Altoona City Council Meeting – November 7, 2024 (2024-11-07)

Altoona, Wisconsin, held its regular City Council meeting at 5:00 p.m. on 2024-11-07 (Thursday, November 7, 2024) in the Council Chambers at Altoona City Hall, 1303 Lynn Avenue. Mayor Brendan Pratt presided. Councilpersons Timothy Lima, Matthew Beeron, Caitlin Leopold, and Susan Row were present; Councilmembers Dale Stuber and Dylan Green were absent. Staff present included City Administrator Michael Golat, Public Works Director Scott Quick, City Engineer/Assistant Public Works Director Christian Hubert, City Clerk Cindy Bauer (listed as 'Cindy Bower' in the raw transcript), and Attorney Samba Canson. The council approved several agreements and heard reports on tourism, infrastructure, and election administration.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Randall Walmers, of 2503 Cottagewood Lane, was the only public speaker. He expressed opposition to and frustration with nearby high-density residential projects, saying council decisions directly affect adjacent property owners. He described contesting his property assessment: his home was assessed at $286,000 in 2021, rose to $385,800, then to $431,100 two years later. He cited comparable sales ($356,500 for a house across the street; $389,900 for a house at the bottom of Avery), a Zillow Zestimate of $396,300, and a 4.31% Wisconsin Realtors Association change for Eau Claire County in 2022-23 as documentation. He said the assessor did not accept his arguments, and his final increase was $10,200 rather than $45,300, a $35,000 difference. He also alleged that a two-acre wooded lot near him was clear-cut for development after assurances that the new units would be owner-occupied 'twin homes,' but he said they are now being offered as rentals through Riverbend Property Management with long-term leases and rent credit toward purchase. He said the public was given misleading information and criticized the process: residents receive three minutes at the final meeting, while developers have extensive time with city staff. He referenced earlier discussions at Whitetail and Otter Creek about high-density projects and property values and said those projects remain in place.

Department Head and Staff Reports

• City Administrator Michael Golat reported that the city and regional partners continue work on a countywide EMS concept; Eau Claire County will advance a resolution to its county board for a more detailed study. He said the city would send a memo to Eau Claire about the methodology behind a 16% increase in sewer rates and is prepared for formal mitigation if needed.
• Golat reported that Container Park work was delayed by rain but crews are expected to return early next week, with other units potentially delivered in December. He also said the city is wrapping up its budget, will slow down next year's budget process, and plans to deliver department budgets to council earlier.
• Public Works/Engineering staff reported the Public Safety Building is nearly complete and looks good. A Focus on Energy/Xcel Energy lighting walkthrough of City Hall and the library found many old fixtures; rebates are about $20 per fixture from Focus on Energy plus a 75% Xcel grant/match, with an estimated 3-4 year payback for LED upgrades.
• The brush site will close next week; next Wednesday and Saturday are the last days of the year. Container Park curb was poured and binder is planned for the parking lot, with the area likely coned off for winter. Binder in front of the police station is scheduled for next week, with surface paving next year.
• The city is implementing new water rates and a fire protection fee. The Public Service Commission identified an error in rate implementation dating to 1999, and the city may owe some overcharge amounts back, though disagreements remain about how far back the obligation extends and whether interest is due.

Tourism Report from Visit Eau Claire

• Kenzie Havlichek from Visit Eau Claire presented the quarterly tourism update. Website performance was strong: Altoona/River Prairie content is up 20% year-over-year, the Altoona day-trip page is up 87.8%, and the River Prairie site is up 13%.
• October activity was boosted by Scary Prairie, a new Halloween attraction, which generated more than 250 photo submissions and nearly 1,500 visitors to its page. The Ginormous Pumpkin Festival page drew nearly 50,000 visitors for the year and was promoted through a Travel Wisconsin grant.
• VisitEauClaire.com surpassed last year's overall traffic, with annual traffic up 1% year-over-year even without the prior grant funding. The organization's budget was down significantly, in part because a grant-funded $80,000 Eau Claire Marathon marketing campaign was not repeated.
• A Scary Prairie TikTok had more than 100,000 views, about 5,000 likes, and roughly 700 shares. Influencers at the Ginormous Pumpkin Festival featured 44 North. Paid Facebook ads for Altoona content produced 20,000 impressions/400 clicks for River Prairie things to do, 137,000 impressions/1,100 clicks for Altoona day-trip content, and 40,000 impressions/900 clicks for Scary Prairie. Top partner referrals included 44 North, The Fish House, Cowboy Jacks, and Helix.
• Upcoming work includes promoting The Yard and year two of a Travel Wisconsin winter grant.
• City Administrator Golat added that the City of Eau Claire has asked for the same percentage of city-directed tourism spending as Altoona, which would require an additional $300,000 and, he said, threaten Visit Eau Claire's operations 'to an existential level.' He said the City of Eau Claire could form its own commission and contract with Visit Eau Claire for as little as $50,000 a year; Visit Eau Claire's overall budget is about $2.2 million. Altoona offered to reduce its own city-directed amount to match Eau Claire's 30%, at about $25,000 ($15,000 net because $10,000 is marketing), to preserve the relationship. He noted Visit Eau Claire has increased regional room taxes by 42% in the last five years.

Discussion Items

• Reciprocal Conduit Lease Agreement (TDS Metrocom, LLC): Staff explained that earlier approval involved several versions of the agreement that were not aligned. The amended version adds a termination clause allowing Altoona or Eau Claire to terminate if their engineering departments determine the River Prairie Drive Bridge can no longer accommodate the vacant bridge conduit without interfering with its primary purpose, with nine months' notice. It also adds a bridge maintenance/operations provision requiring sufficient notice before work on the conduit to avoid interrupting operations. Staff recommended approval.
• Access Agreement with Beth & Tory Luck: Staff said an Otter Creek outfall south of the Winter Forest subdivision had failed: the bank washed back and two sections of 36-inch concrete pipe dropped off the end wall. The city needed to repair it before winter, but its existing easement route was very steep. The proposed agreement with Luck gives the city access across their parcel, limits vegetation clearing, requires restoration and erosion control, and retains a graded access down the steepest part of the hill, which benefits the Luck property. Trees felled during construction would be removed. Staff described it as mutually beneficial.
• Haas Inc. Storm Sewer Outfall Repair Proposal: Staff reviewed a time-and-materials proposal with a not-to-exceed amount of $62,370.50 and said they hoped the final cost would come in lower. The work includes clearing an angled access route down the hill, rebuilding the outfall, using locally available clean fill where possible, and riprapping the bank to protect it from future river damage. The river had previously displaced two or three sections of 36-inch concrete pipe. Staff consulted DNR's Michelle Asher; the city will document the work, follow standard erosion control practices, and submit a report. The riprap will be limited to less than 100 linear feet to stay under the DNR's special permitting threshold. Staff also said the failure showed the city should inspect every outfall at least once a year.

Election Administration Update

• City Clerk Cindy Bauer and Mayor Pratt thanked poll workers for the election. The clerk reported about 5,500 registered voters in Altoona and an estimated 7,200 voting-age residents, with at least 70-80% estimated turnout. She processed about 2,799 absentee ballots, compared with about 2,500 four years ago, and there were about 552-553 same-day registrations on the last day. The last ballot was cast at about 9:15 p.m., after the 8:00 p.m. deadline, because voters were already in line. The clerk praised Badger Books electronic registration and the two tabulators; one ballot jam caused a ten-minute delay. She hopes to request two more electronic voting machines in the 2026 budget, costing about $8,000-$9,000 for the two with software. She also said total turnout for the presidential election appeared to be down significantly from four years ago, possibly by around 14% by her recollection, though she cautioned against quoting that figure.

Key Outcomes

• Approved the minutes of the October 10, 2024 regular City Council meeting.
• Approved the revised Reciprocal Conduit Lease Agreement among TDS Metrocom, LLC, the City of Altoona, and the City of Eau Claire.
• Approved the access agreement with Beth & Tory Luck relating to parcel 201103310090.
• Approved Haas Inc.'s storm sewer outfall repair proposal at a not-to-exceed amount of $62,370.50, using funds from the stormwater budget/reserves, and authorized the mayor to sign.
• Received the Visit Eau Claire tourism report; no formal action was taken on the Visit Eau Claire/Eau Claire funding dispute.
• Adjourned at approximately 6:42 p.m.