Village Board

PROCEEDINGS OF THE OXFORD VILLAGE BOARD The Village Board of the Village of Oxford, Marquette County, Wisconsin met in regular session at 6:30 PM on Wednesday, August 7, 2024, in the Council Room of the Oxford Village Hall. The meeting was called to order by President Meyer with the Pledge of Allegiance. The following Board Members were present: Trustees L. Drinkwater, Holtz, Sorensen, Wastart, Zacharias and J. Drinkwater. Also, in attendance were Justin Montani from LRS, Terry Berndt and Kathy Terwelp; and Deputy Clerk-Treasurers Kimmie Kongslie and Amy Maier. Chief Kowalski was not in attendance. Motion made by L. Drinkwater/Holtz to approve the agenda as printed. Motion made by L. Drinkwater/J. Drinkwater to accept the corrected minutes of the July 3, 2024, regular board meeting. Motion made by Sorensen/Holtz to approve the Treasurer’s Report as printed. All motions carried. Citizen Inquiries: Terry Berndt addressed the board to request they consider turning off billing for one of his two sewer accounts, as he no longer has service at the razed building. Deputy Clerk-Treasurer Maier thought this was already completed and will check and report at the September Board meeting. Brief discussion on the auction of items in the building prior to razing. Trustees suggested Mr. Berndt make a formal written Public Records Request to obtain any records needed. Terry Berndt departed at 6:47p.m. New Business: Justin Montani from LRS Holdings, LLC spoke to the Board regarding a proposed garbage and recycling services contract renewal. Justin answered questions and informed the Board that prices will be going up slightly for the next three-year contract. The price of fuel, updates to bins and garbage trucks and inflation are behind the increase. He will be finalizing the contract within the next couple of weeks and get the contract to the Board. The Board thanked him for coming to the meeting and explaining the new contract. He handed out business cards for anyone to call, if they had any questions, and departed at 6:55 p.m. Review and Update on Village Audit Services & Possible action thereon: Trustee Sorensen informed the Board of the audit services options received from Johnson Block CPA’s. Brief discussion on Audit services to be performed. Motion made by Wastart/J. Drinkwater to move forward with Johnson Block CPA’s to perform the Village Audit Services for 2024. Motion carried. An official agreement will be acted upon at the next meeting. Review of Police Department Phone Service: Chief Kowalski was not available tonight. Sorensen requested this item to be moved to the September agenda. Village Hall Improvement Update: The siding and window updates to the Village Hall were under budget by $1,253.00. After the new siding and windows were installed, it was apparent that the gable ends are faded and Public Works Director Mullens recommends updating them. Gary Taft has submitted bids to replace with shakes or with siding. Brief discussion. Motion by L. Drinkwater/Holtz to approve up to $3,093.00 to improve the gable ends of the hall with siding. Motion carried. This is in addition to the remaining unused budget amount. Also, the west side of the library roof had water damage and needs an eaves trough installed. Matt Raimer Construction has proposed a bid for $350.00 to install it to alleviate the problem. Motion by J. Drinkwater/Zacharias to approve the bid from Matt Raimer. Motion carried. Wastewater Plant Sludge Removal Options: The board reviewed the reports from the recent sludge report at the Wastewater Treatment Facility. Brief discussion but no decision needed at this time. Ormsby Street Tree Removal: DLD has proposed a bid for $1,600.00 to remove the five (5) Ash trees in the boulevard on Ormsby Street. Brief discussion with a motion being made by L. Drinkwater/Wastart to approve the proposed bid. Motion carried. Sewer Utility Billing Software from gWorks: Tabled to September board meeting. Tax Bill Printing: The tax bill printing will be done by the County for 2024 Real Estate Taxes. Committee Meeting to Review Ordinances: A date was set of Wednesday, August 15, 2024, at 3:00 p.m. for a committee to review the ordinances that need to be updated. No Building Permits to review August 7, 2024 Operator’s License: Dawn Baerwald applied, has completed the responsible beverage server course, and received recommendation by Chief Kowalski. Motion to approve Operator License by L. Drinkwater/J. Drinkwater for Dawn Baerwald. Motion carried. Committee Reports: Public Safety Report – Chairman Sorensen reported that no meeting was held. Municipal Court – Chairman Sorensen reported that the Municipal Court Clerk is doing a fantastic job. Next meeting is in late September. Police Report – Chief Kowalski’s monthly report was distributed to the Board. Chairman Sorensen reported that there has been nothing new to report on the vandalism to the Cemetery, but that it has been cleaned up by residents. The Board thanked the residents involved in the clean-up. Parks & Recreation Report – Chairperson L. Drinkwater reported that everything has been cleaned up from the 4th of July Celebration. The only thing damaged was the tennis court net. It is old and has a minor rip in the center, but it is still useable. Public Works Director Mullens has freshened up the bleachers with Deck Correct, but still needs to finish the steps of the scorer’s booth. The new tree will be planted in the park as soon as the weather cools off. Library Board Report – Chairman L. Drinkwater stated “kudos” again to our Library Director as we had Winnefox Library Board here for a meeting, which only occurs about every 2 ½ years, as they try to rotate to various libraries, and it went very well due to Kimmie’s hostess skills. The board is very impressed, so our little library is really getting some well-deserved praise and notoriety. In July we had 17 new library cards issued and checkout just keep rising. The summer reading program is winding down, and fall activities will be beginning soon. All of the programs are all going very well. Our library helps with tutoring, home delivery, tech help, and has a book club. And great programs scheduled for this fall, including a fundraiser. The Kevin Lovegreen presentation was awesome, and the kids and parents were happy to meet the author of the books that they were reading. This Kid’s Garden Program on July 24th went very well, and the Children’s Wisconsin Storytime every other Thursday is a great success with 12 to 15 kids consistently attending. Public Works – Chairman Zacharias gave Director Mullen’s report. The siding and windows have been completed on the Village Hall. The doors and foundation blocks have been painted. A new eaves trough is needed on the northwest side of the library as there was water damage under the siding. The damage has already been repaired. The Village Hall needs a new light installed above the meal site door. An estimate will be acquired. The new water filters have been installed at the Village Hall and this has cleared up the water and staining. There has been a problem with the water fountain in the meal site room. The filter has been changed but it will not reset. Steve will continue to troubleshoot until it is corrected. The crosswalks will begin to be painted the 2nd or 3rd week of August. The results from the sludge analysis have been completed and have been sent to the DNR wastewater engineer. Updates will be provided. The tractor will need new tires on the front before winter, and an estimate will be acquired. Salt needs to be ordered for winter; an estimate will be acquired. The Oxford Fire Department and the Township of Oxford would like Steve to paint lines in their parking lots, as they have recently had them chip sealed. The board agreed that Steve can do these jobs for time and materials cost to each, as in the past. President Meyer referred the board members to a resignation letter from Clerk-Treasurer Shannon McMullin. The letter was read by Deputy Clerk-Treasurer Amy Maier to the board. Motion by Wastart/J. Drinkwater to accept the resignation. Motion carried. Motion by Wastart/Sorensen at 7:48 p.m. to move to Closed Session pursuant to Wis. Stat § 19.85 (1)(c) for the purpose of considering employment, promotion, compensation, or performance evaluation data of any public employee over which the governmental body has jurisdiction or exercises responsibility. Motion carried with a unanimous roll call vote. The closed session was held to discuss the future of the Village Clerk’s Office. The board returned to open session with a motion by L. Drinkwater/Wastart at 8:55 p.m. The motion carried with a unanimous roll call vote. As a result of the Closed Session, the following occurred: Suggested by Clerk-Treasurer McMullin that she remains as an employee until September 16, 2024, under a temporary position as Administrative Advisor. Page 2 of 3 August 7, 2024 Motion by Wastart/Sorensen that from August 20, 2024 through September 16, 2024, Shannon McMullin’s position will be Temporary Administrative Advisor with no change in hours, wages or benefits. Motion carried. Motion by Sorensen/J. Drinkwater to appoint Amy Maier as the new Clerk-Treasurer, at 24 hours per week at pay scale step #2, beginning August 20, 2024. Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote. Motion by Sorensen/Wastart to appoint Kimmie Kongslie-Slaven as the Deputy Clerk-Treasurer, at 11 hours per week and to raise the Deputy Clerk-Treasurer pay scale to the same grade as Library Director, to start on August 20, 2024. Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote. Motion by L. Drinkwater/Holtz to change the hours of the Clerk’s office to 28 hours per week open to the public, with Monday, Wednesday, and Friday hours of 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and Tuesday and Thursday hours of 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. These hours to be posted on the Village website and on the door to the Clerk’s office. Motion carried. Motion by L. Drinkwater/Zacharias to pay the bills presented. Motion carried. Rather than the minutes being read, they will be sent upon completion to the Board, individually, for review. Motion to adjourn by J. Drinkwater/Zacharias at 9:49 p.m. Motion carried. ____________________________________ Amy J. Maier, Deputy Clerk-Treasurer Village of Oxford Marquette County, Wisconsin Page 3 of 3