City Council

Town of St. Joseph - St. Croix County, WI Minutes of the Town Board Meeting St. Joseph Town Hall Thursday, March 14, 2024 Call to Order by Chair Theresa Johnson at 6:00 pm Statement of Public Notice read by Clerk Roll Call: Chair Theresa Johnson, Matt Moore, Laurie DeRosier, Chris Marshall, Justin Kruse, Engineer Lee Mann, Attorney Nick Vivian Adoption of Agenda: MOTION to approve the agenda as presented with No. 4 removed (Marshal/DeRosier). Motion carried. Pledge of Allegiance recited. Public Comment: None Business discussion and possible action on: 1. St Croix Crossing Half Marathon: Stacy Einck appeared to discuss the St. Croix Cross Half Marathon. MOTION to approve the opportunity to hold the St. Croix Crossing Half Marathon on July 27, 2024 (Marshall/Kruse). Motion carried. 2. Eckert Blufflands road connections: Jason Kjeseth, St. Croix County, appeared to present the plan for road connections for the Eckert Blufflands. Discussion followed. The Town has requested a Memorandum of Understanding from St. Croix County regarding the plans for the road connections and any costs to the Town (legal, publication costs, etc.). Discussed how emergency services would be affected, access, etc. Attorney Nick Vivian expressed what he would expect to see from the County. 3. MS4 annual presentation: Lee Mann presented the MS4 Permit requirements, current items the Town of St. Joseph is doing, adding Church Street Ravine to the current map. Discussion followed. Clerk will add this presentation to the website. 4. Presentation from Hitching Post Real Estate, Jim Furseth – proposed amendment to Comprehensive Plan: Mr. Furseth requested a delay until a later meeting to make his presentation. 5. Resolution 2024-02 Approving the Town of St. Joseph Adjusted Urban Area Boundary: Lee Mann presented the urban area boundary in Houlton. Discussed the current boundaries and US Census Bureau requirements. Discussion followed. Per Anton Rang, the Minnesota Metropolitan Council had removed Wisconsin from the urban area map. Discussed that this item came from WisDOT and the reasoning why this was brought before the Board. This will be brought back to the Board in April. 6. Town Hall Building update: The building plans went to bid March 13 th. Bruce Paulson, Stantec, discussed the bid process and status of his calling the contractors. a. Bid Dates: The Bids are due April 4, 2024 at 2:00pm at the Town Hall. Nick Petrucelle, 1302 27th St., asked how to access the bid site. Information will be posted on the Town website. b. Additional subcontractors hired by Town and RFPs: Discussed the proposed RFPs for the septic and the well. Discussed the soil that is removed is part of the bid project and the contractors will be responsible for removing it from the site. Chris Marshall asked if Stantec has designed the septic system for the building. Discussed the perc tests needed for the soil. MOTION for the Town to perform another perc test in the new location identified in the Stantec  drawing from the company that performed the last perc test (Kruse/DeRosier). Motion carried. Will wait on both RFPs until after the soil tests. c. Recommendation from Plan Commission regarding the Building and Design Regulations: Discussed the Plan Commissions approval of the Building and Design Regulations and their recommendation to move forward. 7. Update on road connections on west side of Town: Lee Mann discussed the proposed road connections. Discussed the State’s standards and requirements. Discussed the concepts prepared by Stantec for proposed road connections. Dawn Kameo, 355 River Road, discussed how these concepts will affect emergency services. MOTION that we have Stantec move forward with Option C of the maps (Marshall/Moore). Motion carried. 8. Major Road Project a. Update on Church St Project and pay requests: Lee Mann discussed the reimbursement request for the ravine has been signed and will be submitted. 9. Public Works a. 2024 Road Maintenance: Lee Mann discussed the potential roads affected by the road maintenance project, the current budget, and the alternates. Discussed the options to repair River Road. MOTION to approve the 2024 Road Maintenance Project as presented by Stantec for crack seal/seal coat and the repairs to River Road for around $35,000 or where that bid comes in (Johnson/Moore). Motion carried. b. Update on tractor –maintenance: Chris Marshall discussed the tractor has had another issue with the left front wheel and it is back at Baribeau for further repairs. Baribeau has stated they will fix it and make it right with the Town. The Board has asked Public Works to review the tractor situation and come back with proposed solutions. c. Update on tree removal: Chris Marshall stated the new contractor has a list of trees to remove and they are currently working on it. d. Buildout of Maintenance Garage for signs and equipment: Discussed having the maintenance garage buildout begin soon. e. Tractor driver position opening: Henry “Chip” Pracht and Don Capra were present to discuss their interest in employment. Chip has 5 years’ experience driving a tractor at a golf course; Don has experience from growing up on a farm. MOTION to approve our new tractor drivers Don Capra and Henry Pracht and will be required to have a drug test and background check. The Clerk and Chris will let them know when they are ready to begin (Johnson/Moore). Motion carried. f. 144th Avenue soil borings: Lee Mann discussed the status of the project. Doug Zahler will design the road and provide his cost bids. g. Request for overweight permit for Waste Management: Theresa Johnson discussed Waste Management’s decision to not pick up during the weight restrictions for the roads. Waste Management has provided more information since that time. Waste Management has 2-3 trucks on our roads, every other week is recycling. They are asking for an overweight, blanket permit. 10. Parks, Trails and Recreation a. Update on Playground and plans to be completed in spring: Mark Vanasse discussed that they will provide a schedule in April. b. 7:00PM - Outdoor Recreation Plan Public hearing: Chair Johnson discussed the Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan, discussed that it is necessary to apply for grant money. Elaine Duncan, 414 Valley View Trail, discussed her misgivings on the trail system and the lakes and waters and does not want to see connectivity from the Town to these areas. She is not in favor of any further debt. Chair Theresa Johnson asked for any additional comments to the Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan. Laurie DeRosier  read aloud a statement that Janet Lindstrom had written regarding thanking the Parks, Trails, and Recreation Committee, the Board, and others for their work. MOTION to close the Public Hearing (Kruse/Marshall). Motion carried. c. Resolution 2024-03 Adopting the Town of St. Joseph’s Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan. MOTION to adopt Resolution 2024-03 Adopting the Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (Moore/Kruse). Roll Call: Laurie DeRosier-Aye, Justin Kruse-Aye, Chris Marshall-Aye, Theresa Johnson-Aye, Matt Moore-Aye. Motion carried. d. Preserve update on signage and hunting: Theresa Johnson discussed the email received from the DNR. Discussed adding signage to the Preserve. The DNR would like to know what incidents have taken place before they do an inspection. Matt Moore stated we owe it to the residents to restrict hunting in the Preserve. Bill Murphy, 1379 Fox Ridge Trail, thanked Matt Moore for protecting the residents, stated his house has been shot at, there are trespassers on his property a lot, asked the Board to consider speaking with the DNR and restricting hunting in its entirety. Discussed the Clerk sending a letter to the adjoining residents and we will provide that to the DNR. Discussed the “Property Boundary” sign. John Lipis, 1631 Fox Ridge Trail, stated he is concerned the new signs will be shot as well. He also stated his property section is right along the trail and if the trail could be mowed straight across instead, just to reestablish the boundary and would keep people from walking along the property line. MOTION to go forward with letters to all the homeowners and will submit that to the DNR to go forward with their investigation (Johnson/Moore). Discussion followed. Motion carried. The Board has requested the Parks Committee review the current trail and moving it away from the property line. There will be 320 signs to be ordered and will look like the County property boundary signs. Discussed adding the logo to the signs. e. TAP Grant discussion for future: Discussed the potential future TAP Grants and the process moving forward. Theresa Johnson will contact Stantec to find out where the last TAP Grant ended and the status. Discussed the need to have a discussion with the DOT to move this process forward. 11. Plan Commission a. Junkyards and other chronic nuisances and enforcement issues 1. Fire at 1146 Hwy 35 with multiple vehicles and diesel fuel contamination 2. Other enforcement issues b. Update to ordinances and codification process: MOTION to have the Clerk compile a list of all Ordinances that have been approved and to be sent to Ecode as new law and continue to track each ordinance (DeRosier/Kruse). Motion carried. 1. Ordinance #2024-06-Chapter 92 – Temporary Structure and Commercial Tent Permits and fee – approval: Removed from Agenda for additional review by the attorney. 2. Ordinance #2024-05-Chapter 160 – Snow and Ice Removal – approval: MOTION to approve Ordinance 2024-05 Chapter 160 Snow and Ice Removal (Marshall/Kruse). Roll Call: Justin Kruse-Aye, Chris Marshall-Aye, Laurie DeRosier-Aye, Matt Moore-Aye, Theresa Johnson-Aye. Motion carried. 12. Reviews of contracts and services: a. Sunnylink – Tim Whiteside: Tim Whiteside was present to discuss his contract and review. Discussed the process for requesting assistance from Sunnylink. MOTION to approve a continuation indefinitely with Sunnylink for our IT needs for the Town (Johnson/Moore). Motion carried. The Board appreciated Tim for the work he does for the Town. b. All Croix Inspections – Todd Dolan: Todd Dolan was present to discuss his contract and review. The Board appreciated Todd (and Melissa) for the work they do for the Town. c. Tuma Excavating – Todd Tuma: Todd Tuma was present to discuss his contract and review. Todd has provided a new fee sheet for services. MOTION to approve the new price sheet and  new contract for Tuma Excavating for the Town (Marshall/Kruse). Motion carried. 13. Operator Licenses: MOTION to approve Stephanie Allen, Big Guys BBQ and Patty Osadchuk, Big Guys BBQ (Marshall/DeRosier). Motion carried. 14. Transient Merchant Sales Application – Michael Michaud: MOTION to deny the application for the Transient Merchnat Sales for Mike Michaud (Johnson/Moore). Motion carried. 15. Short-Term Rental Application, 1236 Hwy 35 N-Allison Goebel: MOTION to approve the Short- Term Rental Application for Allison Goebel, 1236 Hwy 35 N (Moore/Kruse). Motion carried. 16. ARPA funding and approval of expenditures a. Approval of ARPA projects for the Town: None at this time. 17. Public Records Requests – progress and costs: Clerk discussed the record requests received. 18. Forms for Pre-Application meeting and Lot Line Adjustment: MOTION to approve the Pre- Application Meeting and Lot Line Adjustment forms (Johnson/Kruse). Motion carried. 19. Fee Schedule update with changes: MOTION to approve the fee schedule as presented (Kruse/DeRosier). Motion carried. 20. Approval of Town Board minutes – January 18 and February 1 and 8: MOTION to approve the Town Board Minutes for January 18, February 1 and February 8 (Marshall/Moore). Motion carried. 21. Budget, Invoices, checks and bank balances: MOTION to approve all of the epays and Check Nos. 24799 through 24879 except for 24855 which is Baribeau Implement (Johnson/Kruse). Motion carried. 22. Closed Session: Wis Stats 19.85(g)—Conferring with legal counsel who is rendering oral or written advice concerning strategy to be adopted by the body with respect to litigation in which it is or is likely to become involved – junkyards and trash burning: MOTION to go into Closed Session per Wis Stats 19.85(g) (Kruse/Marshall). Roll Call: Justin Kruse-Aye, Laurie DeRosier-Aye, Chris Marshall-Aye, Matt Moore-Aye, Theresa Johnson-Aye. Motion carried. 23. MOTION to go back into Open Session (Kruse/Marshall). Roll Call : Theresa Johnson-Aye, Justin Kruse-Aye, Matt Moore-Aye, Laurie DeRosier-Aye, Chris Marshall-Aye. Motion carried. Open session to discuss or act upon matters considered in Closed Session a. Action on any items in closed session: MOTION to have the attorney take action on items discussed in Closed Session (Johnson/Kruse). Motion carried. 24. Items for the next Town Board Agenda or committee agendas 25. Adjournment: MOTION to adjourn at 10:23 pm (Kruse/Marshall). Motion carried. Minutes submitted by Teri Kelly.