VILLAGE OF BRUCE
BOARD MEETING MINUTES
February 1, 2021
Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a scheduled monthly meeting of the Village Board was held on Monday, February 1st, 2021.
Village President Shane Trott presided and called to order the meeting at the Village Hall facility at 7:00 p.m. Board members present were Galen Brainerd, Rob Grabon, Avery Newman, Mark Zimmer & Kim Grasley. Jessica Hegeholz attended also.
TREASURER’S REPORT: Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Newman to approve the Treasurer’s report as given, carried.
EMPLOYEE’S REPORT: Darlene Wundrow attended the meeting and reported that maintenance worker Casey Gudis has finally returned back to work after being out 2 weeks due to COVID. The crew has been busy working on some Coleman Street Lift Station issues that could not wait to be fixed in the Spring when the North Main Street Reconstruction Project is planned to begin.
PETITIONERS-CITIZEN COMPLAINTS AND REQUESTS:
‘Hair of the Dog’ Fundraiser-Rusk County Animal Shelter Donation Request: A request was made to the Board for a donation towards an event being held by the Rusk County Animal Shelter. The Village donates $500.00 every year to the Rusk County Animal Shelter, therefore the Board did not pursue the request. Motion by Grabon, seconded by Zimmer to not donate to the ’Hair of the Dog’ Fundraiser held by the Rusk County Animal Shelter, carried.
PUBLIC COMMENTS: Bob Lorkowski attended in audience and requested that the Pledge of Allegiance be said.
Lorkowski presented the Board with a schedule for Cruise Night’s as well as an Open House/Cruise tour schedule. Cruise Night’swill beMay 18th, June 15th, July 20th & August 17th, from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. Saturday July 11th from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. will be the annual Open House/Craft/Car Show and the Blue Hills Cruise-In Open House/Car Show Dates will beJune 5th, August 7th & October 2nd. Lorkowski also had some discussion with the Board on possibilities of setting up a committee of some sorts to get Main Street back up and running. There are several vacant buildings/businesses on Main Street that he would love to get businesses in. He asked that if anyone is interested in starting their own business to please get in touch with him to discuss further. Lorkowski informed the Board that he will not be going through with his parking lot repairs and would much rather put his money towards Main Street improvement and development.
Board member Grabon spoke of some concerns of a dog running loose in the neighborhood. The Board advised him to call the animal pound when he sees the dog again.
APPLICATIONS:
Temporary Class ‘B’ License: Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Grasley to approve a Temporary Class ‘B’ license to the Bruce Snowmobile Club to sell fermented malt beverages and/or wine coolers at their fundraising event to be held on February 20th, 2021 at the Bruce Fire Hall, 809 N. Blackburn St., carried.
Operator’s Licenses: Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Grabon to approve an operator’s license for Christina R. Grasley, carried.
Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Brainerd to approve an operator’s license for Melissa R. Grasley, carried.
Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Zimmer to approve an operator’s license for Angel D. Bulliner, carried.
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Utility:
Discussion and Action Regarding Corrective Work on Village Wells: Larry Gotham of Morgan and Parmley attended the meeting to give the Board an update on the progress of the corrective work that needs to be done on the Village wells due to the high levels of manganese and biofilm present. A project proposal was submitted from Municipal Well & Pump with total work costing $103,214.00. The Board had initially thought that the project costs would be eligible for funding through a Rural Development grant known as the Emergency Community Water Assistance Grant. Unfortunately the project is not considered an ‘emergency’ situation therefore would not be eligible. There is another Rural Development Grant Funding source that would cover 75% of the project cost with the Village having to cover the remaining 25%. Motion by Grabon, seconded by Newman to move forward with the application with Rural Development, carried. Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Grabon to approve the quote submitted from Municipal Well & Pump in the amount of $103,214.00, and to consult with the Village’s Accountant on where the 25% of the Village’s funding portion would best be paid from (water utility, interim financing, etc.), carried. Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Grasley to table the ‘Discussion and Action Regarding Corrective Work on Village Wells’ issue until the March, 2021 Regular Monthly Board Meeting, carried.
Morgan & Parmley-Invoice Payment Approval: Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Newman to approve the invoice in the amount of $8,695.20 to Morgan & Parmley for Engineering services done on Well #1 & Well #3’s high manganese testing and remediation work through January 15th, 2021, carried.
PSC-Water Rate Application: The application is still in the process of being reviewed/completed by the Village’s accounting firm. Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Grasley to table the ‘PSC Water Rate Application’ issue until the March, 2021 Regular Monthly Board Meeting, carried.
Emergency Community Water Assistance Grant: After discussion with Rural Development, as well as the Village’s engineer, Larry Gotham, the Village does not qualify for the Emergency Community Water Assistance Grant that was initially sought out to cover the expenses for the corrective work that needs to be done to the Village Wells. Motion by Newman, seconded by Grabon to remove the item from the agenda, carried.
Public Works:
Parking Lot Repairs/Alley Work @ 714 N. Main Street: Bob Lorkowski of L’Cars Automotive attended the meeting and informed the Board, in Public Comments, that he will not be going through with this project this year. Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Grasley to remove the item from the agenda, carried.
Sale of Village Owned Property-202 W. Railroad Avenue: One bid was submitted to the Board for the purchase of Village owned property located at 202 W. Railroad Ave. The sealed bid was opened by Trott and read aloud to the Board. Motion by Grabon, seconded by Brainerd to accept the bid of $3,500.00 from Adam Frisinger for the purchase of the property located at 202 W. Railroad Ave., carried. Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Newman to remove the item from the agenda, carried.
Committee Meeting January 21st, 2021 Report: A committee meeting was held on January 21st, 2021 to discuss a tree removal concern on Daily Street. The committee recommended the following to the Board:
– Send a certified letter to the property owner stating that the trees have to be removed by a definite date.
– Call the property owner after we have received receipt of said certified letter.
– If the trees are not removed by the time given in certified letter, the Village will take action, have the trees removed and bill the property owner for the work. They would recommend doing this item in mid March, 2021.
Property Concern on Daily Street-Tree Removal: The property owner has taken care of most of the trees that were a concern and is in the process of clean up. The item will be left on the agenda until the entire removal is completed. Motion by Newman, seconded by Brainerd to table the ‘Property Concern on Daily Street-Tree Removal’ issue until the March, 2021 Regular Monthly Board Meeting, carried.
North Main Street Reconstruction Project:
Purchase Approval for Proposed North Main Street Reconstruction Project-Coleman Street Lift Station Location: The final offer to purchase was sent to the property owners, signed and accepted. The Village attorney is working on the final paperwork and payment. The .92 acre lot will be purchased for $10,000.00 and will be the new location for the Coleman Street Lift Station for the North Main Street Reconstruction Project set to begin this Spring. Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Brainerd to table the ‘Purchase Approval for Proposed North Main Street Reconstruction Project-Coleman Street Lift Station Location’ issue until the March, 2021 Regular Monthly Board Meeting, carried.
Administration:
Committee Meeting January 13, 2021 Report: A committee meeting was held on January 13th, 2021 to discuss the resignation of the Deputy Clerk/Treasurer and some payout issues. The committee also discussed the hiring of a new Deputy Clerk/Treasurer.
Resignation of Deputy Clerk/Treasurer & Payout Approval: Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Grabon to approve:
– Pay out of 35 hours of vacation time, which is one years earned.
– Subtract 8 hours from the payout due to being paid for New Year’s Day in error
– Subtract 1 hour from payout due to being paid for hour not worked, carried. Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Grabon to remove the item from the agenda, carried.
New Hire Deputy/Clerk Position Discussion: Motion by Grabon, seconded by Zimmer to approve putting an ad in the Ladysmith News, as well as Facebook, website, etc. and to offer the position at a max of 26 hours a week, carried. Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Brainerd to table the ‘New Hire Deputy/Clerk Position Discussion’ issue until the March, 2021 Regular Monthly Board Meeting, carried.
Employee Manual Update: Nothing new this month. Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Newman to table the ‘Employee Manual Update’ issue until the March, 2021 Regular Monthly Board Meeting, carried.
Finance:
Emergency ‘One Call’ System: No quotes have been obtained at this time. Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Brainerd to table the Emergency ‘One Call’ System issue until the March, 2021 Regular Monthly Board Meeting, carried.
APPROVAL OF BILLS: Motion by Grasley, seconded by Zimmer to pay vouchers and electronic payments totaling $168,561.99, carried.
CORRESPONDENCE:
Appointment of New Bruce Fire Department Chief: Trott reported that John Baker, Jr. is now the new Bruce Fire Department Chief and Kenny Meisegeier the Assistant Chief, effective January, 2021. Previous Fire Chief Jim Locke has retired.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
February 16th, 2021 Spring Primary Election: Polling Location, 100W. River Avenue, Bruce, WI 54819. Polls open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
February 20th, 2021 – Bruce Snowmobile Club Brat Feed: Located at the Fire Hall from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
February 26th, 2021 – North Main Street Reconstruction Project Bid Opening Meeting: 1:00 p.m. at the Bruce Village Hall
ADJOURNMENT: Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Brainerd to adjourn, carried. Adjournment was at 8:01 p.m.
Jessica Hegeholz
Clerk/Treasurer