Village Board

EAST TROY TOWN AND VILLAGE OF EAST TROY TOWN OF TROY JOINT BOARD MINUTES July 20, 2021 Page 1 of 3 Call Meeting to Order; Pledge of Allegiance Roll Call: President Seager called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. and welcomed the new members of each board. Present: Village of East Troy – President Seager and Trustees John Alexander, Matt Johnson, Mary Nugent, Trustee Fortune Renucci, Jason Smalley and Joe Wisniewski Town of East Troy – Chairman Joe Klarkowski and Supervisors Barbara Church, Peter Kesselhon, Michele Reyes, and Chad Wales Town of Troy - Chairman John Kendall and Supervisors Jerry Arntson Excused: Supervisor Kathleen Tober Others: Village of East Troy Administrator/Treasurer Eileen Suhm, Town of East Troy Clerk-Treasurer Kim Buchanan, Town of Troy Clerk-Treasurer Tracey Raymond, Attorney Eric Larson, and Library Director Gartman Citizen Participation/Public Comment None Miscellaneous Business 1. Tri-Troy Library Discussions a. Continued discussions on the Tri-Troy Joint Library Agreement Library Director Gartman updated the Boards regarding the Department of Public Instruction’s (DPI) feedback on the draft agreement. He stated the draft agreement as well as the signed memorandums from each community were submitted. The DPI responded in late April and Attorney Larson has entered most of that commentary into the draft agreement. The DPI also required a plan of service to be submitted with the agreement. The Library Board reviewed the plan of service Director Gartman documented and that was submitted to the DPI. He explained the library falls short of standards. If it is not meeting standards, a good faith effort to achieve the standards needs to be demonstrated. Current staffing levels need to be raised by 3/4 to one full- time position and the hours the library is open will need to increase. The plan of service will need to be submitted with the agreement. Other discussion included: • President Seager gave a background on the topic for new board members • Supervisor Reyes asked if an estimate of each community’s usage could be provided • School outreach efforts were discussed by Director Gartman • Utilizing school district library staff that is not full time with the district at the public library was suggested based on a conversation with Dr. Hibner  EAST TROY TOWN AND VILLAGE OF EAST TROY TOWN OF TROY JOINT BOARD MINUTES July 20, 2021 Page 2 of 3 Atty. Larson reviewed outstanding questions regarding the agreement and Library Board comments on the draft agreement: • The number of Board members was discussed. It may not be feasible to have an odd number of members on the Library Board since each municipality would have an equal number of representatives with a minimum of two (one board member and one citizen member) and maximum of three plus a county appointment and a school district appointment (the last two are required by statute) o Consensus of the Boards was to proceed assuming two members from each municipality, for a total number of board members being 8. o Currently the County can appoint up to three members. Under a Tri-Troy Library the County could appoint one member. • The language in the agreement will remain school districts (plural). This will allow for the addition of a district, if necessary, without modifying the agreement. • The section regarding the library system will not be modified. The decision to change library systems would be a Library Board recommendation to the municipalities. • The library is not designated as a separate legal entity to avoid the library needing its own insurance that municipalities carry, avoid litigation for the library, and provide the same liability limits municipalities receive according to state law. o The library has certain statutory powers, and they will continue to have the power to hire and fire employees as well as enter day-to-day contracts without being designated as a separate legal entity. • Discussed if a municipality exits the agreement, they relinquish their interest in the assets. Chairmen Klarkowski stated the Town of East Troy reviewed the funding options and preferred option A, which is a distribution of costs based on population. Timing of forming the joint library was discussed and whether the goal is still to form the joint library this year. President Seager expressed a desire for it to be this year. Administrator Suhm reviewed several questions/comments she has on the agreement: • She suggested the Boards consider engaging Ehler’s to assist with addressing the impact on levy limits. • The Village allocates some fixed charges to the library, but she stated this should be reviewed as there are some charges not being allocated to the library that should be considered if it is a separate entity. • Suggested the timing of the billing in the agreement be switched to the beginning of each quarter like the fire district. • Questioned how the library’s legal services will be addressed and who will provide them. Currently the Village’s legal representation assists with general legal and employment law if they arise, and it should be addressed how that will be handled for a joint library.  EAST TROY TOWN AND VILLAGE OF EAST TROY TOWN OF TROY JOINT BOARD MINUTES July 20, 2021 Page 3 of 3 Attorney Larson reminded the Boards the levy adjustment is a one-time adjustment, and it is very important the budget be accurate when that adjustment is made. 2. Discussion on the possible need to amend and restate the East Troy Area Emergency Services District agreement (Town of Spring Prairie Chairman to be included in this discussion) The Town of Spring Prairie Chairman was not present. The Boards decided to table discussion of this item until representation from the Town of Spring Prairie is present. The agreement needs to be updated because a current agreement is necessary for Wisconsin Retirement System coverage of firefighters that the District is seeking. Motion by President Seager, second by Trustee Alexander to table the item. Motion carried unanimously. 3. Discussion on the Village’s resolution to reduce the extraterritorial review area General discussion occurred regarding extraterritorial review authority and why it exists under state statute. It was explained the Village reduced the territory for areas they no longer think the review is necessary. Chairmen Klarkowski expressed appreciation for the reduced area. 4. Future Agenda items Discussion occurred regarding the timing of the joint library formation. Administrator Suhm expressed concerns forming the joint library may not be possible this year due to the necessity for the Towns to file for County Library Tax exemption in fall. She will investigate the timing further. The next meeting date was scheduled for September 16 at 6:00 p.m. Chairmen Kendall will chair the meeting in September. Adjourn Motion by President Seager, second by Trustee Johnson, to adjourn at 7:11 p.m. Motion carried. Respectfully Submitted, Eileen Suhm, Administrator Clerk-Treasurer Village of East Troy Note: Recordings of the meeting may be found on our YouTube Channel - Link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGPfzVwLzE2Pqt4-g450Klg