MINUTES OF THE REGULAR TOWN BOARD
MEETING
OF JUNE 15, 2004
Chairman Gene Ratzel called
the meeting to order at 6:30PM.
The Pledge of Allegiance was
said.
Chairman Ratzel read the
Amended June Agenda as follows:
Amended Agenda
Call the Meeting to Order
Pledge Allegiance to the Flag
Approve the June Amended Agenda
Approve the Minutes of the Last Regular Town Board
Meeting
Treasurer’s Report
Voucher’s Approval
Clerk / Correspondence
License Applications- (for Renewal Class B Beer and
Class B Liquor, Originals Class B Beer and Class B Liquor, Renewal Class A Beer
and Class A Liquor, Renewal Class A Beer, Temporary Picnic Licenses and all
operator’s licenses.)
Public Comment Session
Department Head Reports-Cemetery, Ambulance
Department, Fire Department, Constable and Garage
Zoning-4 issues
Residential Utility Lines
Cranberry Lake Road
Purchase of Special Cold Mix Gravel
Transfer Site / Recycle Issues
Use of Town Park Property
Assessor Contract
Ambulance Elections
Comprehensive Land Use Planning Committee
Centennial Committee
BADC
Board Member Reports
Motion (Scharlau / Chermack) to
approve the June Amended Agenda as read. Motion Carried.
Motion (Chermack / Scharlau) to
approve the Minutes of the Last Regular Town Board Meeting. Motion carried.
Treasurer’s Report- Treasurer Debbie Sesko gave the Treasurer’s report as follows:
Checking Balance from last meeting $ 149,832.34
Receipts
# 16063 to # 16097 $ 14,657.24
Checks
# 17925 to # 18034 $ (57,128.31)
May
2004 Service Charge $ (17.50)
May
2004 Interest $ 59.74
May
2004 Federal Payment (EFTPS) $ (3,367.00)
Checking
Balance $ 104,036.51
Ambulance Department Investment Fund $ 2,826.16
Highway Department Sinking Fund $ 85,440.16
BES Sinking Fund $ 22,742.45
Park Savings-Receipt # 16067 $157.42 $ 8,766.75
Ski Trail Savings $ 302.50
Parade-Event Calendar Fund $ 2,209.25
Balance
all Accounts $ 226,323.78
Motion
(Meinke / Scharlau) to approve the Treasurer’s Report as given. Motion carried.
Motion
(Meinke / Scharlau) to approve the vouchers as presented. Motion carried.
Clerk / Correspondence:
Liquor Licenses-Application for Renewal
Class B Beer and Class B Liquor Alcoholic Beverage Licenses for the
following: Boulder Lodge, Mike’s Sportsman’s Saloon, Sage’s Saloon, Downtown
Barnes, RC’s Decoy Inn, Enchanted Inn, Traut’s Resort, Buck N Bass and
Northwoods Tap. Original Class B Beer
and Class B Liquor Licenses to Alibis Resort, PJ’s Cabin Store and Barnes
Community VFW Post 8329 (all change of agents). Temporary Picnic Licenses to
The Barnes EMS for July 4-6, 2004 and for the Barnes Lions Club for the Women’s
Softball Tournament August 14-16, 2004 (Note correction of dates). Motion
(Chermack / Ratzel) to approve the liquor licenses as listed above. Motion
carried.
Operator’s Licenses- All operators have completed the Responsible Beverage
Server Class and have had the background checks done where needed. 2-year Operator Licenses to the
following: John Draganowski, Ted Hubert, Donald and Jean Scheer, Viola
Friermood, Sam Kurth, Elaine Britten, George F. Barnes Sr. Michael Barnes,
Debbie Sesko, Jess Burnham, Barbara Lockhart, Anne Wikan and Harley Cornes. 1-year Operator Licenses to the
following: Jessie Arseneau, Gary Bergman, Jim Nieckula, Nancy Loughren, Kevin
Murphy, Todd Walsh, Marie Hughes and Kathy Gatzke. Motion (Meinke / Scharlau) to
approve the operators listed above. Motion carried.
Public Comment Session-5-minutes for those not on the agenda-Cindy Patza from Cranberry Lake Road
spoke on her opposition to the roadwork that has been proposed for that road.
She indicated that this road should not be widened and the trees should be kept
as they are. She did say that some gravel might be needed, but that the whole
road does not need to be done. There are divisions in the people who live on
this road. Some want the road done and some do not. There are issues with the
land being considered wetlands. Ms. Patza remarked that there is adequate room
for emergency vehicles to get through. Bob
Hammond, also a landowner on Cranberry Lake Road, said that he too, is in
favor of not doing the road. He said that the only real issue is the first .4
miles. Every spring this section gets ruts and holes. He felt that with the
proper grading, the road would not be an issue. Lois Storlie, mother of Ms. Patza and neighbor to Bob Hammond, said
that she has had the property there since 1962. She said the only need for
improvement would be some gravel on the road, as you come in, and she opposes
any more work. Lee Wiesner asked
what was going on with the Mike Marshall issue. He said that when he attended
the church across the road on Sunday, the dogs barked during the service. He
said it would only get worse with more animals there.
Department Head Reports-
Cemetery Committee- Bud Pease reported that the Cemetery Committee had held a meeting
on May 19, 2004. The following officers were elected: Bud Pease, Chairman and
Nancy Loughren, Secretary. The committee
looked over the grounds at
the possible expansion site for the future and what improvements needed to be
done. The only other activity at the cemetery was the interment of Ira Kofal on
June 12, 2004.
Ambulance Department-Vi Friermood gave the following Ambulance Department report: there
were 8 runs since the last meeting. 2 runs were to Hayward; 2 were to Duluth; 1
was an intercept with the helicopter; 1 was an intercept with Gold Cross; 1 was
to aid at a wild fire in Highland; and 1 was a false alarm. The Ambulance
department is working on the Fourth of July festivities.
Fire Department-Tom
Renz said there were two fire calls since the meeting-1 was a wild fire in
Highland and the other was a fire caused by downed power lines on Birch Lake
Road. Renz said that he had attended Hazardous Materials Training on June 10,
2004. Several other firemen have completed training also. John Melin and Tom Kman
have completed Level I. The new fire truck will be coming on June 26, 2004. It
will be on display at the National Chief’s Convention in La Crosse, WI June 23,
24 and 25, 2004 and then Elite will bring it up to Barnes on the 26th. Renz
read the ad that will be appearing in the papers for the Fourth of July
festivities schedule. The fire truck will be dedicated at the Barnes VFW on
Lake Road, at the end of the parade. Renz asked if the board members could be
present when the fire truck arrives at the fire hall on Sunday the 27th, at
11:00AM, as he would like to have a picture taken with everyone when Elite
hands over the keys to the new truck.
Constable Report-Mike O’Keefe had given the Constable’s Report to the board members
prior to the meeting. He said that he had 16 calls since the last meeting. The
report is available for review at the clerk’s office. O’Keefe said that he had
located the markers for the low water and put them in (after several close
calls by boaters). ATV use is up and so he has received more contacts with
them.
Garage-Len
Schiller reported that Four Star Construction started on the River Road Bridge
on Tuesday. They expect to be done in one long day. The garage work has been
routine-road maintenance and grounds maintenance. Schiller said that he had a
comment on Cranberry Lake Road and that was there would be no construction by
the point, only south of there.
Zoning-1. Cleo M. Marshall 3055 CO HWY N-Update on application.
Dixie Chermack was at the Bayfield County Zoning meeting where the Marshall’s
request was heard. She reported that: 1. Marshall’s have to construct a fence
2. There will be a reward system for the dogs not to bark 3. All complaints are
to be made to Dixie Chermack in a letter and also to the sheriff’s department.
The applicants said they would only have 2 ponies and no beef cattle. They have
until July 20, 2004 to comply with the order. 2. Joanne Salveson-1875 Smart Road-Shore land grading. Scharlau
said that he had called Mike Furtak on this. The people are filling in holes
due to construction. Furtak had no problem with this issue. It will be
monitored. Motion (Scharlau / Meinke) to approve the shore land grading
application for Joanne Salveson on Smart Road, with monitoring to be done.
Motion carried. 3. Torger Cornell-2955 Bony Lake Road-Put a movable
canvas / vinyl garage (hut) next to property line on east side (after the
fact). Mike Furtak informed the board that fines had been imposed after zoning
discovered this. Furtak said that if there had been complaints from the
neighbors, this would have been an issue, but the neighbors did not object.
Meinke said that the placement by the lot line was actually the best location
for the structure. It has a pad. Chermack said her biggest problem with this is
that it was “after the fact”. Mr. Cornell had gotten a permit for the first
structure, but not the second. Chermack said the residents have a problem with
this sort of thing. Chermack did say that the Cornell’s had a beautifully kept
property and take care of it well. Motion (Scharlau / Meinke) to approve the
“after the fact” application for Torger Cornell on Bony Lake Road for placement
of a moveable canvas garage structure one foot from the east lot line. Chermack
voted “No”. The other three board members present voted “Yes”. Motion carried. 4.
Buck N Bass-1805 Buck N Bass Road-The
clerk read a letter addressed to the board from Mr. Murphy. He expressed
regret at not being at the meeting this evening because of a death in the
family. He said that Mike Furtak from zoning had been out to inspect his
property. Chermack said that Kevin Murphy has until June 17, 2004 to comply
with all of the issues for zoning. This is when the zoning committee will meet.
All of the issues
are not completed at this
time. Chermack said she would be going to that zoning meeting and urges anyone
interested in this issue to go also.
Residential Utility Lines- The board has been approached by a resident on
Circle Road about putting a 1” water line under the town road. Len Schiller
from the highway department said that this was the first request of this type
he has had since he had been here. He didn’t feel that it would present a
problem for the town. The one issue was if there would have to be work done on
the road, is there going to be information on file saying that there is a water
line there. All of the other utilities have to notify Digger’s Hotline to let
them know what is buried. There was discussion if the work had to be done by a
contractor of if a resident could do the work himself. The board has to look
into this. Ratzel said he would like to have something in place as general
procedure for this. He would investigate the issue and that the issue would be
postponed until the July board meeting.
Cranberry Lake Road-At the Special Town Board Meeting of June 1, 2004,
the board approved the Cranberry Road project provided that there was enough
money in the budget for it. Len Schiller said that because the board voted to
go with the cold mix on Pease Road, the town would have to purchase additional
special cold mix gravel. The cost would be about $25,000.00 to $35,000.00
depending on how much the board authorizes (need at least 5,000 to 7,500 yards
at $4.75 a yard). This would take most of the money designated for Cranberry
Lake Road. Schiller said that Cranberry Lake Road is not the highest priority
for roads and it could be postponed for a year. Meinke said that there were
several other roads that are projected for cold mix work-Point O Pines Road and
the Hall Road. The special gravel would be needed for these projects also. It
is uncertain how much more gravel would be available from the pit. The town
should get it while it is available. There was discussion on the concerns of
the residents on the road. Meinke said that if the roadwork was done, it had to
be done in accordance to what the state says. The town can’t let the residents
dictate how the roads should be done, like what happened on some other roads in
town. The rating now is not that bad on that road. There was discussion if the
town should remove this road from the contract. Motion (Ratzel /
Scharlau) to remove this road from the list of those roads to contract out this
year and let the town crew do any necessary work. Motion carried.
Ratzel said that beginning next year the state statutes on roads would be
changing. There was discussion on getting the Cranberry Lake Road into Rustic
Road status. There was discussion on the issue of vehicle damage due to the bad
ruts, etc. on Cranberry. Meinke said he had traveled down that road many times
and did not see the issues that were brought up by some of the residents. There
were just a few “potato “size rocks. Chermack said that at the bid meeting this
road was the one that would have been dropped due to budget constraints. The
main issues of the bad sections are on the first .4 of a mile. Fire Chief Renz
stated that he had driven down the road also and that he could see no bad
problems with getting emergency vehicles down there. The clerk will contact
Ashland Construction as to the board’s decision, as they had been awarded the
bid.
Purchase of Special Cold
Mix Gravel-There was discussion on
getting the special gravel for the cold mix work to be done. It was decided to
get the 7,500 yards, as there would be other projects needing this kind of
gravel in the future. Motion (Scharlau / Meinke) to approve the
purchase of 7,500 yards of ½” special gravel for cold mix use at $4.75 a yard.
Roll call vote was taken: Scharlau, Yes; Chermack, Yes; Meinke, Yes and Ratzel,
Yes. Motion carried. Len Schiller would see to it that the contacts
are made.
Transfer Site / Recycle
Issues-There was discussion on
restricting the amount of building materials or other demolition materials that
could be brought to the transfer site. This is supposed to be for residential
use, not contractors or commercial concerns. This means that truck loads are
not to be brought in The transfer site attendant would have the authority to
reject any materials or loads coming in, as well as what would be charged for
the loads accepted. Schiller said that he had the opportunity to work the
transfer site recently and got to see first hand what was being brought in.
Ratzel said some recent issues have come up where it would be dangerous to the
employees to handle some of the materials, such as large sheets of tin siding
type materials. Chief Renz also said that items such as asphalt shingles could
pose a hazard for the community when water run-off occurs. The town should not
accept such items. Renz asked to have the floor opened up to Lee Wiesner,
former DNR man, to see what he had to say about this. Ratzel asked Wiesner
instead, to be the one to help look into this
issue. Wiesner said he would
do this. Action on this issue would be deferred until the July meeting. A list
would be made of the acceptable materials taken at the transfer site. Scharlau
said that there were places to take these kinds of building materials, within
25 miles of Barnes, for approximately the same cost.
Use of Town Park Property- There was discussion on the fact that there has not
been anything put in writing about this issue in the past. The board, a few
years back, passed a motion to not allow the tables and chairs from the hall to
be lent out. The issue of the picnic tables had not been a problem until the
past year. Picnic tables had been
removed from the town park area without proper authorization. Motion
(Chermack / Scharlau) that town property would not be taken from any town sites
for personal use. Motion carried.
Assessor’s Contract-Ratzel spoke on the assessor’s contract. Right now
all the town has is a “maintenance only” assessor. This means the assessor only
re-assesses those parcels that have had improvements made to them, or those
that have been sold or have changed hands. Every 3 to 4 years the residents get
a big jump in assessment. Having a full time assessor would be more costly and
there are not that many assessors out there that do full time assessing
anymore, Ratzel said. The state requires the town to be in compliance. The
board needs to meet with the assessor ahead of the mid July deadline for signing
the new contract to discuss the issues. There was discussion that in the past,
the board did the contract without any input from the residents. The people
should have a say in what happens. Ratzel said he was tired of handling the
complaints and phone calls on this matter. The board could meet ahead of the
next meeting on July 20, 2004.Meinke said information should be gotten out on
this subject. The town may have to send out a letter to get the feelings of the
town’s taxpayers or have an ad in the paper. Scharlau said that there has to be
a cost estimate.
Ambulance Elections-Ratzel said the item on the table is to approve the
results of the Ambulance Department elections. According to the Ambulance Ordinance,
the board must OK the results. The issue on this election was that 3 members of
the ambulance department were on a run when the elections took place. That
particular ambulance call came just before the ambulance meeting was to start.
Ratzel said he did not feel comfortable with this. The vote should have been
deferred to a time when as many members as possible could be present to vote.
Meinke said he felt the same way. He had no problem with the slate of
candidates. Motion (Meinke / Scharlau) to reject the results of the
first election and have it redone, not because of the slate of candidates, but
for having more members get a chance to vote. Motion carried. Ambulance Director
Vi Friermood will reschedule the elections.
Comprehensive Land Use Planning Committee-David Pease reported that the committee would meet on
July 14, 2004. The committee would be meeting with the special Citizen’s
Advisory Committee. He would like to see all of the Citizen’s Advisory
Committee at that meeting as well as the regular members. Anyone is invited to
attend these meetings.
Centennial Committee- There was no representative from the committee at the meeting. The
clerk noted that the next meeting would be held on Thursday June 17, 2004 at
9:00AM at Downtown Barnes.
BADC-Barnes
Area Development Corporation-Gene Ratzel and Jack Meinke both reported that
there was nothing new to report.
Board Member Reports-
Jack Meinke-Jack
wanted to thank everyone for coming tonight.
Dave Scharlau-Dave
said that he had checked on the condition of the South Shore Bridge. It has
changed very little since last year.
Dixie Chermack-Dixie
said that she had several issues of concern that she would like to see
addressed at the July Town Board meeting. One of the issues is the Personnel
Policy Handbook. There should be an amendment to this for how much weight a
person can be expected to lift on the job. This was overlooked. It would be for
all employees. Perhaps the board should look at what other towns are doing.
Gene Ratzel said that he would do the research on this issue. Dixie spoke on the
Lake Conference that will be held on June 25, 2004 at Telemark in
Cable. She would like to see
a board member attend this meeting. She went to the one last year and said that
it was very informative. Dixie has also been looking into getting a car for the
constable’s use or possibly utilizing the current vehicle belonging to the
constable. Mike O’Keefe spoke on this at this time. He said he would be willing
to sell his vehicle to the town for a $1.00, but didn’t know what the insurance
and other issues relating to this would involve. There was a question on what
would happen with the vehicle if he retired or lost an election. He would like
to be able to use the vehicle as he has been. He also reported that buying a
used squad or other type of used vehicle was just asking for trouble. Those
vehicles are driven pretty hard. The town has put money aside for a vehicle
this year. He would like to see this money kept in the budget and more added
next year, to go towards a new vehicle in the future. Dixie then said that the
board would look into the issues of insurance, liability and the feasibility of
this plan with the attorney.
Gene Ratzel-Gene
reported that the state has been working on the bridge on Highway 27. They
started June 8th and should be done by July 7th. There is
a vehicle count of 1,300 cars per day on this section. This work is in
preparation of the state repaving Highway 27 in the future.
Motion (Meinke / Scharlau) to adjourn
the meeting. The motion carried.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:08PM.
Members of the town board in
attendance: Chairman Gene Ratzel, Supervisors Dave Scharlau, Dixie Chermack and
Jack Meinke. Absent: Chris Webb (Prior commitment). Also present were the
Treasurer Debbie Sesko and Clerk Lu Peet.
Department and Committee
Heads present: Cemetery Committee Bud Pease, Ambulance Department Viola
Friermood, Fire Department Tom Renz, Constable Mike O’Keefe, Garage Supervisor
Len Schiller and Comprehensive Land Use Planning Committee Dave Pease.
Members of the community
present: Pat LeVoir, Rosanne Ratzel-LeVoir, Marcia Wellnitz, Janine Watts,
Daryl Shemwell, Torger Cornell, Richard Collyard, Lee Wiesner, Bob Hammond,
Judy Hammond, Cindy Patza and Lois Storlie. There may have been others present,
but not noted or signed in.
Respectfully submitted,
Lucille J. Peet
Barnes Town Clerk
Dated this 24th
day of June 2004