The Common Council met in special session at City Hall in the City of Black River Falls on May 21, 2025 at 6:00 P.M. Alderpersons Ammann, Peloquin, M. Rave, E. Rave, Dougherty and Gearing-Lancaster were present.
Alderperson Wussow attended remotely via Zoom meetings. Alderperson Busse was excused. Mayor J. Eddy presided.
It was moved by Alderperson Gearing-Lancaster, seconded by Alderperson E. Rave to dispense with the reading of the minutes of the May 6, 2025 Common Council meeting and approve as presented. Motion carried.
It was moved by Alderperson Dougherty, seconded by Alderperson Gearing-Lancaster to dispense with the reading of the minutes of the May 6, 2025 Common Council Public Hearing and approve as presented. Motion carried.
CITIZENS IN ATTENDANCE There were no citizens in attendance.
It was moved by Alderperson Ammann, seconded by Alderperson Peloquin to place on file the minutes of the May 5, 2025 Ad Hoc Branding Committee meeting. Motion carried.
It was moved by Alderperson M. Rave, seconded by Alderperson Gearing-Lancaster to place on file the minutes of the May 6, 2025 Hiring Committee meeting. Motion carried.
It was moved by Alderperson E. Rave, seconded by Alderperson Gearing-Lancaster to place on file the minutes of the May 12, 2025 Hiring Committee meeting. Motion carried.
The Department Head monthly reports were reviewed. Department heads present were Jody Stoker, Travis Brown, Darryl Nelson, Jarod Mayer, Cara Hart, and Brad Chown.
- The Street Superintendent advised they did not start street work this week due to weather and they will start on May 27th. The new pickup is here, the snow plow was installed, and the old truck was given to
Parks & Recreation.
- The Police Chief advised he was able to work with the software vendor to get addresses back in his
reports and working on changing the “Ordinance Other” description so it specifies what ordinance so Council members can see if it was grass or junk and if they got a letter and it is easier to read and
understand. Often times they call or speak to the homeowner and get compliance and those will not
show up on the reports, but they get compliance with the ordinance and that is the goal. Addressing a question on the number of “Suspicious Activity” calls, the Chief advised there will be more training on picking the right drop down items. He has agencies interested in bidding on the 2018 Ford Explorer
and feels we will get a better price than selling it on GovDeals and it would save the time and expense of removing and disposing of any equipment in the vehicle that cannot be reused. - It was moved by Alderperson Ammann, seconded by Alderperson Peloquin to approve the Police
Department’s request to sell the 2018 Ford Explorer as is via closed bids. Motion carried. - The Parks & Recreation Director advised the rain helped with the new sod at the all abilities playground.
ORDINANCE 895 – an ordinance changing the operating hours for ATVs and UTVs was presented for 1st
reading. There was discussion on matching what the County has right now which is 5:00am to 10:00pm. Most of the villages around us do not have any ordinances, Merrillan does not allow them 3am to 6am, but everyone else is open to whatever the County has. The city is one of the few that actually has a separate regulation.
Police Chief Brown and a County Deputy were contacted and there have been no issues with UTVs and ATVs other than the first few weeks. People want to ride them to work. Alderperson M. Rave stated he understands people wanting to ride them to work but questioned the high school students that would potentially be riding ATVs or UTVs to school and has already seen many students getting reckless. He stated he does not believe we should be moving operating hours to 5am to 10pm, and if this comes back for final reading and approval he will be voting no. He was also expressed concerns about the number of UTVs and ATVs driving by Theisen’s, Walmart, and over the interstate.
It was moved by Alderperson Dougherty, seconded by Alderperson Gearing-Lancaster to approve vouchers for
April 2025 Check #75399 – #75545 totaling $388,333.27 noting Check #75398 was a manual EMS payroll check. Motion carried.
It was moved by Alderperson Dougherty, seconded by Alderperson Gearing-Lancaster to approve the City Treasurer’s Report for April 2025. Motion carried.
It was moved by Alderperson Dougherty, seconded by Alderperson M. Rave to approve the Revenue & Expense Report for April 2025. Motion carried. It was moved by Alderperson Peloquin, seconded by Alderperson Dougherty to adjourn. Motion carried at
6:27pm.
A. Brad Chown
City Administrator
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