MINUTES OF THE

TOWN OF BARNES

REGULAR BOARD MEETING

JANUARY 15, 2008

 

 

Chairman Collyard called the Board meeting to order at 6:30PM.  The Pledge of Allegiance was said. 

Motion (Webb/Porter) to approve the January Agenda. Motion carried. The Agenda is as follows:

NOTICE

 

TOWN OF BARNES

REGULAR BOARD MEETING

JANUARY 15TH AT 6:30PM

 

AGENDA

 

Call the Regular Board Meeting to order at 6:30PM

Pledge Allegiance to the Flag

Roll Call to establish a quorum/Verification of Public Notice/Motion to approve the January Agenda

Approve minutes of the Last Regular Board Meeting and Motion to dispense with reading of the minutes.

Treasurer’s Report

Voucher’s Approval

Clerk Correspondence    

Department Head Reports:

                Highway                               

                Cemetery                                             

                Fire and Ambulance Department

                                Open nominations for Employee of the Year 2008                   

                Constable

Committee and Commission Reports:         

                Recreation Committee

                New Town Community Center Committee

                Land Use Planning Commission

Zoning   1) Conditional Use Permit to park a RV year round for 3 years until cottage is built on property owned by Rodney and Linda Schreuers

John Kudlas – Resolution Declaring June 13th and 14th as St Croix Riverfest Days

Open Bids for fire tanker

Select committee members to study Health Insurance options

Approval to add monthly virus protection from Cheqway onto town computers

Public Comment Session – 5 minute limit for those not on the Agenda

Issues Timeline Update

 

 

 

All Department Heads are encouraged to be at the Regular Board Meetings

All Department Heads and Committee Heads are to submit a written report to the clerk

By Friday evening prior to the Board Meeting.

 

The Town Board reserves the right to solicit information from

Department heads and Committee heads only, without opening the floor to discussion.

Any persons requiring special needs for handicap services please contact the Clerk-Treasurer

Elaine J. Brustad Barnes Town Clerk-Treasurer

Dated this 14th Day of January, 2008

 

Roll call: Meinke-present, Porter-present, McGee-present, Collyard-present, Webb-present. Quorum established.

Motion (Porter/McGee)) to approve minutes of the Last Regular Board Meeting and Motion to dispense with reading of the minutes. Motion Carried. 

Treasurer’s Report

Checking Balance from last meeting

 

$17,180.59

Receipts

 

 

 

 

$77,267.54

Transfer from Money Market Account

 

$50,000.00

Check #'s 22256-22361

 

 

($54,819.09)

December Tax Payment & other direct payments-Ck# 301

($4,535.64)

Service Charge December

 

 

($13.00)

Interest Earned December

 

 

$17.95

 

CHECKING BALANCE

 

 

$85,098.35

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Money Market Gen'l Fund Balance from Last Meeting

$426,102.51

Interest earned December

YTD Interest $36695.14

$2,386.51

Ck# 1066 Transfer to Genl Fund

 

 

($50,000.00)

Ck#s 1063-1065,1067 refund of overpayment taxes

($1,808.10)

Deposits - Taxes

 

 

 

$1,003,589.31

 

Sub-Total Money Market Gen'l Funds

$1,380,270.23

Highway Dept. Sinking Fund

 

 

$16,072.92

BES Sinking Fund

 

 

 

$32,677.05

Park Savings

 

 

 

$12,698.17

Ski Trail Savings

 

Deposit $32.00

$726.61

Parade-Event-Calendar Fund

 

 

$1,842.60

Town Hall Complex Fund

 

 

$11,391.08

Act 102 Fund

 

 

 

$5,902.54

 

Sub-Total Money Market sub accounts

$81,310.97

Total all Money Market Funds

 

 

$1,461,581.20

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TOTAL ALL ACCOUNTS

 

$1,546,679.55

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Motion (Webb/Meinke) to approve the Treasurer’s Report. Brustad said she had copied a year end Profit and Loss versus Budget report for the Board to review.  She highlighted the totals that were adopted by the Board for the 2007 budget.  There are some overages she wanted the Board to review for amendments to the budget.  She would have asked for the amendments this evening but Tom Renz was not present and some of the overages were in the Public Safety budget.  Webb thought that if we were over we were over and no amendments were needed after year end.  Brustad said she had consulted with the auditor and she said the amendments should have been done before the purchase or work was done, but it is proper to do amendments after year end on purchases.  Brustad will put that on the agenda for the next meeting.  Webb also asked about a $50,000.00 transfer to the general fund. It looked like there was plenty in the account but was this for cash flow.  Brustad said yes, she keeps the money as long as possible in the money market to earn more interest and this was to cover year end checks.  The $73,000.00 of the $77,000.00 receipts was the Transportation Aids check not received until January 7th.  Motion carried.

 

Voucher’s Approval

Motion (Porter/Webb) to approve the vouchers. Motion carried.

 

Clerk Correspondence Brustad said the Town had received a thank you note from Pamela Toshner.  She wanted to commend Jerry Witt whom she spoke with last year and helped her to better understand how road management and maintenance works.  She sent a check for a donation to the ski trails also, saying they are a great recreational resource.

Brustad reported on the status of the new tables and chairs purchased for the hall.  Four tables are in; she left a message for the salesperson at Tri-state to give her an update but didn’t hear back from them before the meeting tonight.  She knows they are holding the four to ship out with the rest when they come in.  Collyard said we should probably put an ad in the Shopper to get rid of the old tables and chairs but first wanted to contact the service organizations in town to see if they wanted any.  He also wanted to keep one table and 4 chairs out for the parade committee for their judging table.  Webb suggested making a list of other items we might want to get rid of also to do that at the same time.  Collyard said we will have this on the agenda next month then for a motion.  

               

Department Head Reports:

                Highway Jerry Witt said since the last meeting we have had one major snow removal on the 23rd of December.  Our blacktop roads at this time are in fairly good shape, but our gravel roads are treacherously slippery due to the warm weather we have experienced.  Last Friday we broadcast sanded a majority of these roads to help improve traction on the glare ice.  At this time we have used as much sand as we did all of last winter.  Our inventory of salt and sand on hand is approximately 1/3 of what we started with, or about 165 tons.  I have ordered more sand and salt to replenish our inventory, but will only receive about 40 tons due to allocations from the supplier at this time.                      

                Cemetery Bud Pease was not at the meeting so the Clerk-Treasurer read his report: No work in the cemetery from December 18th through the 15th of January, 2008.                           

                Fire and Ambulance Department Tom Renz was not available and Brustad said he had told her there was nothing to report this month.

                                Open nominations for Employee of the Year 2008    Discussion followed as to when to close the nominations. Collyard will talk with Tom Renz and decide when they should close.  All department heads should have nomination forms in case an employee wants one. 

                Constable Mike O’Keefe gave his report: There were 4 alarms from the Sheriff, a vehicle roll-over on highway 27 south of Lake Road.  He assisted in the recovery of the vehicle.  One deer hit on County Highway Y, the driver left the scene.  3 fireworks/firearm complaints over New Year’s weekend.  One was at the Buck N Bass but they had a fireworks permit.  One trespass complaint, an ice fisherman entering private property.  Two assist motorist, vehicle stuck in snow.  One warning citation issued Chapter 13 violation of Barnes Ordinance. Mike said the new vehicle is in service and is outside if anyone wants to see it.  He said this has been the best month ever for him in his 8 years as Constable.  Collyard said the Town just didn’t give Mike a new truck.  We went a number of years planning and saving for it.  The reason we did this is because Mike has been using his own personal vehicle, his own insurance to do town business.  That wasn’t fair to him or to the town.  Now he has a town-owned vehicle insured by the town to be used for town business.  Mike added it legitimizes his position, it legitimizes the office.  The response has been totally different from people.  Now when he pulls in to someone’s driveway he is instantly recognizable and the people have a totally different attitude towards him.  He thanked the Board for doing this for him.

Committee and Commission Reports:         

                Recreation Committee Chris Webb said the committee didn’t meet this month.  They will be meeting next month and will be looking at purchasing some trees to be planted in the spring in the park here to replace the dead ones pulled out. 

                New Town Community Center Committee Committee Chairperson, Elaine Brustad said the committee had met the last week.  It was a very productive meeting.  The next meeting will be February 5th, and a representative from SEH, the Engineering firm who worked on the Hayward Library, Drummond Library and Drummond Civic Center will be there to help determine possible costs for a new complex versus remodeling. Collyard asked if the committee had researched what grants are out there.  Brustad said they will talk about that with SEH, but in order to research grant possibilities we almost have to have support from the Board and the Townspeople that we will be building a new Center.  Webb said the committee is still in the information gathering stage yet.  Brustad said the committee does plan to get possible ideas for grants to present to the Board.  Collyard wanted to know the results from the question in the newsletter so far.  Brustad said the response has been mixed, although the majority does not want a new center.  She has only received about 10 responses so far, and some of those that have responded positively also wanted a community pool.  Collyard said he was thinking that somewhere down the line the committee should sponsor information on the committee’s purpose.  Brustad said the committee discussed that at the last meeting.  They thought about talking to the Property Owners Association at their annual meeting as well as the Potawatomi Property Owners meeting, to better educate the people on the purpose of the committee.  This started basically from the questionnaire sent out in 2004 from the Land Use Planning Committee. Most people from that questionnaire felt that a Community Center with possible library, museum, and senior center was needed in the Town.  When the Land Use plan was adopted last year it was one of the recommendations the Board should look at.   At the Annual Meeting last April the townspeople voted to allow the Board to study the feasibility of a New Town Hall Complex and with that to earmark the funds received from timber sales for the purpose of a new town hall complex. Meinke wanted to mention that he hears all the time this is a done deal and the Board just wants to build a new office, so he agreed we need to educate everyone on the subject and try to have more coming to the committee meetings to give their ideas and hear what the committee is about.

                Land Use Planning Commission The Commission met the previous day and recommended approval of the Conditional Use Permit Request with the stipulation of it being for a two year period and to be reviewed by the board at that time.

Zoning   1) Conditional Use Permit to park a RV year round for 3 years until cottage is built on property owned by Rodney and Linda Schreuers

Motion (Meinke/Porter) to approve the Conditional Use Permit request with the stipulation to review it after a two year period.  Clerk-Treasurer should put the date in the Outlook Calendar and research the others approved in the last three years.  Motion carried.

 

John Kudlas – Resolution Declaring June 13th and 14th as St Croix Riverfest Days  John Kudlas  first wanted to thank Jerry and his staff for the wonderful job on the roads this winter in Potawatomi.  He also thought Dave was doing a wonderful job on the ski trail.  He spoke on the planned events for the Riverfest Days on June 13th and 14th.  Many activities were planned here in Barnes, especially on the 14th.  He showed the Board a map of the St. Croix watershed and a major portion of the Town is in that watershed and that all flows into the St. Croix River.  He said the Resolution is just recognition of the project.  He feels it will be a wonderful celebration of our waters. Motion (Meinke/McGee) to adopt the Resolution for Riverfest Days.  Motion carried.

 

Open Bids for fire tanker Collyard said due to the Fire Chief being out of town and a copy of the Shawano Leader about one of the bidders the Board wanted to postpone the bid opening until the next regular Town Board Meeting, which will be on February 12th.  The date was changed last month due to the Election being on the regular board meeting date of the 19th. Motion(Collyard/McGee) to postpone the bid opening until the February 12th Board meeting.  Motion carried.

 

Select committee members to study Health Insurance options  Collyard felt the Board should be the ones to study the health insurance options.  He spoke with Darrel Zaleski, the contact for our current plan, and he will come to talk with the Board at a Special Town Board meeting. He also talked with Holden Insurance who had sent him a letter, and they also provide all types of insurance just like what we have.  Brustad said the business insurance comes up for renewal April 1st so she suggested the Board look at that in February also.

 

Approval to add monthly virus protection from Cheqway onto town computers This hasn’t been on the computers and it is $5.95 per month per computer through Cheqway.  Motion (Porter/McGee) to approve adding the monthly virus protection from Chequamegon to the town’s computer at $5.95 per month per computer.  Motion carried with Webb abstaining from the vote.

 

Public Comment Session – 5 minute limit for those not on the Agenda

Ron Pearson asked what the rules were for parking RV’s on property in the town.  Collyard said he would have Mike Furtak come to talk at a meeting to explain the rules as it falls under Bayfield County Zoning.

Buzzy Harkness said she picked up minutes from the last few meetings and found it disturbing the board could make such a mistake from 3.62% to 36.2%. She assumed the Board went over these things.  And reading further down the Board said if they had known this they wouldn’t have approved so many things.  And reading further she said the Board said they were going to go back to 2% next year.  Did this mean nothing happens next year then?? No road work, fire truck, gas for vehicles. She assumes the town would still have obligations.   She didn’t see how we could go back to 2% after a 36.2% increase this year and wanted to ask the Board to be more prudent when assigning money to things.   

Dave Pease said regarding the St. Croix watershed, the Barnes area contributes 2/3 of the water going into the St Croix, so we are a major player.

 

Issues Timeline Update

Town Owned land: Work in progress

Motion(Meinke/McGee) to open the floor for discussion. Motion carried.  John Kudlas asked what was being done with the stump dump.  Meinke said the DNR will be going in there soon and doing some cutting and chipping.  They then will create a fire break between the stump dump and Potawatomi.

Fire Dept/SOG’s & Fire Billing – Work in progress, Chris will call Tom to get meeting

Heliport – FAA approved the Heliport, still need to put up a windsock, will do in the spring

Cemetery – Work in progress

Constable – Work in progress

Health Insurance – Town Board will meet with current insurance rep.

Motion (Porter/Meinke) to close the floor to discussion. Motion carried.

 

Motion(Porter/Webb) to adjourn the Regular Town Board Meeting. Motion carried.

The meeting adjourned at 7:33 PM.

 

 

 

Respectfully Submitted,

 

 

 

Elaine J. Brustad,

Clerk-Treasurer

Dated this 23rd Day of January, 2008