City Council — Minutes

Common Council Minutes – January 21, 2026 Clerk’s Initials _________ CITY OF SHULLSBURG, WISCONSIN COMMON COUNCIL MINUTES JANUARY 21, 2026 A regular meeting of the Common Council of the City of Shullsburg was held January 21, 2026 in the Community Room of the Shullsburg Community Townsend Center, 190 N. Judgement Street, Shullsburg, Wisconsin. Mayor Verne Jackson called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. Notice of the meeting was posted at the Townsend Center, Shullsburg Post Office and Turpin’s Home Town Grocery. Roll Call- Duane Wedige, Emmett Reilly, Cheryl Mulcahy, Dan Morrissey - Present. Others present- Kris Vaassen, Paul Ranum, Cassidy Mackey, Cody Hoppenjan, Jeff Williams, and Janelle Schumacher. Pledge of Allegiance Approval of Minutes – Motion by Reilly second by Wedige to approve the minutes of the December 17, 2025 Council Meeting. All aye, motion carried. Committee Reports – None given. Police Report – A report had been emailed, and there were no further questions. Approve Bills –Motion by Reilly second by Morrissey to approve the bills for General, Water, Sewer, Electric, Pool, Museum, Library & TIF Funds. All aye, motion carried. Public Comment – None EMC Insurance Renewal for Property and Inland Marine – Cody Hoppenjan from Tricor Insurance reviewed insurance policy information with the Council, noting policy premiums are down about 5%. He also noted that property deductibles are automatically increasing to $5000 for all policies; he then discussed roof system coverage to pay actual cash value for any roof over 15 years old. Hoppenjan also discussed the option of adding a builder’s risk policy for Badger Park construction when it begins. Motion by Morrissey second by Mulcahy to approve the EMC Insurance renewal for property and inland marine insurance. All aye, motion carried. Insurance Coverage for Badger Park Use – Hoppenjan further addressed the Council regarding insurance coverage for Badger Park Use by groups and organizations who use the park for organized activities. Hoppenjan stated the best practice would be to ask for a certificate of insurance from groups, if available. Bids for Mine & Museum Demolition – Mayor Jackson read three bids that were received to demolish the Badger Mine & Museum building. The first was from Matt Hall for $19,500, plus an additional $10,000 for possible removal of concrete slab; the second was from Balestrieri Environmental for $36,000 and the third was from MZ Construction for $30,000. Morrissey made the suggestion of repurposing the building in a new location for cold storage for utility and public works purposes. He suggested they reject the bids and look further into that option. Motion by Wedige second by Morrissey to reject all submitted bids. All aye, motion carried. Sips and Snacks Special Event Application and Temporary “Class B” Wine License – Motion by Reilly second by Mulcahy to approve the Sips and Snacks Special Event Application and Temporary “Class B” Wine License for event on March 7, 2026 submitted by Advance Shullsburg. All aye, motion carried. Fair Housing Proclamation – Mayor Jackson read the proclamation declaring the week of January 19-24, 2026 as Fair Housing Week, encouraging all housing providers to support and affirm their commitment to Fair Housing. Motion by Morrissey second by Reilly to approve the Fair Housing Proclamation as read. All aye, motion carried. PILOT Agreement with Lafayette County Housing Authority – Reilly introduced the new Payment In Lieu of Taxes agreement between the City of Shullsburg and LCHA for the Silver Lane Apartments, noting a substantial increase in the payment amount of $1,751.20, previously $880, per year. Motion by Reilly second by Wedige to approve the PILOT agreement the Lafayette County Housing Authority for a period of two years, beginning January 1, 2026. All aye, motion carried. Common Council Minutes – January 21, 2026 Clerk’s Initials _________ Electric Utility Extension from Tie Yard Lot to Union Street – The Council discussed the Electric Utility work that is planned to replace infrastructure around and through the tie yard parking lot in 2026. There is cost benefit to also extending the service underground to Union Street while the parking lot project is being done. Jackson confirmed that this was discussed in the Electric Utility committee meeting, who is recommending approval from the City Council to spend approximately $20,000 more than what was previously planned for the project in order to have service extended to Union Street. Motion by Morrissey second by Reilly to approve the extension of electric utility service underground to Union Street. All aye, motion carried. Badger Park Improvements Plan & Fundraising Campaign – The Council briefly discussed the status of the fundraising campaign, noting the 100 Extraordinary Women event was successful; they also discussed publicity and the possibility of another press release with an update regarding the 100 Extraordinary Women and the Museum building project. No action taken. Municipal Fee Schedule – The Council reviewed the Municipal Fee Schedule and discussed the addition of a non-sufficient fund fee. Clerk Schumacher noted that the new online payment processing company would charge a $15.00 fee for chargebacks and $2.50 fee per ACH returns, also commenting that it takes employee time to manage the non-sufficient fund transactions. Mulcahy suggested adding a $20.00 non-sufficient fund fee to the Municipal Fee Schedule. Motion by Mulcahy second by Wedige to approve the Municipal Fee Schedule with the addition of a $20.00 non-sufficient fund fee. All aye, motion carried. Digital Timeclock System – The Council briefly discussed digital timeclock systems and the pros and cons of implementing for seasonal employees. Clerk Schumacher will look into options. IT Services Agreement – The Council briefly discussed the IT Services agreement that is up for renewal. They discussed getting estimates from other companies with municipal and government experience. No action taken. Clerk/Treasurer Report – The reports were emailed and there were no questions. Schumacher will be attending an economic development roundtable meeting on February 5th in Argyle, hosted by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation. Closed Session – At 7:35 p.m. a motion was made by Wedige second by Reilly to convene into closed session. Roll Call - Morrissey-yes, Wedige-yes, Reilly-yes, Jackson-yes, Mulcahy-yes. Motion carried. Closed Session is Pursuant to Wis. Stat 19.85 (1)(c) for the Purpose of Considering Employment, Promotion, Compensation or Performance Evaluation Data of any Public Employee over which the Governmental Body has Jurisdiction or Exercises Responsibility- Discussion on 2026 Seasonal Employment Positions. Open Session – At 7:45 p.m. a motion was made by Wedige second by Mulcahy to reconvene into open session. Roll Call- Morrissey-yes, Wedige-yes, Reilly-yes, Jackson-yes, Mulcahy- yes. Motion carried. Action on Closed Session – Motion by Reilly second by Wedige to change the Park Director position to a non-seasonal position and hire Dave Turpin as the Park Director. All aye, motion carried. Closed Session – At 7:45 p.m. a motion was made by Reilly second by Mulcahy to convene into closed session. Roll Call - Morrissey-yes, Wedige-yes, Reilly-yes, Jackson-yes, Mulcahy-yes. Motion carried. Closed Session is Pursuant to Wis. Stat 19.85 (1)(e) for the Deliberating or negotiating the purchasing of public properties, the investing of public funds, or conducting other specified public business, whenever competitive or bargaining reasons require a closed session: Consideration of purchase of property for Industrial Park. Open Session – At 7:48 p.m. a motion was made by Reilly second by Mulcahy to reconvene into open session. Roll Call- Morrissey-yes, Wedige-yes, Reilly-yes, Jackson-yes, Mulcahy- yes. Motion carried. Action on Closed Session – Motion by Reilly second by Wedige to move forward with the purchase of .32 acres from Diedrich Farms – ILWI LLC for the purpose of extending the Industrial Park property. All aye, motion carried. At 7:49 p.m. a motion was made by Wedige second by Mulcahy to adjourn. All aye, motion carried. Janelle Schumacher Clerk/Treasurer Common Council Minutes – January 21, 2026 Clerk’s Initials _________