TOWN BOARD MEETING — Minutes

MEETING MINUTES TOWN OF LAFAYETTE Oct 20, 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 Mathwig, Supervisor Larson, Supervisor McIlquham, Supervisor Brennan, and Chair Staber and clerk Konwinski. Closed session under Wisconsin statutes section 19.85(1)(c) - Supervisor Mcilquham 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 Brennan. Supervi sor Larson made a motion to go out of closed session at 6:42 pur suant to Wisconsin Statute Section 19.85(1)(c). Mathwig seconded the motion . This matter would be back on the November 3rd agenda for a decision. APPROVAL OF TOWN BOARD MINUTES from October 6, 2025, Regular Board Meeting & current agenda -Motion by Supervisor Larson, seconded by McIlquham, to approve the minutes of October 6, 2025, regular board meeting and the current agenda. FINANCIAL REPORT - Chair Staber presented the financial report. At the end of September, the town had $590,244.67 in its accounts. Notable income included $14,000 from Charter Cable for franchise fees and $19,000 from Chippewa Fire District for a loan for a new dive van. Major expenses included $183,000 to the Chippewa Fire District (payment through end of year), $9,000 to Crescent Landscaping for brush clearing, $50,000 to the County Highway Department for chip sealing on 3 miles of road, and $48,000 to Senn Blacktop fo r paving at the town parking lot and other patching work. Total expenses were $317,748. Chair Staber noted the town still has a little over $200,000 in the checking account with approximately $400,000 in shared revenue expected on November 15th. Motion by Supervisor Mathwig, seconded by Brennan, to approve the financial statement and pay the bills. Motion carried. PUBLIC COMMENTS - Jason Heiss spoke briefly about a light at "The View" parking lot that appears to be quite bright when driving down the highway. It was clarified that Xcel Energy owns the light, and it was installed at the property owner's request foll owing an accident to help with visibility at the entrance/exit. OLD BUSINESS Purchase replacement of boom tractor mower and how to pay for it - Chair Staber presented two bids for the replacement boom tractor: one from Tractor Central for $148,344 available in June and one from Baraboo Equipment for $139,799 (38-40 week out). Chair Staber recommended going with Tractor Central despite the higher price because they are a local supplier with easier access to parts and service. He noted Tractor Central would guarantee the price and lock it in to avoid potential tariff increases. The tractor itself would cost $135,500 with attachments at $79,844, minus trade-in. Chair Staber suggested setting aside the $148,344 from carryover funds before approving the budget to pay for it all at once rather than leasing it. Motion by Supervisor McIlquham, seconded by Brennan, to purchase the John Deere tractor mower from Tractor Central and to determine how best to pay for it during budget deliberations. Motion carried. Update Razing on Hwy X property - Chair Staber updated the Board on the house just west of Bateman Tavern that has been wrapped in Tyvek for three years. The property has been sold to Logan Lilly, who owns the mini warehouses next door. The company is assuming responsibility for the raze order, and the town will amend the order to give them by December 31 to have the lot cleared off. Chair Staber noted they already have a dumpster on site and an excavator coming this week to begin demolition. NEW BUSINESS Approve Scout project as recommended by PRTLU - Chair Faris recommended from the PRTLU committee to approve a Scout project for garbage cans enclosures that had previously been presented to the Town Board. They asked the Scout to return to their November meeting with numbers for a possible donation toward the project. Motion by Supervisor Larson, seconded by Brennan to approve the Scout project as presented. CF Chamber of Commerce Tourism Contract - The Chamber rep presented a contract renewal that had been shared with PRTLU. The recommendation was to renew the contract under the same terms for another three years. It was noted that Ellie is the new replacement tourism director. Motion by Supervisor Mathwig, seconded by Larson, to renew the contract with the Chippewa Falls Chamber of Commerce to be the township's Tourism marketing organization for the next three years. CSM for Henry Trust – To create 2 lots - Discussion focused on a CSM for the Henry Trust. Chair Staber and the presenter talked about an easement on the backside of the property, with Chair Staber suggesting they keep access coming off 52nd Avenue but eliminate access from 190th Street. The presenter agreed to this arrangement. Motion by Supervisor McIlquham, seconded by Brennan, to approve the CSM for the Henry Trust as presented. Lis CSM for review – to divide parcel for single family homes - Jason Heiss presented a CSM that was a continuation of the rezoning done earlier in the year with the Metzenbauer property between 50th and 51st Avenues. The plan includes four lots total - two at 30,000 square feet and 100 feet wide, plus a larger lot in the middle that contains the original farmstead house and older buildings. It was discussed that driveways for lots 1, 2, and 4 must come off 51st Avenue, while the larger lot 3 has one existing driveway onto 50th. Heiss noted that the PRTLU reviewed and approved it last Monday, and the county has also approved it. Motion by Supervisor Larson, seconded by Brennan, to approve the CSM for this property for 50th and 51st Avenue. Resolution to approve the roadways for Wissota Meadows - Chair Staber noted that this was already approved back in May 2025, and the resolution just needed to be sent in with the road map. No action was needed. Jill Bell dog citation issues - Chair Staber reported that Jill Bell has already received four citations for the same dog, totaling about $1,000, but she's ignoring them. The Board discussed that the next step would be to issue a citation on the township side, which can be added as a special assessment on her taxes. Supervisor Larson expressed concern that the dog (a pit bull) is causing neighborhood safety issues and that simply issuing citations that are ignored isn't resolving the problem. The Board discussed that animal control could potentia lly confiscate the dog if it attacks someone, though currently it's just bothering other dogs and running at large. Chair Staber said he would talk with the animal control officer about the last visit and look at the ordinance regarding fine amounts, which would likely end up being close to $300 if it goes to court. Trade in loader broom for loader blader to McCoy equipment - Chair Staber explained that the town has an old broom attachment for the front-end loader that requires two men to operate due to its age. With minimal salt and sand being used on roads over the past three years (about 10 times total), they would like to trade in the broom for a blade for the loader. The purchase price for the blade is $17,268, with a $8,000 trade-in allowance for the broom, leaving a balance of $9,268. Motion by Supervisor Larson, seconded by Mathwig, to trade the broom in and buy the blade. Motion carried. Purchase forklift dump box for recycling - Chair Staber explained that recycling center staff requested a forklift dump box. This would allow them to use the forklift to dump into the metal bin rather than lifting and throwing them over the edge. Two options presented: one at $1,399 and another at $1,699, with the more expensive one has casters. After speaking with staff at the recycling center, Chair Staber recommended the one with casters so it can be moved around easily. Motion by Supervisor McIlquham, seconded by Brennan, to purchase the forklift dump box with casters for the recycling center. Motion carried. Refuge church plan and zoning change approval - Chad White, working with Refuge Church on the building site design, and Steve Mitchell, lead pastor at Refuge Church, presented their plans. The proposal was to eliminate the existing west access off Service Road X and maintain the access point off of 166th Street, leaving them with a total of two access points. They plan to remove the existing roof and exterior walls of the former restaurant building while reusing the foundation. The PRTLU had recommended changing the zoning of the two west lots from R1 to Local Commercial. Chair Faris noted that during their PRTLU meeting, there was also a concern about the inside of the corner, as the town needs a piece of that property so the whole road is actually town property. Chair Staber mentioned they p lan to do work on that section of South Service Road in 2026, which would straighten out the corner and make it an actual T-intersection. Motion by Supervisor Mathwig, seconded by McIlquham, to zone the two R1 lots to Local Commercial. Motion carried unanimously. Approve Lemay Addition Park name - The Board discussed naming the park "Sandra Harvey Recreation Area". Motion by Supervisor Mathwig, seconded by Supervisor Brennan, to officially establish and name the park "Sandra Harvey Recreation Area”. Appoint tourism candidate for PRTLU – Chair Faris reported that the PRTLU committee interviewed two candidates and recommended Rob Brown for the tourism position on the board. They also recommended Lee Heitke as an alternate, noting that the tourism commissioner position had been vacant for nine months and they didn't want that to happen again. Motion by Supervisor McIlquham, seconded by Brennan, to approve Rob Brown as the tourism candidate and support the change in the bylaws to allow for an alternate for the position and approve Lee Heitke as the alternate. Replace fixtures in Rec building restrooms - Chair Staber presented a bid from Bohl & Proulx, to replace the fixtures in the recreation building. The cost would be $5,227, and there is money in the recreation improvement budget for this project. Motion by Supervisor Larson, seconded by Mathwig, to replace the fixtures in the recreation building restrooms. Close the CD for Mark Sedlacek and transfer it to his name - Chair Staber explained that when the town switched to PTO time, Mark Sedlacek had accumulated sick leave which was paid out but placed in a CD with the idea that he would receive it upon retirement. Since Mark is staying with the town long-term and has already met the age requirement, the Board discussed giving him the CD now. Motion by Supervisor McIlquham, seconded by Brennan, to give the CD that is for Mark Sedlacek's sick leave payouts to Mark Sedlacek and transfer it to his name. Budget Discussions Draft #3 - Chair Staber presented draft #3 of the town budgets. Key points included: 1. The proposed tax levy is $1,791,244, an increase of about $50,000 over last year. 2. The budget includes debt service for the road loan, fire station loan, and the town's share of capital for the fire district, totaling $634,829. 3. 2026 will be the last year of payment on the 50th Avenue project, which means the tax levy could potentially decrease by $179,000 next year if no additional debt is incurred. 4. Shared revenue increased from $402,000 to $417,000. 5. Highway aid increased from $226,000 to $266,000. 6. Fire dues increased from $34,000 to $48,000. 7. Total proposed revenue is $3,512,828.15 with an expected $400,000 carryover. Chair Staber noted that expenses exceeded revenue by about $8,000, which would need to be adjusted. The Board plans to discuss pay raises at the November 3 meeting. Due to public notice requirements, Chair Staber explained they would need to hold a special meeting around November 12th or 13th to approve the budget, as it must be done at least 18 days prior to the December 1 budget approval. Town Communications from Board & Road Supervisors, Town Clerk & Town Chair Supervisor Mathwig brought up concerns about the size of the deer herd in residential areas of the town, suggesting it could become a traffic hazard and nuisance. Chair Staber mentioned that in the past they had discussed working with bow hunters and the D NR to potentially get extra permits to thin the herd. Chair Staber reported that blacktop work is wrapped up for the year and they would not be buying more salt/sand, instead using up what they have so they can reseal the walls in the storage shed next summer. Faris mentioned they're still working on trail issues in the Harvey Park area, trying to ensure ATVs stay on designated routes. Motion to Adjourn - was made at 8:00 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.