Stratford hears report on Great Lakes Utilities

By Casey Krautkramer

Nicolas Kumm, managing director of Great Lakes Utilities (GLU), gave a presentation at Stratford’s March 12 village board meeting. GLU is a not-for-profit municipal electric company formed in 2000 to obtain low cost and reliable power for its members, including Stratford Water & Electric. The other public power utility members in GLU are Bangor Municipal Utilities, Clintonville Utilities, Cornell Municipal Electric Utility, City of Kiel Electric Utility, Manitowoc Public Utilities, Marshfield Utilities, Medford Electric Utility, Shawano Utilities, Trempealeau Municipal Utilities and Wisconsin Rapids Water & Light.

There is a representative from each of the 11 municipal utility companies on GLU’s board of directors. Scott Dennee, village of Stratford director of public works, represents Stratford Water & Electric on the GLU board of directors. Kumm is general manager of Marshfield Utilities.

Village of Stratford president Keith Grell thanked Kumm and GLU for negotiating a better monthly fee from Wisconsin Public Service (WPS), which requested $5,000 but will now receive $3,000 from the village, pending approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Kumm said WPS owns the electrical substation located north of Tigers Stadium, electrical poles and wires on North Street to North Weber Avenue (STH 97) and on Webertown Avenue to West Fir Street (STH 153).

Other business

n The board approved a motion to forgive $51 in sewer charges for resident Greg Belter after his outside faucet leaked water into the ground. Village board member Todd Belter, who is Greg’s father, abstained from voting on the matter.

n Board members awarded the low bid of $886,297 to Melvin Companies of Abbotsford for a road and utilities project on Monarch Street, from Jasper Avenue to STH 97, and on Jasper and Allington avenues, from STH 153 to Monarch. Dan Knoeck, MSA project manager, told village board members the project could start sooner if the weather continues to be unseasonably warm.

n The village water and electric commission met in closed session at the end of its meeting, before the village’s regular board meeting on March 12, to discuss what the cost share should be between the village utility commission for the above mentioned streets project. Dennee informed the village board at its meeting that the commission hasn’t made a decision on the cost share yet.

Nicolas Kumm