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Record of Proceedings

City of Janesville Citizens Board of Review Meeting – June 2, 2026

Meeting Portal — Tuesday, June 2, 2026
BodyJanesville, Wisconsin
SessionMeeting Portal
DateTuesday, June 2, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:49:14

Original source
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0:09

Thank you.

0:11

The time is 4 p.m.

0:13

And the recording has uh started for the 2026 first meeting of the City of Janesville Citizen Board of Review.

0:22

Today is June 2nd, 2026.

0:25

My name is Lori Stottler.

0:26

I'm the clerk treasurer, and I uh call this meeting to order.

0:30

At roll call, uh the following members uh are here.

0:35

Uh Owen Landers, Tom Lapinski, Ed Chady Present, and Kylie.

0:49

Last name.

0:50

Romber Romac.

0:51

Romac.

0:51

I was gonna say Romberg.

0:52

I'm like, no, that's Rom Romac.

0:55

Um also with us this evening.

0:57

So we do have a quorum with the four also with us this evening is uh assistant city attorney uh Nels Jomi and Deputy Clerk Treasurer Darnatia Haley.

1:10

Uh in the audience present today is City Assessor Michelle Lobby and Deputy City Assessor uh Wade Hodgkin.

1:19

So with that, the first item of business today is to elect a chairperson, and uh I will open the floor for nominations for a chairperson.

1:29

I will have to ask three times before we close.

1:32

So are there nominations for chairperson?

1:34

I nominate Ed Shady.

1:36

Tom Lapinski nominates Ed Chady.

1:41

Are there any other nominations for chairperson?

1:47

Last call, nominations for chairperson.

1:51

As the I close nominations and as the only nomination, uh Chairperson Chady, you have the floor.

2:01

Thank you.

2:01

My name is Ed Chady, Citizens Board of Review Chair.

2:04

Having elected uh chairperson, in the event I'm unable to chair a meeting, the co-chairperson will chair.

2:12

This is necessary because of the timeline to complete the board of review.

2:15

I will now open the floor for the co-chairperson.

2:18

Are there any nominations?

2:21

Owen Landers, I nominate uh Tom Lepinski.

2:26

Tom Lapinski has been nominated.

2:29

Are there any other nominations?

2:34

Any other nominations?

2:36

If there are no other nominations, I will close the nominations.

2:41

Do we need to do a formal vote given there was only one?

2:44

Only one.

2:44

Uh Tom Lipinski is the uh vice chair.

2:48

Thank you very much.

2:50

Thank you, Tom, for being willing to serve.

2:54

Next item on the agenda item four, the minutes of the July 10th, 2025 meeting were included in the packet for your review.

3:02

Are there any corrections, errors, or edits to be made?

3:05

If not, I'd entertain a motion to approve the minutes.

3:08

Mr.

3:08

Chair.

3:09

Item number six uh states here deliberate and vote on objections properly filed with the clerk and approved for a hearing.

3:18

I would uh move that we add a second sentence.

3:22

None were presented.

3:30

Can we confirm there were none presented?

3:33

I don't correct.

3:34

Okay.

3:35

I'm okay adding that to the minutes.

3:37

Any objections to adding that to the minutes?

3:42

Okay.

3:42

Then I would move that the minutes uh be approved as amended.

3:47

I'll second that motion.

3:49

All in favor.

3:51

Aye.

3:51

Aye.

3:52

Any opposed?

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural█████████████████████████████████████████████58%
Property Assessment███████████████████24%
Public Engagement███████9%
Pending Litigation███████9%
Summary of Proceedings

City of Janesville Citizens Board of Review Meeting – June 2, 2026

The Citizens Board of Review of the City of Janesville held its first meeting of 2026 on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, at 4:00 PM in City Hall Council Chambers. The board elected officers, adopted revised rules, received the assessor's annual report, and considered several objections to property assessments. Key outcomes included dismissal of objections for two large retail properties (Sam's Club and Walmart) for failure to provide required income and expense information, and dismissal of a third objection for an incomplete filing. One property objection was accepted and scheduled for a hearing.

Consent Calendar

  • Election of Chairperson: Ed Chady was elected chairperson by acclamation.
  • Election of Vice Chairperson: Tom Lapinski was elected vice chairperson by acclamation.
  • Approval of Minutes: The minutes of the July 10, 2025 meeting were approved as amended, adding a sentence confirming that no objections were presented at that meeting. Motion passed unanimously (4-0).
  • Verification of Notices: The clerk verified that the Open Book notice was published in the Janesville Gazette on April 21, 2026, and the Board of Review notice was published on May 18, 2026. Affidavits of publication are on file.
  • Training Affidavit: All four board members (Chady, Landers, Lapinski, Romac) attended certified training on May 19, 2026; the training affidavit was filed with the Wisconsin Department of Revenue on May 21, 2026.
  • Confidentiality Ordinance: The clerk verified the city ordinance regarding confidentiality of income and expense information provided to the assessor under Wisconsin Statute 70.47(7)(af).

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments were made. The only attendees were city staff and representatives for the property owners.

Discussion Items

  • Assessor's Report (Annual Assessment Report - AAR): City Assessor Michelle Lobby presented the 2026 assessment roll, a maintenance roll with no across-the-board adjustments. Key statistics: 3,179 field inspections, 1,121 sales verified, 1,038 permits reviewed. Open book was held May 6–12, 2026; 28 parcels were reviewed, 18 received value changes. The aggregate assessment/sale ratio for residential properties was 82.67%, for commercial 91.81%, and overall 83.04%. Residential properties comprise 92% of parcels and 72% of total value; commercial properties comprise 6% of parcels and 27% of value. The total assessed value (without manufacturing) is $7,470,253,900.
  • Adoption of Rules of Procedure: The board discussed and adopted the 2026 Rules of Procedure with several amendments: duplicate language was removed (rule 7 I), the number of copies required for evidence reduced from ten to eight, language regarding time limits was changed to allow board discretion, and the deadline for objectors to respond to subpoenas was extended from 10 to 15 calendar days. Motion passed unanimously (4-0).
  • Acceptance of Assessment Roll: The clerk confirmed receipt of the assessment roll on June 2, 2026 between 10-11 AM. The roll was available for inspection during open book and on the city website. No corrections or omitted properties were noted.
  • Objection – Sam's Club (3900 Deerfield Dr, Parcel 0217100098): Deputy City Assessor Wade Hodgkin presented that the income and expense information requested on February 26, 2026 (due March 31) was not fully provided; only limited expense data was received late (April 20), and no income information was ever provided. The property owner's representative, attorney Hannah Rodriguez, argued that the failure was due to human error (typo on parcel number) and that information had been provided in prior years. The board, citing Rules of Procedure 7B2 and 7B3 (which require income/expense info to be provided at least 7 days before the first meeting when the assessor uses the income approach), voted unanimously to dismiss the objection.
  • Objection – Walmart (3800 Deerfield Dr, Parcel 021710097): The same issue was raised for this property. The assessor noted multiple tenants (Subway, Regal Nail Salon, Cost Cutters) generating rental income; no income information was provided. The board again dismissed unanimously, citing the same rule.
  • Objection – JVT Investment LLC (1404 Creston Park Dr, Parcel 0219400316): Assessor requested dismissal because the objection form and agent authorization were incomplete. The owner is JVT Investment LLC, but the agent authorization form was signed by the tenant (BMO Bank), not the property owner. The board, citing Wisconsin Statute 70.47(7)(a) and Rule 7C, voted unanimously to dismiss.
  • Objection – AMROC Land (5451 North Bright Rd, Parcel 0219400316): The board found no concerns with this objection form and scheduled a hearing for Thursday, June 4, 2026 at 5:00 PM.
  • Subpoenas and Waivers: The assessor had no requests for subpoenas. The waiver requests for Walmart and Sam's Club were moot because the objections were dismissed. No other waiver requests were on file.

Key Outcomes

  • Two objections dismissed for failure to provide income/expense information (Sam's Club and Walmart): Motion passed 4-0 for each.
  • One objection dismissed for incomplete objection form (JVT Investment LLC): Motion passed 4-0.
  • One objection accepted and scheduled for hearing (AMROC Land): Hearing set for Thursday, June 4, 2026 at 5:00 PM.
  • Meeting adjourned to June 4, 2026 at 5:00 PM.

Meeting Transcript

Thank you. The time is 4 p.m. And the recording has uh started for the 2026 first meeting of the City of Janesville Citizen Board of Review. Today is June 2nd, 2026. My name is Lori Stottler. I'm the clerk treasurer, and I uh call this meeting to order. At roll call, uh the following members uh are here. Uh Owen Landers, Tom Lapinski, Ed Chady Present, and Kylie. Last name. Romber Romac. Romac. I was gonna say Romberg. I'm like, no, that's Rom Romac. Um also with us this evening. So we do have a quorum with the four also with us this evening is uh assistant city attorney uh Nels Jomi and Deputy Clerk Treasurer Darnatia Haley. Uh in the audience present today is City Assessor Michelle Lobby and Deputy City Assessor uh Wade Hodgkin. So with that, the first item of business today is to elect a chairperson, and uh I will open the floor for nominations for a chairperson. I will have to ask three times before we close. So are there nominations for chairperson? I nominate Ed Shady. Tom Lapinski nominates Ed Chady. Are there any other nominations for chairperson? Last call, nominations for chairperson. As the I close nominations and as the only nomination, uh Chairperson Chady, you have the floor. Thank you. My name is Ed Chady, Citizens Board of Review Chair. Having elected uh chairperson, in the event I'm unable to chair a meeting, the co-chairperson will chair. This is necessary because of the timeline to complete the board of review. I will now open the floor for the co-chairperson. Are there any nominations? Owen Landers, I nominate uh Tom Lepinski. Tom Lapinski has been nominated. Are there any other nominations? Any other nominations? If there are no other nominations, I will close the nominations. Do we need to do a formal vote given there was only one? Only one. Uh Tom Lipinski is the uh vice chair. Thank you very much. Thank you, Tom, for being willing to serve. Next item on the agenda item four, the minutes of the July 10th, 2025 meeting were included in the packet for your review. Are there any corrections, errors, or edits to be made? If not, I'd entertain a motion to approve the minutes. Mr. Chair. Item number six uh states here deliberate and vote on objections properly filed with the clerk and approved for a hearing. I would uh move that we add a second sentence. None were presented. Can we confirm there were none presented? I don't correct.

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