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Bayfield County Clerk Lynn M. Divine Jeran Delaine, Deputy Clerk Erin Tibbits , Clerk 11 Ph: 715.373.6100 ● Email: Lynn.Divine@bayfieldcounty.wi.gov ● 117 E. Fifth Street, PO Box 878, Washburn, WI 54891 MINUTES MONTHLY MEETING of the BAYFIELD COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS July 28 , 2026 Meeting held in the Bayfield County Boardroom, Courthouse, Washburn WI Call to Order: The monthly meeting of the Bayfield County Board of Supervisors was called to order at 6:00 p.m. by Chair Jan Lee. Roll Call was taken by County Clerk Lynn Divine, as follows: Steve Sanstrom – present; Jamie Tucker – present; Larry Fickbohm – present; Charly Ray – present; Jan Lee – present; Jeff Olsen – present; Dennis Pocerncih – present; Fred Strand – present; Jeff Holte – present; Marty Milanowski – present; Jackie Roguski – present ; Jim Crandall – present; Sue Rosa – present. Present-1 3 ; Absent- 0 . A quorum was present to conduct business. Others Present: Mark Abeles-Allison, County Administrator; Kelly Westlund, Deputy Administrator (remote) ; Lynn M. Divine , County Clerk; Erin Tibbits, Clerk II; James Small, Wisconsin Office of Rural Health; M eagan Quaderer, EM S /PSAP Director; Brian Zieman, EMS Coordinator; Ryan Matthews, Dispatch Coordinator; Karl Green , UW-Extension, representatives from RFP service providers and other members of the public. Pledge of Allegiance: The Pledge of Allegiance was recited by all in attendance. Approval of June 30 , 2026 , July 9 , 2026, and July 15, 2026 Min u tes : Pocernich made a motion to approve the June 30 , 2026 , July 9, 2026 and July 15 , 2026 meeting M inutes, seconded by Milanowski . Motion carried. Yes-1 3 : No-0; Absent- 0 . Public Comment: Rich Nemitz- Town of Iron River, concerned with EMS supplemental service . Rick Forsythe- Town of Iron River, concerned with EMS supplement al service . M icky Budge- Town of Port Wing, concerned with Essentia Health as a supplemental EMS service, in support of moratorium on data centers in Bayfield County, and in support of defunding flock cameras in Bayfield County . Christopher LaForge -City of Washburn, (remote) thanked county board for working to improve EMS issues and stated concerns regarding data centers coming into the area . Gayle Gonsior- Town of Port Wing, (remote) in support of a moratorium on data centers in the area and the defunding of flock cameras in the county. Jeff Silbert -City of Washburn , (remote) spoke in support of a moratorium on data centers in the area . Mike Garnich-Town of Bayview, in support of identifying a long-term EMS solution to serve the county 24/7 and the establishment of an ambulance district. Tygar Le v eque -Town of Port Wing, spoke about the need to recruit younger generations in the local area to fill the EMS positions . Ray made a motion to extend public comment by 15 minutes, seconded by Holte. Motion carried. Yes-13; No-0; Absent-0. Kim Suske -Town of Bayview, in support of moratorium on data centers in the county . B.J. Havlik - City of Bayfield, in support of moratorium on data centers in the county . Lois Palmer -Town of Clover, opposed redesignation of the Apostle Island s National Lakeshore to a National Park, suggested offering online EMT classes to junior and seniors in high school and the need for Bayfield County to have its own EMS service . Jo e Schick -Village of Mason , in support of staying with existing EMS services with the county paying for full-time EMTs for local municipalities. Carl Broberg -City of Washburn, in support of blended BLS/ALS EMS service and spoke on the issue of not having enough local volunteers . Heath Johnson -Town of Port Wing, in support of more funding for EMS training/recruitment for county residents and against data centers coming into the area . Lois Palmer-Town of Clover, spoke about the influx of people in the summer and lack of EMS services to help everyone that may need assistance. Data Center Presentation by Karl Green from UWEX . Green stated that there has been no request for a data center in the area, and that he was asked to speak as a proactive measure. Green discussed why data centers are looking to come to Wisconsin, local government regulation s , county zoning v ersus municipal zon ing, development standards , moratoriums, tax benefits and risks, levy limits, and net new construction. Consent Agenda a. Bayfield County Resolution 2026 -70 , Defining the Purpose, Scope and Amount of the Human Service Risk Reserve b. Bayfield County Resolution 2026-71 , Amending the 2026 Budget Authorizing Acceptance and Budget Allocation for the FY26 NG9-1-1 GIS Gran t Program Track 2 Grant No. 2026- GR02 c. Bayfield County Resolution 2026-72 , Budget Amendment for 111 E 7 th Street Property Purchase d. Bayfield County Resolution 2026-73 , 4-H CANSKI 202 5 -2026 Season Budget Amendmen t Milanowski made a motion to approve Consent Agenda items a-d, seconded by Sandstrom. Pocernich asked for confirmation that the $5,000 requested in item c for maintenance on property 111 E 7 th Street will come out of the general fund. Abeles-Allison confirmed. Roll Call Vote to Approve Consent Agenda: Rosa – Yes; Roguski – Yes; Holte – Yes; Pocernich – Yes; Lee – Yes; Fickbohm – Yes; Sandstrom – Yes; Tucker – Yes; Ray – Yes; Olsen – Yes; Strand – Yes; Milanowski – Yes; Crandall – Yes. Motion carried. Yes-13; No-0; Absent-0. EMS Proposal , Public Input Sessions : EMS/PSAP Director Meagan Quaderer spoke on the two public input forums held on July 22 nd and 23 rd . She gave a summary of She said the next step is for the board to decide what direction to go. Board members asked questions and discussed EMS issues within the county and possible solutions. Some board members spoke in support of supporting local EMS providers by funding more recruitment, better reimbursement , more service coordination and more financial compensation for volunteers. Other board members spoke in support of a supplemental EMS service to help solve short-term problems with a need to work on a long-term solution. James Small spoke about EMS districts. Pocernich made a motion to move agenda item 10 to the next act of business before going into Closed Session, seconded by Ray. Motion carried. Yes-13; No-0; Absent-0. Discussion and Possible Action Regarding EMS Proposals and Feedback Received at Public Information Sessions. Strand made a motion to budget $1 ,000,000 in 2027 for financial assistance to the existing EMS service providers, seconded by Pocernich with an amendment to include helping the agencies with volunteer recruitment, training and retention; to provide and facilitate coordination and cooperation between the existing entit ies; to help facilitate RFPs and contracts for professional EMS and to financially include an increase in on-call pay and support for more hybrid services, along with other initiatives that improve a positive outcome in a timely fashion , and to include a professional evaluation system based on the specified conditions. Strand seconded the amended motion . Roll Call v ote to approve amendment to the motion : Milanowski – Yes; Strand – Yes; Sandstrom – No; Tucker – Yes; Fickbohm – No; Lee – No; Roguski – Yes; Crandall – Yes; Rosa – No; Ray – Yes; Olsen – No; Pocernich – Yes; Holte – Yes. Motion carried. Yes-8; No-5; Absent-0. Roll Call v ote to approve original motion with amendment. : Rosa – No; Lee – No; Sandstrom – No; Tucker – No; Holte – Yes; Ray – Yes; Fickbohm – Yes; Olsen – No; Pocernich – Yes; Milanowski – Yes; Roguski – Yes; Crandall – No; Strand – Yes. Motion carried. Yes-7; No-6; Absent-0. Reports : Abeles-Allison spoke on the courthouse dome repair project and stated that plans and contracts have been finalized with a start date of March 15, 2027 . He provided an update on the 2027 budget process , stating that there will be a detailed budget review at the August E xecutive Committee meeting . The P ersonnel Committee meeting will be held at 2:30 p.m. that same day (August 13 th ). He added that the sign-up sheet for county fair volunteers is on the county website. Future County Board Meetings: a. August 25, 2026 b. September 29, 2026 c. October 27, 2026 Rosa asked, if by voting for the amended motion for item 10, if that precludes the possibility of accepting and voting on one of the EMS supplemental proposals. It was confirmed that it did. Supervisor ’s Reports : Lee stated that Mike A mm a n was appointed by Governor Tony Evers to serve on the Wisconsin Natural Resources Board. Mike works for the Bayfield County Forestry Department. Closed Session: Motion made by Pocernich at 8:56 p.m. to enter into Closed Session, seconded by Crandall . Roll call vote: Sandstrom – Yes; Rosa – Yes; Tucker – Yes; Crandall – Yes; Fickbohm – Yes; Roguski – Yes; Ray – Yes; Milanowski – Yes; Lee – Y es; Holte – Yes; Olsen – Yes; Strand – Yes; Pocernich – Yes . Motion carried. Yes-1 3 ; No-0; Absent- 0 . At 9:08 p.m. Milanowski made a motion to return to Open Session, seconded by Pocernich . Motion Carried. Yes-1 3 ; No-0 ; Absent-0 . Adjournment: Tucker made a motion to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Milanowski . Motion carried. Yes-1 3 ; No-0; Absent- 0 . There be ing no further business to discuss, Lee adjourned the meeting at 9:08 p.m. Respectfully submitted Lynn M. Divine Bayfield County Clerk lmd /ej t Copies of Bayfield County Resolutions may be obtained by contacting the Bayfield County Clerk ’s Office at (715) 373-6100 The Bayfield County Code of Ordinances can be found at https://www.bayfieldcounty.wi.gov/752/County-Ordinances Rosa asked if by voting for the amended motion for item 10, if that precludes the possibility of accepting and voting on one of the EMS supplemental proposals. It was confirmed that it did. Supervisor ’s Reports : Lee stated that Mike Ammen was appointed by Gov. Tony Evers to serve on the Wisconsin Natural Resources Board. Mike works for Bayfield County Foresty Department.