— or possibly something similar, ….
— or possibly something similar, like a tractor safety class — and get a certification before driving a cart on the streets.
Trustee Daniella Schauer, however, said she would also like to see drivers under the age of 16 be accompanied by an adult at all times, just like they are for ATVs. She said she’s not comfortable with the idea of someone as young as 12 riding down Business CTH A without adult supervision.
Klemetson noted that golf carts only go up to 10 miles per hour, which is slower than some kids ride their bicycles.
Schauer said kids are less likely to do “stupid crap” when there’s an adult present, and she’s worried about any liability the village may face by allowing 12-to 15-year-olds to operate golf carts.
Klemetson said the village should be able to police bad behavior.
“If someone is driving around erratically, someone will turn them in and we’ll deal with it,” he said.
Other board members seemed torn on the issue. Trustee Keith Lageman said it’s hard to regulate “what-ifs,” and trustee Matt Derrico agreed that kids can get in just as much trouble on a bicycle.
“We can’t bubble-wrap them,” he said.
Ultimately, the board voted to refer the proposed ordinance to the village attorney, who will be asked to provide input the adult supervision issue.
Wachsmuth has already weighed in on the issue after being presented with ordinances from other municipalities that allow golf carts. Overall, she sees no problems with allowing them, though she says some training and education would be needed for village officials and riders.
“The biggest issue for the village would be the registration and inspection process for the golf carts,” she wrote in a Jan. 26 email. “The village would have some cost in both of these endeavors; however, some of those costs could be offset by the registration fee charged.”
resigns
Brooke Bruesewitz, the village’s clerk-treasurer since 2014, is resigning her position, effective Friday, Feb. 14. At last week’s meeting, board members and others in attendance recognized her years of service with a cake break.
Applications were due this past Monday for those interested in filling the clerk-treasurer position. Deputy clerk-treasurer Christie Erikson said members of the board’s employee committee hope to schedule interviews for Thursday and possibly hire someone this week.
After meeting in closed session at the Feb. 5 meeting, the board voted to set the new clerk’s pay range between $17 and $20 per hour, depending on experience, In the meantime, the board has authorized Erikson to temporarily adjust office hours after Bruesewitz leaves.
Erikson said she plans on maintaining regular office hours Monday through Wednesday, but will likely have half-days on Thursday and no hours on Fridays.
Other business
_ The board approved the appointment of Clarence Klimpke to fill a seat on the board recently vacated by Lyndsey Hardrath after she moved out of the village. Because Klimpke also gets paid by the village to mow grass at local cemeteries, village president Kurt Schwoch said they will have to figure out a way to remove him from the village’s payroll and liability insurance.
“I’ll do the best I can to resolve that issue,” said Klimpke, who attended last week’s meeting as an audience member. He will officially take his seat at the board’s next meeting.
_ The board rescheduled its next meeting from Wednesday, March 4, to Monday, March 2, at 7 p.m.
_ The board voted to appoint Schwoch to its employee committee, with trustee Justin Duranceau serving as the chair. Other committee appointments are expected to be made in March.
_ The board approved a renewal of the Memorial Hall lease between the village and Jenny Halopka for 2020 and 2021, with no changes aside from the dates.
_ The board approved up to $9,000 for the construction of an enclosure on the new wheelchair ramp installed at Memorial Hall. Schwoch said Meyer Buildings expects to get started on April 1 and get the project done by mid-April.
_ The board approved a motion to allow local firefighters to use tables and chairs from Memorial Hall for their annual fish fry fundraiser on Feb. 14.
_ The board approved a motion to send out requests for proposals to several accounting firms for the village’s 2019 audit. The village’s longtime auditor, Larry Soyk of Abbotsford, is no longer doing municipal audits, so the board needs to hire a new firm to the annual audit.
_ The board approved the purchase of eight swivel chairs for the new clerk’s office, at a cost of $150 per chair, or $1,200 total. The chairs will be used by the trustees for board meetings, and their existing chairs will be moved into a conference room for closed session discussions.
_ Engineer Mike Voss said the Wisconsin DNR has tentatively approved a “multi-discharge variance” that will allow the village to get by with an interim phosphorus limit of 1.0 milligrams per liter in the sewer effluent it discharges into the environment. The village will still have to pay a fine of $54 per pound of phosphorus for everything over .2 mg/L, so he’s recommending the village start adding ferric chloride to its sewage in order to remove more phosphorus.
_ DPW Clint Penney said the village’s newly purchased 2003 Sterling dump truck is doing a good job with snow removal.
