Minutes: Council: Committee of the Whole: August 2008

Common Council
Special Meeting as Committee of the Whole
Saturday, August 16, 2008, 8:10 a.m.
Hagen Insurance Meeting Room, 15 North Madison Street, Evansville, WI

Minutes

1. Call to order. Mayor Sandy Decker called the meeting to order at 8:10 am.

2. Roll call. In addition to Mayor Decker, Alderpersons Mason Braunschweig, Tom Cothard, Janis Ringhand, Diane Roberts, Todd Culbertson, Dennis Wessels, and Barb Jacobson were present. Alderperson Tony Wyse was absent. City Administrator Dan Wietecha, Finance Director Lisa Novinska, Public Works Superintendent Dave Wartenweiler, EMS Director Mary Beaver, City Planner Tim Schwecke, Water & Light Superintendent Scott George, Police Lieutenant Art Phillips, Library Director Kathi Kemp, and members of the public were also present.

3. Approval of Agenda. Braunschweig made a motion, seconded by Ringhand, to approve the agenda as presented. Motion passed unanimously.

4. Citizen appearances. None.

5. Council Procedures. The Committee said that it was helpful having time in between the Finance & Labor Committee and the Common Council meetings; receiving a supplementary list of accounts payable at the Council meeting has worked and is acceptable. Department heads were reminded that the earlier/the better for them to submit bills to the Finance Department.

6. Budget Schedule. Budget requests have been submitted by the departments. The Finance Committee will review them at its September 4 meeting; they will then go to the full Council on September 25 with presentations by the department heads.

7. Department Updates.
A. Water & Light. The Townline Substation is in operation. The warehouse addition is complete. There are currently some problems being short-handed for journeyman-certified linemen; this is leading to a couple of the employees being overworked with the majority of the after-hours calls. We are waiting on a response from the Teamsters regarding a couple proposed solutions before hiring to fill the vacant position. Tree trimming will continue for about another month.

B. Public Works. Roadwork is winding down. Staffing is where it should be. We are having water problems at the current Youth Center building due to the lack of a foundation under the back addition; there is no easy solution.

C. Parks. The Westside Park playground and parking lot have been installed, and the soccer fields are expected to be used this fall. Due to budget constraints, the Park Board is proposing to lengthen its capital improvements plan to complete the Westside Park over the next five years rather than two. The final stage of the solar panels for the pool is planned for next year.

D. Police Department. The new full-time officer has completed field training. We are interviewing soon for the eligibility list.

E. Emergency Medical Services (EMS). The new building is great; a garage and decontamination room will be proposed in the capital improvements plan. We are averaging over a call per day. The first ambulance is fully staffed and is the one on-call; the second ambulance is used only if staff is available. Personnel and vehicle licenses are up to date; future personnel licensing is expected to be on-line which will be hard on a volunteer service.

F. Fire Department. Construction of the new fire hall is on schedule with completion anticipated in November.

G. Finance Department. Preliminary work on the 2007 Audit has been completed. Software is being updated to accommodate the new stormwater management utility. Office staff continues to work on crosstraining; we are also reviewing the possibility of redistributing some of the workload among the staff.

H. Library. Space is tight, but we are coping. A part-time position was added during the year to staff both upstairs and downstairs during the evenings. The cross-over borrowing fee is being discontinued, which will be a cost savings to the library.

8. Facilities and Projects Review.
A. Electric Distribution System. With the Townline Substation completed, a three-phase line will be needed to complete the southern loop from Marsh Road to TH 213 to TH 59. It will cost over $800,000; although currently slated for 2009, it may be delayed depending on finances. We are going to begin an urban rebuild program to bury the lines on about three to four blocks per year. The Baker Substation will be completed in early November.

B. Allen Creek Walls. Flood damage to the walls below the spillway may be eligible for financial assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). We are also waiting on a Department of Natural Resources (DNR) permit prior to being able to do the repairs.

C. Lake Leota Dredging. Negotiation with neighboring property owners is ongoing. They have concerns about compaction of the soil and its impact on crop yield over the next few years. The cost of the project really depends on whether we are able to utilize neighboring property. The Council still anticipates holding an advisory referendum and will need the final cost estimate by September 23. It was noted that the costs for not dredging the lake also need to be estimated.

D. Westside Park. A picnic shelter with restrooms is planned for next year. As noted earlier, the Park Board is proposing to lengthen its capital improvements plan to complete the park over the next five years rather than two.

E. Stormwater Improvements. The budget for the Stormwater Management Utility was approved by the Council on Tuesday. Re-grading of the greenway is scheduled for next week.

F. Wastewater Treatment Plant Upgrade. The plant needs significant upgrades due to changes in DNR regulations subsequent to its original design and construction. A facility plan for the upgrades is in process. Construction would be during 2009 with the facility being operational in 2010.

G. J. Lindemann Roundabout. The original request had been for a by-pass lane to improve safety at the intersection. After studying the matter, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) required that the improvement instead be a roundabout. Now that we are ready to proceed with the roundabout, WisDOT has said we should re-apply for the by-pass lane. The application has been submitted.

H. Main Street Bridge. Replacement is scheduled for 2010. Construction is planned for the entire bridge at once; this will be a three month project (compared to five months) and twenty percent less expensive than doing half at a time. The detour will be a local decision.

I. Other Street Projects. Nothing is planned in 2009.

J. City Hall. Tuck-pointing had been planned in conjunction with the new roof a couple years ago. Since the project was over budget, the tuck-pointing was delayed but the funds set aside to do the work in the future. The old administrator office on the third floor and EMS office on the first floor still need to be converted to storage and meeting space. The Committee also discussed records retention and the feasibility of organizing and digitizing the archived files.

K. New Fire Station. As discussed earlier, completion is expected in November.

L. Renovation of Old Fire Station and Sale of Police Station. The building was appraised in January 2007 for $178,000. At the time several parties had said they were interested in the building, but we were not ready to sell. Based on the fire station schedule, we could be looking to remodel the building over the winter and moving the police department by spring. Cost estimates for the remodeling are needed. The possibility of including supports to accommodate a future second floor was discussed, but the current building design will not work for that.

M. Library Addition. The library would like to add a business center, teen room, expand its seniors collection, and a distance learning lab among other improvements with the future expansion. Construction will not be for several years.

N. Economic Development. The crush plant is expected to begin the review and approvals process this fall, construction to begin in spring 2009, and in operation by harvest 2010. One of the main focuses of the recently adopted Economic Development Plan is the revitalization of the downtown. The Redevelopment Authority (RDA) is reviewing the progress and status of the project plan for TID #5. One of the items proposed in the RA Smith plan was for a new north-south street connecting Main and Church Streets; the RDA is considering the feasibility of adding this to the project plan. We are also discussing the importance of transit-oriented development.

9. Adjourn. Braunschweig made a motion, seconded by Roberts, to adjourn at 10:40 am. Motion approved unanimously.