Annual Town Meeting — Minutes

MINUTES TOWN OF PLOVER ANNUAL MEETING TOWN HALL – 5081 HOOVER AVENUE SOUTH APRIL 15, 2025 1. CALL TO ORDER: Chairman James Garbe called the annual meeting of the Town of Plover to order at 6:00 PM with the Pledge of Allegiance. Also present were Supervisors Roger Bentley, Joseph Firkus Jr., Richard Pingel, and Timothy Tuttle; Clerk/Treasurer Patricia Weller; Superintendent of Highways William Honaker; Town of Plover residents Denice Bentley, Todd Booth, Priscilla Garbe, Susan Groom, Donald Jochman, Michael Schoenholz, Debra Sniadajewski, William Sniadajewski, and Simone Vanden Heuvel; District 19 Portage County Board Supervisor Amberle Schwartz; and Denise Blader of Best Western Plover. 2. 2024 ANNUAL TOWN MEETING MINUTES: Debra Sniadajewski made the motion to approve the minutes of the April 16, 2024, annual meeting of the Town of Plover as provided. Todd Booth seconded the motion, the question was called, and the motion carried with a voice vote. 3. SPECIAL TOWN MEETING MINUTES – 11/20/2024: Debra Sniadajewski made the motion to approve the minutes of the November 20, 2024, Town of Plover special elector meeting as provided. Denice Bentley seconded the motion, the question was called, and the motion carried with a voice vote. 4. REPORT ON 2024 FINANCIAL AUDIT: Chairman Garbe shared that the 2024 audit has been completed; he summarized highlights and indicated that the Town of Plover remains financially strong. Auditor David Minch of KerberRose S.C. will deliver the final report and answer questions at a future town board meeting. 5. STATUS OF RAILROAD COMMISSIONER’S INVESTIGATION OF MEEHAN DRIVE RAILROAD CROSSING CLOSURE: In August 2024, the Town of Plover was formally notified by the Office of the Commissioner of Railroads of its investigation to consider the potential closure of the Meehan Drive railroad crossing along with the adequacy of warning devices at the Hayes Avenue and County Road F railroad crossings. Since then, District 24 Wisconsin State Senator Patrick Testin has written a letter to the Office of the Commissioner of Railroads to advocate for keeping the Meehan Drive crossing open, Town of Plover’s Attorney Shane VanderWaal of VanderWaal Law, S.C., and counsel for Wisconsin Central Ltd. have filed Notices of Appearance with the Office of the Commissioner of Railroads, Portage County and the Town of Plover have corrected safety and non-compliance crossing issues, and the Town of Plover has compiled and submitted daily traffic counts for the Hayes Avenue and Meehan Drive crossings. Chairman Garbe explained how to access documents in the docket from the Town of Plover website. 6. ROADWORK PLANS FOR 2025 SEASON: Chairman Garbe presented an overview of roadwork plans for 2025. Bids came in under budget for approximately six and two-tenths miles of chip sealing on Birch Drive, Ford Court, Hoover Avenue South, Lincoln Avenue, Poplar Drive, Prairie Drive, and Taft Avenue; work was awarded to Fahrner Asphalt Sealers, LLC. Bids also came in under budget for asphalt paving on Cheryl’s Drive, Park Drive, Prairie Drive, River Drive, and River Heights Court; work was awarded to American Asphalt of Wisconsin. Additional chip sealing on Gil’s Drive and Old So-White Road will be considered, and asphalt paving on Cheryl’s Drive will be reconsidered. Options for budgeted gravel overlay funds include Buena Vista Drive, Kennedy Avenue, and Prairie Drive. Possible projects on Bee’s Lane, Kennedy Avenue, and Pierce Avenue may be candidates for grant programs. Improvements on shared roads will depend on cooperation from other municipalities. 7. PORTAGE SOLAR CONSTRUCTION UPDATE: Chairman Garbe provided updates on construction plans, authorized road usage and traffic control signage, driveway permitting and fire numbers for gates, and sand from solar farm fields blowing onto roads and filling in ditches. 8. ANY OTHER BUSINESS TO BE CONDUCTED UNDER STATE STATUTES: No other business was conducted. 9. SCHEDULING OF 2026 ANNUAL TOWN MEETING: Priscilla Garbe made the motion to schedule the next annual meeting for Tuesday, April 21, 2026, at 6:00 PM at the Town of Plover Town Hall. Joseph Firkus Jr. seconded the motion, the question was called, and the motion carried with a voice vote. 10. ADJOURNMENT: Denice Bentley made the motion to adjourn the annual meeting at 6:49 PM. William Sniadajewski seconded the motion, the question was called, and the motion carried with a voice vote. Respectfully Submitted By: Patricia Weller, Clerk/Treasurer Approved: 04/21/26