VILLAGE OF BRUCE
BOARD MEETING MINUTES
July 6th, 2026
Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a scheduled monthly meeting of the Village Board was held on Monday, July 6th, 2026.
Village President Shane Trott presided and called to order the meeting at the American Legion Hall facility at 5:30 p.m., 804 N. Main Street. Board members present were Galen Brainerd, John Hoiby, Jim Johnson, Mark Zimmer, Darlene Wundrow & Tim Dolan. Deputy Nicole Frisinger attended also. Clerk/Treasurer Jessica Hayes was absent.
Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Johnson to amend the agenda to add a street use permit for Glory B’s Irish Pub to the agenda, carried.
– PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE –
APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Dolan to approve the June 1st, 2026 Regular Monthly Board Meeting Minutes, carried.
Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Johnson to approve the June 17th, 2026 Special Board Meeting Minutes, carried.
TREASURER’S REPORT: Motion by Johnson, seconded by Zimmer to approve the Treasurer’s report as given, carried.
EMPLOYEE’S REPORT: Casey Gudis attended the meeting to report to the Board that the crew has been busy working on the interior work of the garbage building on Coleman Street.
The park is being prepped for Blue Hill’s Festival weekend.
Purchase of Pallet of Tar Approval: Motion by Wundrow, seconded by Johnson to approve the purchase of a pallet of tar, carried.
After Blue Hills Festival weekend, the crew will get the slabs prepped for the bench donation from the American Legion for the Veteran’s Mural wall at the park.
PETITIONERS-CITIZEN COMPLAINTS AND REQUESTS:
Bruce Area Girl Scouts Day Camp Donation Request: Trott read aloud a letter requesting a donation for the annual event.Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Johnson to approve donating $50.00 to the Bruce Area Girl Scouts Day Camp event, carried.
Trevor Richards-Library Director Update: Richards could not attend the meeting but gave the Board a written update to read. The Summer Reading Program is underway. Anyone who reads at least twice a week for twenty minutes can roll a die to win a prize. Anyone that tracks the titles of books, magazines or newspapers they read, each title gets them a raffle ticket for the grand prize drawing at the end of the program. The remaining events for the program include, ‘Messy Dinos’, July 9th from 6:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m., ‘Snake Discovery’, July 16th from 5:00 p.m.- 6:00 p.m., ‘Kiwanis n’Cops’, July 22nd from 11:00 a.m.-11:30 a.m., ‘Dinosaur Eggs’, July 23rd from 6:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m., with the final event for the program on July 30th from 5:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
Virtual ‘Author Talks’ events are still being held five times a month.
A full list of Library events can be obtained on their website, bruceal.org.
Tim Dolan announced that he is resigning from the Board as his residency has changed. The July 6th meeting will be his last. He thanked the Board for his time and knowledge gained from being a trustee. Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Johnson to accept Dolan’s resignation, carried. The Board thanked him for his time served.
APPLICATIONS:
Building Permits:
Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Johnson to approve a building permit to James Wood for a deck remodel at his property located at 1016 N. 1st Street, carried.
Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Hoiby to deny approval of the driveway installation permit for Tim Ladwig at his property located at 931 N. 1st Street and remove the permit from the agenda until the property owner can provide proof of property lines and driveway dimension details, carried.
Operator’s Licenses:
Motion by Wundrow, seconded by Zimmer to approve an operator’s license to Austin W. Gummer, carried.
Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Wundrow to approve an operator’s license to Jolene M. Johnson, carried.
Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Brainerd to approve an operator’s license to Rachel A. Smith, carried.
Seller’s Permit:
Motion by Johnson, seconded by Wundrow to approve a seller’s permit to the Rusk County Farmer’s Market to set up a market at the Bruce Park from July 3rd thru September 25th from 1:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m., carried.
Street Use Permits:
Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Wundrow to approve a street use permit to L’Cars Automotive/SpecTech to close Main Street from Highway 8 to River Avenue for the July 11th Craft & Car Show event, carried.
Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Zimmer to approve a street use permit to Jamie’s Tavern to close Main Street from Highway 8 to River Avenue for the July 11th Craft & Car Show event, carried.
Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Johnson to approve a street use permit to Glory B’s Irish Pub to close Railroad Avenue, from Main Street to 1st Street for a street dance/live band event scheduled for July 31st, carried.
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Public Safety:
Village Hall Water Damage:
Reconstruction is underway. Anticipated date for moving offices back into the Hall is scheduled for the end of August. Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Wundrow to table the ‘Village Hall Water Damage’ item until the August, 2026 Regular Monthly Meeting, carried.
Temporary Village Offices will be located at the Village Shop, 228 E. River Avenue, Board and Committee meetings will be located at the American Legion Hall, 804 N. Main Street, unless posted otherwise and elections will be located at the American Legion Hall until further notice.
Discussion on E-Bikes, Scooters & Gas-Powered Bikes:
Brainerd read aloud the Village ordinance currently in place for e-bikes, scooters & gas-powered bikes. Discussion was had on the safety concerns and recent incidents regarding such.
There was also discussion of replacing the stop sign on Main Street/Railroad Avenue and possibly appointing a constable.
Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Johnson to send the item to committee to discuss further, carried.
Motion by Wundrow, seconded by Zimmer to table the ‘Discussion on E-Bikes, Scooters & Gas-Powered Bikes’ item until the August, 2026 Regular Monthly Board Meeting, carried.
Public Works:
Alley Paving: At the June, 2026 Regular Monthly Board Meeting, an invoice was denied for payment to Russ Thompson’s. No correspondence has been received from them regarding the decision. Motion by Wundrow, seconded by Hoiby to table the ‘Alley Paving’ item until the August, 2026 Regular Monthly Meeting, carried.
Main Street Repairs: Scott’s Construction is on the calendar to measure Main Street to get Gudis a quote for chip sealing. Struck & Urban is also in the process of supplying a quote for a thin layer of blacktopping. Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Johnson to table the ‘Main Street Repairs’ item until the August, 2026 Regular Monthly Meeting, carried.
Public Welfare:
Bruce Park Concession Stand/Contract between Bruce School & Village Discussion:
All the renovations have been completed in the concession stand by the Lion’s Club and Booster Club. Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Zimmer to table the ‘Bruce Park Concession Stand/Contract between Bruce School & Village Discussion’ item until the August, 2026 Regular Monthly Board Meeting, carried.
Park Playground Equipment Slide Repair/Replacement: The bottom section of one of the slides is damaged at the park. A quote was received from M & E Plastic Repairs in the amount of $1,227.00 to plastic weld patch the slide. Motion by Wundrow, seconded by Zimmer to table the ‘Park Playground Equipment Slide Repair/Replacement’ item until the August, 2026 Regular Monthly Meeting, carried.
Discussion was had on the idea of a splash pad being installed at the park. Trott asked if there are any grants available for such a project. The project will continue to be an item of discussion for the future.
APPROVAL OF BILLS: Motion by Brainerd, seconded by Dolan to pay vouchers and electronic payments totaling $176,990.47, carried.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Farmer’s Market: Every Friday from 1p.m. – 5 p.m., located at the Bruce Park, from July 3rd thru September 25th.
Cruise Nights-Classic Auto Collision Center has set the calendar for Cruise Night in the parking lot at 705 N. Main Street in Bruce, 5:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., July 21st & August 18th.
Saturday July 11th from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. will be the annual Open House/Craft/Car Show. Contact Classic Auto Collision Center at 715-868-CARS or classicauto@brucetel.net for more details.
Saturday, July 11th, 2026 – Chris Kroeze on Main Street – Start Time- 7:30 p.m.
Blue Hills Festival – July 10th, 11th & 12th at the Bruce Park
ADJOURNMENT: Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Brainerd to adjourn, carried. Adjournment was at 6:20 p.m.
Jessica Hayes
Clerk/Treasurer