Monthly Meeting Minutes I May 8th, 2023

The monthly meeting of the Town Board of the Town of Cedar Lake met at the Cedar Lake Town Hall in Mikana on Monday, May 8, 2023 at 6:30 PM. Present was Ken Leners, Chairman, Supervisor Kory Weiss, Clerk Maryhelen Drew and Treasurer Gladys Roux.  Also 45 other people.

The meeting began with the Pledge of Allegiance. Next the minutes from the previous meeting were read. Kory made the motion to approve the minutes as read. This was seconded by Ken.

Public input will be limited to 3 minutes per person. Norma Jankowski had not been aware of minutes from the previous meeting regarding a committee setup to inspect property belonging to Gerry Frazier. She was wondering what process she would need to follow to get a junk yard cleaned up. Ken responded that the first step is to notify Barron Co. Zoning. Norma said that this property is at the corner of Main St. and 26 13/16 St. She was instructed to contact zoning where they will ask some questions. The town ordinance is much stricter but would like the county to look at it first.

Terry Steiren, 28 11/16 St., which is the cutoff to Tagalong Golf Course, appeared to ask if it would be possible due to much traffic ,to get some slow signs. There is a lot of traffic which creates a hazard as well as dust. Kory will talk with Scott to see what signs are in the shop. You would be surprised how many signs are installed, people do not read them.

Lois Gabriel spoke about a lot of issues. She is not here to argue, complain or point fingers. She was surprised by the issues at the Annual Meeting. She was disgusted with the total disrespect of the dressing down of Tony, Gladys and Maryhelen. She feels that they all do a great job. Most of us have no idea of the job of the board members. None of us should stand and attack only shows complete ignorance. This only helped to dig the wedge in deeper. We need to go forward as a community, we need to come together to overcome the last year. She would like all issues in the Town to be transparent. She is very appreciative of Mr. Leners, Tony and Kory, supervisors, Gladys and Maryhelen who have tackled and taken control of spending. This whole board works very hard in the town with too many numerous to even mention. We are a diverse community with people from all walks of life. All need to work together to make a place here where people won’t want to leave.

Ken that he would address one thing from these comments. He has allowed a lot of privileges which are not mandated as chairman. He will determine what will go on the agenda because it is out of control. Public input is also not mandated, he will not allow any bitchfest just like the last two years at the Annual Meeting.

Next is the financial report by Gladys. All Bank accounts balance with the clerk’s accounts.

Kory spoke about last month’s road issues. NO SNOW!  Scott is working on the gravel roads. Weight limits were lifted today except for Swamp Rd. It would take many man hours to fix if people don’t stay off it for now. If I have to, I will notify the Sheriff’s Dept. to step in. If there is any garbage on Swamp Rd. This will be reported to the Sheriff’s Dept. as well.

It seems that there have been some abusers of the brush pile. There have been unwanted materials dumped there. It would not be good to have to lock and unlock the gate. Nothing except 8 inches or smaller, brush, grass clippings.

Tom Goodwin asked if Xcel Energy would be back to clean up the issues created by their work. Scott will take care of this ASAP. He will let Kory know what cleanup is needed.

Barb Loring spoke about the damage to the blacktop where the wires had gone down on East Lake Shore Dr. Kory said that the claim has been filed with Xcel Energy. The pavement will need to be sawed/cut and replaced with blacktop like when culverts are installed. Ultimately, Xcel Energy is responsible for this.

Ken spoke about there being a few volunteers interested in cleanup junk and trash. If anyone else is interested, please contact him so that he is able to set up a schedule.

Next is the report from Mike Hessling for the Birchwood Four Corners Emergency Services Dist. The fire dept had 4 calls in the month of March while the ambulance had 18 calls in March. The auxiliary is working on the final preparations for the Jon Sleik 2nd Annual Memorial Golf Tournament that is scheduled for May 21st. There were also seven other events held during the last month.

The building is progressing toward final items to be completed. The budget for the building shows that 80.8% of the budget has been spent. The committees have looked at long term capital plans for the Fire and Ambulance Depts. The committee will be addressing any issues. There is an election for officers to be held on May 11, 2023. Next meeting will be attended by Romaine Quinn, James Small (Wi-Rural Health) and Don Krupa (WI-DHS) as speakers.

Ken asked if the committee has a public info officer? Mike said that at this time, the fire chief and ambulance director are the public info officers.

Ken thanked Mike for a great job.

Next on the agenda Harold & Anita Nevin, 2583 24 ¼ -27 ¾ St. appeared to request a variance to build a garage which would be above the maximum height by county zoning ordinance. Mr. Nevin explained the building and where it would be situated on the lot. As the Board had no objections to this, the form was signed by Ken.

Next on the agenda was a committee to investigate funding sources for special projects. Mary Hele will address this. She has investigated a source called Focus on Energy offered through Xcel Energy. A person would come out and survey all buildings and suggest ways to save energy. Tom Goodwin said that his brother-in-law works with municipalities for this and says there are many dollars available for Focus on Energy. Kory has worked with this committee at the resort. Mary is volunteering to guide this process and would like volunteers to work with her. A committee will be appointed at the June meeting.

Ken thanked Tony Wolff for his 6 years of service & sacrifice to the town as a supervisor. To appoint a person to this vacancy,Ken had  contacted the WTA for the information to proceed. The vote will be made by three persons, chairman, remaining supervisor and the clerk. As this does not meet the rules for a closed session, both candidates will be interviewed in front of all individuals present.

When Tony resigned, the position did not automatically go to the other person who ran at election for the position. There are two applicants which have been received. One was from Jim Ludwig and the other from Mary Hele. Both applicants had sent cover letters to express interest in this position. Several questions were asked of both applicants. Such as “What motivated you to apply for the position?”  “Any previous town board experience?” “Are you away for any part of the year?” It was commented that if a board member is not present at the meeting, they are not allowed to vote on an issue. This would need to be clarified. Much discussion followed with comments made from Ken and Kory regarding emails received and Mary’s actions during the election campaign.

Kory mentioned that we are all in a hard spot and see no reason either one would not be a good asset to the town. It is not necessarily a deal breaker to have experience. This decision will be made by three people, not just him. Maryhelen mentioned also that this is a very hard decision to make.

At the end of the discussion, Ken made the motion to appoint Mary Hele to the Supervisor 1 vacancy. Kory seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Ken, yes: Kory, yes: Maryhelen, no.

At this point Ken gave the oath of office to Mary Hele.

Kory did mention that the Board did not have to make this decision at this time. It could have been at the next election. As the next election would not be until Feb. 2024, the Board felt it was better to appoint at this time.

( Recorder quit)

The date for the white goods pickup is scheduled for June 17, 2023 from 10-2 at the shop at no charge. This would be for property owners in town. Do not need to show proof of residency, as it has not been done in the past. This is much better than having Scott pick up illegally dumped items on the Swamp Rd. or other places. If a person is not able to make those arrangements, please call Kory or Scott to arrange a time.

Next on the agenda was the application received from Stout’s Island for the appointment of a new agent for the liquor license, Christopher Johns. After a brief discussion, the appointment was granted. This is good until June 30, 2023.

Next on the agenda was discussion Gary Garbe wanted to discuss with the Board regarding the July 4th parade. The list is as follows: closure of Swamp R., Sheriff’s assistance, no parking/caution tape, use of Joel Wosepka park for fireworks, use of barricades , Scott to mow for parking and town hall for bake sale.  Also, for the Town to pay the insurance for the parade.

Kory is confused about the no parking signs from last year. He is wondering what the parade committee is suggesting, orange cones? Kory will get with Gary and Tom in regard to this issue.

Kory was wondering if Tony would continue working with the fireworks. Not sure where this was left.

Under correspondence the county has granted the Timmerman/ Goodpaster special exception for the property at 2673

27th St Mikana. They continue to work with the Barron Co. Health and Human Services and vendors.

A letter was received from WisDot in regard to the blinking lights on Hwy. 48. It seems that there is not an application on file at the state. Had looked in all the files, not finding one from the initial time. Kory will talk with Barron Co. Hwy. Dept. as well as WisDot.

Ken made the motion to pay the bills and adjourn the meeting. Mary seconded the motion and all approved. (8:02)

This notice was posted at Cedar Lake Grill, Red Cedar Country Store, Town Hall, Bear Trap, Chronotype, Website,LLBC.