Cannabis ordinance nearly complete

Cole Blomstrom, a member of Janesville Boy Scout Troop 89, talked to the Janesville City Council during its meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 11 about possibly building a fire pit for properly disposing of American flags. After technical difficulties prevented him from presenting his prepared slideshow, he grabbed a sketch of the fire pit and showed it to each council member. He described the location of the pit as 30 feet west of the Veterans Memorial pavilion in Veterans Memorial Park across the street from city hall.

“The closest fire pit for properly disposing of American flags is in St. Peter,” he shared. “We have about 400 flags just in Janesville that need to be retired.”

To build the pit, he claims, “We will have to dig a hole, fill it with gravel, level the brick, and get a fire ring around it. The fire pit will be locked with a key.”

He asked that the council take over the management of the pit once it was finished, adding that he wants people to sign waivers before using it and for city staff to keep control of the key.

Regarding safety, he said, “The location of the pit is somewhat open. It’s located by the trees, but it’s not so close that branches will be on it.”

In addition to using the pit for flag disposal, Blomstrom recommended using it for warmth during events, especially when the holiday train comes to town in December.

Blomstom ended his presentation stating that the plan is to start digging in the next two weeks. “We’ll need a skid loader or something heavy duty to do that,” he said.

The council was in unanimous support of Blomstrom’s project. “I will donate a skid loader for you to use,” Mayor Andy Arnoldt said.

Council member Melissa Kopachek also praised the idea. “You have a more thorough plan than some professionals that come through here.”

Fire Board Meeting

In addition to the regular meeting, the Janesville Fire Board met to update the council on its numbers and plans for the Janesville Fire Department.

Fire chief Mike Santo stated that he anticipates increased costs for equipment replacement, both for this year and going forward. He mentioned that the “turnout gear” (firefighters’ suits and equipment) needs replacing; the department has 25 sets of gear, with a rotation that replaces four sets each year at a cost of about $1500 apiece.

Another expenditure discussed was replacing valves on pumps. Seven need replacing; Santo expects the costs to be about $7,000. “Hopefully, we don’t have any more surprises,” he said, also noting that a department “run report” shows that the number of calls has stayed fairly consistent. “We are averaging 19 calls a month over the last five years, and we are at that mark as of August 31,” he shared.

Mutual aid was the only item in the run report which was higher than usual. “There have been manpower issues in Janesville and other towns,” he explained. “They help us, we help them. In the case of a structure fire, we help out.”

Reserve funds for the fire department were $232,825 in the capital reserve and $54,261 as of October 3. Santo asked the fire board and the council to use $46,300 to purchase a new Chevy 3500 one-ton pickup to take the place of a 2004 F-350.

He requested that an additional $10,000 be taken out of the capital reserve fund to pay for additional costs such as installing lights on the truck and retrofitting it to carry a water tank and pump. Both the fire board and the council approved Santo’s requests.

Santo reported that he wants to start a committee to identify what specifications the fire department should establish for a new pumper truck. “Our number one pumper right now is from 2004,” he elaborated. “Per city policy, we usually make our number one pumper into our second pumper to get 30 years out of a truck. We’re past due for that.”

The price for a pumper truck has nearly doubled since the last time the Janesville Fire Department bought a new one. “The process to get all of our specs could take 6-8 months, and it will be another 2-3 years before we even see the truck,” he stated.

The fire board meeting adjourned at 7:19 p.m.

Other Business

Ron Bruegger spoke during the public forum asking that the city use some of Prairie Ridge Golf Course’s profits to offset the double-digit preliminary tax levy set in place.

“Up until last year, we’ve been paying taxes to help support the golf course,” Bruegger said. “I’ve heard people bragging about how great they’re doing while at the same time hearing about a double-digit tax increase. Maybe if they’re doing so great, the city can take some of the profits made in the past few years and defray some of this tax increase.”

In council reports, council member Andy Ahlman and City Administrator Clinton Rogers said that the personnel committee is close to reaching an agreement with the Janesville Police Department’s union. Rogers reported discussions were “cordial.”

“We should have something ready by the next meeting,” Ahlman added.

Mayor Arnoldt reported that the water tower coating project is experiencing delays due to the weather. He also shared that city utility workers have installed 96 percent of the water meters for the city’s new Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI).

Rogers stated that the city is close to getting a draft of a cannabis ordinance for the council’s review. “City Attorney Jason Moran and I have taken ideas from different cities around us and are putting something together. We will have the draft ready by next month.”

Other business included approving a pay estimate of $196,346 for the 2022 street project, voting in favor of a rural lot split, approving a liquor license for the new restaurant Cinco de Mayo, and approving a temporary liquor license to St. Ann Parish for a fundraiser on November 12. The meeting adjourned at 7:48 p.m.