Town Board Meeting — Minutes

MEETING MINUTES TOWN OF LAFAYETTE Nov 3, 2025 5765 197TH ST CHIPPEWA FALLS WI 54729 Call To Order / Roll Call - Chair Staber called the meeting to order at 5:30 PM. Roll call was conducted with the following members present. Supervisor Larson, Supervisor McIlquham, Supervisor Brennan, Chair Staber and clerk Konwinski. Supervisor Mathwig attended via phone. Closed session under Wisconsin statutes section 19.85(1)(c) - Supervisor Brennan made a motion to go into closed session under Wisconsin statutes section 19.85(1)(c) to conduct the clerk position interviews. The motion was seconded by McIlquham. Supervisor Brennan made a motion to go out of closed session at 6:42 pursuant to Wisconsin Statute Section 19.85(1)(c). McIlquham seconded the motion. APPROVAL OF TOWN BOARD MINUTES from October 20, 2025, Regular Board Meeting & current agenda -Motion by Supervisor McIlquham, to approve the minutes of October 20, 2025, regular board meeting and the current agenda, and was seconded by Brennan, OLD BUSINESS: none NEW BUSINESS: CSM for the Blake Trust – to combine parcels into a single lot and adjust lot line to match occupation - Jeremy, a surveyor, presented information about the Blake Trust CSM. He explained this was part two of a two-part process. His firm had done work a couple years back for Mary Beth and Katie Joe Hicks because lot lines didn't align with actual occupation of the properties. The current phase involved fixing a lot line between Blake and another resident and combining secondary lots with single lots. Chair Staber asked if the garage in lot 4 was far enough off the lot line. Jeremy explained that while it probably didn't meet the 10-foot setback requirement for accessory structures, this adjustment followed an old fence line that both parties agreed upon as the proper boundary. Supervisor Brennan moved to approve the CSM for the Blake Trust and McIlquham seconded the motion. All voted in favor. Corrective CSM for Ludwig & Crowley - The previous lot lines had actually gone through the houses, so this was an improvement. Supervisor Larson made a motion to approve the Corrective CSM for Ludwig and Crowley as presented. Brennan seconded. All voted in favor. Install Metal Wall Panels of Storage Shed - Chair Staber explained that the wall panels on the donated storage shed behind the fire station were deteriorating badly and needed to be covered before further damage occurred. They received a bid from Brown Builders for $3,775. The panels would match the color of the existing smoke building. Staber noted there were funds available in the fire budget for maintenance and improvements. Supervisor Brennan moved to install the metal wall panels on the storage shed, with the $3775 funds coming from the fire budget. Supervisor Larson seconded the motion. Accept resignation from Laura Konwinski, current town clerk - Chair Staber read Laura Konwinski's resignation letter, which stated she was resigning effective February 1, 2026, with the date being adjustable for appointing purposes. In her letter, Laura thanked the board for the opportunity for professional and personal development during her 8+ years of service. She offered to help with training the new clerk and assist with licensing, elections, or other needs if the board found it beneficial. Supervisor Larson moved to accept Laura Konwinski's resignation as Town Clerk effective February 1, 2026, unless the town finds a replacement prior to that date and expressed that it had been a pleasure working with Laura and that she had done a great job. Supervisor McIlquham seconded those sentiments Make an offer to candidate for clerks’ position - Chair Staber noted they had interviewed three very good candidates for the clerk position. The board discussed making an offer with a January 1 start date. Supervisor McIlquham moved to offer the replacement position for the remainder of Laura's term to Jami Carter effective January 5, 2026. Supervisor Mathwig seconded the motion. Budget Discussion Draft 4 to include payroll raise discussions - Chair Staber presented Draft 4 of the budget, starting with payroll raise discussions. The board first addressed hourly employees (excluding road crew). The proposed raises were generally 3% increases: Kathie Kurshinsky would go from $22,074.44 to $25,275.55 (hourly rate from $29.35 to $30.23) Recycling staff would go from $17.50 to $18.00 per hour Boat landing staff would go from $17.50 to $18.00 per hour Cleaning staff would go from $18.00 to $18.50 per hour Election inspectors would go from $12.50 to $13.00 per hour Chief inspector would go from $14.50 to $15.00 per hour Recreation director would go from $17,000 to $17,500 Supervisor Mathwig moved to approve the 3% raises for hourly employees (excluding road crew). Supervisor McIlquham seconded. The board then discussed road crew wages. Kyle had requested $31.00 per hour in a letter he submitted. With a 3% raise, he would be at $29.18, so his request amounted to a 72-cent raise over the 3% increase which was approximately a 8% raise. After considerable discussion, Supervisor Mathwig proposed a 5% raise for all three road crew members instead of the standard 3%. He also mentioned that they've been handling additional work previously done by another employee who was paid about $15,000-17,000 per year. Supervisor Mathwig moved to approve a 5% wage increase for each of the road crew members. Supervisor Larson seconded the motion. Upon roll call, all supervisors voted in favor. Chair Staber then reviewed the overall budget figures: Proposed levy: $1,791,244 (up about $80,000 from last year's $1,683,166) Total revenue: $1,915,144 Shared revenue: $417,000 (up about $15,000 from last year) Highway aid: $266,000 (up about $20,000 from last year) Anticipated carryover: approximately $400,000 Total proposed revenue for 2026: $3,529,328.15 Total proposed expenditures: $3,485,700 Positive balance: $43,628 Major expenditures included: Fire department operating: $546,720 Fire department capital: $205,641 Blacktop/paving: $650,000 for approximately 4.5 miles of road New equipment: $148,000 for a tractor Loan payments: $84,000 for fire station (until 2030) and $179,000 for 50th Avenue (final payment) Chair Staber noted he would recalculate with the new wage figures and balance any difference using the blacktop account. The budget publication must be ready by November 17th, with a budget hearing scheduled for December 1st. Supervisor Mathwig moved to approve the preliminary budget, pending recalculation of wages and balancing with the blacktop account. Supervisor Brennan seconded the motion. Upon roll call, all supervisors voted in favor. Town Communications from Board & Road Supervisors, Town Clerk & Town Chair Supervisor McIlquham mentioned that Mark Sedlacek suggested requiring residents to request access to the brush site on the fourth Saturday rather than leaving it open, as someone recently tried to bring in stumps and that there had been possible non-residents getting thru during this time. It was stated that the recycling crew would need to be more diligent on letting only residents in. The board agreed to implement this change starting in 2026. McIlquham also requested a new conference table and chairs for the hall, noting the current furniture was in poor condition. Jerry from the PRTLU reported that veterans had noticed the flag conditions at Veterans Park were in poor condition and the VFW had purchased new flags and planned to install them on Wednesday at 2:00 PM, with the board's permission. Chair Staber approved this request. At Brennan’s request, Chair Staber explained how roads are selected for maintenance using the PACER system, where roads are rated on a scale of 1-10. Roads rated 4 and below are prioritized in the five-year plan, with additional input from the town crew. He noted very few Lafayette roads are rated below 4, indicating good overall road conditions. Doug from the PRTLU reported they welcomed the new tourist representative and were considering adding an alternate for that position after changing the bylaws. He also mentioned a dedication for the new recreation area planned for the Friday after Thanksgiving (November 28). Motion to Adjourn was made at 7:52 Respectfully submitted by: Laura Konwiski / Clerk These minutes are intended to reflect the discussed topics and propositions during the Lafayette Town Board Meeting, ensuring transparency and providing a clear understanding of the deliberations and decisions made.