By Ben Rodgers
Editor
HOBART – The Hobart village board got down to business as usual Tuesday, March 17, after approving an infectious and contagious disease policy.
The board approved a bid of $598,883 from David Tenor Corporation for the Centennial Centre Boulevard water main loop project.
“The purpose of this project is to open up the possibility of development in a few locations that don’t have water, but have sanitary sewer and develop a way for water to get to Centennial Centre,” said Aaron Kramer, village administrator.
He said the project will loop water in the development, which will add redundancy to the water system.
The village received 10 bids, with the Tenor bid being the lowest, and roughly $27,000 less than the projected cost.
“There will have to be some traffic control issues,” Kramer said. “We did stipulate in the contract, they cannot close Centennial Centre, if possible.”
The project is expected to start in June with construction lasting into fall.
The work will be paid for by a bond to Tax Incremental Financing District No. 1.
In southern Hobart and TID No. 2, the board approved redirecting funds from a previous project to a new project.
Kramer said in 2016, the village borrowed funds for the Tailwind Crossing first addition, of which $93,000 remains.
The board approved the transfer of those funds to the Southwind Estates development.
On Feb. 19, the board approved a bid of nearly $214,000 from Peters Concrete for the Southwind Estates culvert crossing project.
The action March 17 will lessen what the TID will bond for.
Brown County meeting
The village board accepted an invitation from Brown County Executive Troy Streckenbach to discuss the State Highway 29/County VV interchange project.
A date hasn’t been set yet, but Kramer said the board likely won’t have a quorum when it meets with county officials behind closed doors.
The village has openly stated its disagreement with a land easement granted to the Oneida Nation by the county for land vital to the interchange project.
The village stresses the agreement isn’t fair to other landowners impacted by the project.
Public hearings
The village board changed the zoning code in two separate places after no one spoke during public hearings.
The first change included requirements and regulations for developers to promote pedestrian and bicycle usage, safety and connectivity.
“You clearly set the table with this that you want this moving forward in our community,” Kramer said. “Otherwise, you will get disconnected pockets of population.”
The second change created a new zoning designation, Airport Industrial, to address future development adjacent to Austin Straubel International Airport.
After holding other public hearings where no one spoke, the board approved:
• Changes to signage requirements to be determined on a case-by-case basis by the Planning and Zoning Committee.
• Two conditional use permits for a second building and a backyard pond for a property on Shady Drive.
In other news
Two subdivision preliminary plats were approved, one for a 32-lot single-family plat from Melanie Drive to Trout Creek Road, and one for a 46-lot development with one larger lot for construction of a multi-family building for Southwind Estates.
The board approved a policy establishing the formal procedure and criteria for sponsorship of special events with non-profit organizations in the village.
Two public hearings were scheduled for April 8, one for a nuisances policy and one for a conditional use permit to build a detached accessory building.