Finance & Personnel Committee Meeting Summary – March 5, 2026
Finance & Personnel Committee Meeting Summary – March 5, 2026
The Finance & Personnel Committee of the City of La Crosse met on Thursday, March 5, 2026, at 6:04 PM in the Council Chambers, City Hall. Chair Goggin presided. Present: Barb Janssen, Erin Goggin, Larry Sleznikow, Rosanne Northwood. Excused: Aron Newberry, Chris Kahlow. The meeting adjourned at 7:03 PM. The committee considered 11 resolutions and one collective bargaining update, including votes that split 2-2 on fire and police compression pay resolutions.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Chad Honeycutt (City of La Crosse DMI) spoke on item 26-0209 (TID 11 funds for Downtown Beautification). He described 94 planters downtown (24 good, 30 fair, 40 poor) and requested $92,000 for replacements and additional trash cans, noting that $125,000 was originally requested but reduced. He expressed support for the project as a one-time capital improvement to enhance downtown aesthetics and visitor experience. He offered to explore repair options for existing planters.
Discussion Items
- 26-0054: Investment Services Agreements (April 1, 2026 – March 31, 2027) – Director of Finance Hawkins explained the annual practice of investing up to 25% of investable cash with local institutions, requiring they beat the local government investment pool rate. Approved unanimously.
- 26-0122: Fee Schedule Amendment (Building, Plumbing, Electrical, HVAC, Erosion Control Permits) – Director Train clarified the update allows fee increases beyond CPI, as approved earlier by the J&A committee. Approved unanimously.
- 26-0128: Compression Pay for Battalion Chiefs, Assistant Fire Chief, Fire Chief – HR Director Franzen stated the 2015 resolution needed updating due to less than 1% gap between assistant chief and chief. She noted the 6% compression gap was set 10 years ago. Councilmember Janssen questioned if overtime for subordinates was the root issue. Motion to recommend adoption failed 2-2 (Yes: Goggin, Sleznikow; No: Janssen, Northwood).
- 26-0146: First Amendment to Development Agreements with The Chalmers LLC – Julie Emsley and Matt Balwig (T Wall Enterprises) presented combining two phases into one due to state building code changes. Timeline moves from March 2031 to November 2028. TIF payments unchanged. Approved unanimously.
- 26-0149: Table of Positions and Classifications Reorganization (Parks & Recreation) – Director expressed proactive reduction of one full-time position, saving ~$60,000 in light of budget cuts. Approved unanimously.
- 26-0150: Compression Pay for Police Captains, Assistant Chief, Chief of Police – No discussion. Motion to recommend adoption failed 2-2 (same split as 26-0128).
- 26-0173: City Hall Sixth Floor Remodeling Design – Councilmembers Sleznikow and Janssen argued against spending on design given budget constraints, with Janssen noting citizens cannot see upper floors. Motion to recommend not adopting passed unanimously.
- 26-0197: Late Renewal Fee for Alcohol, Tobacco, Vaping Applications – No discussion. Approved unanimously.
- 26-0209: TID 11 Funds for Downtown Beautification – Public hearing held (see above). Committee discussed repairs, future costs for trash can emptying, and need for more information. Motion to refer to Common Council with no recommendation passed unanimously.
- 26-0213: Re-allocate Unused Funds for Water Utility Capital Equipment – Councilmember Sleznikow commended the utility for efficiency. Approved unanimously.
- 26-0214: Amendment No. 1 to Refuse and Recycling Services Contract (Hilltopper Refuse) – Included in closed session (see Key Outcomes). Approved after closed session.
- 26-0220: Vacation Conversion MOU (Firefighters Local #127) – Short-circuited by mayor on 3/2/2026 but considered. Included in closed session. Approved after closed session.
- 26-0221: Tri-State Ambulance Employee Leased Agreement MOU – Short-circuited by mayor on 3/2/2026 but considered. Included in closed session. Approved after closed session.
- 26-0001: Collective Bargaining Update – No action taken.
Key Outcomes
- Resolutions Recommended to Adopt (to Common Council 3/12/2026): 26-0054, 26-0122, 26-0146, 26-0149, 26-0197, 26-0213, 26-0214, 26-0220, 26-0221. All passed unanimously (4-0) except 26-0214, 26-0220, 26-0221, which passed 4-0 with Council President Dickinson voting and Northwood excused.
- Resolutions Failed (2-2 tie): 26-0128 (Fire compression pay) and 26-0150 (Police compression pay). Neither recommended.
- Resolution Recommended Not to Adopt: 26-0173 (City Hall sixth floor design), passed unanimously (4-0).
- Resolution Referred with No Recommendation: 26-0209 (Downtown Beautification), passed unanimously (4-0).
- Closed Session: The committee convened in closed session (Wis. Stat. 19.85(1)(e)) for items 26-0214, 26-0220, and 26-0221 to discuss negotiation strategies. Council President Dickinson joined in closed session to maintain quorum.
- Unanimous consent was used to open and close the public hearing for item 26-0209 and to enter closed session.
Meeting Transcript
I'm gonna call this meeting to order for the first the for the finance and personnel committee Thursday March 5th 6 04 p.m. Um members of the finance and personnel commission are here. Excused are Councilmember Kalo and Councilmember Newberry. Our new business tonight starting with 26-0054 resolution approving investment service agreements for the period of April 1st, 2026 through March 31st, 2027. Councilmember Jansen. Move to approve. Move to approve by Councilmember Jansen, seconded by Councilmember Slesniko. Councilmember Slesniko. Um I'm hoping our director of finance can just give us an overview of what this involves. I I'm pretty sure I understand it, but just so that um the public as well understands what's happening here. Sure. Thank you for the question. Uh kind of anticipating to be asked, so uh so every year um as far back as I I know uh the city has or the city council has uh authorized the use of some of our invested funds, um a portion of it, not all of them, to be distributed amongst local investors here within the city. Um I think the idea and the goal is is that the local institutions would then utilize those funds to uh uh grant loans and and utilize that money to to the public, um benefiting the city as a whole. So um past practice has been to take 20 percent of uh a portion up to 25 percent of a portion of our investable cash and uh put that back into the local economy. So that's what this is doing, and then what we um one of the uh stipulations that they have to follow is that they have to uh beat our local government investment pool interest rates. Um so not only are we helping to benefit local economy and residents here, we're also uh receiving a little extra on our interest rates. Um so kind of a win-win all around. Thank you. Any other questions? Thanks, Director Hawkins. Any further discussion? Not seeing or hearing any, we'll move to the vote. That motion passes unanimously. Moving on to 26-0122 resolution amending appendix C of the municipal code for the city of Lacrosse entitled fee schedule regarding fees for building, plumbing, electrical, HVAC, and erosion control permits. Councilmember Slesniko. Move to approve motion to approve by councilmember Slesniko, seconded by councilmember Jansen. Is there any dis Councilmember Slesnikal? Um I'm not sure if who is here from planning who might be able to vote. Andrew, I see you online. Yes, I'm just curious why why this needs to come forward. What change will this be making that uh requires it to um you know come before council? Sure. So there were some updates that the council approved to change some of the fees with the fee schedule at the end of last year, effective 2026. So this is making the language in that. There was so there were some fees that were increased more than just the CPI. Current language says that it should change only based on the CPI. So this is updating that to allow that change to be not just the CPI. So the language in that was approved at J and A on Tuesday, and then this is the update of the approval of the fee, so the actual monetary amount associated with those permits. Thank you. Any other questions for Director Train? Thank you, Director Train. Any further discussion? Seeing none, we'll move forward with the vote. That motion passes unanimously. Next agenda item is 26-0128 resolution amending the compression pay for battalion chiefs, assistant fire chief, and fire chief. Sponsored by Mayor Washington Spivey. Councilmember Slesniko. Move to approve. Move to approve by Councilmember Slesniko.
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