Gilman village board looks forward to new housing opportunities

At the Nov. 13, Gilman village board meeting the board heard from Gilman Police Chief Tom Tallier that three of the mobile homes in the mobile home park are due to be demolished in the first week of December. Residents living close to the park have voiced concerns during previous board meetings, stating that they were seeing an influx of rats from the homes that were in poor condition.

One of those three homes was the center of a litigation which has since been concluded, allowing for the demolition to take place.

Tallier also reported that the park will see four additional units with two being added in the upper lot and two placed in the southern lot, bringing the lots to capacity. Currently, the plumbing is being installed. He did not have a timeline for the addition of those new mobile homes during the meeting.

Tallier also brought up the apartment buildings being installed in the old Gilman nursing home. “Great progress is being made out there already,” he stated. “That’s great for Gilman.”

The board’s attorney, as well as the developer’s attorney, have reviewed the drafted developer’s agreement which will allow the village to give the developers of the apartment buildings roughly $100,000 in Tax Increment Financing District (TID) money.

A TID is a way for Wisconsin cities and villages to improve parts of their communities in order to stimulate growth and, in this case, that growth is residential. A TID does not affect residents’ property taxes but rather brings money into the village as the taxes for the base value of the TID are returned to the taxing entity. This means that the village will see a higher return on that TID than the initial amount given to the developers.

While there was some back-and-forth between members, the board did eventually vote unanimously to provide this money to the apartment developers which the village hopes will help to attract newcomers to Gilman.

In other business, the board also:

• Accepted the 2025 budget which sees the local levy decreasing by 0.83% compared to 2024. Total revenues have also decreased by 2.976% from last year which matches a decrease in total expenses by the same percentage.

• Received report from clerk Candice Grunseth that the election went well with the village seeing 220 voters.

• Heard from GFL representatives regarding renewal of the waste removal contract. GFL representative Sean Partridge reported reaching out to the previous manufacturer of the bags GFL utilized in the past which are a bit more form fitted. GFL plans to go back to the original dimensions which are the same price and fit better in garbage cans. Board president Jane DeStaercke stated that she had reached out to Waste Management for a quote, but there was not enough time to assess the village’s needs between then and the contract due date and GFL was unable or unwilling to negotiate on the contract length. GFL offered the board an alternative solution; residents would see a charge on their water bill for waste removal utilizing the carts with residents offered a voucher for the bags instead of the cart should they decide to forgo the bags; however, the price would not change whether residents chose the bags over the cart. The board opted to wait and get public input before making a decision on adding waste services to residents’ water bills. The board approved and signed the contract as is.

• Heard from Richard Tumaniec, a traffic engineer from the DOT in relation to the speed limit entering town on Hwy 64. After analyzing speed data, Tumaniec reported that about 85% of vehicles are traveling at or below the posted speed limit and recommended that the 25mph zone be extended to about 6th Ave. with a 45mph speed zone taking place after that until about 9th Ave., or three tenths of a mile. The DOT will take care of the signage and make the changes within their system through the county and without assistance from the village. Tumaniec stated that any sidewalks or curb and gutter would be considered a cost-share arrangement between the village and the DOT. Tumaniec will be in contact with the village when signage is complete.

• Heard from zoning inspector Jim Flood who was asked to research a hoop building on a property in the village, which is considered a building and will require a zoning permit and not a variance as it will not be close to property lines.

Flood also mentioned portable shipping containers which are not addressed in zoning codes. Flood stated he intended to bring it up to the planning committee and later the zoning board to consider where the shipping containers can and cannot be placed as well as how long they can be left in a particular place. Flood brought up Daniel Miller who needs a variance for a 1,000 sq. ft. building in the rural district.

“I think it would be kind of foolish to have somebody coming in who’s a farmer who wants to add onto their barn to be limited to 1,000 feet,” said Flood. Flood stated that there are exemptions for commercial and industrial use and proposed an exemption for rural areas as well.

Flood asked the village to consider covering his insurance as he has let his corporation dissolve and provided the village with some options as to how that can be done. The village did not vote on any of these matters during this meeting.

• Brought up the additional $7,000 requested from Bauman Associates for additional accounting services that Bauman reports they conducted above and beyond the regular audit. The board had hoped to have that amount wiped away and Bauman countered with $2,500, which the board approved. The board plans to request bids for different accounting services.

• Discussed five plots of land that the county had put up for sale within the village and whether or not the board was interested in purchasing any of those plots. The board convened for a closed session prior to ending the meeting. During that closed session, the board voted to purchase a parcel just north of the school’s north parking lot.

• Heard from director of public works Dave Kroeplin that the village sewer plant is only considered out of compliance because the state has lowered acceptable levels of phosphorus readings from zero to .075.

“That is almost impossible to meet,” reported Kroeplin. Brooke Klingbeil of the Wisconsin Rural Water Association has been assisting by reviewing ordinances and providing suggestions, changes, looking over the budget, and encouraging extra testing. The village is exploring options to keep costs down for residents.