I guess I failed to keep updating my posts here. I had some minor issues that kept me from posting my articles without having to go through a few loops, so I put my effort into the hard copy form. I believe I may have those issues resolved, so I will continue to keep this post running smoothly in the future. Thank You for checking back to see the updates and sorry for any troubles I created. I appreciate each and every one of my readers.
Below you will find the updated articles from March 2014 to current..
Elmwood Village has
very little to Report
ELMWOOD, WI - The Elmwood Village Board meeting was held
Monday, March 10 at the Auditorium. Village President Bill Stewart and Trustee
Mike Sand were absent. Trustee and Pro-Tem Brian Buck led the monthly
gathering. There were no citizens in attendance, so “no” Public Input was
received.
This month’s meeting had very little listed on the agenda,
except for the Committee and Board Reports, and Payment of Bills. As for them,
only the Library Committee had anything to report. Trustee Delorse Radtke
provided that information to the small attendance of members.
Radtke reported that the
Enrichment Council generously donated $1K to the library, as she did last month
as well. She also told of donations of
$350 from the Citizen State Bank and $250 from Wayne & Pat Nohelty. On
March 24, the movie “Frozen” will be shown. Some numbers provided on Library
use are as follows: 129 new items,
circulation was over 1600.
The meeting ended with
payment of the bills, and adjournment at 7:13 PM.
Elmwood
Village Approves Funding for Treatment Plant
ELMWOOD, WI- The monthly meeting was held on Monday,
April 14, 2014 at the Village Auditorium. Trustee’s Neil Boltic and Mike Sand
were absent from the meeting. There were no citizens in attendance, so there
wasn’t any public input received. The board then discussed the Spring Election,
in which only 55 people from the community showed up to vote. All three
incumbents stayed seated with each of them receiving 40-42 votes a piece. This
is an incredibly low number for a community with nearly 900 citizens. It was
also noted that the Spring Clean is scheduled for the week of April 21-25th,
with pick-up available (7-3 pm) for larger items by calling the village shop.
Trustee Delorse Radtke added, “We need spring clean-up, we definitely need it.”
The Open Book and Board of Review have been scheduled for May 20th,
with the Open Book being from 4-6 pm, and the Board of Review running from 6-8
pm. Members from the Personnel and Finance Committee will be on hand, for the
latter time set.
One Operator License was approved by the Village
Officer (not in attendance) for Josey Doppler at Cenex. Village President Bill
Stewart then spoke of the 2014-15 Committee Appointments. The fact that there
were no changes in personnel on the board, everything will stay the same. A
couple items for the Elmwood Rod and Gun Club were next on the agenda. There is
a Cancer Benefit being held on Sat. April 19th at the Auditorium for
a local resident (R. Weber). A Picnic License and an Operator License were both
approved for the event. The Operator’s License was provided for Jodi Ottman.
Item thirteen on the agenda was a discussion item on
purchasing land held by the County of Pierce within the village limits (lots
75-81). Currently this land is held by the county, with them using it for their
sand storage and equipment across the street. The two buildings are being eyed
by Trustee Brian Buck, stating they could use these buildings for their own
storage and use. “It is a heated building, we could use for the police
vehicle,” Buck explained. Village Employee Jamie Reitz then added, “Our current
building we are using is not the best, and it will need a roof. I believe the
Legion would like the building, maybe even tear it down and rebuild.” Buck then
spoke again, stating “I would really like to see it come down. We can’t keep
using the building we are.” The conversation was held with Trustee Buck and
Employee Reitz speaking the most about the possibility of getting the county
buildings. The discussion ended with the board feeling it would be a good idea
to inform the county that they have interest in the property, so they would get
first crack at it when the county does move out. There is a thought that this
could happen within the next five years, so it could be put into a five year
plan. The property is not for sale at this time, and there is belief the county
may relocate near Exile, leaving Elmwood and Plum City for a more central
location. A “Letter of Interest” was agreed upon to be the best way to go
forward, allowing the village attorney to start the process.
The next area covered was again the sewer plant
project (Wastewater Treatment Facility). There was an approval of a
Post-Issuance Debt Compliance Policy. A legal form needing to be completed, to
be in compliance for the IRS, informing the village of the proper policy and
procedure guidelines. Resolution 2014-03 Authorizing the borrowing of $350,000
for interim financing/funding the construction of the wastewater treatment
plant, was approved. Village Clerk Amy Wayne explained the “Closing” would be
later in the week. A second Resolution, 2014-04 Authorizing the Issuance and
Sale of a $2,200,000 Sewer System Mortgage Revenue Bond, was also granted. A
Bond Council will decide if this will fall under one or more bonds for these
funds. This is on top of the costs the village had a few years ago with the
upgrading they did to the plant.
In Committee and Board Reports, Trustee Delorse
Radtke provided information, (well sort of) on the Nursing Home. She had
attended the meeting with Trustee Neil Boltic, but could not remember what it
was really about. “I have no memory of the meeting,” she stated. Boltic had
taken notes, but did not get them to Radtke in time for the board meeting, as
he was out of town. “I believe everything was money, and I think we were in the
negative last month. We are up on patrons, and filled two or three positions of
employment. I believe housekeeping, maintenance and laundry.” She added. The
Library Committee was discussed next by Trustee Radtke. “Circulation is up to
2884, with 59 EBooks. There were seven new cards issued, with 107 new items
being brought in. Several groups have been created, such as a craft group, a
book group and the friends of the library group. The movie played this month
was “Frozen,” with 30 students attending. There was a Princess Sleepover at the
library, with 34 in attendance. There were also eight new books on WI Native
Tribes brought in. The Summer program will focus on “Science,” and the library
received their Act 150 funds, in the amount of $8,349.”
One other item was then brought to the board
attention. Thirteen Year Library Treasurer, Dan Flory provided a “Letter of
Resignation,” effective immediately. I spoke with Mr. Flory after hearing
Trustee Radtke read his resignation word for word to everyone in attendance. In
the resignation, it pointed out a letter received by Village President Bill
Stewart that was dated March 17, 2014, as being part of the reason for his
departure. It went onto state that the inability to communicate in an effective
manner with the village office to resolve differences, kept him from doing his
job duties properly. While speaking to Mr. Flory, he confirmed there were
troubles in performing his duties at the library, when he could not get the
village office to work with him. A meeting to resolve differences was requested
in writing, and upon getting the response by Village President, there was no
meeting offered. Flory explained to me that he felt there were two options.
First, they could meet and get a relationship going, or secondly, he would
resign his position. Apparently the decision was the second choice. Currently
all checks require two signatures on them, so this will need some resolution in
a quicker manner. Mr. Flory added, “It was very pleasurable to see the growth
and the expanded services over the years,” when I asked how he felt. Mr. Flory
did offer to keep signing checks as needed for the library, until a replacement
could be found. Trustee Brian Buck commented on this, by stating “Once he
resigned, he legally cannot sign anything anymore.” Buck suggested the board
enact an interim until a replacement is found. Village President Stewart
stated, “We write the checks to that account.” There are four members still on
the committee at the library, being Delorse Radtke, Sandra Weix, George Klink
and Wayne Nohelty. Trustee Rick Stohr added, “They can step up then.”
Trustee Radtke then continued with a report on the
Police Committee. A “Closed Session” meeting was held on March 24, 2014 for a
six to seven month job performance evaluation on current officer Petrasko. A
checklist was created for the officer to follow, for the upcoming spring
clean-up. Car registrations will be checked, as well there are issues with
trucks coming down the hill from the quarry to be dealt with. “No funds have
been received from the TraCS Grant yet, so there are no duties required yet,”
she added.
Note: Again, I have been attempting to get
information in regards to this grant, the items to purchase and the costs
affiliated with it. I received an email from the officer Petrasko, denying me
any of the information I requested, and added “I should not communicate with
the village clerk or the head of the police committee on police matters.” I
have properly followed the directions of the village clerk in trying to obtain
this information. I have also been denied viewing public records, by officer
Petrasko.
The board then went to paying the bills. A bill for
getting the Wastewater Treatment Facility project underway, was first in line.
Payment of over $126K to Foth Engineering, and a second bill of just over $3K
for boring were both approved. Then payment of the regular bills was approved, before
the meeting adjourned at 7:30 PM.
Elmwood
Board Accepts Dzubay Resignation
ELMWOOD, WI- The Village Board met on Monday May 12,
2014 for a Public Hearing and their Regular Monthly Board Meeting. A Public
Hearing began at 6:30 PM to talk over the ATV/UTV Trail through the community. Trustee
Dzubay was not in attendance, and Trustee Radtke arrived 20 minutes late. A new
ordinance was created for the ATV Trail through the village. (10-4-1 All-Terrain/Utility
Vehicle Laws) A few changes were made to the Ordinance with the help of Larry
Johnson, a member of the local ATV Association. A speed limit of 10mph will be
enforced as well some wording will be changed for UTV Operators. The Route
being allowed will be Co. Rd P (Public Ave.) from 50th street (from
Spring Lake Township) to 70th street (heading towards Eau Galle).
This is opening the trail from the West to the East. There will also be a trail
opened from Public to Groot Ave. via the snowmobile trail, with parking by the
village shop and the ability to get to Cenex for fuel. If you would like to
know the laws clearly, you can obtain a copy at the Village Office in Elmwood.
No Citizens attended the hearing.
The Regular Board meeting then began at 7 PM.
Trustee Susan Dzubay not in attendance.
There were no citizens in attendance, so there was no public input. Next
on the agenda was the Library Board Appointment. This position became available
last month, after Library Treasurer Dan Flory resigned. A posting for the
position was placed in the newspaper, without anyone responding, so the
position is still available to anyone in the area that may have some accounting
experience. If you have interest, you may contact the Elmwood Village Office.
The closure of Hwy 72 for Memorial Day was then
approved for the Legion to have their annual event. A section of Main St. and
Winter Ave. will be closed off, so traffic will be detoured around the area.
The changes to the ATV/UTV Ordinance were then discussed quickly and approved.
The resignation of Trustee Susan Dzubay for the
second time was then approved. She had resigned back around 2005, after the
termination of Chief Adam Meyers for personal reasons. Her resignation this
time was also immediate, and was done because she has taken a position at the Library,
which she felt would create a “Conflict of Interest” for her to remain on the
Village Board. Board members expressed their best wishes for her, and President
Stewart explained he wanted it put on record that he “Thanked” her for all she
did while on the board. Stewart also informed the board the seat would be left
open, until he would appoint the position to someone. The approval of the
resignation was unanimous.
Discussion of land acquisition was next, as Lots
75-81 in the Village are becoming a “Hot Topic”. The Village discussed this a
little last month, as they would like to acquire the lots for the villages use.
Countryside Co-op has already provided a bid of $360K for the property, with a
lease back agreement of $180K for 5 years. The village wants to get into talks
with them, to possibly make a deal to split the property between them. The
County Highway Dept. has a storage building for their salt, and another
building for equipment near the sewer plant. The village has interest in the
equipment building, and there was talk that the salt building may require
moving in the future due to property easements. President Stewart added that
the land that was once considered depressed value, has now become a much more
value to the Co-op. Trustee Delorse Radtke made comment that the Co-op needed
this property for a right-a-way between the two locations they have off Groot
Ave. Village employee Jamie Reitz attended the meeting to provide some
information to the board about the property and buildings. He also brought
information in on the costs of building another shop versus buying the equipment
building. To build another building, he received a few estimates that were
between $160-194K. He also brought up the possibility the Legion may have
interest in the current squad storage building, and added it may need to be
torn down due to structure issues in the basement. The board then approved
starting the process to get a meeting with the Co-op and go from there. All of
the discussion points that were spoken over are all just that “discussion.”
The second request for payment from Foth was then
discussed for approval. Three amounts were requested to begin the work for the
updating of the Water Treatment Facility. Payments equaling nearly 139K have
been requested by Foth. This was approved with little discussion.
In Committee and Board Reports, President Stewart
spoke on behalf of a Fireman’s Corp. Board Meeting that was held. Stewart was
elected the new Vice-President. He spoke of the upcoming chicken dinner that
will be held on Sept. 6, 2014, redoing the by-laws due to them being so
out-of-date, equipment upgrading (CPR Unit), EMS Pagers purchased through a
Grant and pay raises for a couple people doing the book keeping from $100 to
$200 per month. He also spoke of a letter of appreciation received from the
Elmwood Citizen State Bank for keeping the village loans with them.
Trustee Radtke then provided information from the
Library. Circulation is up about 100 over a year ago, with several donations
being received. 180 large print books and Children’s DVD’s have been given to
the library this past month. The library also sold a basement full of old books
for $250. The first “Spring Garden Flea Market” was a success, bringing in $681
that will be put into the “Friends of the library” account. There is discussion
to have prizes for the Summer Program, to bring in and keep kids interested in
the library activities. Also noted was the fact that Susan Dzubay would be
starting work at the library on May 13, 2014.
A Public Works meeting was held to discuss the water
main breaks under Hwy 72 by Hwy 128. For a third year, the people living
northwest of this intersection have had to deal with water issues during the
winter over breaks in that line. The costs for this repair could reach near
$15K, but it is clearly a major need for the village. There are possible
Disaster Relief Funds through the State that may help fix this problem. This
past winter, the village had 32 freezes and 3 line breakages due to the extreme
cold we encountered. The village is searching for funds to get this project
done as soon as possible, as the three homes it is affecting need this
corrected soon.
The payment of bills was approved and the meeting
adjourned at 7:40 PM.
Elmwood
Village hears of bids topping available funds
ELMWOOD, WI- The monthly village meeting was held on
Monday June 9, 2014. A great majority of the meeting was to set up the UFO Days
items for next month’s event. Lifting the Open Container law for the weekend
was first on the list. There were Picnic and Operator Licenses approved for the
Community Club. The detouring of Hwy 72 around Main St. was also completed.
The Compliance Maintenance Annual Report for Review
was discussed with NO deficiencies to note. The Liquor and Beverage License
Renewals were then gone through and approved for Countryside Co-op, Sandbar,
Dick’s and Longbranch.
Josh Bleskacek became the newest member of the
village board, as he was appointed to the board at this meeting, for the seat
vacated by Susan Dzubay. Pat Ginsbach was also placed on the Library Board this
month.
The next area discussed was the changing of the
monthly meetings. They will no longer be held on the second Monday of the
month, instead they will be held on the first Monday of each month. A Financial
Statement for Review from an Audit was then looked over, with no action being
taken.
A discussion then ensued for the Wastewater Treatment
Facility. A bid approval was to be completed, but was needed to be tabled after
the bids came in above the available funds for the project. It was stated that
the resulting issues needed to be dealt with before the board could move
forward. The item was tabled until the July Board Meeting.
In Committee and Board Reports, The Library
Committee report was provided by Trustee Delorse Radtke. There were 20
participants signed up for the Summer Reading Program. A new Computer and
Behavior Policy was created, with one computer being reserved for adult
priority. It was also stated that there will not be any laptops purchased, as
desktops were recommended by the IFLS, due to longevity issues. A Sidewalk Sale
was set up for June 19, and Pat Ginsbach was welcomed to the Library Board
during their monthly meeting.
A “Closed Session” Public Works Meeting was held
prior to the Board Meeting, with no information provided. The Nursing Home
Committee Report was provided with no discrepancies reported in the State
Inspection. Rod Gilles was the recipient of the ACHCA Leadership Award as well.
There were NO reports or meetings from the following
committee’s: Parks and Buildings, Licensing, Police and Personnel and Finance.
The payment of bills was completed and the meeting
adjourned at 7:39 PM.
A Special Public Works Meeting was held on June18 at
5:25 PM. Bill Stewart, Brian Buck, Mike Sand and Delorse Radtke were present,
as well as Amy Wayne, Jamie Reitz, Josh Kern and Tim Stockman (Foth). Bank
reps, Susan Lund and Barry O’meara from Citizen State Bank also present. After
Tim Stockman provided a few options to get the project within the funds
available, Trustee Brian Buck made a motion to “NOT” make any changes to the
project, even though the funds would not cover the costs provided in the bids
received. Trustee Delorse Radtke voted against the motion. The meeting
adjourned at 6:53 PM.
A “Special Board Meeting” was then held the
following evening, June 19 at 7 PM. Trustees Rick Stohr and Josh Bleskecek were
absent from this meeting, and Neil Boltic was in attendance via speaker phone.
Tim Stockman (Foth) and Village Employee’s Amy Wayne and Jamie Reitz were also
in attendance.
Committee re-setting was completed as follows:
Licensing and Police; (Chair) Delorse Radtke, Rick
Stohr and Neil Boltic. Personnel and Finance; (Chair) Delorse Radtke, Brian
Buck and Rick Stohr. Parks and Buildings, (Chair) Brian Buck, Mike Sand and
Josh Bleskecek. Public Works; (Chair) Mike Sand, Rick Stohr and Josh Bleskecek.
The discussion for the Wastewater Treatment Facility
then began, with Tim Stockman (Foth) providing a couple packets of information
for the members to look over in regards to working the project within the funds
and bids received. A bid from Staab Construction was then agreed and approved
in the amount of $3,873,000 on contingency of the Rural Development Funding
received. The meeting then adjourned at 7:37 PM.
Elmwood
Village approves 3.8M Wastewater Treatment Facility Bid
ELMWOOD, WI- The Village of Elmwood held their monthly
meeting on Monday, July 14. All Board members were present. There were no
citizens from the community in attendance, so there wasn’t any Public Input
received. Village President Stewart then went forward with the meeting, and
explained the next item on the agenda, was being done in order to keep Trustee
Brian Buck from resigning. Buck has begun doing other things in life, that
interfere with his duties on the board. One of those duties, is attending the
regular board meetings. In order to keep Buck on the board, they are changing
the monthly meetings to the first Monday of the month, instead of the second
Monday as it has been. The August and September meetings will still be held on
the second Monday’s, but will then change to the first Monday after that. A
couple Operators Licenses were then approved for the Sandbar and Longbranch.
Next on the agenda were items for the Wastewater Treatment
Facility. An increase was needed for the Title Insurance, to cover the
additional loan and grant funds. The amount was not ready to report at the time
of the meeting. The bid received by Staab Construction to build the new
facility was then approved in the amount of $ 3,873,000.00. The board then
approved another draw request for Foth in the amount of $ 72,702.66. A
Representative of Foth attended the meeting in replace of the normal person Tim
Stockman, to speak. He was asking for an additional payment of near $ 9,000.00
for the mapping of the area for Rural Development. There were issues with
easements and boundaries, so surveys were required to complete the process. The
land did not have titles, as well as right of ways had been vacated, creating
more troubles for the process. The original bid for the mapping was $ 704.75,
but with all the additional work that was required to complete the process
legally, the cost rose to over 9K. Trustee Delorse Radtke was not pleased with
this, as she stated “We do not have 9K for this.” “Modifications were made
during the process, but no one ever signed the papers,” was brought up by the
Representative of Foth. Another Representative from Steven’s Engineering was in
attendance, and it was noted they tried to do the survey, but couldn’t due to
all the issues that were at hand. Being this was not an item on the agenda, the
board decided to not approve payment until a Committee meeting could be held on
the subject. This request was tabled for next month.
The property owned by the County near the Treatment Facility
was on the agenda once again. This was an item added the day of the meeting as
an amendment. Trustee Brian Buck has stated in the past, he wanted to obtain
this property for the village to use. The storage building and a salt shed
across the street are the property being looked at. Countryside Co-op is also
interested in this property. “It is an aggressive move for the village” Buck
stated. “We could use the building for the squad, as well Jamie and Josh could
use it for storage close to the treatment plant. The value of the property is
still a question, as we must decide if we would want to borrow money to do
this. A property appraisal may be needed.” Buck added, “I am not willing to pay
one cent of interest money to the Co-op.” Village President Stewart agreed,
adding “This is just a tentative deal. We would like to receive a letter of
refusal first.” It was then questioned on how soon the Co-op wanted an answer,
and both Buck and Clerk Amy Wayne stated it sounded like they wanted one as
soon as possible. Stewart added “They can’t make a deal with us, until the
County Board agrees.” There was then some discussion about the amount of
interest being asked for by the Co-op in this deal, and Village Employee Jamie
Reitz spoke, stating he believed it was near 5 percent. “They are asking for the interest, as they
are providing the financing for this. There would be no money involved for five
years.” “That’s garbage, paying them interest for five years, while not even
using it.” Buck said. Trustee Mike Sand added, “The interest would not start
until the day we take over it.” Buck again reiterated that he did not like the
idea the Co-op was looking to make money off the village. “I don’t want them
financing this”, he concluded. After all was discussed, it was decided to send
it back to the Committee for further discussions. The item was then tabled
until next month as well.
In Committee and Board Reports; Trustee Josh Blesechek spoke
on behalf of the Library Committee. He reported circulation was down last
month. It was noted that half of the story hour attendance was from Daddy Day
Care (He is the owner/operator).There have been a few minor issues from the
summer programs, as parents have been having kids attend after summer school,
and they sit at the library for many hours while the parents are at work.
Additional assistance could be used for this. August 8-9th, the
library will be closed for carpet cleaning to be completed. He finished up with
a good point, saying 70 percent of the check-outs this past month were from the
Elmwood Library. There was no report from the Parks and Buildings Committee,
but Trustee Buck did speak of a few trees that fell recently in the town. A
large tree in the park fell near the basketball court, and a second one was
down near the Methodist Church. Reitz added, “It was felt unsafe, so they cut
that one down.” There will also be some new pieces of equipment for the kids to
play on in the park, once all the hardware is obtained for them. Trustee
Delorse Radtke spoke on behalf of the Police Committee, stating there was no
meeting held. She did provide information that a new computer was received from
the Trac Grant, and the installation was being done free of charge by the same
individual that hooked up the radio in the squad. Trustee Mike Sand spoke for
the Public Works Committee, “Extra funds were received through grant funds for
the treatment facility in the amount of 300K.” There were no other Committee
reports provided. Stewart did add one last thing before going on with the
agenda. He wanted everyone to know the Primary Election was upcoming on August
12th. The bills were approved for payment and the meeting adjourned
at 7:40 PM.
UFO
Days Celebrated
ELMWOOD, WI- The last full weekend of July is when
the crazies come out in Elmwood, watching for Aliens and UFO’s. The activities
began on Wed. with an area cartoonist visiting the library to show those in
attendance how to draw aliens and ships. Area Cartoonist Ray “Sketch” Gustafson
and his wife Shannon brought plenty of excitement with them, as they explained
to about a dozen kids and adults what goes into drawing cartoons. Ray began
drawing at a very young age, with his family giving him the nickname of
“Sketch”. Ray grew up in Minneapolis, MN in a good size family, having seven
other Ray’s. He then moved to Florida, where he was working in the food service
industry at Disney. Ray stated that he really did not care for the food service
work, and he had given interest in animating with the company. An interview was
set up, and unfortunately he missed the meeting. A second chance came along, as
the employer came to him and asked him for a sample of his work. He was not
able to provide anything for this sample, but being quick thinking on his feet,
he began to draw on a clear topped table with his fingers. After doing a quick
drawing, he leaned over the table and with his breathe, coated the table with
enough clouding to show a drawing of Mickey and Minnie Mouse. He was hired on
the spot. Sketch was an animator on a well known Disney movie, name “Mulan”. Two
years was spent working at Disney, before Ray returned to MN. This is when he
met his future wife, Shannon. Working for a local newspaper, he began creating
his own cartoon strip. “Small Town Values” was now in its beginning stages. The
cartoon is about a bus driver who moves to a small town, and begins drawing.
Five comic books and syndication with his own book later, he continues to
create new characters and storylines. The husband and wife team visit local
libraries, and schools with a program aimed at getting kids interested in
creativity. During the class, Sketch explains how to start the drawing. He
tells the students that they can’t screw up when drawing, and the idea is to
make people think when they see your creations. After giving a few directives,
he asked the students to give him some ideas for the character. The kids were
all very involved, and gave numerous ideas. While drawing the character, the
kids also have a booklet to draw in, along with the cartoonist. The Alien, a
Ship and a Pet were all created with the help of the kids. Sketch then
congratulated the kids on creating their first comic books. You could hear the
“AWWW” in the kids, as they were very pleased with themselves and their
instructor.
On Thursday, a Benefit was held for EmmaJean at the
Elmwood Rod and Gun Club. EmmaJean was injured in a car vs truck and cattle
trailer on May 23, 2014. She was in a car seat that was properly connected in
the back seat of the family car, with her brother and mother both in the car as
well. The accident happened at the intersection of Co. Rd N and Co. Rd B south
of Woodville. The truck failed to stop at the intersection, marked with stop
signs and struck the car. Both the mother and son were not injured seriously,
but EmmaJean was. She was taken to the Twin Cities Hospital where she has been
recovering in a miraculous manner. While talking to the grandfather (Steve
Reischel), he explained to me that she had an injury called “Shearing” This is
when each half of the brain moves in opposite directions. It is a dramatic
brain injury that can cause loss of life. EmmaJean has gone through more than
most adults could ever make it though, as she has been forced to re-learn all
aspects of a human life. (Moving and holding her head up, eating, etc.) During
the benefit, there were numerous things happening. A raffle was being held for
many items, as well as a silent auction for many more items. A meat raffle was
going on, and a Chicken dinner was being offered for those in attendance. The
Chicken was donated by the Pierce County Peace Officers Assn. and the El Paso
Bar. The Chix was cooked by Jim Hague, Richard Johnson and Tom Gunderson. A
bouncy house was located out in the yard for the kids to enjoy, as well as some
music was being played for enjoyment. While everyone was enjoying themselves, a
major surprise came to everyone. EmmaJean and her mother Bethany arrived for a
visit. The hospital gave her a day pass, to come to Elmwood for a quick visit
for the benefit. Father and Brother (Gunner) were also attending for support. Her
other Grandparents Jim and Vicky Olson were also in attendance and helping out
with all the stuff going on. Both were very pleased to see EmmaJean recovering
and getting though the progressions that she has. T-Shirts were also being sold
at the event for the many supporters who came to wish EmmaJean the best. After
a warm welcome and a short visit, she was taken back to the hospital where she
will remain taking rehab to get better for the next few weeks. A release date
is set for Aug. 8, 2014 if all goes well for her. She will still have a long
road to full recovery, as everyone hopes she will accomplish.
On Sunday, the annual parade went as planned at 2pm.
The weather was great, with a few light showers coming and going. The event was
well attended with several near and far towns having floats in the parade.
Floats from Elmwood, River Falls, Woodville, Gilmanton, Roberts, Spring Valley,
Baldwin, Osseo, Hudson, North Hudson, Glenwood City, Star Praire, Hammond and
Mondovi were all decorated with very festive colors. Sheriff Nancy Hove and
candidate Bill Parks attended and shook hands with parade goers. Ken and Ardeth
Claflin were the 2014 Grand Marshals. After the parade was over, all that was
left was the clean-up of the streets.
The last event of the weekend was held at the Shack.
A “Greased Pig Contest” was held behind the Shack at 4:30pm. The contests were
held with age groups for boys and girls chasing the little piglets, in the
attempt to catch them. Dan Bechel (Shack Owner) has run the event with some
success in having lots of kids and some adults attempting to catch the greased
up piglets. Kids starting at five years old, all the way up to adults were
involved with the contest, with each paying a ten dollar entrance fee. The
winner had the option of taking the piglet they caught, or getting a free pizza
from the Shack. Most of the winner took home piglets.
Village Continues Property Purchase Discussion
ELMWOOD, WI – Monday evening was the monthly Board
Meeting at the Village Auditorium. Prior to the Regular Board Meeting, a Joint
Meeting was held with the Public Works Committee to continue discussions on
purchasing property owned by the County. This has been a hot topic as of late,
with the main building owned by the County being of interest by Trustee Brian
Buck. Buck continues to state he does not want to give a penny in interest to
anyone while purchasing the property, but does want the village to consider the
purchase to obtain the building for Village. “I don’t like the idea of anyone
making money off our money” he added. The cost to build a structure similar to
the one on this site would be near 176-194K without any land or concrete, as
well as a few other extras. Buck also provided another idea of starting to put
money into an outlay, and in five years, taking out another loan of near 175K
to build a similar building for the Village use. Village President Bill Stewart
spoke about having some discussion with the head of the Co., explaining the
County does not have any plans on being out of the building for nearly three
years. Currently, it sounds as though there is an agreement between the
Countryside Co-op and Pierce County for an estimate $360K. It was also noted
that the property would be on the Village Tax Roll if purchased by Cenex, but
would not be if the Village purchased the property. After some discussion, it
was decided to send the idea back to the Personnel and Finance Committee, to
get Village Attorney Jens Loberg involved on behalf of the Village, to draft a
Letter of Interest on the property, with a request to get the first right of
refusal if there idea is denied. The Village would have interest in the
property once the property is ready for sale and immediate use of the property
can be obtained by the buyer.
Next on the agenda was some discussion in regards to
a payment request made last month from Foth in the amount of $9,100. After
getting more facts on this bill, the board decided that part of the bill was
assessed due to failures by the Steven’s Engineering back in 1999-2002. There
were surveys and easements that were required to get filed with the County that
had not been done correctly, but were felt to have been paid for already. A
bill of $4,900 was given for this time frame, and the Village reviewed them,
and decided that there were three mistakes on two jobs. These were issues that
should have been taken care of years ago, and the fact the bill just came to
them last month, created a bit of an issue. Trustee Delorse Radtke voiced her
displeasure during last month meeting. There was a sewer line placed in the
right of way, and easements that needed to be filed, that never were completed
by the Engineer. There were pipes not laid in the proper location in the
Industrial area as well. After some discussion, Trustee Radtke provided a
motion to pay fifty percent of the $4,900, as there were issues with this that
should have been dealt with many years ago. A total payment of $6,650 would be
offered on the $9,100 bill. This was agreed upon by all members in the meeting.
The Joint Meeting then adjourned at 6:27PM.
The Regular Board Meeting then began at 7pm, with
Trustee Josh Bleskacek absent. There was no public in attendance, so there was
no Public Input received. The Nursing Home Appointments were next on the
agenda, and there were three people interested in the two seats available. Dan
Schuler, Tom Weber and Donette Stewart provided letters of Interest. Abstaining
from this item, were Bill Stewart and Delorse Radtke. Before making a motion,
Trustee Radtke spoke, explaining she had been on board for many years, and she
knew of a comment by Tom Weber that he would stay on the board if no one else
wanted to take the position. Stewart then spoke about Donette becoming a
volunteer at the Home, and having interest in the position. Trustee Brian Buck
then made a motion to appoint Don Schuler and Donette Stewart. This was
approved.
The board then moved forward on the agenda with the
Elmwood Fire Dept. plan of their annual event in September. On Sept. 6 and 7,
they have requested a picnic license and temporary operator’s license. They
also requested a street closure for Woodworth Ave., between Groot and Omaha.
All requests were approved.
Approval of a revision to the Resolution 2014-04 was
then discussed. A Revenue Bond for the Sewer Plant was the item being spoken
about. The amount of $2,820,000 has been authorized for Issuance and Sale.
There were a few changes made in the amount of grant funds received and
additional loan amounts that needed to be addressed with the revision. $300K in
extra grant funds were received, and an additional $570K in loans. These
changes were approved
A forth draw request by Foth was then taken care of,
in the amount of $4,241.25. This was from current bills received from Foth for
progress on the Treatment Facility process. The Land Acquisition was next up,
with plenty of discussion already and it was simply acknowledged the Village
would ask their attorney to act on their behalf and show interest in the county
property located within the village limits.
The next item on the agenda was an Amendment to
Owner-Engineer Agreement in the amount of $9,100. This had been discussed in a
prior meeting, but now needed to come through the Village Board. Foth
Representatives Angela Popenhagen and Tim were present for the meeting to
discuss the billing. Both Reps provided statements that a lot of work went into
getting the maps, easements and plans together for this Treatment Facility to
be accomplished. “There was extra work and extra meetings attended. I didn’t
want to come back multiple times for these changes. I feel the amount is
warranted for the time spent” added Tim. It was then noted that Steven’s was
paid for the work, and now they were asking for more payment for having to fix
problems that should have been completed years prior. “Typically, the Village
files the easements with the County” Angela Popenhagen said. The Board then
provided their feelings and offered to pay the full amount for recent work
done, in the amount of $4,200 and half of the amount from the past billing of
$4,900. The total amount of $6,650 out of the $9,100 requested would be paid.
Foth Reps will return and review the billings to decide if they will accept
this offer and let the Village know. This created another Draw Request (no.5)
for Foth that was approved.
Committee and Board Reports: The Nursing Home Report
was provided by Trustee Neil Boltic. He explained the majority of their meeting
was all about money. Budget dollars and where they would be used. Raises to
some of the more experienced help were provided in amounts of five to fifteen
cents. Trustee Radtke stated “She and Donna Lein decided on who gets what, and
provided that information to the board”.
Boltic added the X-factor is still the Health Care changes that have not
been finalized. Money is getting put aside in case things don’t go well with
those changes in the future. It was noted there are about 37-40 beds used at
the Home. Trustee Radtke then explained there had not been any Police Committee
meetings, but the Officer has made it through his first year in Elmwood, and
they would be having a few meetings this month to do evaluations of his work.
There were no other committee meetings this past month. Payment of the bills
and adjournment of the meeting was completed at 7:27 pm.
Adopt-A-Hydrant
Program coming to Elmwood
ELMWOOD, WI – The Monthly meeting for the Village of
Elmwood was held on Monday evening at the Village Auditorium at 7 pm. There was
no attendance by village residents, and Trustee Brian Buck was absent. In
Public Input, I (Rick A. Talford) provided an idea for the Board to consider
with the winter months coming soon. I suggested the Village start an
“Adopt-A-Hydrant Program” to ensure that all hydrants are kept clear throughout
the winter for the safety of the community. Village President Bill Stewart agreed
that would be a good program to initiate in the community, and suggested the
clerk start working on it. The Village has near 70 hydrants throughout the one-square
mile community.
Next on the agenda were a couple items for the
Elmwood Rod and Gun Club. On September 27-28, they will hold a banquet upstairs
in the auditorium. They will charge $30 a person to attend the event, with
those funds going to the Elmwood School Trap Team costs of $225 a participant
for shooting in the competition. This is a new event the school has begun
participating in, and the club paid for all the participant’s fees last year. A
Picnic License and Operator’s License were both approved for the banquet.
The Wastewater Treatment Plant was again on the
agenda, needing a Designee with a $5000 spending limit was discussed. Trustee
Delorse Radtke was then appointed for this position to deal with daily needs
for this project. These checks will be written without prior approval of the
board, for items that may come up during the project. Draw Request number six
was then discussed by the board. Staab Construction has submitted a request for
payment of $101, 568.30. This request was not signed by the Engineer of the
project, Tim Stockman. It was stated that the paperwork needed to be requested
by the Village Clerk, just to have it available for the monthly meeting. The
Board discussed the fact that this was not signed by the Engineer as it should
have been. In meetings held between everyone, it was clearly stated that
everyone must follow proper procedure, and this was a little strange to have a
payment request without proper sign-off. Public Works Employee Jamie Reitz
spoke to the board in regards to an issue that came up this past week. While
digging the hole for the project, they ran into ground water at about 26 feet.
A pump was required to pull this water out, and the construction group brought
in a new pump, which they did not provide a change order, prior to it getting
brought in for use. Staab, Foth and the Village all agreed that anything and
everything must follow a very proper procedure for this project, with no one
deviating from the agreement for any reason. It is not yet known if the company
plans on submitting a new bill for this pump, but it was clear they did have an
issue come up, and brought in new equipment without requesting anything from
the village prior to it. Mr. Reitz was the one that caught this issue, and it
was pretty unanimous by the members of the board that they should not be held
responsible for the costs of this issue, when it was not brought to their
attention prior to the equipment being brought in for use. It was noted that
this issue fell under the rules they set, which were not followed. Trustee Neil
Boltic requested a Committee meeting to deal with this subject.
In Community and Board reports; Trustee Boltic told
the board the Nursing Home did not have a meeting, but he was informed a Nurse
who quit, has returned to employment. Trustee Josh Bleskacek then spoke on
behalf of the Library Committee. Circulation was at 1479, 10 new patrons from a
school class were reported, the Summer Reading Program will be moved from
mid-week to Fridays, two new computers were installed for adults only use with
six computers in the library total. The Library will be celebrating their tenth
anniversary at their new home in late October as well. Trustee Mike Sand and
Jamie Reitz brought up information that was not discussed prior about a Public
Works bill. A pump used for the water system was removed and is getting
repaired at a cost of $21K. The pump is being re-built by a company in the
cities, and the motor is getting repairs locally. The price of a brand new pump
would be $35K. One additional note to readers, the village recycling center has
been moved to the village shop (316 Omaha Ave.) during the construction of the
Water Plant. There were no other Committee and Board Reports this month. Next
month’s board meeting will be on the first Monday of the month (Oct. 6). Payment
of the bills was completed and the meeting adjourned at 7:30 pm.
