Gilman seeks less costly options for sewer plant compliance
The village of Gilman board continues to seek solutions regarding instruction from the Department of Natural Resources to update their wastewater treatment center.
At the April 9 Gilman Village Board meeting, Director of Public Works Dave Kroeplin reported on meeting with Brooke Klingbeil of Wisconsin Rural Water Association last Wednesday. Klingbeil is working to get the sewer use ordinance up to date in hopes that the village won't have to pay an engineer as part of the new permit requirements.
'She's been really, really helpful,' said Kroeplin.
Kroeplin reported that he and Klingbeil discussed the possibility of installing drain tile in the swamp to help filter effluent water, which has been done on some tribal land elsewhere in Wisconsin. Klingbeil also applied for a grant on behalf of the village to help cover costs associated with any updates.
In other business the board:
• Heard that Jane DeStaercke, Village President, met with Senator Jesse L. James and Representative Rob Summerfield to discuss the situation with the wastewater plant as well as speak about returning money to Northwest Regional Planning. DeStaercke and Clerk Candice Grunseth are planning to attend a meeting regarding funding retention.
• The village has also been recognized by Jerry Deschane, Executive Director of the League of Wisconsin Municipalities, for its work with the Design Gilman event. Design Gilman is a movement to create a community vision to help plan the future of the community. 'We have really gained a lot of recognition through our Design Wisconsin event and our community assessment,” said DeStaercke. Gilman School District Administrator Walter Leipart plans to discuss Design Gilman at an upcoming convention.
• Heard that Fran Prasnicki, village treasurer for the last 40 years, will be retiring in September, leaving a vacancy.
• Learned that Lynn Rosemeyer, as a part of the development committee, is working on a T-Mobile grant for $50,000 to assist with a proposed walking trail and a possible kayak launch, as well as updates to the walking bridge. The grant will be determined near the end of May.
• Heard from Gilman Police Chief Tom Tallier who stated that lockers and vehicles at the school were recently swept with a K9 unit. Tallier also reported that the crosswalk signs on each side of the intersection of Hwy 64 and CTH B are out of compliance because there are not crosswalks in place where the signs are located. The board is required to either remove the signs or have crosswalks painted which can be done by the county and reimbursed by the village. The board voted to install crosswalks. Tallier also stated that the new 25mph signs went up on the east side of town last week Thursday. No speed changes were made on the west side of town. Tallier plans to put the speed trailer up near the new signs later this month.
• Heard that there was a water main break on Eighth Avenue which was fixed as soon as possible. Kroeplin placed barricades around the repair which will be up for another month. There are also barricades placed by the Well Street apartments where there was also a break. “It was likely due to the frost,” said Kroeplin, who stated that they lost roughly 160,000 gallons of water. 'It seems like a lot to us, but it's really not,” he said.
• Heard that Kroeplin ordered four red maple trees for Arbor Day. Kroeplin chose the trees, stating, “They don't go so high and the roots don't go too deep.”
• Heard from Grunseth that the village saw 161 voters for April elections. Official terms for new board members start on April 15. The board thanked Bob Preston, who was absent, for his service in the village. Preston did not seek re-election.
• Reported that the public hearing for the comprehensive plan is May 14.
• Heard that the operator’s license for the Marathon gas station was approved by Tallier and the board.
• Decided to advertise open space in the industrial park on a free commercial listing site.
• Discussed taking part in training for Board of Review which must be done before BOR takes place in August.
