VILLAGE OF BRUCE
PUBLIC HEARING MINUTES
Property Assessment Determination under Police Power for
Bruce Utility Improvements Phase 11
September 27th, 2022
Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a scheduled Public Hearing was held on Tuesday, September 27th, 2022.
Village President Shane Trott presided and called to order the meeting at the Village Hall facility at 3:40 p.m. Board members present were Kim Grasley, Loren Beebe, Darlene Wundrow and Mark Zimmer. Clerk/Treasurer Jessica Hayes attended also. Jim Johnson and Galen Brainerd were absent.
A sign in sheet was circulated and all attendees of the meeting signed.
Brief Description of the Sewer, Water and Street Improvement Project: Project engineer Larry Gotham of Morgan & Parmley, Ltd attended the meeting and gave a description of the sewer, water and street improvement project. (North Main Street Reconstruction Project)
The Village of Bruce has completed sewer, water & street improvements on portions of East Washington Avenue, Railroad Avenue, River Avenue, North Main Street and North 1st Street. The project has been completed at a total construction cost of $2,103,209.51. The Village received a $1,000,000.00 grant from Community Development Block Grant through the State, plus and additional grant of $500,000.00 through the DNR Safe Drinking Water Program. The remaining project costs will be paid for by loan and assessments.
During the 2012 Phase 1 project the Village assessed for water & sewer improvements. Under Phase 11, this assessment is to be consistent with the prior 2012 Phase 1 assessment, and to comply with the Village’s assessment policy. The 2012 Phase 1 assessments were based upon assessable footage at $30.00/ lineal foot for sewer and $35.00/ lineal foot for water. The WI DOT Fisher Construction Cost Index Multiplier from the first quarter of 2012 to the first quarter of 2021 is 1.3364. This value of 1.3364 represents the average cost increase for heavy construction in Wisconsin between 2012 and 2021 (the project was bid in the first quarter of 2021) The per foot assessment cost for sewer and water made in 2012 would therefore be adjusted upward to an equivalent current cost for the 2021 assessment as follows:
Water: $35.00 x 1.3364 = $46.77 per foot for water
Sewer: $30.00 x 1.3364 = $40.09 per foot for sewer
The second portion of the project is the Coleman Street Lift Station portion of the project. All sewer connections in the service area of the Coleman Street Lift Station will be assessed just for that portion of the project costs. As previously stated, the Village has chosen to be consistent with the assessments levied in 2012. At that point in time, the Phase 1 assessments represented 58.5% of the Village’s share of the total project cost. The total cost of the Coleman Street Lift Station is $219,765.01; this includes a cost of 15% that represents the cost of engineering, grant administration, legal and bond costs. Therefore, in order to be consistent with Phase 1, the total amount to be assessed for Phase 11 of the Coleman Street Lift Station is:
58.5% x $219,765.01 – $128,562.53
The assessments for the existing connections will be based upon flow contributions as being determined by water meter size serving the residence that is to be assessed. The Public Service Commission of Wisconsin has assigned a relative value of 1 to a 5/8 in water meter; a value of 1.375 to a 1 inch water meter; a value of 3 to a 2 inch water meter; and a value of 9.625 to a 6 inch water meter. The total of assigned value for these connections is 53 (there are 40 connections). Therefore, the assessment per unit value is:
$128,562.53/53 = $2,425.71
The Village could assess for water, sewer, curb, gutter and sidewalks but is choosing to only assess for the water & sewer portions of the project. The payment schedule is as follows:
The initial (or full) Special Assessment is due and payable December 31, 2022
Beginning January 1, 2023, the unpaid Special Assessment balance will be charged an interest rate of 2.5% per year
The maximum repayment term for all Special Assessments is 10 years
The minimum annual payment for Special Assessments shall be $500
Annual payments for Special Assessments will be placed on the tax roll and due and payable by January 31st of each year
Open Floor:
Colleen Wallace attended the meetingfor Jane Spears to ask about the frontage of what Spears is being assessed. John Krell from Morgan & Parmley addressed the issue and answered all questions. Wallace also asked about corner lots and how they were being assessed. Krell stated that on a corner lot, the side with the longest frontage gets assessed at 100% and the side with the shorter length gets assessed at 50%.
Jim & Cheryl Blazek attended the meeting and asked about if properties were assessed from the street in to the property and also if alleys were included in part of the assessment process. Krell stated that neither street nor alley length is a factor when assessments are being figured, it is strictly frontage length.
Determination and Finalization of Special Assessments: Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Wundrow to approve the finalization of the assessment figures as provided, with any corrections that John Krell from Morgan & Parmley, Ltd. would need to make as far as correcting any dimensions of lots that are not accurate, carried.
Adjournment: Motion by Zimmer, seconded by Beebe to adjourn, carried. The meeting adjourned at 4:14 p.m.
Jessica Hayes
Clerk/Treasurer