BRF Common Council April Minutes

The Common Council met at City Hall in the City of Black River Falls on April 16, 2024 at 6:00 P.M.
Alderpersons Dougherty, Gearing-Lancaster, Wussow, Ammann, M. Rave and E. Rave were present.

Alderperson Olson attended remotely via Zoom meetings. Mayor J. Eddy presided.

It was moved by Alderperson Wussow, seconded by Alderperson Gearing-Lancaster to dispense with the
reading of the minutes of the April 3, 2024 Common Council meeting and approve as presented. Motion carried.

CITIZENS IN ATTENDANCE

There were 7 citizens in attendance – 6 in person and 1 via Zoom meetings. Brady Palmer asked about safety
concerns he brought up previously regarding Hwy 12/27, possibly moving the city limit signs, and safety issues he had brought up previously in local parks.

It was moved by Alderperson M. Rave, seconded by Alderperson Dougherty to approve RESOLUTION 2024-02 – a resolution petitioning the Secretary of Transportation for Airport Improvement Aid. Motion carried.

The Department Head monthly reports were reviewed. Department heads present were Darryl Nelson, Jody Stoker, Jarod Meyer, Dain Crawford, Travis Brown, and Brad Chown. Cara Hart was excused.

It was moved by Alderperson Ammann, seconded by Alderperson Wussow to approve RESOLUTION 2024-
03 – a resolution to borrow $1,250,000 at an interest rate of 5.25% for a term of 5-years from Black River
Country Bank for a Pierce 100-foot mid-mount platform tower fire truck. Motion carried.
It was moved by Alderperson Wussow, seconded by Alderperson Gearing-Lancaster to award the 2024
paving bid to Mathy Construction at a cost of $140,470.70. Motion carried.
It was moved by Alderperson Ammann, seconded by Alderperson Dougherty to approve the Supplemental
Letter Agreement with SEH for engineering services on sanitary sewer reconstruction project on Buchanon
Street at a cost of $27,600.00. Motion carried.
Mayor Eddy introduced and welcomed new Parks & Recreation Director Jarod Meyer.
It was moved by Alderperson Olson, seconded by Alderperson Gearing-Lancaster to approve
RESOLUTION 2024-04 – adopting the 2024-2029 Outdoor Recreation Plan. Motion carried.
It was moved by Alderperson Ammann, seconded by Alderperson Dougherty to approve the proposal from
American Fence Company to install fence around the new All Abilities Playground at a cost of $10,840.00 to
come out of the Playground Renovation Fund. Motion carried.
Mayor Eddy commended our parks that are in terrific shape and staff that are working hard to maintain
them. The Mayor then presented Dain Crawford with a letter of appreciation for his contributions as Interim
Parks & Recreation Director.
Alderperson Dougherty provided an update on library discussion around interactions with homeless and
other issues taking place at the library and their hope to work with the County to come up with solutions.
Northern Family Farms may be interested in donating a tree to replace the one that had to be removed
between the library and City Hall.

It was moved by Alderperson Wussow, seconded by Alderperson Olson to approve ORDINANCE 886 – an
ordinance amending the official traffic map establishing a 35 MPH speed limit on a portion of West Bauer Road. Motion carried.

It was noted that Check #73702 – #73711 were manual payroll checks for poll workers.

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It was moved by Alderperson M. Rave, seconded by Alderperson E. Rave to approve vouchers for March 2024 check #73712 – #73820 totaling $563,264.90. Motion carried.

It was moved by Alderperson Olson, seconded by Alderperson Wussow to approve the City Treasurer’s Report for March 2024. Motion carried.

It was moved by Alderperson E. Rave, seconded by Alderperson M. Rave to approve the Revenue & Expense Reports for March 2024. Motion carried.

It was moved by Alderperson Gearing-Lancaster, seconded by Alderperson Ammann to adjourn. Motion carried at 6:37pm.

A. Brad Chown
City Administrator

The Common Council met at City Hall in the City of Black River Falls on April 16, 2024 at 6:41 P.M.
Alderpersons Dougherty, Gearing-Lancaster, Wussow, Ammann, M. Rave and E. Rave were present.

Alderpersons Olson attended remotely via Zoom meetings. Mayor J. Eddy presided.

Alderperson Olson nominated Alderperson Gearing-Lancaster for Council President. Alderperson E. Rave nominated Alderperson M. Rave for Council President. There were no other nominations.

It was moved by Alderperson Wussow, seconded by Alderperson Ammann to close nominations. Motion carried.

Council members voted for Council President by written ballot. Alderperson M. Rave received 4 votes and
Alderperson Gearing-Lancaster received 3 votes. Alderperson M. Rave was elected Council President by majority vote.

It was moved by Alderperson Ammann, seconded by Alderperson Dougherty to designate Security Financial
Bank, Black River Country Bank, Co-op Credit Union, Waumandee State Bank, and BNY Mellon/Pershing as official depositories for the City of Black River Falls. Motion carried.

Mayor Eddy advised there were still positions to fill by appointment on the Business Improvement District (BID)
Board, the Historic Preservation Commission, and the City Housing Authority. Those appointments will be brought to the Council for approval once members have confirmed their desire to serve on those committees.

It was moved by Alderperson M. Rave, seconded by Alderperson Gearing-Lancaster to approve the Mayor’s Appointments for 2024-2025 as presented. Motion carried.

It was moved by Alderperson Dougherty, seconded by Alderperson Wussow to designate the Banner Journal as the official publication for the City of Black River Falls. Motion carried.

There was lengthy discussion on the shared-ride taxi service and the financial challenges moving forward that
included a projected $141,883.94 deficit for 2024; the need to order a new van if the service is to continue; there
have been discussions with Jackson County and Health and Human Services but there aren’t other grant
opportunities for them to offset the deficit we are facing; reached out to the Ho-Chunk Nation but unable to meet
yet but the number of tribal members that are served by the taxi service is not significant; what hurt ridership
was a three month shut down and raising fares; projecting a maximum of 25,000 annual rides; contract ends this
year so City needs to decide whether they want to exercise an option year to continue for one more year; the
deficit is going to continue to increase with stagnant revenues and ever increasing expenses; it’s a valuable
service for the elderly, disabled, and those needing transportation to and from work and medical appointments;
the County has a mini bus but that operates on a limited schedule and there are preferences for ridership;
anybody can come in and operate a taxi service – including Uber and Lyft – without any licensing or permitting;
the fee for private taxi service would be much higher; several other municipalities across the state are having
the same struggle; City Administrator looking for direction and can reach out to DOT for guidance on how to
move forward which would include at least one public hearing; there are no penalties for not using the awarded
federal grant to purchase a replacement van; the only way to fund anything that is in a deficit in the city is to take
from the capital budget, but we are just catching up on our streets and equipment and have a good capital
improvement plan in place moving forward; EMS will have to be placed on the tax roll soon which will be
$150,000 to $160,000 a year to keep that service in place; we are positioned to handle future capital needs
without raising taxes; there was discussion on what the fare rate would need to be in order to cover the deficit
and how additional fare increases may affect ridership; maybe someone could come up with a way to do this in
the private sector and start a system in the City that works well; consider looking at a third party company to
complete a study to see where we are seeing the decline, why, what rates would need to be charged to make it work, and if not sustainable then develop an exit strategy and plan.