting to review and enhance the current ordinance. This subject will continue into next months board meeting.



Another area spoken about in the committee meeting was the ordinance that requires the registrations of cats within the village. At this time, the ordinance requires that all cats and dogs be registered. This was changed by the board some time ago, but there is nothing in the books that can be found. A complaint about all the feral cats in town has brought this to the attention of the board once again. This is another issue that will be sent back to the committee, to get it cleared up. If it is decided that the village will not be requiring the registration of cats, then it will be put in writing and added to the ordinance.



Knops continued with the Library Committee report. The meeting was held on July 17th. Eleven applicants provided their information for the Library Director position. Four of those applicants were interviewed on July 24th and 25th. Jeanne Friedell, who has twenty years experience was hired for the position. Casie Lukes was also hired as the Librarian Assistant. “There have been many new updates to our policies”, added Knops. Christy Rumquist has filled this position for the past two months of this process. A big “Thank You” for keeping the Library open was provided by Jeanne Friedell in a phone call, welcoming her to the community.



Trustee Buck the spoke to the board. A lot on Pierce and Woodman was being looked at by a citizen, asking to purchase part or all of it. The Personnel and Finance Committee spoke to the interested party regarding the lot. An estimate was provided to the individual for a partial sale. This would require the buyer to get the land surveyed prior. If the lot was sold, then the buyer would be required to build a house on the land. There have not been any further communications at this time. No action were taken.

There were no reports from the following committees: Police, Parks and Buildings, Nursing Home.



The meeting adjourned at 7:40 PM