Committee of the Whole Minutes 01062026

COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE Tuesday, January 6, 2026, at 6:00 PM New Holstein City Hall, 2110 Washington Street, New Holstein, WI 53061 CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order by Council President Woelfel. ROLL CALL: Roll call was taken by Depies. Present were Gene Woelfel, Becca Mosier, Richard Snelson (virtually), Dan Watson, Kathy Schroeder , Paula Oakley , Norm Propson, Brad Hess, and Steve Abrams . Also present, City Administrator Scott Depies , Fire Chief Craig Carey, Police Chief Eric Fisher, Police Captain Chuck Schroeder, Public Works Director Jason Meyer, and Emergency Management Director Russ Thiel. GUESTS: Harris Byers from Stantec APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA: A motion was made by Oakley, seconded by Watson, and carried to approve the agenda as presented. USEPA BROWNFIELD CLEANUP GRANT APPLICATION PRESENTATION: Harris Byers, Senior Brownfield Project Manager with Stantec, presented on the preparation of a cleanup grant application for the former Tecumseh site. Mr. Byers provided background information on the site, discussed feedback received from last year’s submission, and outlined adjustments being made to this year’s application, which is scheduled for submission at the end of the month. USEPA BROWNFIELD CLEANUP GRANT APPLICATION PUBLIC HEARING Following Mr. Byers’ presentation, Council President Wolfel called the Public Hearing to order. Administrator Depies announced that the hearing had been properly noticed as required. Council President Wolfel then asked for comments from the public. There being none, the public hearing was adjourned. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: A motion was made by Mosier, seconded by Schroeder, and carried to approve the minutes from the previous meeting. CITIZEN COMMENT: None. FINANCE AND PURCHASING : Administrator Depies informed the Council that the December entries were being finalized and that the office was preparing for the annual financial audit, which is scheduled to take place at the end of January. PROTECTIONS OF PERSONS AND PROPERTY: a. Chief Fisher reported for the month of December that the Police Department handled 278 total incidents. Notable incidents included assistance with traffic control and public safety during the annual Christmas Parade on December 6, during which an individual became argumentative regarding a temporary road closure; the incident was resolved without further issue. On December 9, an officer responded to a report of a reckless driver entering the City at a high rate of speed, locating the vehicle crashed into a snowbank near the Starlite; the driver was arrested for OWI – First Offense. Between Committee of the Whole January 6, 2025 2 December 10 and December 17, officers responded multiple times to the same residence on Hickory Lane involving a visitor who repeatedly refused to leave the premises; following continued disturbances, the individual was arrested for Disorderly Conduct, and a nuisance property letter was issued to the landlord. Additional notable incidents included multiple traffic stops resulting in OWI – First Offense arrests on December 18 and December 26, as well as a domestic -related incident on December 19 in which a suspect became uncooperative, knocked a county deputy to the ground, and was subdued with a Taser; the suspect was arrested for Disorderly Conduct with a Domestic Abuse Enhancer and Resisting or Obstructing an Officer. On December 20, officers responded to a disturbance at Kwik Trip involving an intoxicated individual attempting to purchase alcohol; the individual was arrested on a probation hold and issued a municipal citation for Disorderly Conduct at the direction of the District Attorney’s Office. b. Chief Carey reported that the Fire Department responded to two calls during the month of December. One call involved a carbon monoxide detector activation on Kield Road, which was determined to be caused by operating a snow blower too close to the residence. The second call was a motor vehicle accident at the intersection of County Highway HH and Dorn Road. The Fire Department also participated in the Chamber of Commerce Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting at Kiwanis Park on December 6. In personnel updates, Carely Blado completed Firefighter II Certification, and two new members, Spencer Hansen and Santiago Amezquita, joined the department. c. Emergency Management Director Thiel reported that the company selected to update the City’s sirens experienced delays due to the death of a member of the organization. Director Thiel noted that, despite the setback, the company is expected to complete the refurbishment of the sirens. d. No update was provided for the Municipal Court. CITY BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS: a. Director Meyer provided the Public Works Department update for the month of December. He reported that snow removal operations have been ongoing, with overtime kept to a minimum through the use of flex time. To date, approximately 94 tons of salt have been used, compared to a planned total of 230 tons for the year. Salt storage was refilled in December and is expected to be sufficient for the remainder of the winter season. Public Works also responded to a fallen tree in the parking lot of Homestead Health Services; no vehicles were damaged, and the tree was removed without issue. Additional work has started in replacing the hand towel dispensers at Optimist Park. PERSONNEL: None OLD BUSINESS: None NEW BUSINESS: a. Contracting and/or hiring additional personnel for snow plowing services Council discussed staffing for snow removal operations. Public Works is currently down one position, and recent medical issues affecting an equipment operator have created uncertainty regarding staffing availability. The Council discussed options including contracting for snow removal services for alleys and municipal sidewalks and hiring additional part-time seasonal staff. The Administrator was directed to seek contractor bids and advertise for part -time positions concurrently to ensure adequate coverage. Committee of the Whole January 6, 2025 3 Closed Session: a. A motion was made by Snelson, seconded by Schroeder with, through roll call vote, Woelfel, Watson, Propson, Oakley, Hess, Mosier, Abrams, Schroeder, and Snelson voting Aye to go into closed session Pursuant to Wis. Stats. Sec 19.85 (1)( c) to consider the employment, promotion, compensation or performance evaluation data of any public employee over which the governmental body has jurisdiction or exercises responsibility. In this case, considering adjusting an employee benefit from standards set in the Employee Handbook in light of an unexpected medical condition. b. A motion was made by Abrams, seconded by Mosier, and carried to adjourn the closed session and reconvene in open session. c. A motion was made by Woelfel, seconded by Norm, and carried to forward to Council the exemption to the 90 day requirement for the utilization of 5 days of Annual Leave and 5 Casual days. MISCELLANEOUS: None FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS: None Being no further business, the meeting was adjourned. Scott Depies City Administrator