Janell, you're right! (the Mayor responds to a Letter to the Editor)

Did you see the Letter to the Editor posted in the January 11 edition of the Chetek Alert? Here's how it reads:

Imagine strolling through our beautiful downtown streets, perusing the unique shops, smelling the delectable scents wafting from the bakery, pondering which restaurant to get a bite to eat from or just walking up and down Main Street, reveling in all the sights, sounds and glory downtown Chetek has to offer.

Now, imagine doing all of these things as a blind person. My name is Janell Groskreutz and I am a blind individual who has been a proud citizen of Chetek for almost 20 years. My concern is the condition of the downtown sidewalks. They are sadly deteriorating at a rapid pace. As you can imagine, this poses a safety concern for me traveling with a cane or with my guide dog. My cane continuously gets caught in the large cracks and broken concrete. This poses the threat of tripping or even falling. This is also affecting the thousands of tourists who choose to visit and patronize our resorts, businesses, events and festivals. [My emphasis added]

These sidewalks are also a huge hindrance for those in a wheelchair, and virtually impossible for someone using a walker to partake in and enjoy the downtown experience safely.

In addition to the obvious safety hazards, we must also strive to maintain the aesthetic value of beautiful downtown Chetek, as it continues to attract thousands of tourists every year, helping our local economy flourish and provide income for countless businesses, schools, resorts and families.

I fully understand the expense for the city would be considerable; however, I believe if we are proactive rather than reactive, it will prove to be a money-saving endeavor, avoiding an injury and subsequent medical bills or perhaps a lawsuit, further dwindling an already tenuous city budget.

Who is responsible for repairing/maintaining the downtown sidewalks? Is it the business owners, the city budget or a combination of the two? Does the city have plans to replace/repair the sidewalks, or is it something the business owners need to pursue?

Janell Lenbom-Groskreutz

Chetek

I hit this I don't know how many times when I shovel snow

First of all, Janell, I don't know if you're a person of faith but if you preached this message at my church you would get a loud “Amen!” from my corner of the sanctuary. You are so right. Our sidewalks are in a woeful state of disrepair. (In fact, I wrote about this back in August and you can click on this link if you care to read it: Everything falls apart) In any case, thank you for speaking out about this matter. Every 4^th of July weekend how many thousands of guests descend upon our town and line the main drag for the Liberty Fest parade? At the very least we should feel a little chagrin that many sections of sidewalk are an eyesore if not an accident ready to happen. And this is to say nothing about people like yourself who live here and are already limited in their ability to get around. Somebody oughta do something!

To answer your question as to who is responsible for repairing and maintaining the downtown sidewalks, other than, say, the walk in front of Main Street Park, it is up to the property owner to improve those sections of walk in front of their business. If they choose to replace sections of sidewalk, the city crew will handle the job but they are assessed for labor and materials. Which is why many business owners probably opt to not to repair them. They're not cheap.

She's so smart and great with kids, too!

One of things I have come to learn about my position as mayor is that when I don't know something ask Carmen (our City Clerk) – she's better than Google! When she and I had this same conversation this past summer, she called around to area municipalities and discovered that while some communities have a similar approach to replacing walkways as we do, the city of Barron spreads the expense over the tax rolls under the premise that everyone benefits from good sidewalks in their business district. I like that approach and I'd like to see that implemented here. Chetek, like so many other towns, has a street schedule ensuring that every year several sections of road are repaved. I am of the opinion that we should have a sidewalk schedule as well. It's cheaper to do a block at a time as opposed to fixing a square here and there.

It won't be long before they'll be back!

So, I'm with you, Janell. In fact, I'm hoping that I can snag some funds this winter from outlay accounts in our present budget to at least get a start on a long-term goal to replace all the sidewalks in the downtown area. Personally, I'd love if we could start with section between Moore and Knapp Streets if only so I don't have to keep hitting that dang water pipe in front of Ohde's Drug every time it snows but I'll defer to the Street Committee to make the final call. While it's always preferable to keep looking up I appreciate your reminder that for the time being we have to keep watching where we walk lest we fall – literally! Be careful out there!

Sincerely,

Jeff Martin, Mayor of Chetek

Police matters

The "new sheriff" in town

Well, have you heard the buzz? Apparently the “word on the street” - or so I'm told - is that the mayor and/or the council wants to dismantle the Chetek Police Department now that Chief Petersen has left the building. In response to that rumor allow me to quote a much repeated Jase Robertson line from the Duck Dynasty reality TV series: “Let me put it to you in Spanish: No.” But here's what is true: As of January 7, Chief Mark Petersen is now officially retired after thirty-five years of service to our city. Last fall, the Chief went on leave of absence to have his shoulder surgically repaired and at that time, by ordinance, Lieutenant Ron Ambrozaitis became acting chief. At last week's monthly council meeting, the council went into closed session to discuss the status of Officer Ambrozaitis. Mainly, do we heed his predecessor's endorsement and promote him on the spot or do we open up the position and begin the interviewing process but certainly allowing him the opportunity to apply? Honestly, we kicked this matter around a long time as all of us are keenly aware of how important a position the chief's job really is.

After all, we need a chief who can enforce the law and competently oversee the department as well as make nice with the public he has vowed to serve and protect (competence and congeniality do not always go together). I think I speak for the council when I say we want a top cop who ensures that the bad guys get rounded up but at the same time knows how to have a cup of coffee and chew the fat with the locals. We need a chief who can assist the school, if called upon, to deal with a disciplinary matter but also is proactive in building a rapport with the student body. Maybe Ron's that guy. He certainly is very personable and affable. But at the present time the council's decision is to insist on a six-month probationary period in order to give us time to evaluate him fairly. This will require us to set some clear benchmarks by which we can adequately grade his performance in areas of, say, administration, personnel management, city council and community relations and so forth. At the end of this six-month period than the council has to either “pay up and shut up” or move on and open the position to other candidates.

Now to the story about County coming in and taking over our PD, here's what happened: Just before Christmas, Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald and I had an informal discussion about the possibility of him getting on the agenda of a city council meeting and pitching his idea of just such an arrangement. So instead of having a Chetek Police Department, the County would now supply the squads, the personnel, the equipment – everything. They would have designated officers that were assigned to Chetek but their cars would not carry the City of Lakes decal. I'm a firm believer that knowledge in and of itself never hurt anyone. So I discussed this with council as well and we concurred that in the interest of becoming educated, Sheriff Fitzgerald will speak at the monthly council meeting held on February 9^th. I'm sure a lot of you will want to be there. Personally, I don't think he has a prayer of persuading any of us to move in that direction but, again, it doesn't hurt to hear what he has to say.

So now you know pretty much what I know. I'll keep you posted. In the meantime, the members of the Chetek PD continue to protect and serve as they always have. And we're grateful that they're out there and ready and able to respond when called upon.