The monthly meeting of the Village (of Scandinavia) Board was held on May 9 in the Community Room of the Municipal Center. President David Mork called the meeting to order at 5 p.m.

Members present: David Mork, Mike Hayes, Becky Morgan, Patrick Knautz, Judy Watson – Treasurer, Renee Smith – Clerk. Others present: Kris Mork, Tom Michael, Karl Rosholt, Carol Kraco, Dave Vial, Mike Beacom the Central Wisconsin Apartment Association President for Waupaca, Wood and Portage Counties, Lisa Shirek, Mike Stockwell, Kelton Wilhite, Jane and David Dain, Trey Foerster from HeadspringIS.com, Holly Neumann from the Waupaca County Post. Member absent: Bob Fredy.

President Mork asked for approval of the agenda; motion made (Morgan/Hayes). Motion carried unanimously. Motion made (Morgan/Knautz) to approve the Board’s April meeting minutes as presented. Motion carried unanimously.

At the April Organizational meeting the official appointment of clerk and deputy clerk/treasurer was missed. President Mork recommended that the following appointments be made: Clerk – Renee Smith reappointed to one-year term; Deputy Clerk – Judy Watson reappointed to one-year term; Treasurer – Judy Watson reappointed to one-year term. Motion made (Morgan/Hayes) to approve the appointments. Motion carried unanimously.

Lisa Shirek was present to apply for an outdoor patio at Sliced Pizza. [6/13/23 discussed] In August 2022, the Board approved Ms. Shirek’s outdoor patio upon the approval of J.W. adoption of the Outdoor Dining Ordinance. The Outdoor Dining Ordinance was never adopted.

Parking spaces

In April, three parallel spaces were drawn along the south side of 305 North Main Street. Ms. Shirek stated there is enough room for a patio and parking. Trustee Morgan asked how much space would be needed for the patio. Ms. Shirek stated it would be the equivalent of one parallel parking space. She is looking to put two tables of four on the patio. Trustee Hayes spoke up and said he disagrees with the outdoor patio. He brought up the issues of liability and safety. Both issues were addressed in the past. Clerk Smith included an email dated April 25, 2023, from Andy Maduscha, Village’s insurance agent from McClone. His email states the Village is covered for up to $2 million for the air conditioning units and the stairs. Ms. Shirek provided last year’s letter dated June 14, 2022, along with a copy of her Certificate of Liability Insurance from her State Farm Insurance agent, Ben Martinsen. The letter states that the Village of Scandinavia can be added as an Additional Insured providing liability and medical payment coverage.

Carol Kraco, owner of Odin & Freja’s Place, stated she doesn’t understand. The Board has given Ms. Shirek hurdle after hurdle, and she has met all of them. The patio had already been approved last year. Safety and liability have been addressed. If the Board isn’t going to approve the patio, stop giving her more hurdles.

Before today’s meeting, Trustee Fredy sent an email to Clerk Smith giving his opinion on this matter and other agenda items. He states he believes the patio was approved last year, as long as Ms. Shirek puts up barricades. Ms. Shirek agreed to put up the barricade in the spring and remove it in the fall. This was not done last year because it was so late in the year when the patio was approved.

David Dain, Adeline’s Antiques, stated he thought it was a bad idea to allow the use of the village right-of-way. Mr. Dain felt that it opened the Village up to lawsuits.

Trustee Morgan made a motion (seconded by Trustee Knautz) to rewrite the ordinance to include dimensions and barriers. Motion carried with Trustee Hayes voting Nay.

Permit/winter parking discussed. Lisa Shirek was also present to discuss winter parking for her three apartments. Ms. Shirek has two apartments above 305 N. Main Street and one above 320 N. Main Street. All three apartments are two-bedroom. 320 N. Main Street comes with no parking and 305 N. Main Street comes with three parking spaces. Ms. Shirek is requesting three more parking spaces giving each apartment two parking spaces November through March. Ms. Shirek is willing to pay a fee for these parking spaces.

In January 2022, the Village Board told Ms. Shirek that her tenants could park in the Municipal Center parking lot during the winter months as there is no overnight parking on any Village streets. In March 2023, the Village Board told Ms. Shirek that her tenants could no longer park in the Municipal Center parking lot due to snow being left on the parking lot. Ms. Shirek asked where her tenants should park and Trustee Hayes told her that was her problem, not the Village’s. Trustee Hayes does not believe it is the Village’s responsibility to provide parking for her apartments.

(Scandinavia) Town Chairman Gary Marx, Trustee Morgan and Clerk Smith have spent hours onsite looking at the options available for overnight winter parking. As the Village and Town of Scandinavia share ownership of the Municipal Center, the two municipalities must agree on designating parking spaces for use during the winter. Chairman Marx, after speaking with Fire Chief Bryan Fuhs, decided they could give two more parking spaces behind 305 N. Main Street and 335 N. Main Street. These are public spaces that can be used for overnight parking during the winter.

However, 335 N. Main Street, owned by Gordon Kirchoff, also came with no parking.

Gordon Kirchoff and Carol Kraco have been parking behind their building since they purchased it and moved in. Trustee Hayes suggested the two spots could be given to Mr. Kirchoff and Ms. Kraco, but is unwilling to offer any parking to Ms. Shirek, brought on a tense conversation between Trustee Hayes and Mr. Beacom. Mr. Beacom spoke of the fact that all other municipalities he has worked with have never denied parking for buildings with residential apartments that came with no parking. Mr. Beacom was very surprised and disappointed that the Village Board had taken this stance. He stated that most municipalities do whatever they can to accommodate their business and residential residents. The conversation became heated, and President Mork stopped the discussion. This item was tabled until the June Board meeting when Casey Beyersdorf, Waupaca County Highway Commissioner, Chad McKew, Village snowplow driver, and Town Chairman Gary Marx would be present to discuss the best scenarios for overnight parking and snow removal.

Right-of-way

Hold Harmless Contract also discussed with Ms. Shirek. This was one of the stipulations Ms. Shirek had agreed to last year. When the Hold Harmless letter was first discussed, it was for the purpose of eliminating liability for the two air conditioning units and back stairs located in the Village right-of-way. However, the terms of the Hold Harmless contract kept changing. Trustee Hayes added to the Hold Harmless contract a stipulation that when the air conditioning units need to be replaced, they be moved from Village right-of-way to private property. These air conditioning units were in place long before Ms. Shirek purchased the building. Trustee Hayes changed the terms again to add “major repair and/or replacement” to the air conditioning units would require they be moved to private property. In April 2023, the terms changed again. Trustee Hayes requested the removal of the stairs to her back door/loading dock. He stated the reason is liability. Dave Vial, Village of Scandinavia Fire Inspector, was in attendance to state that the back door to 305 N. Main Street is a fire exit and cannot be moved according to state fire code, not to mention the door has been there for about 100 years.

Ms. Shirek told the Board she will not sign that contract. The conditions of the Hold Harmless contract have become unreasonable, unnecessary, and extremely costly. Ms. Shirek stated that her insurance agent said the Village does not need a Hold Harmless contract and a Certificate of Insurance. One or the other. Ms. Shirek is happy to provide a Certificate of Insurance with the Village of Scandinavia listed as additional insured.

Municipal Center

The flooring has been ordered.

The FEMA grant for the generator has been approved.

The new library sign has been installed.

Downtown snow removal was discussed. The Board would like to see if we can get all parties involved in snow removal to the June Board meeting. President Mork will contact Clayton at Mountain Top Enterprises and Chad McKew and Casey Beyersdorf from Waupaca County Highway Dept.

Nate Minton has agreed to work part-time for the Village. He will mainly be working at Sentral Park and the Municipal Center doing light yardwork. Mr. Minton is taking over some of the duties of Ken Heger. President Mork will meet with Mr. Minton and go over employment paperwork. President Mork suggested $15 per hour. There were no objections by the Board.

Sewer/Lagoon

Windmill repair due to wind damage is complete. Hoping to have it back up within a couple of weeks.

Updating the lift station was discussed. The Board has decided to slow the process down and see if we can’t apply for some grants to help with the cost. It is estimated to cost around three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000) to update.

Storm water erosion by the lift station discussed. Trustee Hayes will take a look at it and let the Board know if it can wait another year or if it should be fixed this year.

Sewer operator position discussed. Clerk Smith spoke with current operator, Brian Boutwell, who has agreed to stay on until a new operator is found.

Other Business

Monthly, quarterly, and annual maintenance requirements listed in the CMOM were reviewed.

Bills for the month were reviewed. Motion made (Morgan/Hayes) to approve claims as present.

Trustee Morgan verified cash fund account balances.

The task management spreadsheet was reviewed and updated.

The Village is due for a dam inspection by an engineer in 2023. Ayres Associates submitted a proposal for three thousand five hundred $3,530. The Board would like to have another quote to compare this price too. President Mork will contact Chris Cutts for a recommendation of another engineering firm.

Bonnie’s Little Fluffys kennel license discussed. Treasurer Watson stated this was something we have never done before, and she didn’t know if Bonnie Timm was required to license her dogs in the Village or if it was done through the state. Upon checking State Statutes, she understood the dogs should be licensed in the Village of Scandinavia. A kennel license was issued to Ms. Timm. The kennel license is for up to 12 dogs. All dogs over five months old must be licensed. The cost of a kennel license is $35. Any dogs over the quantity of 12 are $3 each. All paperwork was completed, and payment submitted. Ms. Timm licensed 12 breeding dogs.

Budget shortages discussed. The snow removal fund is nine $9,000 over budget. With the new lawn service this year, mowing expenses are expected to go considerably over budget as well. Motion made (Knautz/Hayes) to use the $37,000 proceeds from the February 2023 sale of parcel 28 15 41 8 to be used to cover budget shortages as they occur during the year rather than making budget transfers for each occurrence. Motion carried unanimously.

Alliant Energy contacted President Mork to inform him that Alliant Energy would be replacing the main natural gas line down Main Street. Alliant Energy will bore new pipe under the sidewalks. Any sidewalks or curbs disturbed or broken during the process will be covered by Alliant Energy.

Clerk Smith submitted her resignation effective April 21, 2023. President Mork asked if she would rescind her resignation. Clerk Smith said she was willing to work one more year to give the Village time to find her replacement and allow some time to train a new clerk. Clerk Smith’s official last day will be April 9, 2024, unless the Board requests a sooner date.

On May 2, 2023, Treasurer Watson submitted her resignation. Her last day will also be April 9, 2024, unless the Board requests a sooner date.

Clerk, Deputy Clerk, Treasurer, and Sewer Clerk positions discussed. Each Board member was given a list of responsibilities for these positions to share with anyone interested. The list is not a complete list of duties, but rather a general list of duties. Anyone can contact Clerk Smith or Treasurer Watson for more detailed information.

Pending projects were reviewed.

Motion made (Morgan/Knautz) to adjourn meeting at 6:33 p.m. Motion carried unanimously.