2026-04-21 Organization-Regular Meeting Minutes

1 | Page 04/15/2025 Minutes Date Approved 05/1 8 /202 6 MINUTES OF THE ORGANIZATIONAL COUNCIL MEETING OF THE COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FENNIMORE, GRANT COUNTY, WISCONSIN HELD ON TUESDAY, APRIL 21st, 2026 The Organizational Council meeting of the Common Council was called to order by Mayor Ryan Boebel at 5:30 p.m. Proof of Oath of Office was administered to newly elected Mayor and Alderperson: Signed oaths of office was shown for both Mayor, Rob Krantz, and Ward 3 Alderperson, Todd Lippert. Former Mayor Boebel thanked everyone on council for their dedication, and hard work, and council reciprocated the sentiments back to him. Roll Call was taken with the following alderpersons answering present. Adam, Lippert, Kretschman, Adam, Strack, Streif, and Hagen. Director of Public Works Anthony Downing, City Clerk-Treasurer, Ashley Edge, Deputy Clerk-Treasurer, Ashley Mumm were also in attendance. Agenda: Proof in the form of a certificate of public notice given as required by Section 19.84, Wis. Stats., as to the holding of this meeting, was presented by the City Clerk-Treasurer. Motion by Streif, second by Day to approve the proof of posting and agenda. Motion carried 7-0. Elect Council President: There was a motion by Day and a second by Strack to nominated Dave Streif as Council President. After asking three more times, no additional nominations were made. Motion carried 7-0. Designating Public Depositories: There was a motion by Day and a second by Kretschman to approve the following Depositories: Clare Bank, Community First Bank, Peoples State Bank, and MidWest One. Motion carried 7-0. Designating official newspaper for required publications: There was a motion by Day and a second by Streif to approve Fennimore Times as our official newspaper. Motion carried 7-0. Commission and Board Appointments: This item is tabled for the next council meeting. Council Committee Appointments: There was a motion by Day, and a second by Streif to have Hagen, Roth, and Adam on the Personnel and Administrative Committee, Lippert, Strack, and Day on Property and Infrastructure, and Streif and Kretschman are on the Finance Committee. Motion carried 7-0. Consent Agenda: The following Operators were approved: None Minutes of the preceding meeting. Approval of minutes if correct, and corrections of mistakes: The minutes from the March 16th, 2026 Regular Meeting were approved with a motion by Adam, and a second by Streif. Motion carried 7-0. 2 | Page 04/15/2025 Minutes Date Approved 05/1 8 /202 6 Comments from Pre-registered Citizens: Reports of Officers: Clerk DPW Chief of Police Presentation of accounts and other claims against the city: There was a motion by Streif and a second by Kretschman to approve the 04/21/2026 Council claims with the breakdown of bills to their respective accounts for a total of $722,021.23 with City bills at $514,421.49, Utility bills at $160,578.95 Sewer bills at $43,590.79, TIF-CDBG bills at $1,600.00, and Capital Projects at $1,830.00. Gross Payroll amounts for 03/20/2026 were $73,358.73 with $39,324.40 for City, $23,137.04 for Utility and $10,897.29 for Sewer. Gross Payroll amounts for 04/003/2026 were $70,261.92 with $40,843.73 for City, $21,946.82 for Utility and $7,471.37 for Sewer. Gross Payroll amounts for 04/17/2026 were $70,788.81 with $39,352.90 for City, $23,798.54 for Utility and $7,637.37 for Sewer. Motion carried on a roll call vote 7-0. Committee Reports: Unfinished Business: New Business: Discussion on City Council and Mayoral responsibilities from a legal perspective : Attorney Ben Wood was present to discuss the importance of items within closed session items staying confidential, defined a walking quorum, and how to avoid that occurring. He also touched on conflict of interest, and to keep in mind that the each elected member represents their constituents, and that as elected officials they have a responsibility to avoid any potential conflict of interest, and a responsibility to represen t the City well both in person and online/social media. Attorney Wood strongly suggested keeping work separate from personal, due to open records laws. Discussion and possible action on awarding library furniture and shelving bids: There was a motion by Strack, and a second by Streif to award the library loose furniture and shelving bid to Henricksen for loose furniture for their bid with alternates for $82,187.04, and award the shelving bid to Library Furniture International for $117,926.43. Motion carried on a roll call vote 7-0. Update on library building : Library Director, Cathy Smith gave an update on the library expansion. The contractors believe they’ll be finished by the end of August, the grant requires the library to be completed by September 30 th, 2026. Day suggested having each phase planned out so if money is running out, they can make cuts as needed. Discussion on emergency alert sirens : The City has experienced issues with fuses blowing on the emergency alert siren. We have gotten questions about another potential siren on the East side of the City . It was estimated to be $35,000 to purchase and install another siren. Jason Kreul, Fennimore Times Editor, spoke with Steve Braun , Grant County Emergency Management Director, who said the sirens are designed to be heard by people who are outside, and alert them to seek shelter. 3 | Page 04/15/2025 Minutes Date Approved 05/1 8 /202 6 Discussion and possible a ction on EMS choices : EMS ad -hoc committee members, Sarah Kretschman and Adam Day discussed options they foresee for the future of the EMS. Option 1 is to enter into a contract with the City of Fennimore and the EMS. The contract would include oversight of financials, and an independent audit, but they’re unsure of start/end of potential contract. Option 2 is to hire a full-time EMS Director through the City, similar to what Lancaster does. They would have a set job description, including recruitment and retention, the EMS would always have a full -time staff member. Option 3 is to contract services out. Unsure of what the cost of this would be, and what the response time would be. Another meeting will be scheduled to discuss further. Discussion and possible action to repeal and recreate Chapter 12 Ordinance 2026 -04-21: There was a motion by Adam, and a second by Day to approve Ordinance 2026 -04-21 to repeal and recreate Chapter 12. Motion carried on a roll call vote 7-0. Discussion and possible action on sale of lot: Discussion and possible action on land purchase: Discussion and possible action on hiring Street Maintenance Worker: There was a motion by Streif and a second by Strack to consider moving into closed session at 6:56 pm. Motion carried on a roll call vote 7-0. Return to open session: There was a motion by Day and a second by Hagen to return to open session at 7:25 pm. Motion carried 7-0. There was a motion by Adam, and a second by Day to hire the new candidate starting at a level two. Motion carried 7-0. Comments and suggestions from Citizens present: None Communications and recommendations from the mayor: None Schedule Committee meetings: Personnel & Administration Committee Monday, May 27th at 4:30 pm. Adjourn: Motion by Day, second by Strack to adjourn at 7:26 p.m. Motion carried 7-0. _________________________________ Ashley Edge, City Clerk-Treasurer _________________________________ Rob Krantz, Mayor