August 2022

TOWN OF PORT EDWARDS MONTHLY BOARD MEETING MINUTES Date: August 15th, 2022 Call to Order: Chairman Randy Moody called the Town Board Meeting to order at 6:01 p.m. in the Town Hall. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited to begin the meeting. Meeting Certification: This meeting has been properly posted (on the Town’s three posting boards, and on the Town Hall door) as well as published on our website to notify the public of date, place, time, and agenda. Attendance: Chairman Randy Moody, Supervisors Tim Schmidt and Jeff O’Donnell, Treasurer Kathy Reese, Clerk Michelle Sorenson, and Road Superintendent Brian Krotzman. There were also four people present from the public. Approval of minutes from July 18th, 2022, Town Board Meeting: Clerk presented the minutes from the July meeting. The minutes looked accurate and acceptable. Motion was made by Schmidt and seconded by O’Donnell to accept the minutes as printed. Motion carried. Agenda: Approve the agenda Approve previous meetings’ minutes Approve payment of bills Treasurer and Clerk’s monthly reports Set date for next month’s board meeting Review correspondence New business: Discuss and act on replacing the Town pressure washer, approve addition operator license applications for Switched II, review the list of active conditional use permits within the Town Old business: Kellnhofer update Public input Adjourn Motion was made by O’Donnell and seconded by Schmidt to approve the agenda. Motion carried. Bills: Schmidt made a motion to approve payment of the town bills listed by the Clerk. Motion was seconded by O’Donnell and the motion carried. Total disbursements for the month of July were $43,210.46 with total revenues being $43,920.86. Treasurer and Clerk Financial Reports: The Treasurer and Clerk reports were reviewed by the Board. All reports balance. Total Town money as of July 31st, 2022, is $309,546.34. O’Donnell made a motion to accept the reports as delivered. Schmidt seconded said motion. Motion carried. Correspondence: The Town is supposed to be getting a quote from the County for putting a ‘breaker run’ on Batterman Road from the end of the black top to the first bridge. Also noted was that the County will begin pulling up the shoulders on County Highway G from Highway 54 to Highway 173. 1 The Clerk received a fire call report from Nekoosa Fire Department. They responded to a fire in the attic of the house owned by M. Brostowitz on County Highway G. The fire was started by lightening. The Board instructed the Clerk to bill Mr. Brostowitz $1,000 as allowed by the Town Fire Call Ordinance. The Clerk also received a check from the City of Wisconsin Rapids for $100. This was paying $10/call for each time our first responders answered a call from January through June. The check was given to the First Responders representatives that attended tonight’s meeting. New Business: Highway Superintendent Report: Krotzman informed the Board he doesn’t need to take advantage of the Town’s cell phones. Himself and the assistants all have their own set up so the Town could cancel the plan with U.S. Cellular if they see fit. The Board requested the plan to be cancelled. The Clerk will call U.S. Cellular. Krotzman also suggested the Board consider getting rid of the old outhouse that sits between the shop and the Town Hall. The Board agreed that was a good idea and will come up with a plan for its removal. Town Pressure Washer: Moody reported that the wand on the current pressure washer doesn’t work. The back pack blower and chainsaw have been purchased. O’Donnell made a motion to allow a limit of $350 to be used to purchase a new pressure washer for the shop. Schmidt seconded the motion and the motion carried. O’Donnell also informed the Board that ARPA requirements are in flux again. Clerk will make notes on her reports of any money that is spent from the ARPA funds. Operator Licenses: The Switched II, Inc. made application for three new bartenders. J. Kells, R. VanLysal, and A. Nellessen all provided the proper application and completion of training certificate and the tavern enclosed a check covering the license fee. O’Donnell made a motion to approve the operator license applications. Schmidt seconded the motion and the motion carried. Conditional Use Permits: The Clerk provided the Board with a current list of conditional use permits that are held within the Township. The Board informed the Clerk that Dan Greenwood is no longer doing fish taxidermy and Scott Marty has retired from custom meat processing. Those two will be moved to the Non-Active Conditional Use Permits list. Schmidt made a motion to approve the remaining active conditional use permits for another year and O’Donnell seconded. All were in favor and the motion carried. Old Business: Kellnhofer: The Board needs to schedule a meeting with Dan Kellnhofer in the near future. Fire Signs: A small update on the replacement of the Town’s fire signs was given. The replacements should be starting within a week or two because the company making the signs is behind. Public input: Present were Town of Port Edwards First Responders Mark Meyers and Dan Goodness. They asked if the Town Board has given any more consideration to funding their organization. They would like to see a line item added to the Town’s budget for sustainability. This would then possibly allow for them to pay per diems for responding to calls etc. Then, again the question is raised as to whether the First Responders would be considered 2 employees of the Town. Meyers commented the First Responders were under the impression they have always been part of the Town of Port Edwards municipality and are still using the Town’s tax-exempt number. The Clerk’s recollection of the very beginning (the current Clerk was the Town Treasurer at that time) was that the Town agreed to let the group use the Town’s tax-exempt number to enable them to apply for grants until they acquired their own tax-exempt status. The Board will discuss the First Responders request in more detail during budget time. Then Meyers and Goodness asked about the security of the Town Community Center. The group is also looking for a place to store their supplies. Krotzman will show them the Community building to see if that would work. They would need to provide metal cabinets to secure their supplies from mice that visit the Community Center from time to time. Next Scheduled Board Meeting: The next regularly scheduled Town Board Meeting is set for Monday, September 12th, 2022, at 6 p.m. The meeting will be conducted at the Port Edwards Town Hall. Adjourn: Being no other business to conduct, O’Donnell made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 7:21p.m. and Schmidt seconded. All were in favor and the motion carried. Respectfully submitted, Michelle Sorenson, Clerk 3