MINUTES OF THE REGULAR TOWN BOARD MEETING
OF FEBRUARY 12, 2004
Chairman
Gene Ratzel called the meeting to order at 6:30PM.
Ratzel
read the February Agenda as follows:
Call
the meeting to order
Pledge
Allegiance to the Flag
Approve
the February Agenda
Approve
the Minutes of the last Regular Board Meeting
Treasurer’s
Report
Vouchers
Approval
Cemetery
Committee-Bud
Pease
Zoning-1. Flora Oberholtzer-Operate
a home-based small engine, mostly marine repair, business and boat storage;
request two on-premise signs and two off-premise signs. (Postponed from January
2004 meeting)
Appointed
Clerk and Appointed Treasurer- Set a date for voter forum on this issue
Universal
Dwelling Code-Board
to act on Department of Commerce request
Web
Site Issues-Potential
packages and costs
Fire
Department-New
member
Public
Comment Session-5 minutes for those not on the agenda
Comprehensive
Land Use Planning Committee-Updates
Centennial
Committee-Updates
BADC
(Barnes Area Development Corporation)-Updates
Board
Member Reports
Motion (Chermack / Scharlau) to approve the February agenda. Motion
carried.
Motion (Webb / Scharlau) to approve the Minutes of the Last Regular
Board Meeting. Motion carried.
Treasurer’s
Report-
Treasurer Debbie Sesko gave the Treasurer’s Report as follows:
Checking Balance from last meeting $ 208,303.78
Receipts # 15986- # 15999 $
41,785.58
Checks # 17499- #17585 $ (34,183.15)
January EFTPS (Federal Payments) $
(3,803.01)
January Interest $ 92.04
January Service Charge $ (16.30)
Voided Checks Per Board Approval 01-20-04 $ 41.35
Checking Balance $ 212,220.29
Ambulance Department Investment Fund $
1,812.17
Highway Department Sinking Fund $
70,295.83
BES Sinking Fund $
7,715.09
Park Savings $
8,214.65
Ski Trail Fund $
181.18
Parade-Event calendar Fund-Receipt # 15995 $50.00 $ 2,402.97
Balance all Accounts $ 302,842.18
Motion (Scharlau / Meinke)
to approve the Treasurer’s report as presented. Motion carried.
Motion (Chermack / Ratzel)
to approve the vouchers as presented. Motion carried.
Clerk / Correspondence-
Cemetery Committee-Bud Pease reported that
Elmer Wolter was interred on January 26th. All is OK. There was no other activity.
Pease reported that the town has 260 gravesites in the cemetery. Of these, 66
are veteran’s graves. There is supposed to be some sort of aid for perpetual
care, money from the county for these veteran’s graves. Our expenses are
usually for mowing and upkeep. Meinke said that this is a little known program,
but it would be worth looking into. The cost could be found by dividing the
number of gravesites into the costs. The clerk has a record of what is done at
the cemetery and the costs involved. Webb asked if there was a form for this.
Meinke said we could ask the county about that and that he would follow through
on it.
Ambulance Department Report- (Viola
Friermood asked to be allowed to give her report at this time)
Friermood reported that they had two runs since the
last meeting-one was to Hayward and one was to Duluth. Four EMT’s in the
Ambulance Department went to Milwaukee for the EMS Conference. Four First
Responders went to Iron River for a refresher course. There are two new First
Responders-John Prohaska and Sherrie Craft. They are both currently on the Town
of Highland Department, but want to be a part of Barnes’ department also. There
was discussion if there should be a formal acceptance of the new members as Tom
Renz does with the Fire Department new members. There would be a motion to
these appointments at the next board meeting. Friermood reported that the
Ambulance Department had purchased a new cot at the Milwaukee Conference. The
cost was $6,700.00 compared to a normal cost of about $7,500.00. They also
purchased a new Germavac (vacuum mattress) for about $500.00. The old one has
been missing for a while and efforts to locate it at area hospitals have been
unsuccessful so far. Cheryl Drallmeier donated the original one in memory of her
son. The clerk needs the value of this so she can report it to the insurance
company. The clerk will also report the loss of a radio that was dropped into
the water and a pager that was lost. There was discussion on the radio
inventory list. Gene Miller has been compiling a list off all town radios.
Viola will check the list as well for the correctness of this inventory. Some
of the radios have been given to the Fire Department from the Ambulance
Department. We need an updated inventory for insurance purposes.
Zoning- The request by Flora Oberholtzer for a
small home-based engine repair business was discussed. This was postponed from
the January meeting so that the board could question the Oberholtzers on what
they would be doing. Chermack had several question:
Mr. Oberholtzer indicated that he would be a
Certified Technician. There was discussion as to any hazardous materials that
might be kept in the building. OSHA
requirements would be observed. Ratzel asked if there would be a fence or other
barriers. There would be landscaping done to the property. There was discussion
as to neighbors and any concerns they may have. Oberholtzer said that the
nearest neighbor is 8 acres away and that Oberholtzer has obtained the house
next to this. There was a question if he had gotten a permit to have a business
there. Yes he has gotten the permit from the county. The neighbors do not have
any objections. The business will not be operational for a while, as there are
things that have to be done first. Motion (Meinke / Scharlau) to
approve the request for Oberholtzer for a small home-based, mostly marine
repair, business on West Idlewild Lake Road with the following recommendations:
1. To have the technicians send a report to the board on the business in a year
and 2. To have the board revisit the site after a year to see if everything is
going as planned. Motion carried. The board members and the
clerk signed the request and the clerk will send it back to zoning. The signs
just have to conform to the county zoning ordinances.
Appointed Clerk and Appointed Treasurer- The clerk spoke on having a
voter forum to inform the people of what this process entails and why the town
board is asking for this change and the benefits to the town. The date will be
Monday March 22, 2004. (Time change will be announced). There will be a notice
in the Shopper. The WTA will be contacted to see about a guest speaker.
This issue will be a referendum on the April 6, 2004 ballot.
Universal Dwelling Code- The board discussed the
request from the State Department of Commerce to make a decision on what it
will do on the issue of the Uniform Dwelling Code enforcement and
inspections. This is to be implemented
by September 2004. Motion (Webb / Meinke) to do nothing
The County has indicated that it cannot supply the manpower to do the
inspections and it would be expensive for the town to have its own program. The
other option is to do nothing and the state would handle the inspections with
the costs most likely going to the contractors or homeowners. The town could go
in with other towns, but there is nothing in the works at this time. Motion
carried. The clerk will return the statement to the Department of
Commerce.
Web Site Issues- Ratzel said he had met with
Gene Miller, Dave Thorson and Paul LaLiberte on this issue several weeks ago.
Miller had a proposal from his son’s business that will be looked at, but the
cost could be a factor. The site has to be user friendly as well as relatively
inexpensive. LaLiberte was going to get back to Raztel with a proposal, but so
far has not gotten back to him. Thorson is working with us and will go
whichever way we go. Ratzel said he had a list of sites to look at. Webb asked
for the list to be sent to her via e-mail. The state has a setup, but Ratzel
said it was a “cookie cutter” type. The board needs more information on this
issue soon, as many items should be available on the web site. This issue will
be postponed until there is more information. The other board members want the
e-mail list of sites also.
New Doors for Town Hall- Ratzel spoke on the need
for new interior double doors in the main hall entrance. The furnace runs
continually in the cold weather. Menard’s has doors that will do the job for
about $477.00 plus some additional hardware expenses. The door will open the
same way as it does now and will be insulated. Motion (Meinke /
Scharlau) to purchase the replacement inner doors for the town hall at about an
approximate cost of $600.00. A roll call vote was taken: Scharlau, yes;
Chermack, yes; Meinke, yes; Webb, yes and Ratzel, yes. Motion carried.
The garage crew will get the doors from Menard’s and will install them. There
was discussion on the locks on the outside door, as the lock system is not very
good. This will be discussed at a future meeting.
Fire Department- New member Sherrie Craft
was approved by the board. She will also be a First Responder on the Ambulance
Department. She is on the Town of Highland Fire Department now and has the
initial training according to Fire Chief Renz. She lives near Rocky Lake. Motion
(Webb / Scharlau) to approve Sherrie Craft as a new member of the Fire Department.
Motion carried. There was discussion that she only be issued one
radio, even though she would be on both departments.
Public Comment Session- Leslie Hall read a
letter to the board on her opposition to making County Highway N a 12-month
road. She cited pollution factors for noise and air quality, as well as an
increase in semi truck traffic with the industrial park. Meinke said that this
is why people need to come to the BADC and other meetings so that they can be
intelligently informed about these issues. The industrial site is now being
called a business and light industry park. Webb asked if the board would have
to OK any businesses that would come in. Ratzel said that it was not a
requirement. Webb thought that it should be. The park needs infrastructure and
the BADC is working to get that in place. County N is used 10 months out of the
year now and having it a 12-month road would not create that much more traffic
than it has now. There would be no increase in the width of the road according
to Dale Brevak, Bayfield County Highway Commissioner, so there would be no need
to remove trees. A turn lane is also a possibility and that would actually make
it safer. Ingemar Ekstrom spoke
on the beautification of the town in conjunction with the Centennial Celebration.
He had several questions for the board. Does the town have an ordinance to get
rid of “junk”? This is an opportunity to give attention to this. Also there
could be ways to promote competition for the beautification through the local
businesses. Webb said that we do have ordinances for public and private
property littering, but they are hard to enforce. Call the county if you have a
problem that could be a health hazard.
Webb also said that the county would be having 2 cleanup campaigns for
Waste Clean Sweep.
Comprehensive Land Use Planning Committee- Dave Pease gave an update
on the progress of the committee. He said that the Citizens Advisory meeting
would be held on February 18, 2004. The
Advisory Committee would be a sounding board. The results of the survey are
completed and will be brought to the meeting on the 18th.
Centennial Celebration Committee- The clerk reported that
the committee is going along good. Judi Scholz should be back in town for the
meeting that is to be held on Thursday the 19th. Anyone who has
information on the history of Barnes is encouraged to contact one of the
members of the committee.
BADC-Updates. Ratzel reported that nothing has happened
since the last town board meeting. There is a meeting pending for a week from
this Thursday.
Department Head Reports-
(The
Ambulance Department Report was given earlier.)
Fire Department-The Fire Department had no
report for the meeting.
Constable Report-Mike O’Keefe gave the
following report: He had 16 calls since the last meeting. There were 4 home
alarms, 4 to assist motorists, 1 deer hit and 5 ATV /snowmobile incidents.
O’Keefe mentioned that he does cabin watches for people that are gone as part
of being the constable. If you want him to check on your property, please contact
him. There was 1 lock out of a car.
Garage Report- Len Schiller gave
the following report: The crew has been doing the regular winter road
maintenance and driveway plowing since the last meeting. Nortrax had to repair
the John Deere Loader. The fuel pressure diaphragm and the fuel pump had to be
replaced. It was expensive, but it is good now. The hydraulic jack that was put in the budget was purchased and
has arrived. One of the plows had to be welded by Red Mundle. He still has a
little work to do on it, but it is usable. JayEn Communications is going to
install the base station. Arch Heating is doing the new thermostats. These are
programmable so the heat can be lowered at times such as over the weekend or at
night. Schiller had 2 requests of the board. He would like to purchase an
industrial battery charger. The one that the department has now is like a
residential one like
the one you would have at home. It isn’t powerful
enough for the shop’s uses. The cost on this would be between $500.00 and
$550.00. He also would like to purchase a new pressure washer. The one that the
Fire Department has isn’t a heavy duty one and can’t be used for the big
equipment at the garage. This would run between $500.00 to $600.00. Schiller
said that there would be money left in the budget, as the cost of the
thermostats was not as much as planned and the fan money was still available.
Webb said that the figures would have to be looked at to see what is left in
the budget. DJ&J Services would have definite figures on it. The town needs
more salt and sand mixture. It is just about gone. The supplies are low in the
area, but Schiller is looking to see what he can get. There was discussion on
putting more sand or salt and sand mix on the bad areas of town roads to help
prevent accidents. Webb said that this is a safety issue. There have been
complaints on the slippery road conditions. The graders could plow closer to
the surface, but that would wear out the blades at a fast rate and they are
expensive. The loader and truck cannot do the job that the graders can. The
first storm left icing on the roadway that is still there. Schiller said that the crew could do a better
job on the roads if they didn’t have to bother with the driveways. Meinke said
that more people should go to the road seminars to see how to take care of the
roads. We are doing a pretty good job compared to some other towns though. He
said that this had been an unusual winter. Chermack said that she had received
compliments on 2 roads in town-Witch’s Bay Road and Lake Road. The roads have
never been done as good as they have been done this year. Chermack also asked
about the pump house problem that was brought up at last month’s meeting.
Schiller said that it has been taken care of. The cost should be split between
the recreation and fire departments. The heat was evidently never turned on
after the summer. Since Henry was gone, no one thought about it. Schiller said
he would keep an eye on it. The town has not gotten the bill for this repair
work yet. The pump house building repair issues will have to be taken up at
another time.
Board Member Reports-Dixie Chermack-Chermack
asked about the DSL line and if it had been installed. Webb said that she had
looked at our lines into the town to see where we could cut some of them. There
was some discussion on the technical aspects of the DSL between Webb and
Ratzel. Webb still has to do some investigating. There was a discussion on the
various costs involved. It might be better to go with a DSL line in the garage
also as it is site specific. Webb said that we have 10 numbers into the town
now. The 2300 and 2400 for the Ambulance will go away after 911 comes in this
summer. Webb said that one of the fax lines could be a team line that costs
$2.50 a month-it would have a distinctive ring. Webb said that we could have
the other unneeded lines taken off. It would cost $190.90 to get DSL in two
spots, but by disconnecting those other lines, it would be getting rid of
$90.00 or a difference of $15.00 more. Ratzel said that this was after the
initial installation costs. Webb said she would have to some refiguring before
a decision could be made. This will be
on the March agenda. The clerk noted that DSL would be required for the new
Voter Registration. Chermack said she had contacted the Sawyer County Sheriff’s
Department about their used squad cars to see if we could get one for the
constable. Their department said that they use some of the vehicles as
trade-ins, some they sell outright and some of the cars will be auctioned off
come August or September. Chermack noted the letter that was received by all of
the board members from Marilee Ludgatis in response to the survey. Chermack
said that Marilee had some very good points in the letter. The town should be
more active. The businesses should work together. The town could have a
community Christmas tree with a lighting ceremony and it could beautify the
area. Chermack said that this is now a good time to promote the town with the
upcoming Centennial Celebration. There
could be banners and flowers planted. The businesses could help in this. The
town could approach the Garden Club to see if they could help in this effort. The
board could do its share. This will be deferred to a warmer time. We need to
get some volunteers. Chermack said the some of CLUP Citizens Advisory Board
could take up this cause. Is the town board going to its part, at least for the
banners? We need to work together on this. Webb said that Chermack should be on
a committee to do this. The Centennial Committee could be involved. Meinke said
that there is money set aside for things like this. Scharlau said that the
Conservation Club might be a source of help.
Dave Scharlau- Scharlau reported on the
cost of a 40- yard, 20’ open top roll off, if we go with Bob Walters for our
scrap. This would be $3,145.00 from Nedlund Corporation out of Ridgeland, WI.
We have to determine if this is a good deal or not. It isn’t in the budget
anyway.
Chris Webb- Webb had 2 small items. The
Town Board of Barnes will be invited to a group town meeting with the Towns of
Drummond, Cable, Grandview and Namekagon. They get together every three months
or so to talk about things they can do together and what they could share costs
on-sharing ideas on what each of them do. Our board has been invited in the
past, but did not attend. She would like to see the town participate in this
meeting to see how we could share services, etc. Webb said that she had taken
the ordinances home after the meeting on Monday and had sorted them out
somewhat. We need to sort and label under categories. In looking at what other
towns did, the way to go is to have chapters and then number the ordinances in
those chapters. We need to meet with the attorney on the ordinances. We need to
consolidate some of them and repeal others. Webb said that we might end up with
23 ordinances from the 119 that we started with. Some need updating and
combining. Webb will e-mail the results to the other board members.
Jack Meinke-Meinke said he was looking
into the cutting of the town timber. He wants to go over the parcels with Gene.
A lot of the parcels had been logged off about 6 years ago or so. There are
some parcels left that have to be looked at. Dick Smith said that he would be
willing to go over this with Meinke. If there are areas that need to cut, they
could be done when Dick gets his cut. Meinke did not know what the storm
damaged areas would be like as far as values. Other than that he had nothing
else to add except to thank everyone remembering the meeting date change and
coming out.
Motion (Scharlau / Webb) to
adjourn the meeting. Motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 8:50PM
Members of the board in attendance: Chairman Gene
Ratzel, Supervisors Chris Webb, Jack Meinke, Dave Scharlau and Dixie Chermack.
Also present were the Treasurer Debbie Sesko and Clerk Lu Peet.
Department and Committee heads present were
Ambulance Director Viola Friermood, Constable Mike O’Keefe, Cemetery Sexton Bud
Pease, Garage Foreman Len Schiller and CLUPC Chairman Dave Pease.
Absent: Fire Chief Tom Renz (Work)
Members of the community present: Rick Oberholtzer,
Donna S. Porter, Lee Kuehling, Alice Kuehling, Gerald Gustafson, Marcia
Wellnitz, Leigh Jordahl, Leslie Hall, Ingemar Ekstrom and Dick Collyard. There
may have been others in attendance not noted or signed in.
Respectfully submitted,
Lucille J. Peet
Barnes Town Clerk
Dated this 16th day of February 2004