Meeting Minutes

Whitman Hills/Park Subdivision meeting- 9am Library meeting room May 19, 2012

Present at Both Meetings: ?

Contact mark frye and dnr people no hear
Because of change on state regs. Dnr is holding off
Rachel saber has been moved to a different department
Big changes at dnr

Storm water management was called. Malcom is going to try to head into Madison to check on this.

Do we want to be more aggressive with dealing with the city?

Public comment, ask the city explain to us why they are spending time and money on this. Rational for moving forward. Why are wee wasting time and energy. Identify why? Cost benefit analysis?

Ramifications, costs, justification. Public comment section presentation.
Not beneficial to city. All three papers.
Heard nothing on petition.

Reintroduce the petition with no feedback.

Talking about another candidate

With numbers for old school house and the arterial. Wait from 67. State controls until the splits sate controlled. Lowell is a bypass for the subdivision

What about side streets?

Get the new people involved. Door hanger thing and spend a few bucks. Direct people to website. This summer.

Aug 11/12 hand outs at this time.

Get to referendum.

Send request to each member to see how they vote.

July 1 park party
Aug 19 park party

Plastic bags

Greener oconomowoc involved
Bike trail people

Whitman Hills/Park Subdivision meeting- 9am Library meeting room March 24/April 28, 2012

Present at Both Meetings: Brian Hahn, Anne Berkas, Warren, Malcolm McIntyre, Tom Depies, Shirley Depies. The following is a summary of issues discussed at both meetings.

City Council

Jim Preston was elected to replace Jim Hall and he campaigned, in part, as being against Thackeray Trail extension. In a conversation with Thackeray Trail members, Jim Hall predicted that we will make a difference if we continue to attend and be visible (wear red) at council meetings. The pressure of our presence cannot subside over the summer.

The city is coming up with a new Website which allows us to check on items that we would like to have sent to us electronically.

City Planning Commission

Public comment is included as a part of every meeting. There is no agenda that is published ahead of time. The Commission meets every --------- Wednesday of the month at 6:30 PM on the second floor of city hall. We are encouraging that people from Whitman Hills attend and wear red to be visible. In the past, the Plan Commission has passed a resolution and it has been voted on during the next City Council meeting. David Nold, a city council member, sits on the Plan Commission and has spoken out in favor of the extension.

City Wide Outreach

The extension has to become a city-wide issue . The cost of the project will hit all tax payers’ pockets. If the project is done, Thackeray Trail will be extended approximately 1180 feet. The current costs for a newly approved project of running Olde School House Road north and south from the new fire station on Oconomowoc Parkway to Brennans Market may give some direction as to cost of road construction. In addition, water runoff that’s currently directed to the wetland at the end of the Trail will need to be addressed in a different manner (sewers, holding ponds, pump house?). If the project is done right, there will be additional costs for sidewalks for pedestrian safety and a new road bed to handle traffic. The cost should be measured against the advantages of the extension and there will be little to no new tax base along the extension due to the wetland area that will remain and intensify with water runoff.

Editorials, buttons, yard signs and door hangers have been discussed as outreach ideas. Educating the public is important!!

DNR

Recent attempts to contact DNR about the impact of an extension on the wetlands have been met with minimal success (phone tag and being referred to the next person up the ladder) Form earlier conversations, we have found out that the city has not submitted any plans for the wetland to the DNR, the stream in the wetland has been determined as not navigatable and a DNR representative has visited the wetland and questioned the need for an extension. The elimination of a developing wetland area is not taken lightly by DNR, it took the agent four minutes to go around to the end of Thackeray Tr on Summit Avenue. From l observations, we know that SEWERPAC has been in the wetland and outlined a wetland boundary.

Another consideration that should be addressed thru the DNR is a concern about water quality that may be flowing into our lakes and rivers. From a recent conversation with a resident from the Glenwood subdivision, Mud Lake, the first destination for runoff water, is a favorite year around fishing spot.

Reaching Neighbors

We need to approach businesses at the head of Thackeray Trail to find out what their concerns may be about the extension. Storm water runoff and traffic during construction may be problems.

An email to those who signed the petition will be sent to ask whether they would like to be on an e-mail list to receive communications regarding Whitman Hills.

The Blog continues an avenue of communication and a website has been discussed. Malcolm McIntyre hosts the Oconomowoc Times, an online news source.

Whitman Hill residents need to get to know each other. There have been recent home sales and more homes are on the market. Ideas include a summer picnic (at least one - ideally two) and a buddy system to reach all neighbors.

Sources of Support and Information

Lisa Conley is a local activist for water preservation and quality who might be willing to work with us on the wetlands.

Greener Oconomowoc is a local environment group that has offered a letter of support.

Bill Swenson, an attorney, or representatives from St . Jeromes may be available for advice on what the church will do if the city goes thru with an extension.

Charlie Shaw, Dan Shaw’s brother, expressed interest in running for city council and is aware of issues with extension.

Deb Turner, a new Oconomowoc resident who moved from Tennessee, was a leader in defeating a major highway construction project. Currently, she is active in building bike routes to make Oconomowoc bike friendly. She has indicated that Thackeray Tr with a bike path thru the wetland is a major part of this project. We would like to have her present this to our group.

NEXT MEETING: Saturday May 19th, 9:00 AM at the Public Library

Whitman Hills/Park Subdivision meeting- 9am Library meeting room January 7, 2012

DNR report

Rachel Sabre completed the water shed study for the SE Region.

• It is not navigatable
• Continued contact has been maintained
• There will need to be permits
• Flags for wet lands are up in red
• There is still a question about who owns the land between the end of Thackeray and the church. We believe the city.

Jamie will get a plot plan and any other maps for our area
and the Oconomowoc Parkway

We need to contact businesses to inform about what is going on.

There is concern about getting people who support the connection versus those against it

Local government

• Floss has offered her services for anyone who wants to run for public office
• We noted that there are a number of alderpeople up for re-election. One for each of our of the two districts that represents us. We need to find someone who supports our issues.Jimmi Hall has decided not to run again. Cochran’s seat will be the only one contested.
• The question of whether or not we have dropped the ball on the drainage and road conditions. Should we be the ones to put it out first?

Historical Timeline of city action/lack there of

• Cris will do internet research and speak with long time neighbors by contacting Karen Davenport first
• Melissa will look for references in council minutes

Glenwood Road

• What are the issues?
• Noise pollution, sidewalk, increased traffic
• 108 residences with Alderman Nold being one of them
• Literature drop that will invite them to the blog, council meetings, petition, invite to our social and eventually our meetings
• The issue of Briarwood was also brought up

Our call to action

• We need to call our alder people
• A list of talking points needs to be put together to make sure we are organized, succinct, and fact based
• Use the list serve for this

Facts Sub Committee

We are looking for members to take this on

Scott will be speaking with Mark Frye about construction

We need to start attending plan commission meetings regularly. They begin at 6:30pm

• Jan 11
• Feb 8

Lists were given to all in attendance to call those who signed the petition to show up at the next council meeting on January 17th. We will encourage all to speak at that meeting.

Whitman Hills/Park Subdivision meeting- 9am Library meeting room December 17, 2011

DNR questions presented. Asked for more.

We want to have a solid presentation to the mayor

Malcolm stated, our response is effective with the mayor and the council is aware of us.

We need to prioritize our list of questions and keep it short
for the mayor

His recommendations :

1. Master Plan
2. Parkway and costs
3. DNR Issue
4. What is the need

Concern by the group was brought up about special assessments. Historically there have been none but there is always time for a first.

Concern of the group is that if Thackeray Trail goes through it would be done on the cheap and not address the issues brought up by the neighbors.

Planner is only concerned about zoning issues and not big picture

For the mayor we want to know where the money is coming from and our portion.

We want the mayor to come to us and not go to city hall as dialogue will be curtailed

This is a city wide issue as it will only benefit a small portion of the city but the entire city will have to help pay.

How do we get the word out to get others in the city involved? Fliers?

Master plan only states a bike path not Thackeray going through

We will not let the DNR stall us. There are several members who can rearrange their schedule to meet with them at their office. Malcolm, Tom, Joe, Matt at 4pm and report at next meeting.

How do we rekindle the intrest?

Post cards? Phone calls? Newspaper letters to the editor? Blog? List Serve?

Neighborhood party February 17th one drink at TBN and then head to Depot at 7pm wear red! Cost $5

Whitman Hills/Park Subdivision meeting- 9am Library meeting room November 19, 2011

We are going to invite the alder people one at a time to the meetings.

At the next City Council Meeting, we will be thanking the Council for listening.

At the January 17 meeting, Tom D. will present the petition. It contains 112 household signatures out of 152.

We will watch the discussion at Council about the new Kwick Trip being proposed

DNR Invitation to the meeting.

Scott will contact Need a spot on the blog to submit the questions

Proposed dates would be January 28th or the second weekend in February.

Spreadsheet

Chris will work on filling out the Google maps portion

Sharon will look at the number of students in proximity

Joe will work on the comparison prices with the WI Ave project

Melissa will find the city priority list

Concerns were voiced that if a roundabout is put ion Summit Ave and Thackeray, that it doesn’t appear big enough for truck traffic.

Also this intersection looks cheaper but has many layers and is much larger

We are looking to find out the position of the county and invite them, Sharon was looking into that

We are will be looking at inviting a city engineer, we will want to come up with a list of questions

All present agreed that they would call neighbors to remind them of the next meeting. A script would be given with the reminder

We would also be looking at a list serve for e-mail reminders

Council presentations	Thackeray Trail Meeting
Dec. 6th – Thank you	Dec 17 planning
Jan 3 - None	Jan 7 planning
Jan 17 - Petition	Jan 28 possible presentation from DNR
	Feb 11 planning

Whitman Hills/Park Subdivision meeting- 9am Library meeting room October 22, 2011

ATTENDANCE: Scott Ames, Matt Horner, Eileen Warren, Joe Warren, Brian Hahn, Ann Berkas, Melissa Krahn, Dave Stuckey, Stephen Hoyer, Sharone Hoyer, Marilyn Janssen, Tom Depies, Shirley Depies, Marilyn Janssen

WELCOME AND INTRODUCTIONS
Shirley Depies welcomed all to the meeting.  Two new attendees, Stephen and Sharone Weist-Hoyer, introduced themselves to the group.

OPEN DISCUSSION WITH ALDERMAN –RICH ALLEN
Melissa Krahn announced that she received a phone call from Mr. Allen who stated that he was relunctant to attend the meeting as he found out that it is against rules to have two or more aldermen at the same meeting.  He was not sure if a second alderman would be in attendance.  We will invite Mr. Allen again and assure him that no other alderman is invited.

DISCUSSION OF PETITIONS
Petitions were not presented at the last council meeting as we had about 60% of the residents of Whitman Hills sign against the extension of Thackeray Trail.  The 2006 attempt for petitions resulted in 90% of the households against Thackeray Trail’s extension.   It was decided to re-visit the petitions, identify those houses that have not been petitioned and making a second/third attempt.   Petitioners in attendance agreed to go back over their routes to pick up more signatures.

CHECKLIST OF FUTURE ACTIVITIES – DISTRIBUTION/CORRECTIONS
A half-sheet flyer for future meetings, council meeting dates and contact information for aldermen had been copied and made ready for neighborhood distribution.  Two corrections need to be made: the November meeting is changed from November 12th to November 19th and the December meeting from December 10th to December 17th.  With the holidays approaching, the group felt that this flyer was one of the few communications that will be delivered for awhile and that it has important information.  Rubber bands to make the flyers visible or person to person distribution were deemed best.  Matt Horner agreed to get walkers together to distribute the flyers to Whitman Hill residents.

Discussion:
• From attending council meetings, it appears that phone calls are affective in getting the attention of aldermen.
• Slattery needs more facts about the effects of an extension.
• St. Jerome’s priest stated in his homily that St. Jerome’s position is neutral and cautioned parishioners against stating that the church is for or against the extension.
• Trick or treat time may be an opportunity to talk to neighbors.

DNR DISCUSSION
Scott Ames reported that DNR declared the river in the wetlands as not navigate- able.  This will mean that the city will need fewer permits to build a road through the area.  DNR will need to do more studies to delineate the wetlands through vegetation will be made in the next two weeks (before frost) or early next spring.  The lady from DNR drove from the end of Thackeray Trail down Summit, Forest and Silver Lake to the extension near St. Jeromes – it took four minutes.
Under certain conditions, DNR is willing to come to talk to us.  Our questions must be asked in advance, the administrator must approve their participation, the meeting cannot last longer than one hour.
Matt Horner offered the Blog as a site for collecting questions to be submitted to DNR (about 20 questions) in preparation for their visit.  He stated that our hits on the Blog have gone up substantially (currently 500).  It was suggested that those without internet can bring their questions to our next meeting, November 19th.  
SPREAD SHEET – PURPOSE
Melissa Krahn prepared a spread sheet that compares Thackeray Trail and Oconomowoc Parkway as extension sites.  It can be used to gather facts that will be used to educate ourselves, other citizens and the aldermen.  Please see the spread sheet presented separately.

Matt Horner stated that some of the information can be gotten off maps/satellite surveys on the internet.  He volunteered to take a look at items that would be able to be found in this manner.

Sharon Hoyer volunteered to count students coming and going to school, school bus stops in the neighborhood and note school related activities that depend on the street (track, parking for events).  Scott Ames will look at DNR permits.  Tom Depies will look at existing road structures/layouts/weight limits.
Discussion:  Concern was expressed about building a road over the wetland – the expense will be constant because of the number of potholes in a marshy area (not enough dirt to fill in).
Discussion of what needs to be done with the large amount of water and sinking ditches.  Inverts have been effective in controlling erosion and conducting water to the wetlands.

PRESENTATIONS FOR COUNCIL MEETING
November 1st   Mr. Horner and Joe Warren

November 15th  Petitions

Whitman Hills/Park Subdivision meeting- 9am Library meeting room October 4, 2011

25 People were in Attendance:
Ann Berkas, John and Kay Boesen,  Joseph and Eileen Warren,  Jamie  and Matt Horner, Marilyn Janssen,  Scott Ames, Scott and Diana Mettlach, Cris and Susanna Rosario,  Malcolm McIntyre, Marlene Rupnow, Melissa Krahn, Tom and Shirley Depies, Bonnie Lindl-Hampton, Mike Miller, Bob Morgan, Dale D. Drewek, Roger A.  Mayer, Dennis Altreuter, Dan Shaw, Dave Stuckey
Shirley Depies welcomed everyone and those present introduced themselves.

Alderman Miller stated that he was there to listen to our concerns and take this information back to City Hall.

Malcolm McIntyre started the question session by asking if the Master Plan was flexible and why Thackeray Trail was being considered for expansion now.  Also asked who is asking to alleviate the traffic problem?

Cris Rosario stated that our nice quiet neighborhood would change.  There would be more parking on the street because HS students would not want to pay for parking passes at the HS.  He also pointed out that no matter what, the water issue needs to be addressed.


Roger Mayor from St Jerome’s Board of Trustees stated that the church will remain neutral on the topic of the extension but did note that they would receive the largest bill from the extension of the road (largest frontage requiring curb and gutter).  He stated that there has been no flooding at St. Jerome’s.


Floss Whelan stated that the Master Plan can be changed and is changed/updated every 10 years.  We should ask to have Thackeray Trail extension removed.


Susanna Rosario asked how we can make sure all of the steps are taken to ensure that due process is followed.


Matt Horner brought up the new traffic concerns, the bypass, crush of traffic, the lack of study on the road, that Oconomowoc Parkway is on the priority list from the city and that Oconomowoc Parkway was constructed to handle the amount of traffic to be sent.


Alderman Morgan responded that Thackeray Trail has been on the master plan for a while and it will be the less costly solution than extending Oconomowoc Parkway at present.  It will be cheaper to put the road through and deal with the water all at once.  Thackeray Trail will also relieve traffic on Forest Ave and Silver Lake Street that backs up in the morning before school starts at the HS.  It will also be a short cut to the by-pass.  He mentioned that the water would be diverted into the Mudd Lake/Swamp.  He also stated that there has not been a formal traffic study and he didn’t know if there would be one.

Dave Stuckey stated that we are trading a nine month school day traffic problem for a 365 day-24 hour problem.   He stated that if the water on Thackeray goes underground, then the water from the entire subdivision needs to go underground to eliminate any above ground run off.


Alderman Morgan responded that the Parkway is put on hold because the city needs to acquire 3 homes and get two holes from the golf course.  It is not cheap.

Melissa Krahn stated OASD is using a hybrid-virtual school that will cut down on the traffic in the AM on Forest and Silver Lake streets as students will have more staggered start times.  As this takes off, congestion should decrease.  Why would we put in the connection to solve a short term problem?  She also stated that there were 12 accidents from January thru September in the area around the corner of Summit and Thackeray as was given to her by the Police Department.  This will only increase with the connection of Thackeray Trail.  There will be more safety issues.  

Tom Depies stated that there would be polluted water from the subdivision heading into Silver Lake.  Storm water would no longer be filtered by the wetlands.  He also asked how our infrastructure would be able to handle the increased amount of water.

We thanked both Alderman Miller and Alderman Morgan for coming.

Meeting


132 persons signed the petition.  There are 166 individuals on the tax roles for our subdivision.  Thanks to all of those who walked to get signatures.

Floss Whelan asked why now?  Especially since the financially many are struggling and many of the established roads in Oconomowoc are in need of repair.  She urged that we talk to other aldermen, the city engineer and the mayor at our future meetings.

Malcolm reported about a conversation he had with Mark Fry, City Engineer.  There are many variables that would go into a project such as ours and that makes it difficult to even report an estimated cost for a project such as this.

Scott Ames will contact DNR to see where the survey and evaluation process stands on the land at the end of Thackeray Trail.  He will also call and ask Marianne Mc Brune from the Waukesha Office of the DNR to speak with our group and give us an update on where they are in the process.

Other:  Silver Lake Street near St. Jerome is a county road which complicates things when a municipality has to coordinate with a county.   Talk with Hubert and Mielke, Engineers for the city.

Action


Step 1

• Dan Shaw is coordinating a ¼ flier information piece to be distributed to all the homes in the neighborhood.
• Design – Melissa
• Walkers- Dan, Jamie, Matt, Susanna, Cris, Tom, Marlene
• All members of the neighborhood should call/e-mail and thank Miller and Morgan for their attendance at the meeting.  Mike M. 262-567-3465; Robert Morgan 262-567-3360
• Matt will continue to update the blog.  Thanks to him for his continued work on this project.

Step 2

• Attend Council Meeting in City Hall- Second Floor, Tuesday Oct 18th at 7:30 PM 
• Wear red
• Meet outside of council hall on second floor to walk in together as a group
• Present petition from Whitman Park/Whitman Hills
• Publicly invite alder people to come to our next Whitman Hills meeting on Oct. 22nd  at 9am at the Library meeting room 
• K. Slattery is coming up for re-election, D. Nold is on the Planning Committee, J. Hall will speak out, R. Allen is a very strong influence.

Step 3
Meeting on October 22nd at 9 am at The Oconomowoc Public Library meeting room

• Have a sit down with the alder people and DNR representative
• Status update from individuals with jobs

Step 4

• Creation of timeline for future events 
• Plan for letters to editor

Quick Reference Cites 


Here is the page to get to all of the alder people by phone and or e-mail.  http://www.oconomowocusa.com/common%20council.htm

List of Council Meeting Dates for 2011
http://www.oconomowocusa.com/Common%20Council%20Agendas/2011-%20CC%20Mtg%20Calendar.pdf

Contact info for the mayor
http://www.oconomowocusa.com/mayor.htm

Whitman Hills/Park Subdivision meeting- 9am Library meeting room September 24, 2011

22 people were in attendance

Ann Berkas, John and Kay Boesen, Joseph and Eileen Warren, Kristin Coffield, Jamie and Matt Horner,
Brian Hahn, Carl Sheid, Marilyn Janssen, Lacey McLaughlin, Scott Ames, Scott and Diana Mettlach,
Maureen Iglar, Cris and Susanna Rosario, Malcolm McIntyre, Melissa Krahn, Tom and Shirley Depies,

Shirley Depies welcomed everyone and those present introduced themselves.

• Shirley spoke with Floss Whelan, former mayor of Oconomowoc
• Advice given was:
• The city plan is out of date/Many things on the plan will no longer work
• Get to the Alder people and Council ASAP
• Now is the time to fight, before this goes any further
• Sit in at the City Council meetings, the next one is Oct 4th at 7:30 (see details in Step 2)
• Whitman Hills Neighborhood Association formation group
• Malcom McIntyre, Melissa Krahn, Susanne Rosario, Cris Rosario, Matt Horner
• The group decided that an association carried too much baggage
• A blog has been set up as a forum to share information about anything occurring in the subdivision
• http://whitmanpark-hills.blogspot.com
• whitmanhills@gmail.com
• 262-696-WPHN (9746)
• Contact with Bob Morgan for more information
• Joe Warren
• From Joe’s conversation with Bob, he was under the impression it is a done deal
• St. Jerome’s would like to see an alternative for parishioners to leave on Sundays and for the school
• It is a less costly option than Oconomowoc Parkway as Paganica wants to sell the land for a higher price
• Roundabouts on the plan were to be removed
• HS did not take the city’s option when approached to have another connection to the OHS parking lot
• DNR study is a key piece a/could stop any further attempts to extension
• Malcolm McIntyre commented that The South West Summit Land Use and Development Plan contains this information
• He has also spoken with alder people and found that the city has offered to swap land with Paganica but they have declined the offer making Oconomowoc Parkway currently a more expensive option.
• Maureen and Dr. Dennis Iglar spoke with the city engineer and were given a different impression about how the city would keep costs down on the project while taking care of the water issue
• Cris Rosario reminded us not to get side tracked on water issue nor to let the city manipulate us that the road needs to go through to get the water issue fixed
• Contact with St Jerome’s Rich Allen, Bill Swenson for more information on their stance
• Cris Rosario
• Will have a report later.
• Contact Tom Foti for information about what historically was the intent of Thackeray Trail
• Attempts to contact Mr. Foti have been made but there has been no response.
• Contact DNR to see where the survey and evaluation process stands on the land at the end of Thackeray 
• Scott Ames
• Marianne Mc Brune from the Waukesha Office of the DNR spoke with Scott
• In October the DNR would need to look for a High water mark, see if the tributary was navigable (test done with a canoe and a 100 lbs weight) and from the tests there would result in one permit or a variety of permits to develop the land.
• He also contacted the SEWER PAC Wetland Division and they will be looking at the quality of the wet lands where the river is the main concern
• Scott will contact Rachel Saber who deals with wetlands and SEWER PAC to see when they are doing the studies in Oct.
• Much of the work is done by satellite imaging and not visiting the site. Scott will request that they come out.
• Contact with Mike Miller for further information on the stance of the Council in the connection project
• Tom Depies
• No new report. Miller’s stance is that this is a very costly project
• Contact with City Engineer about what would be involved in such a project and other plan
• Dan Shaw
• No report
• Carl Scheid from Greener Oconomowoc’s Bike Committee presented the following:
• Thackeray Trail is proposed on his Bike path that would follow the property line of the HS and go onto the St. Jerome’s property.
• Currently starts on Old Tower Road
• He believes that this is a better alternative for walkers and bikers than sidewalk.
• The Thackeray Trail group thought that it was a nice compromise but wants to focus on the task at hand first.

DISCUSSION

• Melissa Krahn reminded the group that we have the force of the people on our side. We can act as a unit in front of the Council to keep the pressure on. We need to remember that this is a one step at a time process. First stop the extension and then get it off of the master plan.
• Cris Rosario said he wanted Thackeray Trail off of the master plan.
• Ann Berkas suggested that we get the attention of the Journal Sentinel to show the force of the neighborhood against the Council, which would react to the negative nature of these articles
• Safety of the intersection of Thackeray and Summit and the entrance to the strip mall was discussed with the increased number of seniors from the apartments/condos and vehicle incidents
• Melissa Krahn will contact the city to get the statistics.

PLANS FOR NEXT STEP

Creation of Educational handout for Whitman Hill residents to be hand delivered with a petition against
the extension of Thackeray Trail.

• Cris Rosario (organize and design)
• Melissa Krahn (photo copy)
• Susanna Rosario (walker)
• Dan Shaw (walker- will be contacted)
• Lacey McLaughlin(walker)
• Tom Depies (walker)
• Shirley Depies (walker)
• Matt Horner (walker)

ASSIGNMENTS:

• By Tuesday 9/27/11 all groups will send info to Cris Rosario (susanna.rosario@gmail.com)
• Wednesday (9/28) an educational draft should be available
• No later than Saturday 10/1/11 will the flier and petition will be distributed to walkers
• Walkers will walk Friday-Sunday 9/30 thru 10/2 and then as needed to get the word out.
• Educational Flyer Topics include:
• Cost of Construction–Malcolm McIntyre
• Safety/Accident Reports at Intersection-Melissa Krahn
• City Plans/Proposal for Extension – Malcolm McIntyre
• Wetlands/Water – Scott Ames
• Wild Life – Tom Depies
• Assessment/Value of Properties – Susanna Rosario
• Neighborhood Quality – Susanna Rosario
• Petition – Shirley Depies

Action

Step 1

• All volunteers are to get info to Cris Rosario (susanna.rosario@gmail.com)by September 27th
• Cris will create document by 28th and send it to all for review
• Shirley will create and copy petition for walkers
• Hand out document with petition by Friday September 30th
• Canvas neighborhood starting Friday September 30th
• Collect questions and concerns from neighbors to create a streamlined sheet to be used for a sit down with all four alder people.

Step 2

• Attend Council Meeting in City Hall- Second Floor, Tuesday Oct 4th at 7:30 PM
• Wear red
• Meet outside of council hall on second floor to walk in together as a group
• Publicly invite alder people to come to our next Whitman Hills meeting on Oct. 8th at 9am at the Library meeting room

Step 3

• Meeting on October 8th at 9 am at The Oconomowoc Public Library meeting room
• Have a sit down with the alder people
• Status update from individuals with jobs

Step 4

• Creation of timeline for future events
• Plan for letters to editor

Quick Reference Cites

Please look at letter C of the survey given to 40 individuals to help shape the growth of Oconomowoc
http://www.oconomowocusa.com/growth%20priorities%2001082008.pdf

Here is the page to get to all of the alder people by phone and or e-mail.
http://www.oconomowocusa.com/common%20council.htm

List of Council Meeting Dates for 2011
http://www.oconomowocusa.com/Common%20Council%20Agendas/2011-
%20CC%20Mtg%20Calendar.pdf

Contact info for the Mayor
http://www.oconomowocusa.com/mayor.htm

Whitman Hills Subdivision meeting- 9am Library meeting room September 10, 2011

Re: The extension of Thackeray Trail and the flooding issue related to ditches and water run-off

24 residents of the subdivision were present: Marilyn Janssen, Athanusia Hronis, Ann Berkas, John and
Kay Boesen, Tom and Lisa Neumann, Brian Hahn, Joseph Warren, Kristin Coffield, Jamie Horner, Mark
Haley, Lacey McLaughlin, Marlene Rupnow, Scott Ames, Cris and Susanna Rosario, Dave Stuckey, Dan
Shaw, Matt Horner, Rick Reith, Malcolm McIntyre, Melissa Krahn, Tom and Shirley Depies

Shirley Depies welcomed everyone and those present introduced themselves.

History from 2006 neighborhood action

Shirley Depies

• 2006 was the last time that this issue came up before the City Council as part of the North East
• Plat Pabst Farm? development plan
• A petition was circulated among residents with a 95% signing rate and was presented to the Council
• Previous issues presented by the residents included:
• Wet lands
• Water run off
• Safety
• Special Assessments (who will pay)
• Values of houses (this was tabled by the group and not presented to the council but was a concern of the group)

Melissa Krahn

• Carroll College Earth Science professor examination findings of the land at the end of the road.
• Land was once a wet land
• It had been farmed and no longer had native plants but was returning to a wild or native state
• The land to be used is a natural purifying unit to put water back into the table and excess water drains into a small creek that eventually connects with Silver Lake

Why we are here today

• There are 4 alder people who represent Whitman Hills Subdivision.
• Mike Miller is the only one who voted against the plan.
• Bob Morgan had voted against it the last time but for this time.

Issues that discussed by neighbors:


Neighborhood issues

• Keep the water issue separate from the connection issue
• We all agree that there is a water issue
• How do we educate ourselves and get more of the neighborhood involved?
• Keeping Whitman Hills a quiet neighborhood safe for families
• 2nd exit to evacuate from subdivision in case of emergency

City Council Questions/Research/Issues

• What is the motivation to connect the road now?
• What will be the cost/expense and who will pay?
• Why is the Comprehensive Plan viewed as sacred? How can we get Thackeray Trail off of the
• Comprehensive Plan?
• Traffic Flow
• Easy access to the bypass and highway 94
• Safety for children/walkers
• Who will benefit from the extension? Are certain groups already lobbying and talking to their alder people?
• What happened with the traffic studies conducted by the department of transportation?
• Where is the city in the process of having the land evaluated by the DNR?

Action

Step 1 to be completed by September 24th meeting at the Library at 9 am

• Whitman Hills Neighborhood Association formation group
• Malcom McIntyre
• Melissa Krahn
• Susanna Rosario
• Cris Rosario
• Matt Horner
• Contact Bob Morgan for more information
• Joe Warren
• Contact St Jerome’s, Rich Allen, Bill Swenson for more information on their stance with the connection
• Cris Rosario
• Contact Tom Foti for information about what historically was the intent of Thackeray Trail
• Dan Shaw
• Malcom McIntyre
• Contact DNR to see where the survey and evaluation process stands on the land at the end of Thackeray Trail
• Scott Ames
• Contact Mike Miller for further information on the stance of the Council in the connection project
• Tom Depies
• Contact City Engineer about what would be involved in such a project and other plan
• Dan Shaw
• Creation of Educational handout for the neighbors with a handout containing information gathered from the above groups
• Cris Rosario (organize and design)
• Melissa Krahn (photo copy)
• Susanna Rosario (walker)
• Dan Shaw (walker)
• Melissa Rupnow (walker)
• Lacey McLaughlin(walker)
• Matt Horner (walker)
• Flier for next meeting
• Dan Shaw (designer and walker)
• Matt Horner (walker)
• Lacey McLaughlin (walker)
• Attend the Public Comment portion of the City Council meetings on the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays of the month. At first make presence known without commenting
• All residents should come with questions/concerns that we want to be addressed by our alderpeople

Step 2
Meeting on September 24th at 9 am at The Oconomowoc Public Library meeting room

• Petition
• Collect questions and concerns from neighbors to create a streamlined sheet to be used for a sit down with all four alder people.
• Status update from individuals with jobs
• Creation of timeline for future events
• Plan for letters to editor/virtual information
• Plans to speak at Public Comment portion of City Council meetings

Step 3
Sit down neighborhood meeting with 4 Alder people representing Whitman Hills Subdivision