Min10132025budgetwksp2

Submitted for approval 10/27/2025 Village of Fox Crossing Special Meeting of the Board of Trustees – Budget Workshop #2 Municipal Complex – Arden Tews Assembly Room Monday, October 13, 2025 – 5:00 p.m. Minutes 1. Call to Order President Dale Youngquist called the workshop to order at 5:00 p.m. Clerk Darla Salinas noted those present including: President Youngquist, Trustee Michael Van Dyke, Trustee Kris Koeppe, Trustee Timothy Raddatz , Trustee Kate McQuillan , Trustee Deb Swiertz, Trustee Barbara Hanson, Village Manager Jeffrey Sturgell, Finance Director Jeremy Searl, Police Chief Scott Blashka, Director of Community Development George Dearborn, Fire Chief Todd Sweeney, Director of Information Technology Tim Plagenz, Deputy Clerk Chantel Jaenke, and Director of Parks and Recreation Amanda Geiser. There were seven attendees. 2. Presentation of Departmental Budgets Clerk/Elections Departments Director Searl advised there are two main changes for this department’s budget include the change of the Clerk position from Clerk Salinas to Deputy Clerk Ja enke and four elections being held in 2026, as compared to only two elections in 2025. Revenues show a small decrease in Special Events due to the l ower amount of mechanical amusement devices and firework displays in the Village. Bar Operator licenses are showing an increase in revenue due to 2026 being the two-year renewal year. He is suggesting the use of $30,000.00 from fund balance to fund the extra two elections this year to balance the budget. In expenditures, there is a small decrease in wages due to the Clerk transition, however more funds were added in the supply and training accounts to provide training for the new Deputy Clerk. All costs in the election accounts are increased due to the extra elections. He stated this department is looking to replace eight Badger Books using the Equipment Replacement Fund (ERF) (2 server machines and 6 client machines). There are no other changes or additional funding needed for the ERF. Parks & Recreation Department Director Searl stated revenues in park rentals are showing a decrease, but much of that is due to Schildt Park being unavailable for rentals in 2026 due to renovation, however this is partially offset by the YMCA using Wittman Park more frequently for another program. He stated there are a large number of accounts that are showing t ransfers from special revenue funds, for example the disc golf and tree funds, however these transfers are consistent with previous years. Director Searl stated there were no requested changes in payroll splits, or changes from part-time to full -time. There is a request for a new seasonal park employee for a requested increase of $9,344.00. Currently there are four seasonal employees working 14 weeks at full-time for a total of 2,240 hours, however this was cut by Manager Sturgell to adding one additional seasonal staff employee for only nine weeks increasing the total hours available to all season al staff to 2,600 hours. This will provide the department more f lexibility to fill openings during vacations, school schedules, etc. He advised pager pay amounts for this department was discussed for full-time employees, as they are currently compensated at $20 .00/day, however other departments simply receive an additional hour of straight pay for the day they’re holding the pager. This change comes at a total increase of $856.00 and does not include a change to summer staff pager pay. A correction Special Village Board Budget Workshop – October 13, 2025 2 was made to the number of Park Commission meetings being budgeted for, reducing this from 17 meetings to 13 meetings. With all these payroll changes included, there is a total increase of $23,000.00 or a 2.7% increase, of which more than half is due to benefit changes. In Park expenditures, the 0210 Professional Services account includes the 5-year Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan for $20,000.00 which is completed every 5 years and will be offset with fund balance. There is a rollover of consulting services for Woodland Prairie Park for $10,000.00, and a partial rollover of $8,000.00 for the Rydell Conservancy dock removal, which will be able to be completed more easily when the water is frozen. The 0234 Site Maintenance account is relatively flat and includes the Woodland Prairie Park dirt bike trail path for $5,000.00 from fund balance. The 0240 Repair/Maintenance account is budget neutral from last year and includes $15,000.00 for improvements to the soccer complex on Earl Street including miscellaneous repairs and parking lot. The 0340 Disc Golf account includes the addition of a 16’ x 16’ shelter to provide golfers their own staging/meeting/recreational area to allow other park users to use the existing shelter for other park use s. All costs for this shelter will be paid by the disc golf special revenue fund. The 0353 Equipment Maintenance and 0355 Vehicle Maintenance accounts combined have total budgeted expenditures of $3,200.00 with $1,400.00 being set aside for a barrel of oil used for vehicle and equipment maintenance that was previously budgeted in the Street Department. The balance of the increase is due to general cost increases for parts and services. The 0372 Crack/Seal Coat account is budget neutral from last year with the large projects being funded by fund balance with planned crack and seal coating at Fritsch Park and Butte des Morts Park in 2026. The 0378 Urban Forestry account shows the same amount as last year at $3,600.00 as they are looking to remove ash trees using EAB funds (approximately $25,000.00) and will be replacing a number of these trees with the tree planting special revenue fund ($5,000.00). The 0831 Miscellaneous Capital Park Activity account includes $20 ,000.00 on the levy which is consistent with years past and includes the multi-year picnic table replacement project to replace the old wood picnic tables. In Recreation expenditures, the 0240 Repair/Maintenance account includes painting at the Community Center in the Robin and Maple rooms along with the lobby and hallways ($3,500.00 off fund balance) and is otherwise level with previous years. The 0341 Postage/Shipping account shows an increase as postage increases effect this department heavily due to the cost of mailers, activity guides, etc. Recreation programming expenses are categorized by season. Director Geiser noted the loss of the Dance Instructor as having an impact on the dance program as we have been unable to fill the position , therefore at this time we will not have a dance program coming into Fall/Winter as they continue efforts to try to find a replacement for this program. The Equipment Replacement Fund (ERF) is planned to be short funded similar to Fire and Police Departments to balance the budget this year. Projects in 2025 included O’Hauser Park and Westfield Park of which the final amounts will be updated when they are available , and these projects are complete. There is no equipment replacement planned in 2026, but the gator, mower and dump truck are slated for replacement in 2027 and were all extended a year. Capital Projects for Parks and Recreation American Drive Trail Resurfacing from East Shady Lane to Copperhead Drive for a cost of $70,000.00. Kippenhan Park Play Equipment (subdivision located off Lake Street) for a cost of $95,000.00 offset with $71,048.00 from the ERF and the remaining $24,000.00 from borrowing. Special Village Board Budget Workshop – October 13, 2025 3 Palisades Park Tennis Court s Reconstruction for a cost of $150,000.00 offset with cash on hand . Director Geiser advised these tennis courts need to be reconstructed, along with completing a small amount of drainage improvement for these courts to redirect some of the water away from this area. These courts will also be lined with pickleball lines during the resurfacing. Trestle Trail repairs to be split with the City of Menasha for a total cost of $70,000.00 with $35,000.00 being paid by the City of Menasha. Schildt Park R enovation project for a total cost of $2,150,000.00 to be offset with $1,250,000.00 from settlement funds, $763,998.00 from borrowing, and $136,002.00 from the ERF. Manager Sturgell advised he is trying to keep borrowing down and proposed using some settlement funds to mitigate the amount on the tax levy . Director Geiser advised the current pavilion will stay, however the g ranary will be taken down . This project is being spearheaded by the stormwater pond that is required to be built on the west end of the property. The new park project is planned to include a sledding hill, six pickleball courts, a full basketball court , replacement of the playground equipment, development of a pedestrian trail bridge, tree planting, expansion of the parking lot, removal of the back parking lot, and a shade canopy near the pickleball and basketball courts. There are power lines running across the west side of that park which make it difficult to do anything else with that area of the land. The residents on Benjamin Court will see a slight increase in traffic due to the addition of an entrance to the park off Benjamin Court which is currently a cul-de-sac. T here is a notification letter ready to go to the Benjamin Court residents that will be sent as soon as th is budget is approved. The trees that are being planted will help mitigate the noise from the pickleball and basketball courts. The Village Board expressed some hesitation to approving this park plan tonight due to residents not having been notified yet. Director Searl advised th e Board will approve the final plan for the park later next year, and at this point they are just approving the funds to be included in the budget next year. 3. Recess for Regular Village Board Meeting At 5:5 2 p.m., MOTION: Trustee Van Dyke , seconded Trustee Swiertz to adjourn the Budget Workshop until after competition of the Regular Village Board Meeting. Motion carried via voice vote. 4. Reconvene Upon Completion of Regular Board Meeting At 6:46 p.m., MOTION: Trustee McQuillan, seconded by Trustee Hanson to reconvene the Budget Workshop. Motion carried via voice vote 5. Continue Presentation of Departmental Budgets Trustee Van Dyke asked if the cost for this project includes the stormwater pond, and was advised it does not include the stormwater pond which will be discussed in detail at the next budget meeting. Manager Sturgell stated this land was purchased with the intention of creating a stormwater pond to meet the DNR’s criteria for the Village and stormwater funds were used to purchase this land for future construction of this pond . There is currently a recreational pond on site, which will be changed to a stormwater pond. Trustee Van Dyke asked about adding bathrooms near the basketball and pickleball courts. Director Geiser advised that was considered but that increased the cost of this project significantly, so it was taken out. Director Searl went over the remaining C layton settlement funds indicating there is currently $3.46 Million left available for Village capital projects, and after 2026 budgeted use there will be approximately $2.2 Million left for Village capital projects. Special Village Board Budget Workshop – October 13, 2025 4 Trustee Hanson stated she would like to see the Park Commission look at the wages paid to the seasonal employees. She is concerned we are going to lo se staff to other municipalities due to the pay rate. Director Geiser stated she thinks the Village is in line with other municipalities, but she can certainly look at the wages, however any increase in wage will factor into the cost on what we charge the residents for the programs. Administration Department Director Searl stated there are no requested changes in payroll. There is a small increase in the Village’s EAP and risk management programs. The 0343 Employee Recognition account includes a small increase to continue efforts on employee morale and to hold employee luncheon type activities. There is an ERF transfer in the amount of $45,000.00 to replace Car #106 with a van specifically for Manager Sturgell ’s use and thereafter offered to other staff as needed, so we can expect future contributions to the ERF to be higher due to this change in vehicle. Assessor Department Director Searl advised there are no proposed changes to real estate inquiry fees or allocations and the State of Wisconsin has estimated a cost of $12,500.00 for Manufacturing property assessments. The existing contract with Accurate Appraisal is set at $54,000.00 for an annual market update and reminded the Board that the Village is in year 3 of 6 of this contract. Finance Department Director Searl reminded the Board that the Village is a part of City of Appleton’s weights and measures consortium which has been working well . Interest revenue is up however he tried to minimize this increase to keep the budget flatter, but did need to use some of this increase to balance the budget. The u se of fund balance last year was for the impact fee study and some training that was rolled over to 2026 . Staffing in this department has remained unchanged, however they are looking to increase pay for the tax clerks by $.75/hour. The 0210 Professional Services account is from the levy and includes a small increase in audit rates for next year. The 0310 Office Supplies account increased due to printing costs increasing. The 0335 and 0330 Training and Miles/Meals/Lodging is budget neutral and noted a 2025 rollover for COGNOS training which Director Plagenz and Director Searl are planning to attend for the annual conference in Washington D .C. The 0510 Insurance account (Worker’s Compensation, Property, Contractor’s Equipment, Liability, Storage Tank, Auto , etc.) did not increase but the Village will be going out to RFP next year and expect to see some better figures by going out to bid. Legislative Department Director Searl noted the prior year ’s budget included use of fund balance for projects in the Assembly Room including the AV system, microphones, processor , and camera/recording equipment/livestream project which was approved at the regular Village Board meeting earlier tonight, however he is leaving this in the budget in case the project is not able to be fully completed this year. The 0320 Subscriptions and Dues account increased due to the League of Wisconsin Municipalities increasing their fees . The 0330 and 0335 Training and Miles/ Meals/Lodging accounts have an increase in case any Board members want to attend any conferences or training in 2026. Special Village Board Budget Workshop – October 13, 2025 5 Miscellaneous-General Government Director Searl advised the first revenues are from the Garbage and Recycling special revenue fund and utility accounts to cover costs from the Municipal Complex which includes an advance of $50,000.00 from stormwater utility. PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) Revenue is the taxes paid by the water utility for the local share of the tax rate which is required by the PSC and includes an anticipated increase due to higher assessed values but is trending down due to the mil rate decreasing. Shared Revenue is now indexed by the sales tax collected by the State, so the Village is s eeing an increase in actual and budget ed figures . Computer, P ersonal Property, and Fee Subsidies are all items that used to be on the tax roll that the State has removed and will continue to pay the Village the same amount as last year. Cable franchise fee revenue has been consistent overall but there have been slight declines which is a societal trend. General account expenditures include a normal contingency amount of $30,000.00. This account also includes $186,144.00 to equate for a 4% base wage increase with approximately $15,000.00 for market-based adjustments, which is the same as last year and will allow salaries to catch up to pay ranges. Special Revenue Funds In the Garbage and Recycling special revenue fund, there is an increase of 3.46% in the Harter’s contract for collection rates which are increasing from $8.38/unit to $8.67/unit. Winnebago County landfill increased their fees by $2.00/ton from $54 .00/ton to $56 .00/ton. Winnebago County recycling fee is increasing $2.50/ton from $7.50/ton to $10.00/ton. Director Hoechst is looking to purchase a new truck mounted leaf vacuum (to bring the total to three truck mounted leaf vacuums) at a cost of $300,000.00. In exchange, the Village will sell Truck #42 (International crew cab truck with an estimated sale price of $75 ,000.00 with this account receiving 15% of the sale ($11,250.00)) and one trailer mounted vacuum (estimated sale price of $50,000.00) plus $45,444.00 saved in the ERF for this trailer to aid in offsetting the cost of this new truck mounted leaf vacuum. Director Hoechst and Superintendent Bauer will be at the next budget meeting to answer any questions on this purchase decision. Director Searl advised the budget includes the purchase of $50,000.00 worth of new garbage/recycling carts for operations, however, if a cart purchase is not necessary then these funds will be placed in the cart replacement fund. This is to keep an inventory on hand for when residents ask to trade theirs in or need to upgrade. He discussed the option of taking these funds out of the cart replacement fund which is already very healthy and using this amount towards the purchase of the new truck mounted lea f vacuum . This would still leave plenty of funds in the cart replacement fund and decrease borrowing by $50,000.00 for that purchase. The Board had several questions regarding current cart inventory, rate of cart replacement per month/year, recycling of old carts, etc. that they will bring to Director Hoechst and Superintendent Bauer next week before making a final decision on this funding. With all of this considered , due to the increase in households being serviced, the proposed garbage and recycling fee remains consistent at $220.00/year per household. Director Searl advised there are several special revenue funds in the Village that are tracked separately. He provided the estimated end of 2025 balances for each special revenue fund as compared to budgeted end of 2026 balances in each (fund examples: disc golf, boat trailer parking, tree planting, park impact fees, national night out, K9, fire department community relation s, sustainability, room tax, Santa float, etc. ). Each fund is set to earn its own a mount of interest, however Trustee Van Dyke asked if the Board could determine which account to assign the accumulated interest to. For example, the K9 fund is running low , and they could take the full Special Village Board Budget Workshop – October 13, 2025 6 interest earnings for all special revenue funds and place into that fund. Director Searl stated he will check previous Resolutions to confirm it is possible to use interest income in any special revenue fund and will report back to the Board on this. Tax Incremental Districts TID #1 – Community First Credit Union & Cobblestone Hotel This TID includes paying on the debt service for the concrete and roadwork that was completed in this area. This TID is set to expire in 2035 if not earlier due to all obligations having been met, however Director Searl doesn’t foresee closing this TID early. The assessed value as of January 1, 2025, was $35,026,000.00. The difference from when the TI D was created/amended is the incremental growth for this district due to changes in market. The fund balance for this TID is in a deficit, however this TID will end in the positive, but is unlikely to close out early. TID #2 - McMahon Business Park (OSMS, WOW Logistics, Probation and Parole) This TID is very healthy as Miron Construction has completed several additions to their building without any developer incentive which has added value. The debt service fund for this TID is for the reconstruction of Jacobsen Road from Cold Spring Road to County Road CB. This TID is set to expire in 2037, however it is very possible that this TID will pay off early so the Village can start generating tax revenue from these properties. TID #3 – Secura Insurance This TID has an assessed value of $67,320,000.00 and currently has a fund balance of $1.8 Million. The Village is keeping 35% of the increment to recover up to $4.5 Million in costs for the roundabout that was constructed on County Road CB along with a stormwater pond and other infrastructure improvements. The stormwater pond needs to be constructed prior to 2033 to meet the expenditure period. TID #4 – (Vacant Land on the corner of Olde Buggy Drive and West American Drive) This TID includes the vacant land that was originally set to become Wo men’s Care of Wisconsin, and its expenditure life will expire in 2034. The value of the land has increased so this TID is no longer in the negative. Trustee Van Dyke asked if we could com bine this with TID #2, however Director Searl advised we would be better off leaving it by itself for future development. TID #5 – (Fox Crossing Creek Apartments) This TID is growing and started earning their incentive payment in 2025. The debt service on this TID is to pay for the extension of water and sewer north on Clayton Avenue and a culvert installation. There is no other infrastructure items planned here. The assessed value as of January 1, 2025 is $10,426,600.00, and due to this growth, the developer will double their incentive for next year and may receive even more of a bonus if they get all their buildings completed by 2027. 6. Motion to reconvene to the October 20, 2025 Budget Workshop which will begin at 5:00 p.m. At 9:05 p.m., MOTION: Trustee Hanson, seconded by Trustee Van Dyke, to reconvene to the October 20, 2025 Budget Workshop which will begin at 5:00 p.m. Motion carried via voice vote. Respectfully submitted, Darla M. Salinas, CMC, WCMC Village Clerk Note: These minutes are not to be considered official until acted upon at an upcoming regular meeting, therefore, are subject to revision.