Finance Committee Meeting

1 FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES 2 Monday, March 9, 2026, 2:00 PM 3 (Approved as amended) 4 5 1. Call to Order 6 Chair Bhirdo called the Finance Committee meeting to order on Monday, March 9, 2026 at 2:02 PM. 7 8 Present: Chairperson Denise Bhirdo, members Brigid White and Mike Laszkiewicz. Lousie Howson and 9 Andy Woerfel excused. 10 11 Staff: Administrator Benjamin Andrews, Financial Specialist/Treasurer Vlad Gannik, Utilities Director 12 Megan Barnes, Village Clerk Julie Thyssen 13 14 Other: Nick Deviley, Paul Shefchik 15 16 2. Roll Call 17 Committee members present: Bhirdo, White, Laszkiewicz. 18 19 20 3. Approve Agenda 21 Motion by White to approve the agenda as presented. Second by Laskowitz. Motion carried - all ayes. 22 23 4. Approve Meeting Minutes 24 a. February 23, 2026 25 Bhirdo noted a correction on page 2, line 36, where "SAIL is described as Senior Activity at Liberty" should 26 read "Senior Advocacy for Independent Living." 27 28 Motion by Bhirdo to approve the February 23, 2026 meeting minutes as amended. Second by White. 29 Motion carried - all ayes. 30 31 5. Comments, Correspondence and Concerns from the Public 32 No members of the public were present to address the committee. 33 34 6. Executive Session 35 Motion by Bhirdo to adjourn into closed session pursuant to 19.85(1)(g) to confer with legal counsel for 36 the governmental body who is rendering oral or written advice concerning strategy to be adopted by the 37 body with respect to litigation in which it is or is likely to become involved: Fiber Optic Bond Discussion. 38 Second by White. Roll call vote: Bhirdo - aye, White - aye, Laskowitz - aye. Motion carried. 39 40 The committee entered closed session at 2:04 PM and returned to open session at 2:44 PM. 41 42 Motion by Bhirdo to return to open session. Second by White. Roll call vote: Bhirdo - aye, White - aye, 43 Laskowitz - aye. Motion carried. 44 45 7. Discussion/Action Items 46 a. Municipal Reimbursement Fund; Proposed Parks Projects 1  Minutes of the March 09, 2026, Meeting of the Finance Committee – Approved as amended 1 Administrator Andrews explained that the Door County Tourism Zone Commission provides annual 2 reimbursement to participating municipalities for tourism development and promotion purposes. This 3 year's allocation is $42,000, significantly lower than previous years' amounts of $51,000-$65,000. Staff 4 proposed two projects: tree planting and historical signage, both previously identified but not completed. 5 Bhirdo questioned the substantial decrease in funding and requested clarification on whether the 6 allocation was based on 2024 or 2025 numbers, noting it seemed unlikely that final numbers would be 7 available by March. She suggested that Tourism Zone Commission members be asked to investigate the 8 reduction at their next meeting. 9 10 Discussion revealed confusion about previous years' allocations and whether projects had been 11 completed. Bhirdo emphasized the need for accountability regarding past municipal reimbursement 12 funds. She requested a comprehensive audit of previous years' reimbursement funds, including what 13 projects were approved, what was actually spent, and where unspent funds went. 14 15 Laskowitz questioned the normal process, noting these projects typically go through Parks Committee 16 first for recommendation before coming to the Finance Committee. 17 Action Items: 18 • Staff to conduct an audit of municipal reimbursement funds from previous years, including 19 approved projects, actual expenditures, and disposition of unspent funds 20 • Results of the audit to be presented to the Finance Committee before any allocation of current 21 year funds 22 • Current year allocation to be forwarded to Parks Committee for project recommendations 23 24 Motion by Bhirdo to postpone to a later date. Second by Laskowitz. Motion carried - all ayes. 25 26 b. Tax Incremental Financing Policy 27 Andrews presented the draft TIF policy developed based on examples from other municipalities. He noted 28 this was a baseline policy that could be enhanced with additional specificity as directed by the Finance 29 Committee. 30 31 Laskowitz provided feedback on the draft policy, raising concerns about financial risk and recommending 32 stronger safeguards. He cautioned against non-interest loans with forgiveness provisions, suggesting 33 loans be secured by increments to avoid shifting risk to taxpayers. He also recommended clarifying that 34 the village does not pledge its full faith and credit and advised a legal review prior to adoption. 35 36 He questioned the flexibility of the but-for test, suggesting independent third-party gap analysis to 37 support decisions and reduce litigation risk. Additional recommendations included establishing developer 38 qualification standards, requiring minimum equity contributions, and implementing debt coverage ratios 39 (1.25–1.5) to limit financial exposure. 40 41 White questioned how villages typically determine appropriate TIF amounts and whether there should be 42 minimum tax increment generation requirements for community development projects. 43 44 Bhirdo expressed a strong preference for limiting TIF assistance to utilities and housing only, based on her 45 review of five other municipal policies. She argued that, as a small village with finite corridor property, TIF 46 funds should be preserved for sewer/water extensions and housing rather than business assistance. She 47 questioned whether the but-for test would be necessary with such limited scope. 48 2  Minutes of the March 09, 2026, Meeting of the Finance Committee – Approved as amended 1 Discussion included assessment valuation concerns raised by White regarding whether affordable housing 2 would generate lower tax assessments, potentially reducing TIF increment generation. 3 Paul Shefchik, present as a developer with TIF experience, provided extensive background on TIF 4 processes in other municipalities. He emphasized that pay-as-you-go approaches minimize municipal risk 5 since payments only occur when tax increment is actually generated. He described successful projects in 6 Mishicot, Sturgeon Bay, and Fish Creek, noting most municipalities now prefer pay-as-you-go to limit 7 exposure. 8 9 Action Items: 10 • Committee members to provide detailed comments and suggestions to staff 11 • Staff to prepare revised policy incorporating feedback 12 • Legal review by village attorney recommended before adoption 13 • Public input session to be considered similar to administration building process 14 • Baird to provide TID overview services and education session 15 16 Laskowitz suggested the policy needed another revision and recommended a public meeting for 17 community input, given the significant financial implications for the village. 18 19 Timeline Discussion: Shefchik requested timeline guidance for pending development projects. Bhirdo 20 estimated a July completion, acknowledging this was only a preliminary estimate. 21 22 Next Meeting: Committee scheduled the next meeting for April 13, 2026 at 1:00 PM, pending confirmation 23 with other members. Baird representatives to be invited to provide TID overview and potentially review 24 sample applications. 25 26 Motion by Laskowitz to postpone policy adoption pending receipt of committee member comments and 27 staff revisions. Motion carried - all ayes. 28 29 8. Matters to be Placed on a Future Agenda or Referred to a Committee, Official or Employee 30 • Municipal reimbursement fund audit results 31 • Revised TIF policy with committee input incorporated 32 • Baird TID overview presentation 33 34 9. Next Meeting 35 April 13, 2026 at 1:00 PM, subject to confirmation with excused members. 36 37 10. Adjourn 38 Motion by Laskowitz to adjourn at 4:27 PM. Second by White. Motion carried - all ayes. 39 40 Minutes by Julie Thyssen, Village Clerk 3