Public Works & Utilities Committee

117 Spring Street Oregon, WI 53575 | Phone: (608) 835-3118 | Fax: (608) 835-6503 vil.oregon.wi.us | Find us on Facebook! Pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 19.84, notice is hereby given to the public by the Chairperson of the Public Works & Utilities Committee, that the following meeting will be held: Meeting: Public Works & Utilities Committee Date: Wednesday, March 22, 2023 Location: Village Hall; 117 Spring Street Time: 5:00 PM Note: Any person who has a qualifying disability as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act that requires the meeting or materials at the meeting to be in an accessible location or format must contact the Village Clerk at (608) 835-3118, 117 Spring Street, Oregon, Wisconsin, at least twenty-four (24) hours prior to the commencement of the meeting so that any necessary arrangements can be made to accommodate each request. MEETING MINUTES 1) Call to Order Public Works Chair Phil Van Kampen called the Public Works & Utilities Committee Meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 22, 2023. 2) Roll Call Present: Derek Below, Phil Van Kampen, and Mike Wunsch. Also Present: Public Works Director Jeff Rau, Public Works Street Superintendent Nick Haak, Village Administrator Martin Shanks, and Director of Administrative Services Peggy Haag. Finance Director Lisa Novinska, Village Clerk Candie Jones, Carlene Bechen, and Amanda Peterson were present in the audience with other members of the public. 3) Approval of May 23, 2022, Public Works & Utilities Committee meeting minutes Wunsch moved, seconded by Below, to approve the May 23, 2022, Public Works & Utilities Committee Meeting Minutes. Motion carried 3-0. 4) Business (Items are for discussion and / or potential action) a) Update on 2023 construction projects in the Village. Rau referenced and reviewed memo 4a dated March 9, 2023, in the meeting packet. b) Update on progress of wastewater treatment plant preliminary design and planned 2023 / 2024 phase 1 design. Rau referenced and reviewed memo 4b dated March 9, 2023, in the meeting packet. Rau commended Town and County Engineering for their phenomenal design but thinks it is important to have more than one engineering company look at the project so there are a few sets of eyes reviewing it. Wunsch asked if the staff plans to incorporate solar energy into the project. The Village can look at solar energy, but Rau anticipates it will add additional costs upfront. Below is concerned about the price. When the preliminary design wraps up, the staff will receive Approved 8/28/2023 Page 1 of 6  updated numbers from Town and Country. Funding for this project will be through a clean water fund loan. c) Update on progress of new Village Hall remodel project and planned moving activities for April 2023. There is a bit of a delay in installing the carpet and millwork. Staff is hoping to move in the week of April 17-21st. Rau anticipates the second floor will take a little longer. There will be significant cost savings by using Public Works staff for moving. d) Village Mowing Program Report & Recommendations. 1. Presentation of report by staff, including history, background, analysis, and recommendations; and Committee discussion. Rau said the mowing frequency has been an ongoing debate in the Village for many years, long before he was the Director of Public Works. At the end of the day, staff acknowledges the item for discussion is literally grass. There are many other areas Public Works deals with that involve life, health, and safety for residents that take priority. Rau did something similar in 2017 and gave background on mowing then. In hindsight, he would have gone through the process differently by having public input and talking to the Village Board. At the time, he was reacting to getting other important jobs done. In 2022 the Oregon Nature Alliance introduced No Mow May for its inaugural debut. There were some successes and failures. There was increased awareness and education. The problem is when the grass is long, it does not encourage pollinators. It was a challenge in June to mow, and it was hard on the equipment. Rau agreed with some complaints about people being unable to use the parks. There were things staff learned from the process. In May of 2022, Rau documented areas by photo around the Village, that staff is recommending mowing less frequently now. Rau asked the Public Works Committee how they would like to proceed with No Mow May for 2023. He does not like the idea of the park grass growing long. His recommendation would be to have No Mow May through the year for non-essential and secondary areas. Rau feels this topic is worthy of discussion. At the Board’s request, they wanted mowing reevaluated again. The Public Works Department mows a lot of areas. It takes a lot of fuel. There are emissions for the mowers. There is staff time. The Board wanted Rau to quantify cost savings, if any, for a reduced mowing schedule. Staff held two public forums. There were about 12 people for the first and 5 or 6 people for the second forum. The concerns tend to be, “We have always done it that way,” or “It has been like a park in my backyard.” Most of the areas you see in this presentation are not parks. They are stormwater areas or other semi-natural areas. Rau doesn’t blame them. If you are used to something behind your house for years, and someone wants to make a change, change is not always Approved 8/28/2023 Page 2 of 6  easy. Rau stressed that the areas discussed are not parks. They are stormwater areas intended for stormwater use. Public Works staff currently mows approximately 276 acres of land. In the packet, the map consists of green areas, which are primary areas. Secondary stormwater areas are blue. Rau said it is hard to quantify a change in your operation and what the savings are, but he does believe there are savings to be had. A lot of factors go into how long it takes to mow an area. It is easy to underestimate the hours it takes. Not much of the village is a flat soccer field. Rau estimated the number of hours it takes to mow and then talked to Billy Hanson in the Parks Department. Rau and Hanson were within 5% of each other. Rau reviewed a spreadsheet he created that includes five categories of land to mow and the planned mowing frequency. In summary, there are 275.88 acres to mow in the Village. When Rau worked on his spreadsheet, gas prices were around $4.50 per gallon, but they have come down since. The estimated use is 3.5 gallons per hour. It costs approximately $15.23 per hour for maintenance and equipment repairs. Rau estimates there are 5,000 hours of mowing per year. Rau anticipates reducing the number by 2,000 hours with the proposed reduction and cost savings of $62,000. Rau is open to suggestions for the planned mowing frequency if the Public Works Committee feels different than he does. Rau reiterated the five categories and their mowing frequency. Parks are listed in Category 1 and mowed all the time. In Category 2 are paths and areas mowed monthly. Categories 3 & 4 are stormwater areas, and Category 5 are areas not currently mowed. Rau realizes this mowing schedule is not popular with people. In areas not getting mowed as frequently, staff will mow a buffer strip of 15 feet every other week. Rau reached out to neighboring communities to see if they mow their drainage pond and swale areas. The response he received is they may get mowed once a year. 2. Public Hearing. This part of the agenda allows members of the public to provide information to the Committee related to the topic of the public hearing. Members of the public who desire to speak on the topic may be requested to complete and file a registration form with the village clerk to assist in keeping an accurate record of the proceedings. A time limit of 3 minutes per speaker is set unless otherwise modified by the Committee. Comments from the public are encouraged to be concise and germane to the topic of the public hearing. Individuals are encouraged to refrain from personal attacks. In the interest of avoiding repetitive testimony individuals and groups with the same viewpoints are encouraged to appoint a spokesperson. Written testimony, in lieu of verbal testimony, may be provided to the village clerk and will be accepted until Approved 8/28/2023 Page 3 of 6  12:00 pm on the day of the hearing. All written testimony will then be forwarded to members of the Committee and entered into the Committee’s proceedings but may not be read at the hearing. The Public Hearing opened at 5:35 p.m. Justin Sieglaff of 1120 South Perry Parkway contacted Glysch and Rau after No Mow May. He did not care for the parks, medians, or sidewalk areas not being mowed, kids in soccer with wet pants on a 40-degree morning, or decaying grass in the parks. Sieglaff read through the PDF and thinks the proposal is a great policy change. It addresses his concerns, it is logical, and is a cost savings. He thinks No Mow May should start with homeowners. If the Village wants to support pollinators, Sieglaff suggested a designated area. Theresa Nelson of 739 Swallow Tail Drive thanked Rau for his thoughtful report. He looked at many aspects of mowing. There is no “one size fits all” in the areas discussed. As a citizen, she is happy to see staff looking at a way to do things better. As a professional stormwater engineer, she sees the benefits of water quality with reduced mowing. Taller plants will have deep roots and help reduce erosion. As a member of the Oregon Nature Alliance, Nelson is happy about the potential environmental and habitat benefits of less frequent mowing. The taller plants, especially if they are native plants, help provide food and shelter and allow an increase in biodiversity. There is an opportunity to learn about invasive species. If there are fewer mowed areas, we have to look at what is growing there to be sure we are not allowing invasive species to flower, reseed, and spread. As the chair of the Village’s Ad Hoc Sustainable Committee, the environmental benefits are in line, but also, reduced fossil fuel usage and emissions are important. Change isn’t easy, but there are a lot of justifications for the proposal put together. Nelson supports Rau’s plan. The plan does not have to be just about mowing; it can be more of a land management plan. Joe Szpak of 475 Cledell Street is against the change, specifically about the High Meadows Dry Basin Large. The 2023 mowing proposal states the High Meadows Dry Basin Large would be mowed once in the spring and once in the fall, which is a change. Historically, this area has been mowed regularly. He is disappointed to see the proposed change. The mowing proposal justifies the proposed changes by saying there will be cost savings for the Village, but there is no discussion of what might be lost. He agrees there will be some savings. Some losses need consideration, such as a reduction of spontaneous outdoor play. The area has public access and is a seamless continuation of the existing park. There will be a loss of practice and warm-up space for soccer teams and families. This space is used daily throughout the soccer season. There will be a decrease in the strength of the neighborhood community. There will be an increased trash accumulation and general untidiness. The Village needs to be a good neighbor to the residents adjacent to High Meadows Park and perform proper maintenance on this land. There will be an increase in nuisance animals and insects. Szpak said long grass is a habitat for rodents, mosquitos, and ticks. There will be a Approved 8/28/2023 Page 4 of 6  decrease in property value. Szpak purchased his home in 2009 during a buyer’s market. There were many housing options to choose from, but he chose Cledell Street because of the green space behind the property. There will be some savings when mowing is reduced; however, when looking at the actual cost saving, specifically for High Meadows Dry Basin Large, it is a heavy net loss for the Oregon Community. Szpak said the mowing plan states what has been a starting recommendation. He hopes the mowing frequency for the High Meadows Dry Basis Large can return to number one in the mowing plan. Jim Wunsch of 467 Cledell Street said he understands what is going on and Rau’s dilemma, but he is in the same position as Szpak. He is against the mowing change for High Meadows Basin and other areas like this. The greenspace is more of an extension of the park and gets used that way. He would suggest Public Works Committee members visit the High Meadows Basin if they haven’t. Jim Wunsch asked if the Public Works equipment can mow the grass after a month because of its Closed Public Hearing at 5:49 p.m. 3. Discussion by Committee members. In Below's opinion, there needs to be some fluidity and more of a land management plan for mowing. He suggests looking at the mowing plan annually and is open to looking at increasing mowing in the High Meadows area. Below would like to see the Village continue to support No Mow May, but more residentially instead of a Village-wide approach. He agrees with Rau’s assessment of parks and playground areas and appreciates the comprehensive report. Wunsch also commended Rau for his work on the report. Wunsch supports No Mow May but agrees with Below; the No Mow May process should be modified from last year. It was noted to look at the growing season and wildlife for the best time to mow. Van Kampen agrees with Sieglaff’s comments that No Mow May should be more of a residential focus. As far as general mowing practices, Van Kampen is in favor of adopting the general mowing practices as presented in Table 1, page 17, of memo 4d, dated 2/10/2023. Van Kampen has concerns about making an exception. Some of these areas are not parks, although they may seem otherwise. As the Village grows, there will be more area to mow and maintain. It will be difficult to continue to mow everything. Van Kampen pointed out that Rau said, most of the time, other communities are not mowing stormwater areas. Rau mentioned there are many play areas in the Village. He feels strongly about making exceptions to the mowing plan because it will open a door for other items in the future. He recommends against the Public Works Committee making exceptions. By mowing a buffer strip along High Meadows Park, it allows residents access to 200,000 square feet of area that is like a private park. Approved 8/28/2023 Page 5 of 6  Wunsch understands the Public Works Department has trimmed the budget in every way they can. He supports the plan; and making an exception, although he may regret it. Below understands what Rau is saying about exceptions in principle; however, he agrees with Wunsch. He looks at the compiled information as a baseline and anticipates a changing document that will be revisited annually. He supports changing High Meadows Basin from a three to a two, for mowing priority. 4. Recommendation to Village Board. Below moved, seconded by Wunsch, to recommend the Village Board adopt the mowing policy/plan as presented and change the mowing plan for High Meadows Basin from a stage 3 to a stage 2 mowing area. Shanks explained that if stormwater areas are mowed without restrictions in place, and someone says they would like an area mowed that cannot be, what criteria will the Board use to make a decision? The Board cannot discriminate. Perhaps it makes sense to have a written policy and identify criteria for an exception. Wunsch asked Rau how many stormwater basins sit dry. There is one at Vinyard, the Veridian development, Bethel Green Acre, and the Highlands of Netherwood area. Rau said this presents a unique opportunity for seeding and more natural areas, but it is not cheap to seed, and Rau does not claim to be a Botanist. There would need to be education on native versus invasive species, but these things take time. Below withdrew the motion, and Wunsch withdrew his second. Wunsch moved, seconded by Below, to present the information discussed to the Village Board. Motion carried 2-1 with Van Kampen voting no. 5) Adjournment Below moved, seconded by Wunsch, to adjourn the Regular Public Works & Utilities Commission Meeting at 6:22 p.m. on Wednesday, March 22, 2023. Motion carried 3-0. Submitted by, Peggy Haag Director of Administrative Services Approved 8/28/2023 Page 6 of 6