Minutes of the Public Hearing on Special Assessments for Public Improvements in the City of Oconto Held on Tuesday, September 8, 2015 at 5:45 p.m.

Mayor Bostedt called the public hearing to order at 5:45 p.m.

Present at the hearing were Mayor Bostedt, Alderpersons Schreiber, Anderson, Feldt, Resch and Le Breck, Attorney Lindsay Erickson (via telephone), Superintendent of Public Works Jeremy Wusterbarth, Interim Fire Chief John Reed, Police Chief Bernie Faith, Sara Perrizo, Administrator and as recording secretary and other interested parties.

Wusterbarth explained that the final assessments will be determined once the work is completed on the project. Curb and gutter and aprons will be done this week and blacktop by the end of September.

Barbara Carter, 100 Neddo, said that there is a hole in front of her property and asked if it will keep sinking. Wusterbarth said that it will be fixed. John Eparvier, 229 Pierce, asked if a lateral will be optional for his property. Wusterbarth explained that, because he has catch basins on his property, a lateral won’t be needed at this time. Dee Donlevy, 206 Pierce, asked when everyone will know the amount that is owed for the assessments. Wusterbarth will have the totals by mid- to late October and Perrizo will send the notices out right away. The amounts can be paid in full, or the property owners can elect to pay over eight years at 5.5% interest. Several other questions were asked regarding the plowing of snow and where it will be stored, which Wusterbarth answered.

Hearing no further comments, Mayor Bostedt closed the hearing at 5:53 p.m.

Minutes of the RegularCity Council held on Tuesday, September 8, 2015 Pursuant to Notice Duly Given:

  1. Meeting called to order by Mayor Bostedt at 5:55 p.m.
  1. Roll Call: Mayor Bostedt, Darrell Anderson, Al Schreiber, Lauren Resch, Jean Feldt, Bob Le Breck

Excused: Roger Reed, Attorney Evans

Also Present:Police Chief Bernie Faith, Interim Fire Chief John Reed, Superintendent of Public Works Jeremy Wusterbarth, Park & Rec Director John Bostedt, Attorney Lindsay Erickson (via telephone),Sara Perrizo, Administrator and as recording secretary and other interested parties

  1. Invocation and Pledge of Allegiance by Alderperson Feldt.
  1. Approval of Agenda

Moved by Resch, seconded by Feldt to approve the agenda as presented.

Motion carried upon verbal voice vote.5 ayes

  1. Approval of Minutes as Presented from City Council and any Special Council Meetings

Moved by Anderson, seconded by Schreiber to approve the minutes from July and August.

Motion carried upon verbal voice vote.5 ayes

  1. Approval of Department Reports as Presented

Moved by Schreiber, seconded by Resch to approve the department reports from July and August.

Motion carried upon verbal voice vote.5 ayes

  1. Correspondence/Public Input.

Paul Le Tourneau, 1441 Kord Court, said that his daughter was diagnosed with cancer last May. He and his wife want to give back to Children’s Hospital and the Ronald McDonald House, so they came up with the idea of a 5K and 10K run to be held in Oconto. The Girl Scouts will no longer be holding their annual run in May, so the Le Tourneau’s will be taking that over. Le Tourneau spoke with several of the department heads at City Hall and they support the idea and he would also like the support of the City Council. The first run is scheduled for May 7, 2016.

Mayor Bostedt read a letter from Carol Newbury, chair of the Tourism Committee, regarding statements made about a member not being present for five meetings. Newbury stated that is not true as several meetings were cancelled. Also, all members of the committees are volunteers.

Perrizo stated that a lock-box has been placed in the hallway across from the Police Department for after-hours payments. The doors to City Hall will be open until 7 p.m. daily.

  1. Approval of Consent Agenda
  2. Approval to Welcome the Probation and Parole Office to the Community
  1. Approval of Request from Front Office Staff to Keep Office Hours of 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Year-Round
  1. Approval of Appointment of Sue Anderson to the Park & Recreation Committee
  1. Approval of Alcohol Beverage License Applications, Applications for Temporary Class B Retailer’s License, Applications for License to Serve Fermented Beverages and/or Intoxicating Liquor and Appointment of Agents
  1. Approval to Broadcast City Council Meetings on WOCO
  1. Approval to Set the Health Insurance Premium Contribution for Employees at Their Employment Percentage Times 90% for Employees That Work 30 Hours or Greater per Week and are Required to be Offered Health Insurance Under the Affordable Care Act
  1. Approval of Accounts Payable for the Month of August 2015 in the Amount of $187,957.29, Payroll for the Month of August 2015 in the Amount of $125,212.04 and Other Financial Reports as Presented
  1. Approval of Proposal from R&R Assessing Services, LLC for 2016 and 2017 in the Amount of $22,500 Per Year

This item was pulled by Alderperson Anderson. He asked if a two- year agreement is the norm. Perrizo stated that we previously had a three-year agreement, but there are some possible changes in the law that may be coming which may be the reason why R&R proposed only a two-year agreement this time.

Moved by Anderson, seconded by Schreiber to approve the proposal from R&R Assessing Services, LLC for 2016 and 2017 in the amount of $22,500 per year.

Motion carried upon electronically recorded vote.5 ayes

  1. Approval of Offer from Mark and Sue Thompson to Purchase Parcel #265-30181201545 from the City for $500 with the Buyer Paying all Costs Related to the Purchase
  1. Approval to Purchase Used 2005 International Plow Truck from Packer City International in the Amount of $47,000
  1. Approval of Invoice from Menards in the Amount of $3,932.43 for Treated Lumber for Copper Culture Boardwalk Trail
  1. Approval of Amendment to Ordinance 11-8-5 Sexual Offender Residency Restrictions
  1. Approval of Certified Survey Map for Dequaine/Wusterbarth Property in the City of Oconto
  1. Approval of Bay-Lake Regional Planning 2015 Community Project Inventory
  1. Approval of Closure of Main Street from Park Avenue to Superior Avenue and Superior Avenue from Main Street to the High School for the Homecoming Parade on September 18, 2015
  1. Approval of One Year Extension Agreement with Oconto County as the Responsible Unit for the County-Wide Recycling System
  1. Approval of Ordinance Adopting NFPA-1 Fire Codes
  1. Approval of Request from Time Warner Cable for Refund of 2014 Personal Property Taxes in the Amount of $18,116.43 due to Change in State Law and to Submit Reimbursement Requests Totaling $10,776.62 to Oconto County, NWTC and the Oconto Unified School District for Their Portions of the Tax

Moved by Feldt, seconded by Le Breck to approve the consent agenda except for item 8h.

Motion carried upon verbal voice vote.5 ayes

  1. Discussion/Recommendation/Action on the Following:
  2. Final Resolution Authorizing the Special Assessments Against Benefited Property Owners in the City of Oconto, Oconto County, Wisconsin for OC-15

Moved by Anderson, seconded by Schreiber to approve the Final Resolution Authorizing the Special Assessments Against Benefitted Property Owners in the City of Oconto, Oconto County, Wisconsin for OC-15.

Motion carried upon electronically recorded vote.5 ayes

  1. Approval of Hiring of Part-Time Parks Employee

Moved by Feldt, seconded by Anderson to hire John Bostedt, Sr. as a part-time Parks Employee.

Mayor Bostedt stated that, per the direction of the Wage & Personnel Committee, three people were contacted to be interviewed. One person declined, so a fourth person was called and they also declined. Therefore, two people were interviewed. Feldt asked Erickson if there is an issue with the family relationship here and Erickson said that as long as J. Bostedt, Sr. is the most qualified candidate, she sees no legal issues.

Motion carried upon electronically recorded vote.4 ayes, 1 nay (Le Breck)

  1. Approval of Changes to Vacation Policy

Perrizo stated that the recommendation at Wage & Personnel was to change the allowable carryover of vacation to up to one week per calendar year, with exceptions allowable due to extenuating circumstances at the department head’s discretion. The current policy allows a carryover of the amount earned in the year by the employee. This has become a concern because some senior employees have four to five weeks of vacation and, if they choose to carryover the full amount, they could potentially have eight to ten weeks to use in a year.

Moved by Feldt, seconded by Le Breck to change the City vacation policy to allow employees to carry over up to one week of vacation per year, with exceptions to be made at the department head’s discretion in the event of extenuating circumstances.

Motion carried upon electronically recorded vote.5 ayes

  1. Approval of City Hiring Policy

Perrizo stated that the Wage & Personnel Committee recommended clarifying the applicability of the policy by adding the Airport and Library to item number 3. The Committee also recommended changing the length of time for advertising to a minimum of two weeks in item number 4A. Finally, the number of top candidates that the department headsselect and bring to the oversight committee was recommended to be changed to three to five in items 4B and 4C.

Moved by Feldt, seconded by Resch to approve the City Hiring Policy with the recommended changes.

Motion carried upon verbal voice vote.5 ayes

  1. Hiring of Temporary City Attorney

Moved by Le Breck, seconded by Resch to hire Lindsay Erickson as temporary City Attorney on a month-to-month basis at $2,500 per month, beginning on September 1, 2015.

Motion carried upon electronically recorded vote.5 ayes

  1. Approval to Place for Sale Right-of-Way Located at Marshall Street/Bloemer Street (North of Chicago Street)

Wusterbarth explained that there are quite a few alleys and right-of-ways in the City that should be vacated because the City no longer has a need for them. He presented all of these to the Board of Public Works and they determined that this parcel is large enough that there is some value to it. A notice will be put in the paper and notices will be sent to the surrounding property owners regarding the parcel being for sale.

Moved by Anderson, seconded by Schreiber to approve placing for sale the right-of-way located at Marshall Street/Bloemer Street (North of Chicago Street).

Motion carried upon verbal voice vote.5 ayes

  1. Approval to Place for Sale Right-of-Way Located West of Monroe Street and Jones Avenue

Wusterbarth stated that this parcel is a 60 foot right-of-way that is approximately 300 feet long. It is south of Jackson Street and north of Madison Street. The adjacent property owners may be interested in the property and Wusterbarth will send letters to them.

Moved by Feldt, seconded by Le Breck to approve placing for sale the right-of-way located west of Monroe Street and Jones Avenue.

Motion carried upon electronically recorded vote.5 ayes

  1. Approval to Vacate Alleyways Located Between Baldwin Street and Center Street (400 Block), Between Center Street and Pecor Street (400 Block), Between 600 Block of Jefferson Street and 1000 Block of Madison Street, Between First and Second Streets (100 Block), Between First and Second Streets (500 Block), Between Second and Third Streets (600 Block), Between Fourth and Fifth Streets (200, 300, 400 and 500 Blocks) and Between Third and Fourth Streets (600 Block)

Wusterbarth went through each of the parcels and explained that, as a whole, they are not used. The right-of-way between Baldwin Street and Center Street goes through the Chateau Pecor apartments and another home, but was never vacated. This is the first step to vacating these parcels. A public hearing will be held on the passage of the resolution to vacate. A class 3 notice of the hearing will be placed in the newspaper and a 30 day notice of the hearing will be sent to all adjacent property owners.

Moved by Le Breck, seconded by Feldt to approve the process to vacate the alleywayslocated between Baldwin Street and Center Street (400 Block), between Center Street and Pecor Street (400 Block), between 600 Block of Jefferson Street and 1000 Block of Madison Street, between First and Second Streets (100 Block), between First and Second Streets (500 Block), between Second and Third Streets (600 Block), between Fourth and Fifth Streets (200, 300, 400 and 500 Blocks) and between Third and Fourth Streets (600 Block).

Motion carried upon electronically recorded vote.5 ayes

  1. Invoice from KerberRose, S.C. for 2014 Audit Services in the Amount of $6,190

Perrizo explained that $3,890 is for the single audit for the airport which was required due to federal funding that they received in 2014. The remainder of the charges are for the Utility and for the handling of the City’s fixed assets.

Moved by Schreiber, seconded by Anderson to approve the invoice from KerberRose, S.C. for 2014 Audit Services in the amount of $6,190.

Motion carried upon electronically recorded vote.5 ayes

  1. Approval of Bid from PHD Roof Doctors in the Amount of $50,540 for Roof Replacement on WWTP Sludge Storage Building

Wusterbarth stated that the budget for this project is $60,000. Four bids were received, the highest of which was $126,660. PHD Roof Doctors had the lowest bid. Wusterbarth checked their references and they also did the recent work on the Library roof.

Moved by Anderson, seconded by Feldt to approve the bid from PHD Roof Doctors in the amount of $50,540 for roof replacement on WWTP sludge storage building.

Motion carried upon electronically recorded vote.5 ayes

  1. Approval of Invoice from Bruce Municipal Equipment, Inc. in the Amount of $4,008.13

Wusterbarth explained that this is for repairs to the vactor truck blower. A portion of the invoice will be paid by the Public Works department because they use the truck for sewer cleaning and emergency digs.

Moved by Resch, seconded by Le Breck to approve the invoice from Bruce Municipal Equipment, Inc. in the Amount of $4,008.13.

Motion carried upon electronically recorded vote.5 ayes

  1. Mayor Bostedt stated that the Council may vote to convene into Closed Session at approximately 6:40 p.m. pursuant to notice duly given and as allowed by Wis. Stats. 19.85(1)(g) for the purpose of conferring with legal counsel for the governmental body 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
  2. Possible Litigation

Moved by Feldt, seconded by Resch to enter into closed session at 6:40 p.m.

Motion carried upon electronically recorded roll call vote.5 ayes

Also present in closed session: Attorney Erickson (via telephone), Administrator Perrizo

  1. Moved by Feldt, seconded by Anderson to return to open session at 7:00 p.m.

Motion carried upon verbal voice vote.5 ayes

  1. Action/Discussion on Matters from Closed Session

None.

  1. Moved by Feldt, seconded by Andersonto adjourn at 7:01 p.m.

Motion carried upon verbal voice vote. 5 ayes

Respectfully Submitted:

Sara J. Perrizo

Administrator