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TOWN OF ROCHESTER Link to Town Board Meetings
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Link to Town Board Meetings |
February 13, 2006 REGULAR BOARD MEETING 7:00 p.m.
Meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. with Gary Beck and Mike Weinkauf present. Paul Beere was absent.
Betty Novy, Clerk-Treasurer; Christopher Birkett, Public Works Supervisor; and John Tierney, Engineer, were also present.
Pledge of Allegiance.
Mike moved, 2nd by Gary to approve minutes of the January 9 and January 31, 2006 meetings as printed. Motion carried.
Mike moved, 2nd by Gary to approve February disbursements as follows. Motion carried.
Town General Fund Disbursements:
Rochester Sewer Utility District #1 Disbursements:
Treasurer’s Report. Betty read the Treasurer’s report as follows.
Betty reported total tax collections of $3,050,000.00 with $2,500,000.00 being paid out to taxing jurisdictions. The Fire Chief has requested a special joint meeting of Town and Village Boards to discuss joint purchase of an equipment truck. Two tentative dates were given: Tuesday, March 7th or Wednesday, March 8th. Betty will poll the Village Board and Fire Chief for the best date.
Sheriff’s Department. Sergeant Kacmarcik reported the following Town and Village statistics for January: one accident; forty-five speeding citations, eight traffic citations, six parking citations and thirty-five warnings were issued. Complaint statistics were as follows: thirty-five complaints originated through calls directly to the Sheriff’s Department; Deputy Prochaska assisted with twenty-two additional complaints, originated twenty-one on his own, and performed follow up on fourteen. He reported 24 work days, 197.5 hours and 2,233 miles driven. Sergeant Kacmarcik noted a different format to 2006 reports due to the shared contract between Town and Village. Board members found the new format acceptable. The 2005 annual statistic report will be available next month, as well as for presentation at the annual meeting. It was noted hours were logged for Deputy Thompson on the January report. Board members requested he be introduced at the next meeting. Mike Weinkauf reported on complaint of gun shots near the Dale Creek Gun Club. The complaint was that members of the hunt club were directing shots outside of the land, rather than shooting into the land. An individual on an adjacent property was sprayed with pellets. Board members requested copies of the conditional use permit for this property as it will most likely become an issue. Sgt. Kacmarcik will request a copy of the police report.
Public Works Department. Christopher Birkett’s written report was reviewed as follows:
Chris also reported on a compost site inquiry made at the January meeting. He discussed the concept with Racine County Public Works representatives. They are not interested in expanding their operations to include the service at this time.
Engineering Report. John Tierney’s written report on projects was reviewed as follows.
Petition to waive Fox River Prairie Subdivision from Uniform House Number Requirements
John and Shelby Heinrich, 29307 Eagle Ridge Drive, presented a petition signed by 55 residents of Fox River Prairie subdivision with the following statement:
“We, the undersigned, request a waiver of the “Fire and Rescue” address sign requirement on the grounds that as a new subdivision there are already clearly marked, uniform address numbers posted on our curbside mailboxes, a Fox River Prairie subdivision requirement.”
The Heinrichs’ stated concern that front yards are small in the subdivision and placement of signs in this area presents a hazard for young children and pets. Gary Beck stated there is no provision in the ordinance to remove them entirely. The Public Works Supervisor and Deputy Prochaska were instructed to work together to determine whether another location for sign placement is feasible.
Resolution #7-2005 updating the Building Inspection Fee and Bond Schedule
Jim reported on removal of language in the Fee Schedule from several categories previously stating “$50 minimum includes one inspection; additional inspections are $40.00 each”. He chose to insert that as one blanket statement under Ia. “Minimum Permit Fee”. This did not have an affect on the amount charged. Most plumbing inspection fees were lowered to $40.00 per inspection (from $50). Examples were provided on how fees apply to a typical ranch style home and an accessory structure. Mike moved, 2nd by Gary to approve Resolution #7-2005. Motion carried.
Betty is to check if Bond amounts are consistent with those being charged by other communities.
Land Use Plan Map Amendment Process
Betty reported on legal and Land Use Plan Committee review of the procedure proposed at January’s meeting. The procedure meets legal requirements and should be adopted by Resolution. The Land Use Plan Committee recommended an additional step. When sending notice to abutting property owners, they feel additional notice should be sent to the Village of Rochester since it is a Joint Plan. Mike noted the Village should extend the same courtesy to the Town in their adopted procedure. Consensus of the Board was to have the attorney draft the resolution for consideration at the March meeting.
County Response on Cost Sharing: Lighting of Case Eagle Baseball Diamond
Betty reported on conversation with Glenn Lampark of Racine County Public Works. Glenn stated they do not have any budgeted funds to participate in cost sharing this year. If an official request is made for next year, it would have to go through the appropriate budget channels. Glenn stated the County would be willing to help out as possible with project construction and could perform site restoration when electrical work was done.
It was noted it may be a couple years before the Town has available funds for the project. John Tierney stated preparation of contract documents, included in the initial engineering proposal, might require updating before the project is ready to go out for bid. Engineering costs could be modified for Preliminary Design only. This will allow some progress and allow the Board to better assess costs. Consensus of the Board was for John to prepare a Preliminary Design proposal for consideration at the March meeting.
Individual List for Interim Pharmaceutical Stockpile
The Western Racine County Health Department requested that each municipality provide a list of individuals who, in response to an act of bio-terrorism or an outbreak of infectious disease, would need to be immunized within the first three days utilizing the interim pharmaceutical stockpile supply. This list already includes people who are first-responders that will have face to face contact with the public in case of such an emergency. Any other individuals in the municipality who will have necessary contact with the public should be included on the list. Consensus of the Board was to include Christopher Birkett, Betty Novy and Sandra Swan on the list.
Fox River Prairie Handicap Ramps
Correspondence from Mike Kaerek was reviewed stating sidewalk handicap ramps in the subdivision were installed according to approved plans dated February 2, 2002. The Town engineer approved both construction plans and completed construction of the sidewalk ramps with no comment. In reviewing this information, the Town Board recognized Kaerek is not responsible to modify the ramps to meet ADA standards. John Tierney will include these repairs in bid documents for N. River Road.
Assignment of New House Number: 920 N. Browns Lake Road to 31144 Hunters Trail
Correspondence from Racine County Planning was reviewed recommending this change. Mike moved, 2nd by Gary to assign a new house number of 31144 Hunters Trail. Motion carried.
Assignment of New House Number: 34315 Academy Road “Upper” to 34317 Academy Road
Correspondence from Racine County Planning was reviewed recommending this change. Gary moved, 2nd by Mike to assign a new house number of 34317 Academy Road to the unit previously known as 34315 Academy Road “Upper”. Motion carried.
Application for Operator’s License: Kathleen E. Tobin; Dales’ Bar
Betty reported a Responsible Beverage Server’s Course Completion Certificate was submitted with the application. Kathleen has a clean background check. Mike moved, 2nd by Gary to approve the Operator’s License for Kathleen E. Tobin. Motion carried.
Boundary Agreement Legal Expenses
Board members expressed concern about proceeding with a blank check to cover legal expenses of all municipalities with which Boundary Agreements are required. It would be preferable to have some type of limit or provision specified. However, it was noted other municipalities will most likely not be willing to incur costs when agreements are being done at Rochester’s request. Consensus was to discuss strategies with representatives of other municipalities to keep legal counsel costs at a minimum while moving forward with the process.
PERIOD FOR PUBLIC COMMENT: There was none.
Gary moved, 2nd by Mike to adjourn at 8:45 p.m. Motion carried.
Respectfully submitted:
Betty J. Novy, CMC Clerk-Treasurer
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