Government

As the Village of Arena moves forward with a new well and sanitary sewer and lift station upgrades, cost increases have impacted project estimates.

The Village of Sauk City continued to hammer out details with the Sauk Fire District concerning their intermunicipal agreement. The District’s representatives have appeared at meetings recently as they have been planning to redo the intermunicipal agreement that governs the fire district.

The board agreed to “receive and review” a contract between Dane-Iowa Wastewater and the village concerning the parcels the village owns along Black Earth Creek. The information received so far from Dane-Iowa indicates they would like to “purchase” phosphorus reduction from the village by maintaining the streambanks.

The Village of Mazomanie Public Hearing on Nov 8th at 6 p.m. will be held at the Village Municipal Building at 133 Crescent St., and NOT at the Community Building as published.

The Village of Mazomanie awarded a $722,500 contract to Bill Lepke Trucking and Excavating out of Viroqua for the project to clear Black Earth Creek of debris and clean up the channel. The Village will be reimbursed for up to $1.1 million for the entire project due to a grant their received. Lepke’s was the low bid by a good margin. 

The Village of Prairie du Sac eliminated a curiosity from their ordinances at their last meeting, when they officially deleted language about a municipal lot containing five spaces near Sentry.

The Village of Sauk City’s municipal water supply tested below safe thresholds for PFAS, the board found out at their meeting last week. The village had to pay $500 for the test. Starting next year, there will be required quarterly PFAS tests.

Residents who watched last Wednesday’s budget workshop for Black Earth got to see how the sausage is made when it comes to municipal budgets. The board members faced the prospect of cutting $190,000 from their proposed 2023 budget to balance things out.

Shellie Benish, Administrator/Clerk/Treasurer for Black Earth, had her last day with the village of September 23^rd. Village President Mitch Hodson said, “We thanked her for her service and wished her the best going forward.” Benish said, “I like to believe I have left the Village in a much better place than when I arrived!”

At their September 27^th meeting, the Mazomanie Village Board voted to purchase a use transformer for $30,000, for use as a backup. New transformers can cost as much as a million dollars. 

The village will be using the firm Axley Brynelson as a planning and zoning resource, including for flood issues.