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Price County Highway & Transportation Committee Minutes Date: May 6, 2026 Time: 8:30 a.m. Place: Courthouse County Board Room 101; 126 Cherry St; Phillips, WI 54555 Call to Order: Meeting called to order at 8:30 a.m. by Brian Ernst, County Board Chairperson. Roll Call Members Present: Joe Baratka, Doug Erickson, Larry Palecek, Jordan Spacek, Jeff Ulrich Also Present : Michael Brill, County Airport Manager; Brian Ernst, County Board Chairperson; Paula Houdek, County Supervisor; Roger Petrick, County Highway Commissioner; Nick Trimner, County Administrator Items for Discussion and Possible Action 1. Elect Chairperson: County Chairperson Ernst called for nominations a total of three times. Baratka nominated Palecek for Chairperson of the Committee. Spacek nominated Baratka for Chairperson of the Committee, and he respectfully declined. Motion Baratka/Spacek to close nominations and cast a unanimous ballot for Larry Palecek as for Price County Highway and Transportation Committee Chairperson. Motion carried. *Note: Chairperson Palecek chaired the remainder of the meeting at this point. 2. Elect Vice Chairperson : Palecek called for nominations a total of three times. Erickson nominated Spacek for Vice Chairperson of the Committee. Motion Ulrich/Erickson to close nominations and cast a unanimous ballot for Jordan Spacek for Price County Highway and Transportation Committee Vice Chairperson. Motion carried. 3. Public Comment: None. Communications: Baratka noted he needed to leave the meeting if it went past 10:00 a.m. A complaint was reported about unsafe construction crew practices on Couty Road F near State Highway 13. It is a city project, but it was still reported as a topic of concern to the Committee and the County Commissioner. 4. Minutes from March 4, 2026, Meeting: Motion Spacek/Erickson to approve the March 4, 2026, meeting minutes. Motion carried. 5. Highway Financial Report: The annual Highway Department financial audit is complete, and a copy was handed out to the committee members. single audit will be performed in April and May of 2026 and is estimated to be closed by mid- summer. Equipment losses and gains spreadsheets and the financial report were presented to the Committee and they are on file. Every year, the board reviews the list of equipment to determine what to keep, sell, or let go. 6. State Highway 70: The County Highway Department did a great job patching State Highway 70 for the time being, and the Department of Transportation posted it at 40 tons. Logging trucks are still allowed through. DOT is slated to repair Hwy 70 in July, 2026, with emergency funds. 7. Town of Eisenstein Bridge and Culvert Aid: The U.S. Forest Service will contribute $31,000, which is half of the total request amount. A flow chart for towns and villages to request bridge and culvert aid was presented and is on file. The process for requests was discussed. Motion Spacek/Ulrich to approve the Town of Eisenstein Bridge and Culvert Aid request and forward it to the Executive Committee for approval. Motion carried. 8. County Projects: County Road D and parts of County Road H (from D to Sheep Ranch Road) are slated for construction this season. There will be a sweeping curve added to a portion of D. The County may assist Lincoln County with a project on County Road YY, at no cost to the County which w ill be reimbursed for it. Maintenance to roads will include crack filling, mowing, and other general maintenance. 9. Department Reports a. Commissioner: Highway Commissioner Petrick reported keeping current on daily operations. Six applications for townships were submitted to the local small structure program, and there’s a possibility of receiving project funding; however, the applications show there is a need in the future for the projects. County Airport Manager Brill attended a two-day Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) Bureau of Aeronautics (BOA) seminar in Stevens Point. Karla Knorr is the new BOA Director in the Division of Transportatio n Investment Management (DTIM). b. Airport i. Loader: Discussion on purchasing a two-year, five-year or seven- year extended warranty for the new loader at the County Airport. Motion Spacek/Erickson to purchase a warranty for seven (7) years for $4,880 on the new loader at the airport. Discussion held. Motion carried. ii. T-Hangers and Taxi Lane: Construction is slated to take place on the T-Hangars and Taxi Lane project in 2027. Market & Johnson won the T-hangar bid at $1,338,292, and Taxi Lane bid at $199,868.15. They came in at $249,108 less for the the T -Hangar estimate by Becker-Hoppee; and at $11,320.20 less than the Taxi Lane estimate, also done by Becker-Hoppee. iii. Fuel Card Policy / Charge Policy: A Fuel Card Policy / Charge Policy for purchasing airport fuel at a discounted price, was presented and is on file. Discussion about the terms and additions were made to the policy. Motion Baratka/ Spacek to recommend the creation of the P rice County Airport Fuel Policy, to send it to the Executive Committee, and recommend it would go into effect once it passes County Board approval; with the addition made to the policy stating that no fuel or product may be added to an account until the bill (balance) is paid in full. Motion carried. c. Dams: The general status of dams is they are in good condition overall and minor repairs and maintenance will be done due to wear over the winter months. d. Highway Crew: The Highway Crew has been cleaning bridges, repairing both state and county signs due to winter wear; some shoulder work; and patched State Highway 70. e. Fleet and Facilitie s: The department received a new Chevy 3500 one- ton Foreman Pickup Truck. Plows were converted to summer use, and state trucks will be prepared for summer in mid-May, maybe earlier. At the April auction, a single axle truck was sold along with other equipment and miscellaneous items. Fleet and Facilities Superintendent Dan Heenan put in his resignation, and the department is seeking to fill the vacancy. Two new freight liners were received. Both graders are ready for summer use. Electrical upgrades were made to f iber power, and power was added to the sand shed. 10. Vouchers: Motion Spacek/Erickson to accept the Highway & Transportation vouchers as presented in the amount of $103,223.90 for March, 2026; and $102,833.22 for April, 2026. Motion carried. 11. Set Next Meeting Date: June 3, 2026 12. Adjourn: Meeting adjourned at 9:32 a.m. by Larry Palecek, Committee Chairperson. Respectfully Submitted by Meredith Hueckman, County Clerk