Lots of irons in the fire or what's the latest on the city's business

 

If you have been paying attention you know that the City of Chetek
has a lot of irons in the fire lately. Of course, this past spring we broke ground on the new Waste Water Treatment Plant in the south industrial park. On account of shortage of pipe fittings and a few other matters, we were behind schedule. But due to the dry summer and the unusually warm fall we've had we are now all caught up and on pace to be on-line by November 2024, exactly when the DNR is expecting us to be there.

Photo courtesy of Mark Peterson
taken on October 24

What's more, Maguire, the firm we've contracted with to build our new water tower, was also able to pour the new footings of the tower this fall. These footings are covered up now and will cure over the winter months. This puts us ahead of schedule. All things being equal the tower could be complete – paint and all – by the fall of 2024! Which bodes well for the development of the 39 acres on Knapp Street.

Photo courtesy of Mark Peterson
Taken on November 29

Recall that part of our signed agreement with S.C. Swiderski was the commitment of the city to build a new water tower. According to that agreement Swiderski is committed to beginning the development as

Just over the horizon

soon as that project is completed. If we remain on schedule potentially they could be doing preliminary dirt work by NEXT summer. Once they break ground, sometime in 2025, they are committed to having all 116 units, consisting of single family homes, twin homes and apartments, completed within two years or by 2027. Taken together, it may not feel like it but we are moving at light speed for a change.

"Ahead, Warp Factor 4!"

Laura Stelzner,
Chetek's Administrator/Treasurer

In the midst of all these projects the City has been in search of a new Clerk-Treasurer given that Carmen Newman, who has served Chetek in that capacity for twenty years and in other capacities nine years before that, officially retires December 29. After two rounds of interviews during which we were unsuccessful in finding a new Clerk-Treasurer we decided to change it up, if you will. The council voted unanimously to promote Deputy Clerk/Water Utility Clerk Mark Eby to Clerk and posted on-line that we were looking for someone to fill the newly created Administrator/Treasurer's position. The third time proved the charm. Laura Stelzner was offered the position and officially began her training December 1. Laura comes to us from Bloomer, and prior to employment with the City was with Western Dairyland Economic Development Council.

Mark Eby,
Our new City Clerk

During the past few months while the personnel committee has been interviewing candidates for the new position at City Hall and the budget committee has been meeting to pound out the details of the 2024 budget, the parks committee has also been at work drafting a proposal to develop a sports complex for Gotham Park. Back in

Gotham Park remains undeveloped
(looking east toward City of Chetek Dog Park)

1993, Wally Gotham and his wife donated the land to the city for a future park. In the thirty years since that time it has been used now and again for tractor pulls during Liberty Fest but mostly as a parking lot for the annual running of the Fishy Four. Every once in a while some folks get motivated to get a development plan going only to see that momentum dissipate in the face of resistance that usually is generated by matters concerning the bottom line: where will the money come from to build the park?

It's happening again and this time the enthusiasm for development is coming from Chetek's Pickleball Club. During the last year the city paid Rettler Corporation out of Steven's Point to develop a site plan for an athletic complex that would include six pickleball courts, a tennis court and basketball court along with a parking lot. While the plan they presented was pretty impressive, it was also came with a heavy dose of sticker-shock as it would require over a million dollars to develop the site. That pretty much knocked the wind out of anyone who has a desire to see this become a reality.

Rice Lake's Pickleball courts

.

Originally, the club was fairly optimistic that the lion's share of the funds could be raised locally to develop the pickleball court phase of the project. But at that price tag the project was on the brink of being dead in the water. Since that time, however, a few members of the parks committee have rolled up their sleeves and got to it to see what can be done to keep forward progress moving. They will present their plan at December's council meeting.

If you watched last month's council meeting on-line on November 14 you may have noticed we had something of a dust-up among the council members over $75,000 that the budget committee had recommended being set-aside for the development of Gotham Park. A few of the council members were in favor of setting that money aside until it can be determined how much was exactly needed for the project. The other two, however, wanted to ear-mark that money for Gotham Park specifically. It probably is a matter of nuance and perspective but as the council was split evenly I used my mayoral prerogative to vote to secure that money for the future development of that park.

What will be presented at December's common council meeting

Once upon a time during a previous administration when the city sold the site of the former tennis courts so that Kwik Trip could relocate to where they are now there was a promise to develop a site elsewhere in the city with the money realized from that transaction. But then there was an unexpected hiccup in the Kwik Trip development and the $40K that had been realized by the sale of the tennis courts was used to fix this glitch. And while the money was spent on something the city benefited from, there was no longer any money for tennis courts in the coffers. My vote on November 14 was with the intent of keeping that money specifically earmarked for the development of Gotham Park.

Every city – be it a large municipality like Eau Claire or a small one like ours – has the ongoing challenge to be both fiscally responsible with the taxpayer's money and, at the same time, plan for the future. “Do nothing and hope for the best” is not a plan. For elected officials to have that mindset is nigh unto cowardly. Of course, you must listen to the electorate, hearing them out on their concerns. At the same time, you must vote your conscience, what you think is the best expenditure of the city's resources. It's more art than science and admittedly good people can see different solutions to the same problem.

Part of what the future Gotham Park may look like

Its my opinion that the city needs to develop Gotham Park sooner than later. It's been lying there for thirty years and I'm pretty sure the Gothams didn't gift our city with a piece of land just so that we can have a parking area for the Fishy Four. In the next three years, potentially up to 500 people may relocate to our city on account of the Knapp Street development. Amenities like parks draw younger couples and families to communities such as ours. Following that logic it makes sense to me to see our current expenditures for Gotham Park as an investment of the taxpayer's money that will pay off in good time.

The race definitely does not go to the swiftest (updates and recent developments)

After weeks of building toward the big event, suddenly we are on the back side of Liberty Fest. Granted there's still plenty of good weather ahead of us for boating, water-skiing, fishing, golfing and general lying around on our backyard chaise lounges but for families with kids in high school sports, very soon we will be gearing up for fall. Don't blink!

Just to bring you up to speed on what's going on around town, here's a few talking points for you to ponder:

• 
  At June's council meeting, two sealed bids were opened to purchase 110 Moore Street (the former Jost Law Office) right next door to The Center. Originally, the city had purchased the building from the Josts in 2016 thinking to raze it and use the space for a parking lot. Our experience with the expense of tearing down the old Chetek Cafe cured us of that notion, especially given that we might have realized only seven parking spots for all our trouble. In May, someone approached us about purchasing the building and the decision was made to go public with our intention to sell. Travis Turner of Black Bear Properties was awarded the bid for $110,000. Given that we had bought the property from the Josts for $70K and gained a moderate rental stream annually, we did all right. I don't know what Mr. Turner's intentions are with the property but I know he has given notice to his renters to vacate and for the Chamber to remove the various items they have been storing there since the city took ownership in 2016.

• 
  If you have heard a rumor that the city intends to put in a 28-spot parking lot behind Chetek Hometown Pharmacy (formerly Ohde's Drug) you have heard rightly. We purchased the empty lot back in 2017 thinking to use it as an expansion to Main Street Park. After a few years of pondering, we've decided to convert the lot for parking purposes given how challenging it is to find adequate parking on Second Street during the busy days of summer. The fact that it's right across the street from The Center will be a boon to attendees on Salad Bar Fridays or whenever an event is going on there. Right now we're just waiting on Jerry's Tree Service to take the trees away. Public Works will put the lot in which will run us approximately $17,000.

• 
  Not only will we be putting in a new Waste Water Treatment
  Plant (construction to begin sometime in 2023) but we are also moving ahead on erecting a new water tower. Technically speaking what we have now atop city hill is referred to as a water stand, a giant tank that holds approximately 425,000 gallons of water (our daily needs are a little more than half that). What's more, to prevent it from freezing solid in the winter time Public Works Director Dan Knapp has to open a few hydrants in town to keep adequate water flow. And several companies in the north industrial park require extra pumps on account of inadequate water pressure. These are reasons enough to pursue building a new tower to say nothing of the needs of the new housing development that is still in the works. We applied for a grant for the tower to pay for half of it last year (the thing will cost us a little more than $2 million dollars) and didn't make the cut. This fall we plan to apply again but either way a new tower will be built (should we win the grant it can be applied to reimburse ourselves if the money doesn't come in until after the project is complete).

• 

  This is what it looks like

  Speaking of the new waste water treatment plant, by now you should have received notification that sewer rates will be going up approximately 23% this fall. You should notice the change come your October water bill. If you feel your bill is high now you may have to ask yourself, “Have I been watering my lawn during this dry spell we've been in?” If so, that may be your culprit. If you haven't already installed a water deduct meter and you like your lawn to be looking lush and fresh the whole summer long, it would be worth the investment. Call City Hall for how to go about getting one of these meters installed at your home.

• 

  Moving soon

  To make room for the new waste water treatment plant, this past spring the city put the house across from Whiskey Way (the former Brass Rail) up for sale. The new owner puchased the house for just under $12K and as soon as all the permits go through it should make its slow crawl to a lot over by Bailey Lake sometime later this month.

• 
  Carol Burnham, Calhoun Memorial Library's Director, is
  retiring come fall which means we are in search of a new director. Interviews will begin this week for the position that Carol has filled since the early 2000s.

• 

  One day there will be homes here
  instead of hayfields

  And finally, I get asked from time to time if “Area 51”, the 39 acres we purchased from Jenny O's back in 2018, will ever be developed. The short answer is “yes!” When we began to put together what's referred to as an RFP (request for proposal) we needed to do a Phase 1 (a history of the property) and just to be safe a Phase 2 (take soil samples looking for bones [i.e., Native American burial grounds] or contaminants. With the exception of a some roofing materials that were located in the basement of the former manager's house, we came out “good to go.” S.C. Swiderski, with whom we have had serious conversations about developing the property, is currently doing what is referred to as their “due diligence”. If there is nothing discovered in this phase that would give them pause the next thing to follow is agreeing on a site plan. So we are taking steps toward seeing homes where there are currently fields and trees albeit slow, baby ones.

That's the long and short of it. Like so many things in the governmental world the pace is agonizingly slow at times but, as a kid who once upon a time ran cross country for Chetek High School used to tell his coach before a meet, “Slow and steady wins the race, Coach!” That's really not true in cross or track but when it comes to municipal business I'll take “steady and slow” over motionless any old day.