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HomeMy WebLinkAboutExecutive Committee - Minutes - 2/8/20241 Minutes of the Bayfield County Executive Committee Meeting 4:00pm, February 8, 2024 Meeting was held Remotely through Microsoft Teams and in person in the Bayfield County Board Room, Washburn, WI Members Present: Dennis Pocernich, Jeff Silbert, Mary Dougherty, Fred Strand, Brett Rondeau, Jeremy Oswald Members Excused: Others Present: Mark Abeles-Allison-County Administrator, Kris Kavajecz-Human Resources Director, Kim Mattson-Finance Manager, Marty Milanowski, Gail Reha-Bookkeeper; Jim Crandall, Madeline Rekemeyer, Charly Ray, Kellie Pederson-UW Extension, Bill Bailey- CheqBay Renewables, Kelly Westlund-Housing Coordinator, Called to order at 4:00p.m. by Chairman Rondeau Motion Strand, Silbert to approve minutes of the January 11, 2024 Executive Committee Meeting. Motion Carried (6-0) Public Comment: None UW Extension Presentation Follow Up / Strategies to Deal with a Smaller Workforce: Kellie Pederson provided follow-up information from the previous meeting. A draft Timeline and Action Plan to begin a plan to address anticipated workforce shortages was presented for discussion. Consensus of the committee is to pursue researching this topic and bringing forth recommendations to address anticipated workforce shortages. Congressionally Designated Spending (CDS) Requests: Kelly Westlund reviewed a couple of requests that have been submitted. Projects include: City of Bayfield has some land that could be used for a housing project. It would require extension of certain utilities such as city water. Another initiative in the works is the “Housing for Helpers” program, which would provide housing for emergency responders. A request has also be submitted to provide emergency generator back-ups for municipalities during power outages. Motion Silbert, Dougherty to approve the letters supporting request for congressional spending as presented. Motion Carried (6-0) Energy Innovation Grant Program RFP Responses: Bill Bailey reviewed the data that was provided at the previous meeting. 2 bids were received for the various solar array and installations considered. Recommendation was made to consider submitting a grant application using the bid from Wescom for Arrays B and E with an additional $80,000 contribution toward the county match for the grant. 2 Motion Oswald, Strand to submit an EIGP Grant application using the bid from Wescom for Arrays B and E with an $80,000 contribution toward the county match for the grant. Motion Carried (5-1) Silbert opposed. Town of Cable / American Birkebeiner Trail Construction Assistance: Birkebeiner Association has requested assistance with moving a stockpile of snow. Corporation Counsel has stated that the county could assist with this provided that they are reimbursed for their expenses. Jim Crandal, chair of the Highway Committee, reported that this is a significant anniversary for the Birkebeiner and brings significant seasonal revenues to the area. He supports the county providing assistance if possible. Motion Oswald, Strand to approve the use of staff and equipment to assist the Birkebeiner Association with moving of snow, provided the expenses are reimbursed. Motion Carried (5-1) Rondeau opposed. EMS Legislative Resolution Addressing Cross Credentialing: Ashland-Bayfield County EMS Association identifies the issue of EMT’s with one agency cannot provide support to another agency unless their have approved credentials for both agencies. The process for the credentialling is onerous. The request is to support simplification of the cross-credentialling process. Motion Silbert, Pocernich to approve the EMS Legislative Resolution Addressing Cross- Credentialling. Discussion: Remove the word “either” from the last Whereas. Motion Carried (6-0) County-Wide EMS Agency Report and Funding Longevity: Abeles-Allison reviewed highlights of the county-wide EMS report. He reported that several agencies did not use the funds to increase pay for staff because the ongoing funding is unsure. Motion Pocernich, Oswald to receive and place on file the Countywide EMS Report. Motion Carried (6-0) Motion Pocernich, Strand to recommend annual funding of $20,000 per agency for the next 3 years and move to the full county board for approval. Motion Carried (6-0) Board Room Window Replacement: Oswald voiced a possible conflict of interest and asked if he should abstain from voting on this topic. Consensus of the Board is that abstention is not necessary. Abele-Allison reported that two of the windows in the County Board Room need to be replaced due to leaking/rotting of wood. Contingency Funds would be needed to cover the cost. Maintenance has been attempting to obtain quotes for replacement of the windows. The existing windows are Marvin. H-Windows provided an estimate of $15-$20,000. Suggestion was made to contact Anderson Renew for an estimate. 3 Board Compensation for All Day Meetings: Charly Ray addressed the committee about the possibility of eliminating the cap on per diems for multiple meetings in a day and for the committee to consider modifying the compensation for all-day events. It was noted that compensation cannot be modified until the next term. Board Rules: WCA is recommending the each county have a written Board of Supervisors Policy and Procedure Manual/Rules. A draft is being developed for the Board to consider. A copy of St Croix County Committees was reviewed. They condensed their committees to 5, with longer meetings. The information was shared for discussion purposed. Grand View Highway Building Bids: Bids came in under-budget. Committee reviewed the bids and recommendation from the consultant. Motion Pocernich, Oswald to accept the bid from Northwest Builders in the amount of $620,400. Motion Carried (6-0) 2023 Budget Amendments: Motion Pocernich, Dougherty to approve and forward the resolutions to the full county board for approval. Motion Carried (6-0) Reports: a. County Supervision Report: DA/Criminal Justice Supervision Program has 5 clients currently. The program is working well for 4 of the 5 clients. Report was included in the meeting packet. b. Broadband Grant Announcement: Norvado was awarded a grant to expand broadband service in the Town of Eileen area. c. Recognition by Renew Wisconsin: Bayfield County received an award, which was accepted by Bill Bailey. d. Business Park Feasibility Study Update: Windsor Engineering of Duluth is working on a feasibility studty. e. Financial Reports end of January 2024: End of January figures were reviewed. f. Treasurer’s Report, end of January 2024: Report was included in the meeting packet. Balances are sliding back down to pre-ARPA status. Northern Lights are paying principal and interest on the loan, but not the $20,000 payment. A new Director and Management Firm are in place. Motion Pocernich, Silbert to enter closed Session pursuant to §19.85(1) (c) Considering employment, promotion, compensation or performance evaluation data of any public employee over which the governmental body has jurisdiction or exercises responsibility (e) Deliberating or 4 negotiating the purchasing of public properties, the investing of public funds, or conducting other specified public business, whenever competitive or bargaining reasons require a closed session. January 11, 2024 Closed Session Minutes Motion Carried (6-0 ). Entered closed session at 5:46pm. Motion Dougherty, Pocernich to return to open session. Motion Carried (6-0 ). Returned to open session at 5:48pm. Meeting adjourned at 5:48 pm. Respectfully submitted by Kristine Kavajecz.