By Kevin Boneske
Staff Writer
HOWARD – Several Howard residents along Shawano Avenue who are unhappy about facing thousands of dollars in special assessments appeared Monday, April 8, at the village hall for a public hearing.
Approximately 2,400 feet of water main is being extended on Shawano Avenue from Gaibrelle’s Gate northwest as part of the utility service and other improvements planned for 56 new single-family residential lots, 53 lots in the Howards Crossing subdivision and three others for the Reedy family.
Mike Kaster, director of engineering, noted the water main assessments would affect 18 properties along Shawano Avenue, and 10 of those properties would be required to connect to municipal sewer and water.
The resolution to authorize the special assessments upon portions of Glendale Avenue, Shawano Avenue, Jerome Way and the plat of Howards Crossing includes a 10-year payment plan with an interest rate of 3.5 percent, a half-percent higher than the village’s borrowing rate.
In addition to residents along Shawano Avenue objecting to the amount they would have to pay in special assessments, some of them on hand for the public hearing claimed they weren’t properly notified about the hearing.
For instance, Don Adler, whose property faces more than $6,000 in special assessment, said he heard about the hearing from a neighbor.
“I didn’t know there was a meeting tonight, but I did find this out, so I called some of the neighbors,” Adler said. “One out of the three I called got this letter (providing notice of the meeting).”
In addition to objecting to not being notified, Adler said he doesn’t need the municipal water supply.
“We’ve got very good (well) water,” he said.
Adler said he objected to having to connect to the municipal water supply after having spent money to have well water.
“I don’t think that’s right,” he said.
Shirley Kaminski, who indicated she was another person who didn’t receive the proper notice of the public hearing, also objected to facing more than $5,600 in special assessments to install a water main past her property.
“I feel there’s nothing wrong with my water,” she said. “My well’s fine… Where am I going to come up with that kind of money when you go through with the line with the water?”
Another resident along Shawano Avenue, Justin Wolf, whose corner lot is already connected to municipal sewer and water, said he faces a special assessment for which there wouldn’t be a benefit as called for in the village code.
“We are not really receiving a benefit,” Wolf said. “When I do receive a special assessment with a sizeable amount of money… you’re not receiving a benefit, why would you be responsible for something like this?”
Two others who live along Shawano Avenue and also face thousands in special assessments for water main installation, Amber Gumm and Joel Zernicke, also spoke during the public hearing to object to those charges.
Gumm said the Howards Crossing subdivision would get its money back for the special assessments by selling the lots, while the lot she lives on wouldn’t be going up in price by the assessment amount.
“There’s no benefit to us,” she said. “There really isn’t. We already have a well. We paid for everything when we bought our house.”
After Kaster asked who in the audience living along Shawano Avenue wasn’t notified of the public hearing, he recommended tabling action on the special assessments because he said it could be possible the residents listed on the second summary page of the notice didn’t receive a mailing.
“When you do all this stuff, you’ve got all the assessments sitting there, you mail it out to everybody on the list, and if they were flipping through to find all the addresses that they missed on that second summary page, there’s a chance that those mailings didn’t go out,” Kaster said. “That’s, I guess, my biggest concern at the moment.
Kaster said tabling action would make sure the assessments are valid, rather than voting on them now and possibly not having provided the required 10 days of advanced notice.
Board members agreed to table those assessments and bring them back at their next meeting April 22.
Development agreement
The development agreement for the Howards Crossing, which will be a subdivision development on the former school district property just west of Mills Center Park, was approved 7-2 by the board with trustees Craig McAllister and Cathy Hughes casting the dissenting votes.
McAllister said he didn’t oppose the project, but objected to the agreement because Howard residents aren’t being treated fairly with assessments when a developer is given a “red carpet.”
“I’m not going to support any subsidization of developers or developments until we get the same and equal treatment to the residents being affected negatively by that development,” he said.
The development agreement includes a maximum repayment term of three years with an interest rate of 3.5 percent, beginning at the time the assessments are levied.
The agreement also calls for the cost of improvements to be levied on each individual lot within the development, and the village will receive repayment as each lot is sold or transferred, as well as receiving interest payments quarterly if the sale of lots has not provided adequate payment.
Construction contracts
The board also approved construction contracts related to the Howards Crossing development with Feaker and Sons awarded the utility contract for $1,217,360 and McKeerey and Sons awarded the roadway contract for $717,356.