OCONTO FALLS – The City of Oconto Oconto Falls Common Council met most recently on Tuesday, May 12, to discuss a variety of matters related to public transportation, local roadways and annexations.
Past annexations were corrected with Ordinance 25-007, which was amended to “include [the] correction of legal descriptions and maps of the 1966 annexation for the high school property and 1973 annexation of the cemetery property,” city administrator Peter Wills explained in his report.
During the public hearing on May 7, Oconto Falls Public Schools Superintendent Stuart Russ thanked the City of Oconto Falls for going through the annexation process and everyone that worked to get that speed limit lowered along County Road I for the safety of the children. Additionally, he said that he appreciated the extra patrols by the police department to keep everyone safe.
This past annexation was approved before the board moved into taking action on an upcoming annexation.
The council approved a notice of intention to circulate a petition — as well as the petition itself — to detach a portion of County I from the City of Oconto Falls back to the Town of Stiles.
City council documents explained that this is a “portion of County I beginning at the town boundary east of South Main Street [with a distance of] 4,150 linear feet north to north end of Columbia Street, including [the] County I road and right-of-way.”
“The population of the said land is zero. The number of electors that reside on the lands to be annexed is zero,” council documents stated.
The petition to annex will be sent back to the plan commission for a public hearing date to be sent before the council takes action.
In new business, the city was contacted by League of Wisconsin Municipalities Government Affairs Director Toni Herkert regarding a transportation funding for local governments resolution.
Wills explained that state transportation aid has not kept pace with inflation or rising construction costs, which has resulted in municipalities borrowing more money to complete road projects.
The resolution seeks a “sustainable transportation funding solution” that includes reliable revenue growth, responsible use of General Purpose Revenue and funding for reconstruction and safety investments for state and local roadways.
Wills added that this resolution was a valuable advocacy tool. The council approved the resolution.
During department reports, Wills noted that a special assessment from the 1990s on King Street was paid off early, bringing in around $188,000. He recommended putting these funds into city reserves.
Superintendent Wally Remic spoke about the successful First Annual Arbor Day Tree Give Away where 650 bare root trees were given away to over 270 residents for free.
“This will help our city with added tree canopy and tree species diversity. Species were picked from our community tree assessment to add to the lower represented areas. We would like to continue this project as it will greatly benefit the city in the decades to come,” he shared in his report.
Fire chief Tim Magnin then provided the council with an update on the 1995 firetruck. He explained that the department does not plan on selling it immediately, but instead plans to use it as a blocking vehicle at accident scenes to protect their newer trucks from collisions. He also confirmed that the borrowed funds for equipment would be paid back.
Additionally, Magnin praised his team for working together to fix a hydraulic issue on their new truck, noting that the new station has prompted better collaboration between departments.
Finally, the council approved several event applications, including Barb’s 50th Anniversary at the Antique Bar, the Oconto County Farmers Market, Joyful Noise and the 11th Annual Dash of Color.
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