1.8.24 REGULAR BOARD MEETING

VILLAGE OF ORFORDVILLE

Regular Board Meeting

Monday, January 8, 2024  7:00 p.m.

Orfordville Village Hall

Main Board Room

CALL TO ORDER

                President Dennis Burtness called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.  Present were President Burtness, Nick Howard, Beth Schmidt, Cami Myers-Alstat, Nikki Tuffree, Terry Gerber, and Jason Knox.  Also present were Steven Nordeng, Chief Ryan Perkins, Chief Jeremiah Burdick, Librarian Sarah Strunz, DPW Director Nick Todd, and Clerk Sherri Waege.

AGENDA VERIFICATION

                Clerk Waege verified that on January 5, 2024, copies of the agenda were delivered to the President and Trustees; posted at the Village Hall, Library, and the Post Office.  There were no additions made to the agenda.

CITIZENS WISHING TO BE HEARD

                None.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS

                None.

NEW BUSINESS

                Draw Names for Ballot Placement.  Chief Burdick drew the names for Trustee Candidates to determine the order that they will appear on the ballot.  The names will appear in the following order:  1.  Tory Baars, 2. Nick Howard, 3. Terry Morris, 4.  David Olsen, and 5.  Terry Gerber.

                Amend Resolution R-2023-02.  Motion by Tuffree, seconded by Myers-Alstat to amend Resolution R-2023-02 to appoint Steve Nordeng to the Planning Commission and Fire Chief Ryan Perkins as Emergency Management Director.  Motion carried.

                Resolution R-2024-01 Setting Aside Unused Funds.  Motion by Tuffree, seconded by Schmidt to approve Resolution R-2024-01 which sets aside unused funds from 2023 to be used in 2024 for Part Time Police Wages and Park Operations.  Motion carried.

                Lease Renewal for Copier.   Clerk Waege explained that the lease for the copier is up this spring and provided two options for a new copier from Gordon Flesch.    Discussion was held on purchasing the existing copier outright, and also to get a second bid from another vendor.   Motion by Tuffree, seconded by Knox to table to the January 22, 2024 meeting.  Motion carried.

DEPARTMENT HEAD REPORTS

                Motion by Gerber, seconded by Tuffree to approve the Department Head Reports.  Motion carried.

VOUCHERS

                Motion by Knox, seconded by Gerber to approve the vouchers with a check range of 36565-36628.  Motion carried.

VILLAGE PRESIDENTS UPDATE

                President Burtness explained that he normally does his update on the last meeting of the month, but since the last December meeting was cancelled, he wanted to mention a few things.

                President Burtness explained that on December 12th of 2022 the board passed an ordinance allowing ATV traffic on Hwy 213 within the village limits.  The request was submitted to the Department of Transportation in March of 2023 after getting the documentation in order.  We didn’t hear back from the DOT until summer when they requested minor language changes for clarity.  This was passed by the board on August 14, 2023.  The Village finally got approval from them last week.  They do not permit the village to install the signs, so now are waiting for the county to complete the work.

Frontier Communications provides landline and internet service to the Village.  Frontier has proven difficult to work with. There have been “temporary” phone lines in a couple of areas that have just been laying on the ground, strung across fences in backyards etc. dating back about 3 years now.  Many attempts to get this rectified have failed.  We had one company representative view these locations last fall and were hopeful, but it seems to have failed too.  We haven’t given up, just haven’t found the person who will actually own up to their problem and fix it.  President Burtness added that he has reached out to Channel 3, the Madison News Station, to utilize the Call for Action program to see if the problem can be resolved.

“ The reason I have for mentioning these items is to illustrate what can be an agonizingly slow process in getting something done.  We all like to have things done in a timely fashion and will continue to do what we can.  There are often more layers of what goes on in the background than what meets the eye.  I just wanted residents to know that some concerns are out of our control.  I would like to add thanks to all of the hardworking men and women of our community for their efforts this past year.  It is because of you that makes living in Orfordville a great place to be.”

ADJOURN

                Motion by Tuffree, seconded by Knox to adjourn at 7:30 p.m.  Motion carried.

                                                                                                                                                Submitted by,

                                                                                                                                                Dennis Burtness

                                                                                                                                                Village President

                                                                                                                                                Sherri Waege

                                                                                                                                                Village Clerk