Vernon Residents for Sensible Government

I have to admit, I never thought I’d be involved with one of THOSE groups. You know the ones, they come to meetings at the town and disagree with anything other than the status quo?  They are disagreeable, just be disagreeable?


We’ll, I’ve joined one of those groups. But, this group is different. We base our action on facts and reasonable opinions based on being informed and making resonable assumptions. We then get involved to try and shape policy and support candidates for our government that represent what we feel is best for our town. We don’t plan to go to board meetings and chant slogans, no secret handshakes, no inflammatory commentary or personal attacks; just calm sensible public discourse.

This new group is called “Vernon Residents for Sensible Government," or VRSG for short.  Why did we form? Basically we don’t like the way our current Town Board is handling our relationship with Big Bend, among other things.  Read my blogs below to find out more.... Like I’ve said before, we as a town can benefit greatly by sharing costs with our neighbors. Our board has decided unanimously to not share fire and rescue services with the Village of Big Bend. We’ve been doing this cost effectively for more than 40 years! In fact our current fire department has a cost per resident that among the lowest in the county.

Anyway, you can get more details by reading this blog and, possibly, by attending Town Board meetings. In addition, VRSG is planning on holding an informational meeting on March 3rd at 6:30 at the Big Bend Lion’s Club near the Village Hall. This is the time and place for you to get your questions answered and to get the information you need to make an informed decision. If you can’t make that meeting, a summary of the proceedings will be posted to this blog.

Oh, by the way, you don’t need to agree with us to attend the meeting. Please come to offer your opinion. We respect everyone’s opinion; we’re all in this together and some will disagree with us. That’s OK! We can still be friends and neighbors. Quite frankly, I would enjoy having those who disagree attend the meeting and provide information to support the Town Board. If you show up, you’ll be provided an opportunity to speak and not be treated with anything but respect. Sometimes we all need some alternative perspective.

After the Wakeup - Notification of New Posts

All - I just realized that new posts are not being notified to registered users; it doesn't work that way....  So to that end, I've added several of my contacts to the notification list.  I would appreciate it if you would send new posts to those in your contact list that you think might be interested in what I have to say.  The more people that become informed the better.

As always, folks who have questions about my posts should contact me at mikedoble@wi.rr.com or on my phone at 414-708-9466.  If you don't care to be notified of posts from my blog, then please let me know at the above address and I'll remove you from the list.

Attack Doble! He Disagrees!

So, Amy Nixon was not quite accurate with my comments in the Mukwonago Chief….that’s OK it happens. I said to the town board in public comments last week that I estimate it will cost $150,000 when all is said and done to split the fire department. I never said that money had already been spent….anyway. Not that big of a deal.  The money might as well already have been spent, the town board just doesn't want to listen to anyone.


This IS is a big deal though….here we go again with Mr. Craig's personal attacks. Instead of speaking to the reporter and correcting the facts then providing insight and information (hopefully factual information), he says this (as reported by Amy):

"Mike (Doble) resigned from the Fire Board because I asked him pertinent questions … " said Craig. "They are trying to incite fear into taxpayers … when we as the Town Board don't have the numbers together yet. In the worst case scenario, we're not even talking $40,000 to $50,000 for the whole thing." – From Amy Nixon’s Mukwonago Chief Article 2/9/2010

What does my resignation from the fire board have to do with how much it’s going to cost to disband the fire department? This type of comment/statement is just indicative of how Mr. Craig’s mind works. If he doesn’t like what I have to say, then he’ll say something to discredit me. Well Mr. Craig, I made a HUGE mistake of resigning from the fire board and feel partially responsible for what’s happening here. I quit. I took myself out of the position that might have made the difference to prevent this mess. I deeply regret that decision. So, I will not quit again. Keep it coming.

Friends who happen to read this blog, please come to the town board meetings, or post comments (with your name preferably), or at least watch the meetings at the town so you can see what’s going on in our town! It’s time for change. Let Mr. Craig and the others on the board know that you demand answers.

(Oh, by the way, this is the first acknowledgement in public by any board member that this whole splitting of the department thing will cost us some money. ONLY $40,000 to $50,000!!! You sure can buy a lot of patience in dealing with the village for $40,000 or $50,000! What a shameful waste of our money…..Never mind that more likely than not it will cost way more than this….Never mind that we elected these guys to deal with problems....)

Town Supervisor Craig, Ashamed?

For those of you who don't know, the Village President Jamie Soneberg is a deputy Sheriff with the Waukesha County Sheriff’s office. From what I understand, Deputy Soneberg has an impeccable service record. Deputy Soneberg is assigned by the Sheriff to patrol areas that include the Town of Vernon.

Bill Craig at last Thursday’s meeting has asked that Jamie be reassigned. Here we go again….

Mr. Craig has a history of this. Everyone that disagrees with Mr. Craig and his view on how he governs comes into his crosshairs. First it was Marilyn Gauger, then president of the Big Bend-Vernon Fire Board. Mr. Craig said some things that implied that Mrs. Gauger had done wrong. If fact, she conducted herself with the utmost integrity. She continued to follow policies that had been in place for years in the conduct of the Fire Board’s business. As it turns out, these policies violated the letter of the law as written in the intermunicipal agreement between the town and village. Mrs. Gauger continued to conduct the Fire Board’s business following an unwritten policy explicitly condoned by the Town Attorney John Macy, and the past two Town Chairs. Yet she was taken to task by Mr. Craig and was not reappointed. (This relates to verbal approval from the Town Chair and Village President to seek legal counsel for private matters relating to Fire Board performance evaluation issues. The key word being PRIVATE matters. The subject of legal closed session meetings.)

And then there’s me….Mr. Craig pushed for me to not be reappointed to the Fire Board when my term was up. I was at the meeting in the third week of May 2009 when Mr. Craig urged the other board members to not reappoint me since “new blood” was needed even though significant progress was being made in applying stabilizing controls to the Fire Department budget and leadership. No, he didn’t want to overlook minor details of operation issues (i.e. verbal approval for legal fees) to see the big picture and the progress being made. In a follow-up meeting with Mr. Craig he continued to ask for minute details of the Fire Board’s dealings and ignore all progress made by the Fire Board in years of hard work. My integrity was questioned and I decided to resign knowing that continued personal attacks would most likely follow….

So, now we get to Jamie. Jamie is in Mr. Craig’s sights. This is despicable; Mr. Craig should be ashamed. The voters should be outraged. The voters in this community need to start paying attention. We do not need this in our community. Not one of us deserves this, not one of us has done anything other than serve this community with the best of intensions. What are Mr. Craig’s intensions?  What’s he trying to accomplish? Is this really Town business?

So, Mr. Craig cites a conflict of interest? Is it a conflict of interest when Mr. Craig (a real estate agent) lists a property for sale in the Village of Big Bend? Is a conflict of interest when Mr. Craig is a member of the Town Board and Town Plan Commission when a land division is considered for approval by the Town? Is it a conflict of interest when Mr. Craig’s business is located in the Village and not the Town? These questions are as absurd as claiming that Jamie’s patrol duty as a Sheriff’s deputy is a conflict of interest. Where will this insanity end?

Posting Comments: Anonymous said...

Those of you that are not registered are able to post comments.  No problem.  You post these comments an "anonymous" user.  IF you want to your comments to have a greater impact, please add your name to the comment at the end.  Some of you do this; most don't.

It's much easier to show those that read this that those of you who are posting really do care and are not afraid to say so.  I recommend using your name or becoming a registered user to have the greatest impact.

Another side benefit to being a registered user is that you will be notified automatically when a new post is made.

Everyone Supports the Town Board?

I’ve been told by the Town Chair that most in the Town agree with the Town Board’s position that the Town should have its own Fire Department. Sharing costs with the Village is not a good idea because of ALL the baggage. (Of course I’m paraphrasing the board’s position….)

Do you agree? Is this a good idea? Are people just telling the Town Board members what they want to hear?

Please sound off. A simple answer is OK: I don’t know enough to have an opinion, I don’t agree with them, I agree with them, etc.

They read this blog, let them know how you feel.

Please Read the Paper and ACT!

Dear Loyal Readers,

Thanks for keeping up with my rants regarding the current actions of the Town Board. As you can tell from my writing I firmly believe that the path were on is one of failure. The decision to disband the long standing agreement with Big Bend for fire service is a disservice to us and our entire community. Plus, I believe that it will cost the Town of Vernon more than $150,000 to divorce ourselves from the Village of Big Bend and establish our own fire department. This new department will provide a lower level of service than we have now and will cost us more than we pay now year to year. Please let me know if you disagree.

There are so many issues the Town Board has not addressed; as a matter of fact they have not addressed any issues yet. They have retained a consultant to evaluate the situation and to assist in developing the new department. This consultant will cost $25,000. Cha-ching…. we’re nearly 20% to my $150,000 estimate. I could go on and on, but I’ll get to the point. This is all entirely unnecessary. We just need to work with our neighbors to resolve the issues. Trust me; there are issues, but nowhere near $150,000 worth. Please get informed and get involved. Even if your involvement is just a comment or two on this blog!

So in order to provide the information that our Town Board refuses to provide, I have teamed up with several other concerned citizens of the Town of Vernon to create a group called Vernon Residents for Sensible Government. The VRSG will be holding a series of meetings to provide information so you can make an informed decision on this matter and so you can speak intelligently about this issue with your elected officials. Hey, you may disagree with us. That’s OK! We can respect that, but please only draw your conclusion after availing yourself of the facts. We’re willing to provide them.

So, why read the paper? We have sent a letter to the Editor of all the papers that server our area to outline some questions that YOU should demand be answered BEFORE we proceed any further with this matter. I know for sure this letter will be in tomorrow’s issue of the Mukwonago Chief. After tomorrow look for it in the Mukwonago Chief Letters to the Editor:
http://www.livinglakecountry.com/mukwonagochief/opinion/83357007.html

If this link does not work, go to the Mukwonago Chief Home Page and hit the “Opinion” menu option. The home page is:
http://www.livinglakecountry.com/mukwonagochief/

The VRSG plans to hold a meeting in early March so you may come and ask questions and become informed. It’s obvious that we’re very opinionated about this matter, come and figure out why!

Stay tuned.

The Village is TAKING Our Land!!! Yikes! Run for the hills!

Sorry for the delay in postings. I have so much to write about, but so little time….I’m going to try and make this a Sunday habit, so stay tuned. Here’s my latest installment regarding my opinion that the Town of Vernon Town Board has lost its mind:

So the Village is TAKING our property? What? Is this true? Our Town Board seems to think so; I’ve heard them say this, or imply this, more than once.

The fact is that the Village CANNOT initiate the taking, or annexation, of Town property. A property owner or MAJORITY of property owners in a continuous geographic area must initiate an annexation petition. In fact, it is ILLEGAL for any village or city to initiate an annexation or to provide incentives or contractual benefits to a property owner in exchange for requesting annexation of their property!

(Do you want to know more? Go to: http://www.doa.state.wi.us/section.asp?linkid=132&locid=9)

Even though this is true, our Town Board continues to spread the myth that somehow the Village is “taking” our land. Why do they spread this myth? Why do they keep making us believe the Village is the “bad guy”? Honestly, I don’t know. I can only speculate as to their motivations.

Here’s what I know to be true: the Town has made it attractive for property owners to take their land into the Village! What Mike? That’s blasphemous! OUR Town Board is causing these annexations!?! How can you say that!?! Well, it’s true….

Think about this, would property owners such as Deluca and Ball have ever annexed their properties to the Village if the Town had been more progressive in their support of the business that resides on these properties? If the Town had policies in place that encouraged and worked with businesses to expand and be successful, then they would have no motivation to move the property into the Village. So, in the case of the Deluca property we did not allow them to expand; the Village did. So, we have the IMPACTS (more trucks, more traffic, etc.) anyway, but the Town has lost the tax base. WE AS A TOWN AND OUR LEADERS CAUSED THIS!!! Not the Village. The Village just decided to be flexible and work with this business.

Most of the Town Board members involved in negotiating with Mr. Deluca did not have the forsight to see this. What a shame. Yet it’s the Village’s fault!

So, where does this leave us today? Our Town continues to more toward more and more isolation from the Village of Big Bend. We are no longer working together to solve problems as a community even though most reasonable people know and understand that we ARE a community. The Town knows best…we’re going it alone. We’re going to spend a TON of money in the next few months to realize that we can NEVER operate our Town without consideration of our neighbors. We’re going to lose the opportunity to work with the Village of Big Bend to create high quality, thoughtful development on the interstate interchange. We’re going to lose our opportunity to have ANY input or benefit from this development. Over what, a few line items in the budget and some poor decisions by some members of the Fire Board and Fire Department? Where I come from you work to solve problems, not create more by pretending we can do it better on our own. We all know that sharing costs will end up costing us all less in the long run.

(On a side note: keep in mind that this is the same group that has not yet figured out how to tear down the condemned barn near the Town Hall! And that's been over a year! Anyway, I digress....sorry.)

The Town Board has forgotten that the Village has the control no matter what. That’s the way the law of the State of Wisconsin is written. If we don’t find ways to work together, then isolated we will become and more of our tax base will leave the Town and we will lose more of our ability to negotiate with the Village on issues that will benefit the Town.

So remember, when it comes to annexation, it is the Town’s policies and business environment that cause annexation, not the Village. Come on Vernon! Wake up! Oh wait; this is AFTER the wake-up....wow I should have stayed asleep.

Town Bears the Cost? Huh?

Village of Big Bend development of the I-94/Hwy 164 interchange has been cited by the Town of Vernon Board of Supervisors as a reason to dissolve the joint fire department. This was stated in the letter to residents dated 12/18/09.


I did a rough guesstimate for the potential increase in assessed value on this interchange based on what I know might occur when sewer is available. Conservatively this increase in commercial assessed value is $30 million. Potentially more, but let’s be conservative.

Based on the 2009 budget [considering tax derived monies], the Town contributed about $365,000 and the Village about $71,000 to the fire department operating fund. If everything else remained the same (i.e. residential value, population, etc.) as the interchange develops, this proportion would change to about $358,000 and $77,861 respectively. Hey we’re moving in the right direction.

I admit, it’s not a lot, but citing this as a reason to dissolve the joint fire department is absurd. The reality is the biggest cost for development on this interchange is not going to be fire and rescue services, it will be police services which are a Village issue. Keep in mind also that fire and rescue services are charged to the user; they don't necessarily impact the budget.  Based on the equipment on hand and the proposed development plans I've seen, the fire department does not need to expand.  What costs?

BBVFD Breakup - Some More Background

The link included with this post is to the Mukwonago Chief article about the breakup of the Big Bend-Vernon Fire Department.  It's a relatively good article.  The only inaccuracy is in the characterization of the intermunicipal agreement. 

The agreement states that if both communities cannot adopt an identical budget by December 15th each year, then the department will dissolve by December 31 the next year.  Nothing to do with state law.

The Town of Vernon Board of Supervisors have used this provision in the agreement as an excuse to dissolve the department over what I feel is the appropriate budgeting of legal fees that THE BOARD AGREED WAS A GOOD IDEA!  Including CHAIRMAN MICHALEK!!!  I'm convinced it's a control issue, nothing more.  A control issue that's going to cost us a lot of money.

Anyway, I'll stop yelling now.  Why the overwhelming need to control?  I've been told by the Board directly and seen in their actions that they must directly control all actions taken, spending, etc. in the Town.  Their attitude is that they were elected, so they MUST make these decisions.  I STRONGLY DISAGREE!  Having some appointed members of committees, commissions and other governing bodies helps add a measure of insight that the politicians may not feel compelled to add due to politics.  Too much control in the hands of a small group is not a good thing. 

My suggestion is to ask one of the former plan commission members how they feel about NONE of the electorate being involved in the decision making process.  Mr. Craig?  Mr. Batholomew?  Mr. Bauer?

Bottom line is this, as a citizen you need to demand that the board provide the answers to these questions about our "new" fire department:  How much will it cost to establish?  How much will it cost to run on a yearly basis?  What level of service will we have?  How about having paramedic service? 

If it costs the same with a lower level of service (which I'm sure it will), then why are we doing this?

Charges Against Town Board

Yesterday around noon I dropped off documentation with DA Brad Schimel asking that he investigate and respond to me regarding the December 17th meeting. My charge is that the use of closed session for the purpose of this discussion was not legal. The agenda for the meeting claimed an exemption from public discussion, in essence, based on contract negotiation. Well, the TB decided not to negotiate. Therefore I can only assume that the discussion must not have been negotiation strategy, but what to tell the Town to justify the decision to not negotiate with the Village. This is evidenced by the decision immediately after the closed session to dissolve the Joint Fire Department.

My position is that this discussion should have been held in open session and over the course of multiple meetings to allow people to comment before this decision was made. If you agree, please consider attending and making comment at the 1/7/10 Town Board meeting.

I suggest that an alternate strategy be developed to fix the current department, not dissolve it.

Comments

I've received several messages from people that would like to comment but do not want to register.  I can understand this.  So, I've changed the comment policy.  ANYONE can leave a comment; registered user or not.  You can leave comments without your name, but I have chosen to moderate all comments.

So have at it!  If you are a registered user and leave a comment I cannot post, then I'll email you and let you know why.  I'm inclined to allow all comments, but I won't allow personal attacks or nastiness.

If you care to post comments....

All readers please note: I do not moderate comments posted to this blog. I've allowed all registered users to post comments at will without moderation by me. If I see comments that are deemed inappropriate or lack the decorum and respect that is demanded of self governed, free people, then I will remove the comment.

12/30/09 - If you post a comment as an "Anonymous" user, feel free to sign you name in the post if you care to.  It has far more impact if your name is included in the post.  Of course, you may just sign up for the blog and your name is automatically included in any post.

Break-up of the Town Fire Department

As predicted in my last blog post, last Thursday the Town Board voted to dissolve the joint fire department.  I sent a message to the Town Board requesting an explanation.  I copied many of the people that I thought might have the same concern on the email, including Waukesha County District Attorney Brad Schimel.

Since this message I've been contacted by the Mukwonago Chief and Waukesha Freeman and have made a statement to them.  Here is my position:

I'm not sure how I feel about this decision by the Board; I honestly have not been provided enough information by our town leadership.  All of the discussion took place behind closed doors.  I have a real problem with this type of decision being made without the electorate (that's us!) being informed.  Brian Paff was unfairly taken to task by some on the Town Board for closed door dealings, now the same people do this?

What do you think?  Please pass on the link to this blog so others in the Town of Vernon may comment as well.  The people in this town need to be involved in decisions of this magnitude.

Link to this blog: http://afterthewakeup.blogspot.com/  Cut and paste then email to others you think may have a concern.  I think the Town Board sometimes only hears from those that have time to be at the meetings to provide public comment.  You can make your voice heard too.

Here is a copy of the email I sent out to the Town Board:

Community Leaders - I understand that you have voted to terminate the Fire Department (see the attached). Can you please let me know how you intend to provide fire and EMS service to the Town after 12/31/10?

I have to admit, I'm concerned about this. I'm told by my insurance company that if our fire rating drops from a 9 to a 10 that my homeowners insurance will increase by at least 30%. This means about $1,100 per year for me. I'd appreciate a response in writing or email.

In addition to my concern about fire and EMS service to our community, I'm deeply concerned about the lack of public knowledge of this action or that you even considered dissolving the department without public comment. I question the legality of this action, but I'm not an attorney and I have an open mind.

DA Schimel - I ask that your office investigate this action and respond to the community. The entire discussion of this matter was in closed session with no public input or comment. An agenda item that states "issues regarding the Intermunicipal Agreement" is much different than dissolving the Fire Department as per the attached. The agenda item stated:

"16. MOTION TO GO INTO CLOSED SESSION. Consideration and possible action on a motion to Convene into executive session under Wis. Stats. 19.85 (1)(e): Deliberating or negotiating the purchasing of public properties, the investing of public funds, or conducting other specified public business, whenever competitive or bargaining reasons require a closed session, specifically issues regarding the Intermunicipal Agreement for Creation of a Joint Fire Department and a Joint Fire Board and a Joint Fire Commission between the Village of Big Bend and Town of Vernon (Hereafter referred to as Intermunicipal Agreement). Included in Closed Session Town Board Members, Town Clerk. Motion needs a roll call vote."

All town meetings are recorded. A copy of the recording can be obtained by contacting the Town Clerk at 262-662-2039.

Thanks in advance to all of you for your time in responding. I've copied everyone I can think of that might have a concern about this so that they know you are working on a response and there is no need for them to make a duplicate request. I'll share your response with all.

Reserving judgment and giving you the benefit of my doubt,
Respectfully,

Mike
_________________________
Michael P. Doble, P.E.
W.249 S.7180 Center Drive
Waukesha, WI 53189
[Email address deleted to prevent SPAM]
414-708-9466

It's Been a While

I'm really sorry it's been so long since a post, but it turned out to be a busy spring and summer.

Stay tuned for posts concerning our Town including:

- What's happening to our Fire Department? Will we split with the Village of Big Bend? Why do we want to stop sharing costs?

- Town sports program. Wow these guys do a good job!

- Why has the Town Board stopped being reasonable? I have a friend who was denied a hobby kennel permit because ONE neighbor was concerned about the "potential" for a problem. Shouldn't we deal with problems when they happen?

12/22/09 - Correction: At the meeting where this friend was denied a permit, there were two neighbors in opposition to his request.  I made the mistake because one neighbor later recinded his opposition and signed a petition in support of this application.  Sorry for the inaccuracy.

Anyway, I'm working on gathering the facts on these and other matters and will post them shortly.

In the meantime, be sure to tune to Channel 25 on your TV on the third Thursday night of each month at 7:00pm. You can witness our Town Board in action for yourself. Or you can read the agendas and minutes at:

http://www.townofvernon.org/

Stay abreast of the meetings, they are not always predictable. For instance the Town Board has met nine times since the beginning of October.

Stay informed, stay involved and most importantly, let your Board members know how you feel about the issues. I've been told they represent the majority of the "people they hear from", not necessarily the majority of the electors. They don't know how you feel unless you let them know!

Hey I have some followers!

Thanks for checking out my blog. This week I plan to post some comments on the following issues in our Town:

Some Board members ran on the theme "Restoring the Voice of the People." Are the Town meetings being friendly to the voice of the people?

Should fireworks sales be banned?

What do we do about the annexation of our property from the Town to surrounding communities?

Stay tuned!

Thanks for Caring!

Welcome and thanks for caring about what's happening in your Town!


My name is Mike Doble. I became a Town resident in 1998 when I bought a home in Heather Ridge Estates. In 2003, I bought an 11 acre piece of property on Center Drive and developed the vacant land into a small residential subdivision. I still live on the property in the original [updated] farm house. My experience with land division process in the Town and County got me involved in Town politics. I have to say, I do love this Town and I have very strong opinions on how to allow our Town to develop in a way that is best for all citizens.

During the Spring 2009 election cycle it became apparent that more people need to be involved in the Town's decision making. Thirty percent +/- of residents showing up at the polls to select the persons that will determine how we live is just not acceptable. I feel that if people know what issues are at stake, they would be at the polls. We would also have more honest debate between candidates; not single page fliers in our mailbox.

The most disturbing product of this last election cycle was a web site that popped up called WakeUpVernon.com. The owner and moderator of this web site never revealed themselves. Why? Who knows? Politics I assume. The discourse on this web site was troubling. I was ashamed that this was happening in MY Town! Whomever you are "WakeUpVernon", you should be ashamed. Please do better next time.

My goal for this blog is to provide a forum for an exchange of ideas.

A RESPECTFUL, HONEST, EXCHANGE OF IDEAS.

What do YOU think? Decisions in this Town are sometimes based on who yells the loudest.

I will post facts. If the facts are wrong, please let me know! Please cite your sources.

I will post what I hear said at meetings. If I get it wrong or if it is taken out of context, then post a response and explain. This is called discussion. I might have to post a lesson on this based on what I saw on WakeUpVernon.com.

I will express my opinions on matters that I care about; you are welcome to do the same. If my opinion is wrong, please respectfully tell me why. I might change my opinion! Imagine that!

Sometime opinions are formed out of reaction. I'm the type of person who is open to change my opinion and position if I can be shown why my position might be wrong. I'm an "end state" sort of guy. I look at my position and try to understand how this position will play out in the long run. Sometimes I nail it; sometimes I'm wrong. Sometimes how things worked out in the past don't necessarily predict how other things will play out in the future. We all just try our best.

But please! Form you opinions based on facts and reasonable assumptions.

Please feel free to visit often. If you have suggestions, please post them.

Let's keep our Town on track so that it remains a wonderful place to live and raise a family.