Town of Whitewater Town Board Meeting Minutes

Wednesday, July 14, 2021

 

Lowell Hagen called the meeting to order at 7:000 PM

In attendance were Lowell Hagen, Norm Prusener, Bob Strand, Jorja Boiley

Norm Pruesener made a motion to approve the agenda as written. The motion was seconded by Bob Strand and the motion carried unanimously.

 

Norm Prusener made a motion to approve the minutes from the June 1, 2021 Special Board Meeting. The motion was seconded by Bob Strand and the motion carried unanimously.

Norm Prusener made motion to approve the minutes from June 9, 2021 Monthly Town Board Meeting, The motion was seconded by Bob Strand and the motion carried unanimously.
Norm Prusener made a motion to accept the minutes from the June 15th, Special Board Meeting. The motion was seconded by Bob Strand and the motion carried unanimously.
Norm Prusener made a motion to approve the minutes from the June, 24th Special Board Meeting. The motion was seconded by Bob Strand and the motion carried unanimously.

 

Treasurer: Bank balances were read. The Town received the initial deposit of $76,774.38 from the ARPA fund program. The second payment is scheduled for June, 2022.

Clerk reports: While there are two applications for Operator’s Licenses on the agenda, there are three other applications which are also ready for approval. The additional applications cannot be approved at this meeting since they were not received in time to be on the agenda. For faster processing of the Operator License as they are received, the Town needs to pass an ordinance stating the Clerk/Treasurer has the authority to approve them as they are received and if all conditions for approval are met. The topic will be addressed at a later board meeting.

Norm Prusener made a motion to accept the Clerk and Treasurer reports as read. The motion was seconded by BobStrand and the motion carried unanimously.

Supervisors reports:

• Norm Prusener – nothing to report.
• Bob Strand – John Andres, 7659 N Lakeshore Dr reported an issue with water run-off from the driveway to the garage. One suggestion to repair the problem is to add an asphalt curb at the top of the driveway. No decision was made.           John Dynkowski N7694 Woodchuck Alley reported a clump of downed trees in the right of way. The road is private and any maintaining for the road is the responsibility of the residents. If the Town makes arrangement to have the tree removed by a third party, he is offering to pay half.
• Lowell  Hagen – introduced Carl Ahrens as the Town’s new Roadman. Carl most recently was working for the City of Delavan. He has acclimated to his new role and is a welcome addition to the Township.

 

Sgt. Jacob Skibba introduced Sgt. Nick Yohanek as the new liaison for the Town. Sgt. Skibba’s schedule changed to the second shift and he will no longer be able to attend the Board meetings.

During June, 2021, there were 219 calls for service averaging 7.3 per day. Two major incidents occurred during the month: One incident involved a violation of DNR regulations. The second incident related to a person who was handing out business cards and offering low pricing for seal coating service. The actual owner of the company was contacted and it was determined that person had nothing to do with company. The situation has been eliminated.

 

JNT Marina is requesting a permit to hold a fireworks display on Saturday, July 17, 2021 on Whitewater Lake. Their application included the requisite paperwork indicating that the company handling the display is certified and carries the appropriate insurance. Norm Prusener made a motion to grant the permit. The motion was seconded by Lowell Hagen. No discussion ensued and the motion carried unanimously.

Applications for Operator’s License were presented for the Willow Brook Golf Course. The two applicants have certificates for attending certified classes, paid the $25.00 fee and passed their background checks. Norm Prusener made a motion to approve two operator’s licenses for Rebecca Hanshaw and Autumn Lesar. The motion was seconded by Lowell Hagen. The motion passed unanimously.

Pictures were shared showing issues with deteriorating pavement on Burr Oak. Bob Strand said that a full paving repair would not be done this season. A discussion centered on other options to alleviate the condition.

The DNR responded to a request for repairing State Park Rd from the top of the hill at Wood Chuck Ally to Ridge Road. They said there was no money in their budget for those repairs. Some patching of the road will be done.

Norm Prusener and Bob Strand met with representatives from the DNR to discuss issues on Hill Drive that involve water run-off and upgrading the access to the lake. Norm reported that the DNR feels that the proposed changes would meet the approval of the DNR. Norm feels that the cost of the suggested changes may be about $7500.00 and since that money is not in the budget, perhaps the residents on Hill Drive would be willing to cover the costs. There were several Hill Dr owners in attendance at the meeting and they are more than willing to absorb the costs. A letter will be sent to all the Hill Dr owners regarding the offer and if they provide payment to the Town in the amount of $7500.00, the Town will secure permits and request bids for the project.

Norm spoke with Mr. Bill Yoss, who is requesting a permit to make additions to his driveway. Norm met with him at his residence and determined that a permit is not needed. Mr. Yoss will provide a drawing of his proposed plan.

The Town is in the process of revising the Ordinances and Town code. Part of the process is to establish new fee schedules and include those fees as section in the Code. A list of current fees was presented and after a brief discussion, Norm said to table discussion and call for a special meeting to finalize.

Regarding the changes for wording needed to meet new State statutes regarding operating a boat while towing will be as follows:

“30.69 Water Skiing

• PROHIBITED AT CERTAIN TIMES; EXCEPTIONS.
• Except as provided in par. (b), no person may operate a motorboat towing a person on water skis, aquaplane, or similar device unless one of the following applies:

1. There is in the motorboat a competent person in addition to the operator in a position to observe the progress of the person being towed.
2. Subject to s. 30.77 (3) (ab), the motorboat is equipped with a mirror that provides the operator with a wide field of vision to the rear.

 

 

Public input –

Laurel Swan raised the issue of speeding on Glacial Drive. He is suggesting installing speed bumps to prevent the speeding. He is concerned about the safety in general that is compromised by the speeding vehicles/motorcycles. He suggested that increased presence of squads to patrol the area is not effective as it would be difficult to catch the offenders in action. Some in attendance are aware of who the offenders are and a suggestion was made to contact the parents to intervene. He wants to know if the speed limit can be lowered and that no speed limit signs are currently posted in that area.

Jerome Converse proposed a plan to establish a parking area on Clover Valley Road at the entrance/exit of the Ice Age Trail. He indicated that there is room for about 7 cars, the DNR has approved the improvement and there would be no cost incurred by the Town. The Ice Age Trail Alliance will pay for the project. Norm made a motion to improve the parking area on the north side of Clover Valley Road at the exit for the Ice Age Trail.  Bob seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.

 

Elaine Florczak raised questions about all the private fireworks that took place over the 4^th of July weekend. She said one party lasted two hours; another one about 45 minutes. Since it is illegal in Wisconsin, what can be done to prohibit the events. Sgt. Skibba and Sgt. Yohanek both said to call 911 and the Department would investigate. It was stressed that often it is difficult to determine exactly where the origin of the fireworks is located which makes it difficult to stop the activity.

 

Concerns were raised by several residents regarding the Lake Lorraine issue. In the opinion of some, the project to lower the water level in Lake Lorraine by redirecting water into Whitewater Lake was on hold. Others are stating that the project is moving forward and may have severe consequences for Whitewater. The DNR has approved the plans proposed by the Town of Richmond, The DNR is the only entity that controls the project and there is nothing the Town of Whitewater can do other than express their concerns, which has been done by Whitewater Lake Management.

 

Mr. Robert Sivek complained about a group playing loud and inappropriate music on an anchored boat. He was asking if there was an ordinance prohibiting playing loud music especially considering the type of music being played. Since it is a disturbance could the offenders be charged with disorderly conduct? Is there an anchored boat ordinance??

 

The Board reviewed and paid bills.

Norm made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 8:26 PM,  Lowell seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously.

 

Respectively submitted by Jorja Boiley, Clerk/Treasurer