MINUTES OF THE REGULAR TOWN BOARD MEETING
OF JANUARY 20, 2004

 

Chairman Ratzel called the meeting to order at 6:30PM.

 

The Pledge Allegiance to the Flag was said.

 

Chairman Ratzel read the Amended Agenda as Follows:

Amended Agenda

                    Call the meeting to order

                    Pledge Allegiance to the Flag

                    Approve the January Agenda

                    Approve the Minutes of the Last Regular Board Meeting          

                    Treasurer’s Report               

                    Voucher’s Approval                  

                    Clerk / Correspondence

                    Change Date of February Town Board Meeting-Primary Election Day is that day

                    Zoning- 1.Flora Oberholtzer-Operate a home-based small engine, mostly marine, repair business

                                   and boat storage; request 2 on-premise and 2 off-premise signs.2. Brad Brunner-Board of

                                   Appeals (Variance) to build a garage for residential storage-Sunset Condominiums

                    Appointed Clerk and Appointed Treasurer-Create ordinance to change these positions

                    Potawatomi Property Issues-Updates

                    Employee Handbook for Town of Barnes-Updates 

                    Resolution for the Establishment of a Public Participation Procedure for Comprehensive Plan

                    Resolution for the Authorization of the Application for Lake Planning Grant

                    Snow Plow Issues-Len Schiller

                    Web Site Issues

                    Fire Department-New member

                    Public Comment Session-5 Minute limit for those not on agenda

                    Cemetery Committee-Bud Pease                     

                    Comprehensive Land Use Planning Committee-Updates

                    Centennial Committee-Updates

                    BADC-Updates 

                    Department head reports-

                    Board member reports                   

                                 

Motion (Webb / Chermack) to approve the January 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 Sesko gave the Treasurer’s Report as follows:

Checking Balance from last meeting                                                           $              220,709.03

Receipts # 15961-# 15985                                                                          $               72,379.24

Checks # 17388-# 17498                                                                            $               (81,425.57)

December Federal Payment (EFTPS)                                                         $               (3,596.50)

December Interest                                                                                     $                   102.29

December Service Charge                                                                         $                   (16.30)

Transfer from Tax Checking (To clear account)                                          $                   151.59

                                                         Checking Balance                             $             208,303.78

 

Ambulance Department Investment Fund-Receipt # 15974 $3.42                  $                 1,812.17

Highway Department Sinking Fund-Receipt # 15976 $132.64                       $               70,295.83

BES Sinking Fund-Receipt #15975 $10.32                                                   $                 7,715.09

Park Savings-Receipt # 15978 $15.10                                                         $                 8,214.65

Ski Trail Savings-Receipt # 15973, 15977 and 15981 $66.87                          $                    181.18

Parade-Event Calendar Fund-Receipt # 15979 $3.65

                                                     Balance all Accounts                             $             298,875.67

 

Motion (Meinke / Scharlau) to approve the Treasurer’s Report as presented. Chermack had a question on the receipt numbers for the Ski Trail Fund. Sesko said that there were three of them-#15973, #15977 and #15981. Motion carried. 

Treasurer Sesko had several items for the board’s approval.

  1. There are two checks totaling $41.35 that have never been cashed from April 2002 and July of 2002. These are well over a year old. Sesko would like to add that amount back into the General Fund Account. Motion (Meinke / Webb) to put the amount of these two checks totaling $41.35 back to the General Fund Account. Motion carried.
  2. There are three items for taxes that were in error. Once the tax bills are run, they cannot be changed. The town is liable for the amount of $1,519.05. There was discussion on why the town had to pay this amount. There was discussion if the assessor’s contract had an “errors and omissions” clause. There was discussion on what if the county makes the error. The town has to pay the taxes owed on these three parcels before the 31st of January or the accounts are considered delinquent and there would be a penalty assessed. The board will be in contact with the assessor to see if there is any way we can get this money back. The board will look at the assessor contract and review it and ask the attorney for advice. Motion (Webb / Meinke) to make up the difference in the tax bills presented, for a total of $1,519.05. A roll call vote was taken: Scharlau, yes; Chermack, yes; Meinke, yes; Webb, yes and Ratzel, yes. Motion carried.
  3. Several checks that had been issued to various mortgage companies have never been cashed for 2001 taxes. The money was never refunded to the property owners or applied to the property tax bills. Those owners still own the properties. Sesko would like to put the amount of $479.65 back to the tax checking account and reissue the checks directly to the property owners. Motion (Meinke / Webb) to put the money for the two checks totaling $479.65 from the General Fund and put it into the tax checking account and reissue the checks to the property owners. A roll call vote was taken: Scharlau, yes; Chermack, yes; Meinke, yes; Webb, yes and Ratzel, yes. Motion carried.

The treasurer will take care of these matters

 

Motion (Scharlau  / Meinke) to approve the vouchers as presented. Motion carried.

  

Clerk / Correspondence

  1. One Intent to Cut for Plum Creek Timberlands for Plum Creek Timberlands.
  2. Letter from the Wisconsin Department of Commerce of the Uniform Dwelling Code Enforcement. The board will need to make a decision on this at the February meeting.
  3. Notice from Bayfield County Board of Supervisors on the meeting of January 22, 2004.
  4. Final calculations on the General Transportation Aids. $274,644.25. We were expecting only about $271,000.00.
  5. Letter from Joel Evers on the Comprehensive Land Use Survey. The clerk noted parts of the letter.
  6. Notice from the Wisconsin Compensation Rating Board on our Experience Modification factor. It is now at .81. Last year it was at 1.69. This means that we will pay .81 times the standard rate as opposed to 1.69 times the standard rate that we paid last year. The rate is based on injury claims.
  7. Neil Paulson, our county board representative, asked that we have the Criminal Justice System public forum put on our March 16, 2004 regular board meeting agenda. The sheriff, judge and /or other representatives from the county judicial system will be here to talk about the jail and the people in the jail and the criminal justice system. They will then have time allotted for public input. There will be a news release on this.
  8. I will be attending a Voter Registration Seminar in Hayward tomorrow the 21st of January. This will give me the information the town needs to be in compliance with the new Voter Registration Act of 2003

!!!!!!****************************************!!!!!!

9. Don’t forget about the Primary Election to be held on Tuesday February 17, 2004. This will be the Presidential Preference Primary. There are no local offices up for primary this year. If anyone needs to vote by absentee ballot, they are requested to notify the clerk in writing and she will send out the ballots to you. All ballots MUST be received back by the 17th of February to be counted. Any ballots that arrive after that date will be rejected.

  1. There will be an election of school board members for the Drummond Area School on Tuesday April 6, 2004. Patsy Rieckhoff (3-year term) for the Town of Grandview / Namekagon. There is no opposition.

 

Change Date of February Town Board Meeting-Because the Primary Election Day is the same day as our regularly scheduled town board meeting, the board must decide on a new meeting date.

Motion (Chermack / Webb) to approve the change of date for the February meeting to Thursday February 12, 2004 at 6:30PM. Motion carried.

 

Cemetery Committee-Bud Pease (This report has been switched to this location on the agenda at the request of Mr. Pease. It will, from now on, be on the agenda in this time slot.) Pease said that there was one burial in December. Mr. Ernie Wolters, formerly of Point O Pines Resort in Barnes, was interred in December. A new flag, donated by the VFW, was put up to replace the torn one. All else is good Mr. Pease reported. Ratzel had a question on plowing and opening up the roads in the cemetery. Pease said that they only keep open the main drive in and open up roads only to where there would be a burial. This is to prevent damage to the cemetery. The road crew will try to keep the main road accessible. Chermack said that if someone wants to go to a site, they have to walk in? The answer was yes, but that the main roads would be open.

 

Zoning- 1.Flora Oberholtzer-Operate a home-based small engine, mostly marine, repair business and boat storage; request 2 on-premise and 2 off-premise signs. The Oberholtzers were not present. The board members are familiar with the location. Chermack had several questions that she needed answered.

  1. How high is the pole building going to be? The dimensions are listed as 36’ x 63’.
  2. The survey indicated that the town should keep its “north woods” flavor. Is this building going to be in keeping with this?

Chermack had several conditions she would like added to the board’s response to zoning:

  1. Boat storage-Chermack felt that the boats should be shrink-wrapped and only a certain number could be stored.
  2. There should be a time limit-a trial period to see how the business is complying with zoning.
  3. For marine repairs, the engines should remain on the boats. If it will be a while before the engine can be repaired, the owner of the boat should either take the whole rig back home or have the engine removed and take the boat back home.
  4. The siding should be a neutral color, dark green, etc. to blend in with nature, as well as the roof.

Chermack also had a question on the 24’ x 24’ residential pole building that was listed on the proposed site map. Webb said that the request didn’t seem complete, because it did not indicate this building on the permit.

Motion (Webb / Scharlau) to open the floor to discussion. Motion carried. There was discussion on these issues. Mike Furtak from zoning said that this 24’ x 24’ building was not part of the issue here. Jon Harkness felt that the people who bring these zoning requests to the board should be present to answer any questions that the board might have. The board or any other person should not be an advocate for someone else’s permit. The board should table the issue until the people are here to represent themselves. Ratzel asked Furtak what was the correct way to go about this. Furtak said that the meeting had to be properly noticed (which it had been) and that the board could request the person to be there. Then if the board wants to ask questions, the people would be able to respond. Tom Renz had concerns about what was being stored in these buildings. He does not want any surprises if there is a fire, such as hazardous chemicals. Furtak said this could be made a condition of the appeal. It would have to be applied equally to everyone. Furtak said he was not here as an advocate for this permit, but for another reason. Webb asked why the boats needed to be shrink wrapped when they would be under cover. It

was noted that the boats would be out in the open. Motion (Webb / Chermack) to close the floor to discussion. Motion carried. Ratzel said he would agree to a postponement of this issue. Motion (Webb / Chermack) to postpone this zoning item until the next meeting. Motion carried. The clerk will send the copy of the zoning request with the board’s remarks to the Zoning Office. Ms. Oberholtzer will be contacted as to this matter.

2.Brad Brunner-Board of Appeals (Variance) to build a 24’X24’ garage for residential storage-Sunset Condominiums by Bony Creek. Scharlau asked if this was the same issue as last month. No, it is an additional building. Chermack had a question on the construction of the building. Would it be in keeping with the “north woods” image? Yes, it will look like the lodge. Webb asked if there was any negative feedback from the surrounding property owners. The clerk said she had received several letters from adjoining property owners giving their full approval. She read from portions of them. Mike Furtak from zoning said that there would be a 5’ setback from the lot line instead of 10’ and a 50’ setback from Bony Creek instead of 100’. Meinke said that that building is set back further than other buildings there now. Motion (Chermack / Scharlau) to approve the Board of Appeals variance for Brad Brunner to build a garage for residential storage in the Sunset Condominiums on Bony Creek with no further conditions. Motion carried. The clerk will fax the information to the zoning office in the morning and then send the physical copies to them by regular mail. Furtak said that the county usually would let the town give their opinions, but after the second meeting and no answers, the county does was it has to do.  The board signed the Bruner request. Only Ratzel and the clerk signed the Oberholtzer permit request pending further investigation by the board.

 

Appointed Clerk and Appointed Treasurer-Create ordinance to change these positions. There was a little discussion on this issue. Ratzel said the main concerns were that someone competent to hold the job would be chosen for the job and also there would be more continuity for the operations of the town. The attorney has redone the ordinance to state that the Clerk position and the Treasurer position are to be appointed positions and not elected. The ordinance will be posted and published accordance to state statutes. This has to be with the deadline of 45 days before the Spring Election when this issue will be on a referendum for the people to vote on. The combining of the two offices could be then done by resolution at the Annual Meeting held one week later, if necessary. This would create a position that would pay a viable wage to attract a qualified person. Motion (Webb / Chermack) to approve the Ordinance for Appointed Clerk and Appointed Treasurer. Motion carried. The board members signed the ordinance and the clerk attested the signing. The clerk will publish and post the ordinance the week of January 26, 2004.

 

Potawatomi Property Issues-Updates. Ratzel said that the attorney has said that this issue would have to be brought before the electors at the Annual Meeting on April 13, 2004, as it has to do with the transfer of town lands, by resolution. Anyone can bring a resolution to the Special Town Meeting or Annual Meeting. Webb asked if it had to be published in the paper. It is only a resolution. Motion (Webb / Scharlau) to open the floor to discussion. Motion carried. Dawn Pittman from the Potawatomi Property Owners Association asked if this step has to be taken first? Ratzel said that approval from the electors has to happen first. Then a court date can be set. This whole process could take several months. Webb said it could have come up at the Special Town Meeting that was held in November, but the resolution was not presented to the electors at that time. Motion (Scharlau / Webb) to close the floor to discussion. Motion carried.

 

Employee Handbook for Town of Barnes-Updates. Ratzel had given a copy of the latest draft of the handbook to all supervisors today. There have been some grammar changes and also some other minor information changes, such as adding the required employee forms to the handbook in an addendum. The entire handbook has been sent to the attorney for legal review. It is hoped that it will be back in time for the board to make a final decision on this issue at the special town board meeting that will be held on January 29, 2004 for ordinance review and also for this issue. The town has to have this document to deal with issues that come up in the town. The board will postpone this decision until the meeting on the 29th (or later if the attorney does not get back to us by then).

 

Resolution for the Establishment of a Public Participation Procedure for Comprehensive Plan- (A copy of the resolution in its entirety, can be viewed at the town office or a copy obtained from the clerk.) This resolution needs to be adopted for the Comprehensive Land Use Plan so that they can proceed with the Public Participation

requirement for the plan. Chermack read the resolution. Motion (Scharlau / Webb) to adopt the Resolution Establishing Public Participation Procedures for Comprehensive Land Use Plan as read.  There was discussion on the number of people that had been contacted or that had expressed an interest in being on this board. There are 30 people who will sit on the Citizens Advisory Board. These people are made up from the clubs and businesses and other interested people.  Motion carried.

 

Resolution for the Authorization of the Application for Lake Planning Grant- (A copy of the resolution in its entirety can be viewed at the town office or a copy may be obtained from the clerk.) Chermack read the resolution. She said that the committee was in the process of applying for a grant. Scharlau said that the Lake Grant was probably the only one that we would get. It is due in by the 1st of February. The money would come in April and May. Motion (Scharlau / Webb) to accept the Resolution Authorizing Application for Lake Management Planning Grant. Motion carried. The board signed both resolutions. These will both be sent to Cedar Corporation, the Land Use Planning consultants.

 

Snow Plow Issues-Len Schiller asked the board to consider enacting a cut-off date on the snow plowing agreement. Now there is none, just an additional late fee, if not paid by the due date. Schiller said that the reason

for this cut-off was that the crew has no idea what may lie under the snow. The snow could also accumulate to a very deep amount, mixed with ice, and this could damage the town’s equipment. It also is extra work for the clerk to create new lists. Schiller requested that the board approve that no more new requests be honored after the 20th of January of this year and that in future agreements the cut-off date should be December 15 of that year. Motion (Meinke / Scharlau) to accept the proposal for the immediate cut-off date for this year of January 21, 2004 for new snow plowing requests and that hereafter, the cut-off date for applications would be December 15th of that year. The late fee would be in effect after the 1st of November. Motion carried.

 

Web Site Issues- Chairman Ratzel gave a progress report on the web site issue. The board needs more information on this. He will be meeting with Paul LaLiberte, Dave Thorson and Gene Miller on Thursday to go over some options. He asked the board if they wanted to be more involved in this or just have the final say in this matter before money is spent. Webb felt that the board just needed to see, more or less, the finished product. All were in agreement that this issue needs to be resolved soon as there are many town issues that should be put up on the web site. Webb said that we have to come up with a plan. Chermack said that the Planning Committee wants to post the results of the Land Use Survey that was recently completed and that they are planning a link or article on this and that they need a contact person. The Centennial Committee is also in need of putting items on the web site as soon as possible. Motion (Webb / Scharlau) to open the floor to discussion. Motion carried. Jon Harkness wanted an issue clarified about the Comprehensive Land Use Plan and Comprehensive Plan issues. Chermack said it should always be referred to as the Comprehensive Land Use Plan, not Comprehensive Plan. We have to be consistent in our wording of this. Motion (Webb / Scharlau) to close the floor to discussion. Motion carried.

 

Fire Department- New member. Fire Chief Tom Renz asked the board to approve John Prohaska as a new member of the Fire Department. He has completed Entry Level Fire Fighter, at the least, and is also a First Responder. He is now a member of the Town of Highland Fire Department, but wants to join the Barnes department as well. He has been to several of our fires already. His background check has been completed. Motion (Webb / Scharlau) to approve John Prohaska as the new member of the fire department. Motion carried.

 

Public Comment Session- 5 Minute limit for those not on agenda. John Hawksford, a candidate for the seat on the County Board for the Barnes / Drummond district now held by incumbent Neil Paulson, introduced himself and gave a brief statement on his qualifications. Mike Furtak spoke on the Uniform Dwelling Code. He said that in the past those towns under 2500 in population were able to opt out of this requirement. Now the town will have to do something. There are basically four ways that the town can go:

  1. Adopt an ordinance to begin local enforcement of the UDC ordinance
  2. Adopt an ordinance to enforce the UDC jointly with another municipality or county
  3. Request enforcement by your county
  4. Do none of the above. This would require Commerce to provide for enforcement of the UDC for new homes in the municipality

Furtak requested that the town NOT use the county, as it does not have the staffing to accomplish this enforcement. Dave Pease said that the town board opted out of this several years ago when it was still optional. The cost would be about $500.00 to $1,000.00 per home. The cost could be put to the homeowners. Scharlau asked what kind of time frame there would be for the homeowner or construction company. It is still in the planning phase Furtak said. There are not many people who do this kind of work. Dawn Pittman asked about the ice rink in back of the town hall. Webb said that at the one of the budget meetings, the rink was discussed and that the board decided not to repair the rink now, but wait until the weather warms up. Webb did not think that there was a decision not to flood the rink, however. Tom Renz had indicated that he would flood the rink. There was a problem with a frozen system when he went to do it and Paul Anderson Well Service had to be called in for repairs. This water system also is for filling the fire trucks. There was discussion on where the monetary responsibility would go. It will be split between the Recreation Department and the Fire Department.

                               

Comprehensive Land Use Planning Committee-Updates. Dave Pease said that the committee had met and had sent out all of the surveys last month. Most have been sent back to Cedar Corporation for compilation (about 800). There will be a meeting on February 18, 2004 to discuss this. The Public Participation Committee will be in place then also. It will be made up of community members. The process is going well. When we get the results of the survey back, we should be able to go forward in this.

 

Centennial Committee-Updates. Judi Scholz reported that the Centennial Committee was very busy planning the party for the Centennial Celebration. The dates have been set as follows: May 11, 2005 will be the Founder’s day dinner with some political figures proclaiming that Barnes is 100 years old. There will be a bell ringing and that will open our year of celebration. The big celebration will be held on June 24th, 25th and 26th of 2005. Friday night will be the opening ceremonies. The museum will open, temporarily stored in the town hall, to display artifacts and information, through the 4th of July. There will be a historical program consisting of song and dance on the 100 years of Barnes history. Saturday will have lots of activity include a living history reenactment, kids old-fashioned games, a bike ride in the morning, a beard growing contest, a tour of historic sites, other interesting exhibits, a community picnic and a street dance at night. There will be an ecumenical worship service on Sunday morning and a closing ceremony and time capsule burial and the ending bell ringing ceremony. Scholz said that there were long range plans for the future, to have a book and historical museum for the town. It has purchased a file cabinet to adequately store the items for now. They have also received their first donation. Ratzel said that he had heard about a time capsule that may have been buried in the early 1900’s. Scholz did not know if there was one, but would investigate this. Ratzel also asked if there was a reason why the celebration would be held the last of June, instead of the 4th of July weekend. Scholz said that this was mostly on the requests of the business owners. This would extend the celebration and economic impact for the community.

 

BADC-Updates. Ratzel said that Art Smith has to contact the county on trying to make County Highway N a 12-month road. Neil Paulson said that the BADC should send a letter to the county board to this effect. The Barnes Area Development Corporation has given its financial report to the town board as requested.

 

Department head reports-

Fire Department-Tom Renz. The department has given the yearly report to the board for 2003 fires and runs and meetings for the LOSA report. Webb asked if he had done the qualifications workup on the members for LOSA. He has done this and has turned the papers into the clerk. Chief Renz reported that the department had been to a fire this morning-mostly smoke damage. He has talked to Elite on the new fire truck. All of the parts have been ordered. They will in start 5-10 days and the truck will be completed in about 8 weeks. It will then be on display at the Fire Convention to be held in Stevens Point. The department will take over the truck from there. As far as the 4th of July Fireworks go, Renz has spoken with Bob Wolters. He is a licensed pyro tec. His suppliers give him a rebate, which he uses to buy more fireworks. Ratzel asked where the fire department got the water from this morning? They did not use any water this morning. Ratzel also asked why the Town of Clover got such a nice grant from FEMA for their fire department ($250,000.00). Renz said that their department was in worse shape than ours was. They are in a depressed area and a ways from other towns. Our department hasn’t heard back from FEMA yet, so there is still a chance we might get a grant. Chermack asked if

the chief had completed the inspection of all fire department equipment as requested be done the first of the year. Renz said that this was going to be done at the meeting to be held on Wednesday night of this week. She also asked about the assignment sheets for the radios and pager that are out. This will also be done on Wednesday night. She asked if he was going to have a copy of the proclamation for the new fire truck. He said he would have it done.

 

Ambulance Department-Viola Friermood. In the absence of the Ambulance Director, Vi Friermood, Donna Porter gave the following report:

There were two calls-one fire and one transfer. The three defibs that were left to be sent out for maintenance have been sent out. Three members of the department went to the Arrowhead Conference in Duluth in January and four are going to go to the conference in Milwaukee at the end of January. Vi Friermood, Ambulance Director. The Ambulance Department was requested to produce a record of the radios and pagers that are out to them. The Ambulance Department was asked to turn in its reports on meeting attendance so that the Ambulance Investment Plan could be paid out for 2003. Porter said she would give this information to Viola.

 

Constable- Mike O’Keefe. The constable called the clerk early in the day to say he was sick. He gave the following report to the clerk to present: 2 alarms in response from the Sheriff’s Department (homeowner’s requests), 6 snowmobile / ATV incidents (speeding / people on private property), 2 cars in the ditch (assist motorists) and 1 deer hit. There were a total of 11 calls.

 

Garage Foreman-Len Schiller-Schiller said that in addition to the regular winter activities, the crew and Gene Ratzel assisted at the Transfer Site while Tom Pieters was on vacation. The compactor broke down and had to be repaired. It is now up and running. The new bags that were ordered for the Transfer Site have been delivered. A new shipment (3 loads) of salt and sand was delivered for the highway department, as they were running out. Schiller wanted the people to know that salt and sand do not work well under 20 degrees. Schiller discussed the pump house at the rear of the town hall area. He said that there are three wells that service the town hall and town garages and park. The valve was frozen and broken at the rink area pump house. There is a 1,000-gallon tank there. There is a heater inside of the pump house, but it appears that the heater was not turned on. It may have been turned off for the summer, he didn’t know. He will keep a close eye on the pump house. The door is kept locked. The breaker had to be replaced. The dry wall is saturated. The insulation is also wet. The building does need to be upgraded he said. It needs insulation and a new heater with a fan. Schiller asked the board to assign responsibility for this building, the fire department or the garage or recreation department. Webb asked about the ice rink, on whether to replace the boards or just flood it like other communities do. There was discussion on just taking the boards out this summer and just flooding the area for the ice rink. Also, would it be a good idea to rip out the concrete. Scharlau said that it would be very expensive to remove the concrete. It would also be pricey to repair it. Skateboarders do use it in the warm months. The fire department can flood the rink. In the past volunteers kept the ice shoveled off. When Henry was working, he took care of this, but there is no one to do it now. Meinke said that the people who had called him on this issue were willing to help out. The issue of the rink will be put on the agenda at a later date in spring. Webb said that there must have been some miscommunication at the meeting on the rink issue. The cost to repair the valves, etc. will be splint up between the fire and recreation department budgets. Schiller also said that a new float should be put in the big tank.

 

Board member reports

Jack Meinke-Meinke had nothing new to add, but thanked everyone for coming out on this cold night.

 

Chris Webb-Webb had one question on resolutions. Is there a record of all of them? The clerk said that all of the resolutions that have been passed since she has been clerk are in order and are in the Resolutions Book.

 

Dixie Chermack-Chermack asked Webb about the DSL line. Webb said she would look into it in the morning. She will also take a look at our existing lines to make sure we do not have excessive lines into the hall or garage or ambulance area. Chermack brought up the Hanes property on 27. Where are we on that? Meinke said that there is communication from zoning on it and it is being worked on. It’s in the works, but who knows when it will be finished. Chermack asked about the list of radios from the Ambulance Department-have we got one yet?

Renz said that he had his list, but did not have the Ambulance list. Ratzel said that this is why the department heads should be at the meetings, to answer these kinds of questions. Meinke said that these radios are expensive and there should be an accurate account of where they are. Gene Miller suggested contacting DSC Wireless to see if they had a list of our radio serial numbers. The equipment issue will be put on as an agenda item at a future meeting. Chermack reminded the board of the WTA district meeting on February 28th. Also the same meeting will be held in April in Cumberland, if you can’t make the Hayward meeting. The board is to let the clerk know who is going to go so she can sign them up. There was a discussion if Marilee Ludgatis was still a member of the Ambulance Department. At the last meeting it was noted that she was quitting the department because of health reasons. The board will inquire into this. Chermack asked about the dumpster situation. Scharlau said that the board would have to check on the price and compare the costs. There was no contract between MDC Recycling and the town. Bob Wolters will be checked out as well as the Nedland Corporation as another source for this. This issue will be put on the February agenda. Chermack said that Sawyer County would have six cars up for sale at the end of January. Should she keep her eyes opened for a car for the constable?

 

Dave Scharlau- Scharlau asked if a letter had been sent to WITC regarding classes for EMT’s that could be held here in town or in the area. The clerk said that she had sent the letter. She asked that WITC contact Viola, Peggy or Del Jerome about this. Scharlau asked if we knew what size dumpster we need. This will have to be looked at also.

 

Gene Ratzel-Ratzel had one issue. The icy conditions of a few weeks ago caused lots of problems on the roads in town. We have made a special effort to be sure to get out and sand the worst area. We can’t sand all of the roads. If you know of a problem area, please let us know so we can get some sand on them- just drive a little slower and be careful. Ratzel said that he had gotten some strong remarks on the taxes, but that he would be addressing these on a personal basis.

                    

Motion (Meinke / Scharlau) to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 9:00PM. 

 

Members of the board present: Chairman Gene Ratzel, Supervisors Jack Meinke, Chris Webb, Dixie Chermack and Dave Scharlau. Also present were the Treasurer Debbie Sesko and Clerk Lu Peet.

 

Department Heads in attendance: Fire Chief Tom Renz, Cemetery Sexton Bud Pease and Garage Foreman Len Schiller. Absent were Constable Mike O’Keefe (illness) and Ambulance Director Viola Friermood.

 

Members of the community present: Donna S. Porter, David Pease, John Hawksford, Jon Harkness, Buzzy Harkness, Brett Harper, Diane Rupnow, Brad Bruner, Dick Collyard, Dawn N. Pittman, Greta Pittman, Judi Scholz, Jack Scholz, Mike Furtak, Gerald Gustafson, Gene Miller and Mitch McGee. There may have been others in attendance not noted or signed in.

 

Respectfully submitted,

 

 

 

Lucille J. Peet

Barnes Town Clerk

Dated this 24th day of January 2004