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No Fall Election this Year
Please note there is no Fall Election scheduled this month. The next election will be held on February, 16, 2016 for the Spring Primary (if necessary). For more election and voting information,
click here.
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Holiday Party and Lighting Ceremony Nov. 29
The annual Wind Point Community Club Holiday Party and Lighting Ceremony is set for Sunday, November 29, 4-6 p.m. at the Wind Point Lighthouse.
Celebrate the holiday season and sing carols as the lighthouse wreath is lit.
Enjoy a visit from Santa himself! Please RSVP by Friday, November 27 to
[email protected]
.
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Friends of the Lighthouse Fall Education Night
The Friends of the Wind Point Lighthouse Fall Education Night will be held on Monday, November 9. The program will begin at 7 p.m. at the Village Hall on the Wind Point lighthouse grounds. Mike and Susan Arts, Lighthouse Caretakers, will present the program "Life as Caretakers of the Wind Point Lighthouse" with a tour of the caretakers quarters to follow the meeting. Refreshments will be served following the tour. Please call 497-2260 to reserve your place. Seating is limited to 35, so call soon for your reservation!
Mike and Susan Arts were featured for their role as lighthouse caretakers in a
recent Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article
.
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Lighthouse Caretakers Now Taking 2016 Reservations
The Wind Point lighthouse is an ideal spot for bridal or baby showers, birthday parties or wedding ceremonies! And new for 2016 is the marriage lighthouse tower marriage proposal package. Contact the Lighthouse Caretakers to make a reservation for the 2016 season now at 639-3777 or send an e-mail to
[email protected]. Wind Point residents receive a discount on room and lawn rental rates!
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The Village Board Committee of the Whole met on October 22 and recommended approval of the 2016 Village budget. The proposed budget is the result of hard work by staff and Village trustees, who reviewed the budget over the course of four meetings. The budget reflects the Village's ongoing mission to provide high-quality municipal services at the most cost-effective and efficient manner.
Following are highlights from the proposed budget:
- A tax levy increase of 0.03% over the prior year levy; property owners would expect an increase of $1.06 per $100,000 in assessed value over the prior year for the Village portion of the tax bill.
- 0% increase in state shared revenue, 21% decrease to state recycling grant revenue program and 10.0% decrease to general transportation aid.
- $10,000 contribution from Racine County toward lighthouse maintenance expenses.
- $42,000 budgeted for full revaluation to address outdated property assessments.
- 200 additional police officer hours.
- Decrease of $20,887 for Fire/EMS services due to new agreement with Village of Caledonia.
- Continued proactive road maintenance program, including $55,000 for slag sealing, $10,000 for crack-filling and $7,500 for patching.
- 3.5% increase to Village's payment toward the Racine area sanitary sewer and cultural services agreement.
- $113,000 is budgeted for new lighthouse roof, gutters and chimney.
A public hearing for the budget will be held at the beginning of the Village Board meeting on November 12. The budget will be considered for adoption that evening. To view the full preliminary 2016 budget,
click here.
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Ordinance Reminders
Electrical Permits -
An electrical permit is required to install any fixture, circuit, device, appliance or component, or to alter any aspect of the electrical system. A licensed electrical contractor must perform all electrical work, except a homeowner may replace switches, receptacles, fixtures and appliances without a permit provided that no alteration to the existing electrical system is needed. Permits are not required to repair fixtures and appliances.
Plumbing Permits -
A plumbing permit is required to install any fixture, drain, waste or vent piping, any device, appliance or component, or to alter any aspect of the plumbing system. A licensed plumbing contractor must perform all plumbing work, except a homeowner may replace fixtures, appliances or clear water sump and discharge pump without a permit provided that no alteration to the existing plumbing system is needed. A homeowner may replace a water heater, install a new clearwater sump and discharge piping. Permits are not required to repair fixtures and appliances.
Home Occupation - A gainful occupation conducted by persons residing as members of the household only, within their place of residence; provided that the occupation does not exceed thirty (30%) percent of the area of any floor, that no article is sold or offered for sale on the premises, that no stock in trade is kept or sold, that no odors or noise are generated other than those commonly associated with domestic activities, that no sign is installed; that no more than one employee is present on the premises and that customers or members of the public do not come to the premises more frequently than six (6) times per day.
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Preliminary Village Green Park Concept Plans
The first concept plans for the Village Green Park plan are available for viewing online at
the project website.
After clicking on a plan you can enlarge it by clicking on the white enlarge icon on the bottom right. Residents are asked to submit feedback on any of the plans or components of the plans by emailing
[email protected] or using the comment submission form on the project website by November 10.
All comments will be given to the Parks & Facilities Committee to review and discuss at an upcoming meeting in November.
The park plan is being prepared by Blake Theisen of Ayres Associates based on information gathered at the public workshop on September 16. Concept plans for the lighthouse grounds and path connectivity in the Village will also be prepared as part of the project.
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Final Yard Waste & Branch Collection Dates
A big thank you to all who have followed the
new branch collection procedures and helped make our collections more efficient in October! The last branch collection date of the year will be on Tuesday, November 13.
Yard waste collection continues every Monday through November 30.
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Thank You UW-Parkside Volunteers!
 We would like to extend our appreciation to volunteers from UW-Parkside who helped with clean up at the lighthouse grounds as part of Make a Difference Day on October 24. Make a Difference Day is a national day of helping others. Along with the lighthouse grounds, UW-Parkside's Volunteer Program helped out at Women & Children's Horizons, HALO, Pringle Nature Center, UWEX/Racine Food Bank and more. Thank you UW-Parkside students and volunteers who did a great job and saved us many hours of work!
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New School Board Districts
Due to a change in State law, Racine Unified School District board members will be elected based on geographic voting districts, replacing the current at-large system. The new boundaries were set at by RUSD at a meeting on October 27. Wind Point is in district #9 along with a large portion of Caledonia. The district representative will be elected in April 2016 to a three-year term.
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Tips for Preventing Car Break-Ins
There have been three car break-ins reported in the Village over the past month. Follow the tips below to help prevent break-ins and, as always, if you notice any suspicious activity please report it to Wind Point Police at 639-3022 or dial 9-1-1 if an emergency.
1. Don't give them anything to steal.
When valuables are in plain sight, you're giving thieves incentive to break into your car. Even if it's inconvenient, take your valuables with you when you get out.
2. Make use of the trunk. If you have to leave something in the car, put it in the trunk. It's much more secured than the armrest or glove compartment and it keeps valuables out of plain sight.
3. Don't leave a crack in your window. Even an inch is enough for a thief to stick their fingers in, rock the window back and forth to get it off the track, push it down, and reach their arm in to unlock the door.
4. Park in your garage with the door shut.
Thieves go for the path of least resistance. Parking in your garage with the door shut is a harder target than a car that's easy to access.
5. Park with in well-lit, visible areas.
If you don't have a garage, use lighting or motion-detectors to help deter break-ins.
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Village Board Highlights
The Village Board held a regular meeting on Thursday, October 8. The Board...
- Heard a report from County Executive Jonathan Delagrave on the county budget.
- Approved a final payment for the 2015 road program to Payne & Dolan in the amount of $1,345.03.
- Approved having a regular branch collection date on the second Tuesday in April.
- Approved a new agreement with Lee Greivell (L&M Inspections) for building inspection services.
- Continued a proposal from Johns Disposal to extend the agreement for refuse and recycling collections to the November meeting.
- Approved an agreement with Racine Health Department for 2016 public health services in the amount of $2,828.
- Heard an update from President Christensen on a Racine area wayfinding (signage) project.
- Heard an update from the administrator on the 2016 budget.
- Discussed the 2016 lighthouse grounds agreement in closed session.
The Village Board will meet for a regular meeting on Thursday, November 12 at 5:30 p.m. at the Village Hall (Lighthouse).
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