Village board members discuss replacing furnaces
The furnaces that are used to heat the village’s municipal building are in need of replacement, due to the high cost it takes to heat the building.
Currently, there are four furnaces in place, two are in the hallway and heat the library. The two that are in the supply room heat the Clerk’s office and the meeting room. After Jeff Ziembo, of Ziembo Heating & Cooling, looked over the system, he determined that there are two thermostats in the library that control the two furnaces for that half of the building. The problem is that one of the furnaces runs almost continuously, whereas the other doesn’t ever run. Ziembo figured it would be best to make it one thermostat, to control both furnaces. So that when the furnace kicks in, they both kick in at the same time, and heat up evenly, therefore they both work together and use less energy. The plan for the other two furnaces for the other half of the building, is to also have them controlled by one thermostat because the furnaces are constantly turning on and off to keep the building at a certain temperature, so it’s best to have the thermostats consolidated.
Village Clerk, Kristin Lueck said “There is no return in my office, it goes through Bill’s [President Bill Schreiner] office. Jeff said somewhere down the line, there will have to be some kind of a return to that office, because the furnace is working so much extra just to try to suck that air back out.”
Schreiner asked “Would leaving my office door open help with that?”
Lueck answered “I don’t think so, he said he needs that return further down the building.”
The board made a motion to get a competitive bid from Black Lake Services to compete with Ziembo’s estimate, then they will revisit the issue at the April meeting and make a decision then.
There is a safe drinking water sampling program happening this spring through the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR). They will be sampling the water for Per-and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS). PFAS have been around since the 1950’s and are made up of 4,000 man-made chemicals used to create products that resist heat, oil, stains, grease and water. It is most likely found on clothing, furniture, adhesives, food packaging, or any non-stick surfaces. These chemicals will not break down and can build up in humans and animals. The purpose is to get data to communities to know that they are providing safe water to their residents. Through funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the state of Wisconsin will fund and support local communities that wish to sample for PFAS. If the DNR receives additional federal or state funding, the sampling effort may expand.
Ben Stanfley gave a talk on the plans for the new Rib Lake shop building, which will be used to house the town’s snowplows and winter equipment. The plan that was approved by the Taylor County Board is to construct a single building to house the equipment, along with a separate shed, under one roof to house the sand and salt used by the plow trucks.
Houtari Construction will work on the new building. Greystone Buildings will be working to build the salt shed, within the building. With that said, there will be one building permit issued through both contractors.
What happens with the old structure is still undecided.
Lee Clendenning came to the board to ask the board for a donation request to complete the application to become part of the Ice Age Alliance.
Jack Buksa made a motion to invest the $2,500 to complete the application process. Rocky Jones seconded this motion. Motion passed. This membership is to ensure tourism throughout the Rib Lake area.
The library picnic shelter that was built last spring is hoping to put the final touches of installing electricity in the shelter.
Cliff Mann said “I feel like that shelter will be used a lot. The only concern is where would we have bathroom facilities? People could use the library bathrooms, when they are open, but when they are not what will they use?”
President Schreiner said, “There could be the possibility of having port-a-pottys brought in, if there has to be.”
In other business: The new Rib Lake Police Department squad truck has officially arrived with all the proper equipment installed. The old squad car’s equipment has been removed and has been put up for auction.
The estimate for the McComb/Landall Avenue reconstruction project is $997,345. A final bid has not been approved. Construction will begin as planned on April 1.
