By Kevin Boneske
Staff Writer

HOBART – The village board agreed Feb. 2 to transfer three of Hobart’s reserve Class B liquor licenses to the Village of Ashwaubenon for $10,000 each.

Hobart Clerk-Treasurer Erica Berger said she received a call from a Green Bay Packers employee who was wondering if the village had any reserve licenses available, because of development in Ashwaubenon’s Titletown District.

“Less than 24 hours later, all of the communities surrounding Ashwaubenon received a request from Ashwaubenon, their business manager, for three reserve Class B combination licenses,” she said.

Berger said she used Wisconsin Department of Revenue guidelines to calculate how many of the reserve licenses were available in Hobart, which had 16, based on population growth since 1997.

“We have by far the most of the surrounding communities,” she said. “And I verified with Ashwaubenon, and nobody else was willing to offer any for sale to Ashwaubenon at this time.”

Berger said she doesn’t foresee Hobart needing 16 reserve licenses in the future.

“Basically what happens is we transfer (three licenses) to Ashwaubenon, and then when Ashwaubenon… actually offers the license and the people pay, we receive that money at that point,” she said. “So when they use them is basically when we get the money.”

Berger said the state allocated Hobart an additional reserve license for every 500-person increase in population, last estimated at 10,454.

“Based on our growth, I don’t think we’re going to miss three reserve licenses anytime in the near future,” she said.

Berger said state law allows a municipality to transfer up to three reserve licenses to an adjacent municipality or one within two miles of the municipality from where the license is transferred, with the issuance fee not less than $10,000.

“We cannot go any lower than that,” she said. “It’s up to us (to set the fee)… Due to the fact that we are decreasing our own liquor licenses, I’m not recommending an increase in price.”

Borrowing needs

In other action, the board approved a financing plan for Hobart’s share of the cost of the County VV/State Highway 29 interchange project, as well as making improvements to North Overland Road and installing the Centerline Drive, Larson Orchard Parkway and Founders Terrace extensions.

Village Administrator Aaron Kramer said the village has two remaining payments on the interchange project of $1,458,782 each, due May 1 in 2021 and 2022.

He recommended the village finance this year’s payment with $1 million from invested funds and borrowing the remainder, with the 2022 payment of $1,458,782 being borrowed.

Kramer said bonding needs for this year, which total more than $3.3 million, also include more than $2.2 million for North Overland Road and $700,000 for developer payments.

He said in 2022, with $3,737,543 in bonding needs, $2,277,760 would be for the Centerline Drive extension.

Kramer said bonding in 2023 would include $1,220,312 for the Founders Terrace/Larson Orchard project.

He said the projects listed for 2021 to 2023 with bonding needs will be done on a no-contingency basis, with any cost overruns being borne directly on the Tax Incremental District.

Kramer said the debt schedule allows room to borrow for a new fire station in late 2023 or early 2024.

As of Jan. 1, he said the village had nearly $40 million in principal and interest obligations.

Polling place

The board agreed to continue to use St. Joseph’s Church at 145 St. Joseph Dr. as the village’s sole polling place on Election Day in 2021.

Under the agreement, Hobart will pay the church $300 per election, with a primary set for Feb. 16 and the spring general election scheduled April 6.