Weekly Report
City Manager Report 4/20/12
Innovation Express Commuter Bus Service Coming to Whitewater
Karen Dieter Named New Finance Support Services Manager
Thanks to All for Successful Make a Difference Day
Wisconsin Honor Flight Celebration at Miller Park - August 11
Check Out New Seniors in the Park Newsletter
City Street Improvement Projects to Begin in Earnest
Update on City Property Assessments
Openings Remain on Municipal Boards & Commissions
Innovation Express Commuter Bus Service Coming to Whitewater Beginning April 29th
The commuter bus service that will be coming to Whitewater from Janesville and Milton is scheduled to begin on Monday, April 29th. The new service, which has been christened “The Innovation Express” will primarily serve Generac Power System employees but will be available to the general public as well.
The Innovation Express will depart Janesville at 5:00 a.m., 1:00 p.m., and 9:00 p.m. daily, Monday through Friday and will also operate on Sunday evening. The bus will drop off and pick up riders in Whitewater at four stops: 1) in front of the Municipal Center on Whitewater Street; 2) Whitewater Innovation Center; 3) on Enterprise Boulevard in front of Generac Power Systems; and 4) in front of the UW-Whitewater Visitor’s Center on Starin Road. Bus stop signs will be installed next week.
More information on The Innovation Express commuter service, run by Janesville Transit, will be posted on the City’s website.
Karen Dieter Named New Finance Support Services Manager
Congratulations to Karen Dieter, who was named this week as the new Finance Support Services Manager for the City. Karen has served on an interim basis in this position for the last month and a half.
Karen started on a part time basis with the Finance Department last summer. Prior to coming to the City she worked for the Village of Fontana in its Finance Office and also has extensive experience in the private sector. Karen was employed by Banker’s Bank in Madison for almost 19 years and ended her tenure as vice president in charge of IT. Karen holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Upper Iowa University.
Thanks to All for Successful Make a Difference Day
I again had the opportunity to work with some great UW-Whitewater students during today’s seventh annual Make a Difference Day. I worked with a group that cleaned the railroad right-of-way southwest of Janesville Street as well as portion of the Whitewater Creek. Here’s a photo of our group that includes University Technology Director Robert Young, courtesy of Jordan Walsh, a UWW sophomore from Green Bay.
This has become an excellent way for the UW-Whitewater community to engage with the larger Whitewater community on many meaningful and helpful projects. Many thanks to all who participated in this year’s event along with special thanks to main organizers Kim Clarksen of the UWW Office of Career and Leadership Development and Matt Amundson of Whitewater Parks and Recreation.
Wisconsin Honor Flight Celebration Scheduled for WWII Veterans and Military Personnel at Miller Park on August 11th
Distribution of this web site and videos for the upcoming Honor Flight celebration at Miller Park in Milwaukee on August 11, 2012 would be very much appreciated.
This event is open to all people who would like to honor our WWII Veterans and military personnel in a special way at a very reasonable cost. The event doesn’t need any more hype, just take a few minutes to watch the videos.
http://starsandstripeshonorflight.org/
Check Out the New Seniors in the Park Newsletter
Seniors in the Park has gone to a new format and publisher. Check it out by clicking on the link below.
http://seekandfind.com/directory/seniors-in-the-park_121217.html?sobi2Task=sobi2Details&;catid=0&sobi2Id=121217
Seniors in the Park is also sponsoring a trip to Cuba this summer. Adults of all ages are welcome. There is a preview of the trip this coming Tuesday, April 24 at 5:00 p.m. at the Starin Park Community Building. The itinerary for the Cuba trip is located on the city website or please contact Deb Weberpal, Senior Coordinator, at 473-0535 or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. "> This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more information.
City Street Improvement Projects will Begin in Earnest the Next Several Weeks
As we are fond of saying, there are two seasons in Wisconsin, Winter and Construction, and that will certainly be the case in Whitewater this year. There are a number of street improvement projects already underway or that will begin soon that are aimed at keeping our infrastructure operating efficiently and effectively.
The North Street project, which is actually a carryover from last year, will be completed over the next several weeks. It is scheduled to be completed by mid May. Both North Street bridges have now been completed with remaining curb, gutter and pedestrian path work remaining to be constructed.
The Milwaukee Street project is scheduled to begin on April 30th. Public works staff has worked on keeping the intersection of Wisconsin, Milwaukee and Main Street open for the weekend of May 12th and 13th (UW Whitewater commencement and Mother’s Day respectively). On or about April 30th, Milwaukee Street from Wisconsin to Esterly Street will be closed to through traffic. A detour will be in place that will take traffic north onto to Newcomb, then west on East Main Street. Special signage will be installed to direct patrons to businesses still open during the Milwaukee Street project.
The Prince Street project was awarded this week by the Common Council to Forest Landscaping of Lake Mills (Forest Landscaping has previously done work for the City on West Center Street). WE Energies will begin the burial of electric utilities on this street project during the week of April 30th. Public works staff expects the actual street and utility work on Prince, between Starin Road and Main Street, will begin on May 14th.
The Common Council also awarded a contract this week for the asphalt overlay of Prairie Street from Starin Road to Main Street to B.R. Amon Construction of Elkhorn, Wisconsin with the low bid of $69,217. It is anticipated that the overlay of this particular street will take approximately one week and will take place sometime in late spring.
Update on City Property Assessments
Property owners in the City should have received notices regarding any changes to their assessments from city assessor, Accurate Appraisal, in the last ten days. Property owners who are concerned about their assessments are encouraged to attend the Open Book sessions that the city assessor will be holding next Wednesday, April 25th from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and next Thursday, April 26th from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Setting up appointments in advance is preferred.
Among the general statistics that Accurate Appraisal has provided the City about the overall city property assessments are the following:
The residential class as a whole went down 1.86% - this took into account an overall market decrease of 3% then adding back in new construction and building permit activity. So the average residential property went down approximately 3%.
The commercial class went up an overall 1%. However, there were only 4 sales in 2011 within the commercial class and they were very different and not consistent in any way. This increase in commercial properties was solely due to building permit activity.
The average assessment on a residential home within the City of Whitewater is $155,900.
The annual Board of Review at which property owners can contest their property assessment has been scheduled for Tuesday, May 22nd beginning at 6:30 p.m.
Openings Remain on Municipal Boards and Commissions
The Common Council made the following appointments to various City Boards and Commissions this week.
Birge Fountain Committee – Roy Nosek
Board of Zoning Appeals – Mark McPhail and Jeff Eppers (Alternate)
Cable TV Committee – Diane Bowker and Kathy Ross
Community Development Authority – Donna Henry
Ethics Committee – Michael Gray-Fow
Landmarks Commission – Suzanne Haselow, Richard Helmick and Alan Marshall
Library Board – Sharon Knight
Parks and Recreation Board – Bruce Parker
Plan Commission – Karen Coburn and Greg Meyer
Police Commission – Jan Bilgen Craggs
University Technology Park Board – Peter Zaballos
Urban Forestry Commission – Karen McCulloch and Tiuu Gray-Fow
I want to note that the City still has openings on the Disability Rights Committee (one open seat and one advisory seat), Ethics Committee (three open seats and one alternate seat), Parks and Recreation Board (one seat, due to the election of Ken Kidd to the Common Council, Plan Commission (one alternate seat) and Police Commission (one open seat due to the election of Ken Kidd to the Common Council).
Anyone interested in serving as a citizen member to one of these remaining open board and commission seats is encouraged to complete the on-line Citizen Interest Form and submit to City Clerk Michele Smith, by May 1st.
Quotes for the Week:
“Assumptions are the termites of relationships.”-Henry Winkler
“Nothing is unthinkable, nothing impossible to the balanced person, provided it comes out of the needs of life and is dedicated to life’s further developments.”-Lewis Mumford