FC Village Board approves final motions for Randall St. project at special meeting
FALL CREEK - The Fall Creek Village Board, holding a special meeting on May 25, approved measures to begin construction of the Randall Rd. street and utility. project for curb. The several motions on the project were adopted unanimously.
Village Administrator Jared McKee reviewed with Board members the strategies discussed at the prior meeting regarding removing the 10 percent contingency and recategorizing the mobilization
costs. He told the board he recalculated the assessments to reflect those two changes. Then the meetings happened with Eau Claire County, and they became desirous to transfer ownership of
a section of Randall Road over to the Village (Randall Road from State Street going east two blocks). In exchange for that, the County has proposed to take on the costs for the surface level
restoration of Randall Road (road, curb/gutter, sidewalk, driveway approaches), with the Village being responsible for the water, sewer, storm sewer, and engineering. He reported the terms of the developer’s agreement have been renegotiated to reflect a reduction in the Village incentive to C&M from $250,000 to $125,000. This will lower special assessments to property owners for the project.
Although there was discussion on what more could be done to either lower or eliminate the assessment altogether the Board members came to a consensus that such such assessments have been policy in the past for homeowners next to street projects and without any kind of official change the village should continue with what it has done in the past, especially of the reductions in costs of the project per agreement with the county and developer.
The contractor for the project is bid to Haas Sons Inc as low bidder in the amount of $914,902.45.
After the special meeting of the Board, the Village Board's Committee of the Whole met. One of the topics on the agenda was interactions between members of the Board and village employees.
Village President Tim Raap stated in response to recent concerns and complaints over employee political activit and board members making comments about employees and their actions in a public meeting. Raap said the Board acts as a collective body concerning employee performance and or hiring or firing and there is no one boss and that public employees have rights, especially in regards to protections that have against individual members of the Board. Raap also said board members bringing their thoughts and feelings to the full board on employee performance and or conduct must be done in closed session deliberate such matters together is a safer way to protect said public employee than in an open session.
