February 2017
Village Board to Recognize Pete Christensen for Service as Village President
On January 12, Pete Christensen notified the Village Board that he will be moving and will be no longer eligible to serve as Village President. His last day as Village President was Tuesday, January 31. Members of the public are welcome to join in thanking Pete for his service to the Village on Thursday, February 9 at the Village Hall (Lighthouse). Cake and refreshments will be served at 5 p.m. and a proclamation will be presented at the beginning of the Village Board meeting at 5:30 p.m.

Pete was first elected as Village Trustee in 2007 and was elected Village President in 2013. Through his steady leadership, Pete made many positive contributions to the Village, notably in the areas of fiscal responsibility, property maintenance and village communications. He will be missed on the Village Board and in Wind Point!

Board Appoints Susan Sanabria and Charles Manning
The Village Board unanimously appointed Susan Sanabria to fill the remainder of Pete's term as Village President, effective on February 1. Ms. Sanabria has served as a Village Trustee since August 2013 and she is the only candidate running for the next Village President term in the April election. The Village Board also appointed Charles Manning to the Village Trustee position that will be vacated by Ms. Sanabria. Mr. Manning is the only non-incumbent running for Village Trustee this April. To view an updated Village officials directory, click here.
Village Welcomes New Inspectors!
On January 12, the Village Board approved an agreement with Al Kosterman, Gregg Hansen and Brad Rasmussen to provide inspection services in Wind Point. The team will start on Monday, February 13. 

Al Kosterman will serve as the building and HVAC inspector. He is a Wind Point resident and certified inspector with 17 years experience conducting inspections for the City of Racine. Al is familiar with the Village's neighborhoods and has served as a member of the Wind Point Architectural Review Board.

Gregg Hansen will provide electrical inspections. He is a certified master electrician with over 6 years of inspections experience with the City of Racine. Serving as plumbing inspector will be Brad Rasmussen. Brad is a certified certified master plumber and he has owned and operated Rasmussen Plumbing since 1988. We look forward to working with Al, Gregg and Brad on providing excellent permit and inspections services for Village residents!

Remember that if you are considering making improvements to your home or property, please first contact the Village Office to discuss permit requirements. The permit process helps ensure that work meets national, state and local standards and that homes are safe and well-maintained. Permits are required by ordinance and permit fees are doubled when work begins without permit.
Spring Primary Election on February 21
A statewide spring primary election will be held on Tuesday, February 21, 2017 at The Prairie School Johnson Athletic Center. The only race on the ballot in Wind Point will be the State Superintendent of Public Instruction. For more information about this election and to view a sample ballot, click here.

Online Voter Registration
On January 9, the Wisconsin Elections Commission introduced online voter registrations. Residents needing to register or re-register can complete the process entirely online if their current name and address is already on file with the Wisconsin Department of Motor Vehicles (WI DMV). The online voter registration can be completed at http://myvote.wi.gov.
Chief Roeder Recaps 2016
Caledonia Fire Department (CFD) Chief Richard Roeder appeared at the Village Board meeting on January 12 to give a recap of Fire and EMS services in 2016. It was the first year in a five-year agreement to provide these services to Wind Point. Chief Roeder reported that their department responded to 106 calls in 2016; of which, a total of 82 were for basic or advanced life support. There were no structure fires in 2016.

The average response time for the year was 7 minutes and 34 seconds, a reduction of over a minute compared to 2015, and the lowest average response time compared to the previous five years. CFD responded to 83% of our calls within 10 minutes, which meets the National Fire Protection Association’s benchmark of responding to at least 80% of calls within 10 minutes. Keep up the good work, CFD!
Lighthouse Maintenance Updates

It may be the middle of winter, but progress is being made on important maintenance needs at the Wind Point Lighthouse. The Village has hired Stephen Mar-Pohl of Insite Consulting Architects in Madison to prepare a maintenance plan for the exterior of the lighthouse tower. Mr. Mar-Pohl specializes in historic restoration and will create a plan that will help the Village maintain the tower in a sustainable and cost-effective manner.

Other lighthouse updates:

  • Waukesha Roofing and Sheet Metal finished installing the new roof and gutter system on the main building late last fall. As part of that project, the north chimney was rebuilt and the south chimney was tuck-pointed.

  • The Village received six bids from qualified professionals to produce a 6-10 minute lighthouse history video for tours and other uses. The bids will be reviewed by the Lighthouse Committee at their meeting on February 6.

  • The lighthouse website (windpointlighthouse.org) has undergone a facelift - thanks to Scott Olsen of MyEyes Photography and Melissa Steinseifer of Little x Little Photography for providing beautiful photos of the lighthouse grounds for the website!

  • Tickets for 2017 tower tours are available online at: http://eventbrite.com/e/wind-point-lighthouse-tower-climb-tours-tickets-30130036751
2017 Budget Document
The full 2017 budget document is now available to view on the Village website. The budget was approved by the Village Board on November 10, 2016. Village staff has since completed the remaining sections of the document, including the addition of many tables and graphs tracking various data outputs. Staff is beginning to track and monitor more data relating to Village services as part of a performance measurement program to help manage service delivery. To view the budget document, click here.
Water Line Insurance Mailing

The Village Office has been contacted about an official-looking letter from AARP regarding water line insurance. The Wind Point Water Utility is NOT affiliated with AARP or this insurance product in any way. We also do not require water line insurance. Click here to view an article from Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about a similar letter in 2013.
Village Board Updates
The Village Board of Trustees met for a regular meeting on January 12, 2017. The following actions took place at the meeting:
  • Heard a report from Caledonia Fire Chief Richard Roeder.
  • Approved the 2017 wage schedule (Resolution 17-R01).
  • Accepted the resignation of President Pete Christensen effective 1/31 and appointed Susan Sanabria to fill the position for the remainder the term and for Charlie Manning to fill Susan’s vacancy as trustee.
  • Approved updates to the erosion control and post-construction stormwater management ordinances (Ordinance 17-01).
  • Approved a street use permit ordinance (Ordinance 17-02).
  • Approved an agreement with Al Kosterman, Gregg Hansen and Brad Rasmussen for building inspection services (including building, HVAC, electrical and plumbing).
  • Approved an amendment to the 2016 budget (Resolution 17-R02).
  • Heard a report that a proposal with Insite Consulting Architects in the amount of $3,600 would be accepted in order to complete a lighthouse masonry coating analysis and maintenance plan.
  • Reviewed 2017 insurance policy renewals.

The next regular meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 9 at 5:30 p.m. at the Village Hall (lighthouse).
Village of Wind Point, Wisconsin
215 E. Four Mile Rd.
Racine, WI 53402
262.639.3524