Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.
The Finance Committee met at 6:00 PM in City Hall Council Chambers to review the 2027 Executive Operating Budget for general government departments including Human Resources, City Clerk/Treasurer, Community Development, Information Technology, Police, Fire, Library, and Cemetery. The meeting was called to order at 6:00 PM and adjourned at 7:49 PM. Present were committee members Joe Pieper, Dale Matthews, Doreen Wigderson, Mike Anderson, and Rick Lemke, along with Aldermen Evert, Manion, and Moltzan.
Budget Overview (Tony Brown, Finance Director): The 2027 executive operating budget totals $87.3 million, with 75% ($67 million) for personnel and the remainder for operating expenses. The proposed property tax levy increase is 1.7% ($1.3 million), with $700,000 for the operating levy and the rest for debt service. For an average single-family home valued at $350,000, city taxes would increase by approximately $33 to $2,758 (a 1.2% rise). Brown noted the city has never overspent its adopted budget between 2020 and 2025 and highlighted a healthy unassigned fund balance. He also pointed out that state shared revenue and expenditure restraint funding have not changed since 2003, and that the city receives less state shared revenue than peer communities.
Human Resources (Marquis Vasquez, HR Director): Accomplishments included an employee engagement survey (positive feedback except on salary), 100% on-time open enrollment for a new insurance provider, and a leadership academy for new leaders. 2027 goals focus on technology efficiency, a centralized employee calendar, and proactive payroll/personnel auditing. The department budget shows a significant increase in contracted services due to reallocation of software costs to individual departments and a correction of prior mischarging to professional services. The shared inspector proposal (see Community Development) would add one FTE if approved by partner municipalities.
City Clerk/Treasurer (Katie Pinella, Clerk; Abigail Sasha, Treasurer): 2026 accomplishments included citywide rollout of Badger Books and consolidation of polling places from 13 to 9 locations. Tax collection totaled $142 million, with Waukesha State Bank collecting over $3.5 million. 2027 goals include automating the tax refund process and past-due invoice collection. Voting machines (DS200s) must be replaced soon as the vendor will no longer support them, and a reduction in machines is expected due to polling consolidation. The committee discussed adding a deputy clerk position to support elections and office coverage. Animal and alcohol license applications have increased.
Community Development (Jennifer Andrews, Director; Maria Pandazi, Deputy Director): The new zoning code was implemented September 1. A new permitting and project management software is expected to go live in Q1 2027. Due to high inspection volume (about 7,300 trade inspections and 3,300 permits mid-year), the department proposes a shared building inspector with Brookfield, Pewaukee, and Sussex. The cost would be offset by revenue from the other municipalities; the position would be a Waukesha employee used two days per week locally and one day per week by each partner. Without this, the city risks fines or losing delegated inspection authority from the state. Operating supplies increased due to volume (credit card fees, permit seals).
Information Technology (Chris Pollfall, IT Director): The department completed a cybersecurity self-assessment, achieving 100% of Implementation Group 1 and 80–90% of IG2 controls from the Center for Internet Security—well above the 40–50% typical for peer municipalities. Multi-factor authentication (FIDO keys) is now used by 98% of users, eliminating password-based phishing risks. The CAD/RMS project (with Central Square) is on track for Q1/Q2 2027 go-live, and the permitting software project has expanded to include multiple departments. Professional services spiked in 2026 due to a personnel vacancy but is budgeted to normalize. The committee questioned a discrepancy in professional services budgeting, and IT explained the need for 24/7 security monitoring and incident response retainer.
Police Department (Chief Dan Thompson, Asst. Chief Ty Hoffman): Sworn staffing is at 124 (two vacancies from an expired grant), but civilian dispatchers are short by four positions, leading to overtime and retention challenges (candidates choosing higher pay elsewhere). Traffic enforcement remains high, with 10,000–11,000 citations expected. The crisis response unit is a state model, and the department has one of the shortest detention times for mental health cases outside Milwaukee. Overtime is projected to exceed budget due to vacancies, though total personnel costs remain under budget. Administrative staffing is at a minimum, and open records requests have increased due to body cameras. The committee discussed supervisor ratios; the chief would like three sergeants per shift but acknowledged budget constraints.
Fire Department (Chief Rob Goplin, Asst. Chief Tim Fleming): The department was awarded $359,000 in grants for paramedic training, risk assessment, and communications equipment. A strategic plan will be released after budget season. The new CAD system is expected Q1 2027. Concurrent calls (overlapping incidents) have increased from 47.1% (2022) to 52.1% (2026), indicating resource pressure. Personnel costs reflect contractual wage increases; operating increases include EMS supplies and training (succession planning). The department also highlighted trends in e-bike/e-scooter injuries and electric car charging station risks.
Library (Bruce Gay, Library Director): Staff were cross-trained to work at all three service desks. Security improvements (cameras, incident tracking, walkie-talkies) have reduced police calls by 33% compared to pre-COVID. Programming attendance exceeded 27,000 to date, and door counts were 310,000 in 2025. 2027 goals include a conference room rental program, increasing library card holders, and adapting to 300 additional students from Les Paul Middle School. The budget is largely cost-to-continue, with a $5,000 increase for materials and $15,000 for badge locks on staff doors. The committee questioned a large increase in personnel costs in two line items; the director could not immediately explain but said it was not due to FTE changes.
Cemetery (Karen Richards, Director): Accomplishments included approval of a cremation garden and boulevard, community engagement (266 visitors for a historic wagon tour), and completion of chapel tuckpointing. The natural burial section saw 40 property sales by mid-2026 (up from 18 in all of 2022). 2027 goals are succession planning, completing Phase 1 of the cremation garden, and selecting a single record-keeping software. Operating expenses increased 15.2%, partly due to engineering for a new natural burial section and mausoleum care fund contributions. The tax levy support for the cemetery remains unchanged at $88,661 for over a decade.
Next Steps: The committee will continue budget review on Thursday, October 15 at 6:00 PM, covering remaining departments: additional general government, public works, clean water plant, parking utility, transit, parks/recreation/forestry, health fund, and debt service.
I believe so. Yeah. So we have to do that. I don't know if it is not the only good logic. There we go. There we go. So that's just a I don't have one. I don't know. I mean I guess it's like we're not going to be able to do it. That's what we're going to do. And then you don't have to care about the movement. I don't remember it today. You're 24 years old. Or no. Okay. I don't want to tell you it's I use it as a whole, but you don't have to tell us. Next item on our agenda is the Pledge of Allegiance. Please rise. All right. Next item on our agenda is public comment. Are there any members of the public here this evening that wish to address the finance committee? All right. Seeing no public comment, we'll move on to item number four A, which is approval of the minutes for the 29th of September. Any changes to those minutes from the committee? All right. Seeing no changes, those minutes are approved unanimous consent. That moves us into our business item for this evening. Item number 5A, which is a kickoff and/or the beginning of the review of the 2027 executive operating budget. The running order for this evening for those in the audience, and you guys probably already know this is we're going to do general government first. So we're going to start with HR, then City Clerk Treasurer, community development, and then IT. And then we'll move into the police department, the fire department, the library, and then last but certainly not least, the cemetery for this evening. I also know that Mr. Brown and Mr. Sheryl have a presentation that they're going to walk us through to kind of kick off the budget. And with that, Tony, the floor is yours. Thank you. So I'll start off by saying that certainly grateful to the amount of effort and work that the finance department along with all the other department leaders put into the budget. So as you'll see, it's obviously balanced because in the state of Wisconsin we have to have a balanced budget. But the other thing I wanted to note is that if you go to page 17 of the document, it highlights a couple of things that I would just want to point out in terms of us being in a position of strength going into this budget. So if you look at the top there, it shows the general fund equity. And I'd ask you to pay attention to the unassigned fund balance. So that is the amount of funds that in a way it's kind of like the emergency rainy day fund.