[0:00] Good morning everyone. I will go ahead
[0:01] and call the uh city of Westbend bid
[0:04] board meeting into order for September
[0:06] 1st. We do have enough for a quorum. So
[0:10] if we could just start with the last bid
[0:13] board special meeting from August 20th
[0:15] for the approval of the minutes.
[0:18] » A motion to approve the minutes from
[0:20] August 20th.
[0:21] » A second it.
[0:22] » All those in favor say I.
[0:24] » I.
[0:24] » Opposed. Motion carries. Okay. We'll go
[0:27] ahead and excuse me. Um do an update
[0:31] from the downtown Westbend Association
[0:32] and the Bend. Feel free to come on up.
[0:37] » Thank you.
[0:38] » Good morning.
[0:39] » Good morning everyone. Uh hopefully
[0:41] everyone's having a good morning so far.
[0:43] Um some of the events I want to talk
[0:44] about, we just had our summer sidewalk
[0:46] sale event. Um we thought that was
[0:48] really good. We got some feedback from
[0:49] customers that attended these shops. Um
[0:52] people would come out. Um and we had
[0:54] live entertainment this year as well at
[0:56] Old Sliders Park. We also, courtesy of
[0:58] Laughing Mountain popcorn, they gave out
[1:00] drinks um at Old Settlers Park from at
[1:02] 10 o'clock.
[1:04] [clears throat] Um also that's still
[1:06] stuff that is still going on. We have
[1:08] our Music on Main season um extending
[1:10] till September 10th. Now we have two
[1:13] bands locked in for that. Our farmers
[1:15] market is still going on um every
[1:17] Saturday up until October 31st. Um we're
[1:21] hoping to get the five pete this year
[1:23] for best uh farmers market in Wisconsin.
[1:25] Last time I checked, we are still in the
[1:27] lead for that. Um, and then upcoming
[1:30] this weekend, we actually have our
[1:31] Wheels on Maine event, which is the
[1:33] largest uh vehicle show in Washington
[1:35] County. So, we're expecting around 400
[1:37] to 500 vehicles this year again. Um, we
[1:40] also have live music at um for location
[1:42] this year this year um during that
[1:45] event. And then replacing the uh super
[1:48] and sourdough event, we have our taste
[1:49] of autumn event that's happening on
[1:51] October 3rd from 10:00 to 5:00 p.m. Um
[1:54] VIP passholders will receive free taste
[1:56] of food or beverage item at
[1:57] participating locations and it's also
[1:59] going to be $15 per person. So it's kind
[2:02] of what's going on in uh the downtown
[2:04] Westben. Uh we also have the podcast
[2:06] still going strong. We're going to be
[2:08] recording our fifth episode today. So
[2:10] we're still talking about the culture of
[2:12] Westben and getting sponsors and other
[2:14] participating businesses to keep doing
[2:15] that. So, it's been really fun.
[2:18] » Thank you.
[2:20] » Thank you.
[2:26] » Good morning, Noel.
[2:27] » Good morning, everyone. How are you? Um,
[2:30] from the Bend, just a little recap on
[2:32] August. Can't believe it's September
[2:34] already, but um, we hit a record for the
[2:37] Ben Theater in August where we had four
[2:40] nights in a row of sellout shows. So,
[2:42] that is super exciting. Um that was all
[2:44] thanks to um was it last week? My weeks
[2:47] are blending in. Um but we showed the
[2:50] uke documentary which honored the life
[2:52] of Bob Uker. Uh so we were able to get
[2:54] that in and we had four different
[2:55] showings. We had the license just for
[2:57] that specific week of August. Um the
[3:00] first night kicked off with a Q&A from
[3:02] former Brewers players. Um and it was
[3:04] just a wonderful event. So um we had
[3:07] three solo shows in a row and then we
[3:09] brought in uh one of the country
[3:11] legends, Lorie Morgan. had a lot of
[3:13] great hits, especially back in the 90s.
[3:15] Uh so she was another sellout show that
[3:17] uh that following day. So super
[3:18] exciting. That always means that people
[3:20] are coming downtown. They're enjoying uh
[3:23] contributing to the economy, going out
[3:25] to eat, going out for drinks, and
[3:27] enjoying entertainment. So very always
[3:29] happy to be a part of that uh downtown
[3:31] with our team. Um coming up this month
[3:35] of September, uh we are continuing with
[3:37] a free lecture series that we're calling
[3:39] the Bend Sessions. So that started back
[3:42] in August as well, but every week until
[3:44] the week right before Thanksgiving,
[3:46] we're bringing in a different speaker
[3:48] covering a different topic. And again,
[3:50] it's free for the public. Most of them
[3:51] will be on Tuesdays. We do have all of
[3:53] our information on our website about
[3:55] this. Um, but tonight, um, starting at 7
[3:58] p.m. is when they all start. Um, and
[4:00] they'll always have a Q&A at the end, so
[4:03] people can come in and like write down
[4:04] questions, uh, that will get asked of
[4:06] our guest speaker at the end. Uh we have
[4:08] one of the owners of Sausage Plus who
[4:10] will be um at the bend tonight. So um
[4:13] highlighting a local business and
[4:15] talking about like where your meat is
[4:16] coming from uh from a trusted source
[4:18] like Sausage Plus. So um we're really
[4:21] excited to have him. But every week,
[4:23] like I said, there's going to be new
[4:25] topics. We're also going to be starting
[4:27] our origin series again, which is the
[4:29] original singer songwriter series. So
[4:31] yet another offering for a community um
[4:34] that is very cost- effective because no
[4:36] cost. just come on in, enjoy music
[4:38] that's going to be starting on uh
[4:40] Thursdays on the 17th of September. And
[4:44] we have a variety of music and comedy uh
[4:46] coming up for this month. Um anything
[4:48] from a jazz tribute to Sting to Face
[4:51] Value, which is music from Phil Collins
[4:53] and Genesis. Uh we have a Tom Petty
[4:56] tribute, the Guffs, uh if you know the
[4:58] Guffs from um especially the 90s and
[5:00] early 2000s. um they have quite the
[5:02] following uh duo is going to be coming
[5:04] in on the 19th and then at the end of
[5:06] the month uh we're bringing in some more
[5:08] Latino music. So we're bringing in a
[5:09] Selena tribute. Uh if people love Selena
[5:12] music that's for them. Um and then a
[5:14] couple of comedians Andy Gross on the
[5:17] 12th. Uh he is going to be doing a
[5:19] familyfriendly show at 1 p.m. and then
[5:21] for 18 and older at 7:30. But his videos
[5:24] are really cool. He does um kind of like
[5:27] these mind tricks. He's a magician. He's
[5:29] a ventriloquist. So, it's something fun
[5:30] and new and different that we're
[5:32] bringing into the ben too when it comes
[5:33] to comedy. And we also have uh comedian
[5:36] Carmen Lynch on the 26th coming in as
[5:39] well. And she's bilingual. She'll be
[5:41] doing one show in Spanish, one show in
[5:42] English. So, that's a new thing, too.
[5:44] And then, yeah, it's just off to the
[5:46] races as we continue into the fall. So,
[5:48] lots more to come. And always check our
[5:50] website and our socials for what we're
[5:52] doing downtown.
[5:55] » Awesome. Thank you so much, Noel. We
[5:57] appreciate it.
[5:58] » Thank you.
[6:01] Okay. Uh John, if we want to go into the
[6:03] financial report.
[6:04] » Yeah, that Oh, I am. My speaker is on.
[6:06] Uh so this this uh morning. Sorry. Um
[6:09] I'm still behind, I guess, at by a day.
[6:11] Uh so in your packet, you have a summary
[6:14] of the financial report. Um we're on
[6:16] target for the year. We actually have
[6:18] some um savings um in some funds,
[6:21] although some of our bigger uh costs are
[6:23] going to be coming up like the tree
[6:25] installation and stuff like that. So you
[6:26] will see that um as the months go
[6:28] forward that uh dollar amount at the
[6:30] total uh declining a little bit as we
[6:33] have those last end of the year
[6:34] expenses. There's any questions? Let me
[6:36] know.
[6:40] There any more comments or questions on
[6:42] the financial report? If not, if we
[6:44] could have a motion in a second.
[6:50] » I'll make a motion to approve the
[6:52] financial report.
[6:55] I'll second that.
[6:56] » All those in favor say I.
[6:58] » I.
[6:58] » Opposed. Motion carries. Thank you. The
[7:02] um agenda items for consideration are
[7:04] the approval of the 2027 bid operating
[7:06] plan.
[7:07] » Um so um Peggy um we kind of reversed
[7:10] these two things. I actually think what
[7:12] we need I'll do is I'll do the
[7:13] presentation of the operating plan. Then
[7:15] you can have the open form for people to
[7:16] comment in case there's any public
[7:18] comment that might influence your um
[7:21] action on the consideration of approval
[7:23] and do the consideration approval last.
[7:24] Does that sound okay?
[7:26] » Yeah, of course.
[7:27] » All right. Great. So the uh operating
[7:29] plan you guys saw last um last uh month
[7:33] uh we have not made any changes to what
[7:34] was uh reported. However, um there have
[7:38] been two things that we caught. one was
[7:40] we had a special I'm going to go to the
[7:45] pardon my scrolling
[7:48] um
[7:50] under electricity cost we had a special
[7:53] project for skyline lighting as you know
[7:55] last month or last uh yeah last month
[7:57] you guys approved for that project to
[7:59] actually try to move forward this
[8:00] particular year so uh that 6,000 is not
[8:03] I don't believe is necess necessary as a
[8:05] line item in addition in double-checking
[8:08] all of our numbers
[8:09] there was a line item for irrigation and
[8:11] fertilizer for um the plantings under
[8:14] landscaping that we missed. So that
[8:17] dollar amount was short by 3,000. So I
[8:19] would propose um when it gets time for
[8:22] consideration that we put back the 3,000
[8:24] into uh the landscaping. And if you want
[8:28] to leave uh 3,000 for skyline lighting,
[8:31] you can. Or you could um just remove
[8:33] that whole 6,000 and put the remaining
[8:35] 3,000 into um uh
[8:40] the account that would be sort of the
[8:42] savings account type situation um for
[8:44] something to be designated in the
[8:45] future. Um just going through the the
[8:49] operational plan is pretty standard. Uh
[8:51] there's nothing changed in the bylaws.
[8:53] Uh the major parts of it for this year
[8:55] are the the summary. So this I'll just
[8:57] go through the quick summary for
[8:59] everyone. Uh essentially we have the
[9:01] audit expenses, administrative cost,
[9:03] marketing, lights and decorations,
[9:05] electricity, uh facade grants, um
[9:08] landscaping donations, water, and future
[9:11] undesated um dollar amount. So if we
[9:14] were to the electricity could come down
[9:16] a little bit and that future undesated
[9:18] would go up a little bit um from what I
[9:20] just discussed. Um if there's any
[9:22] questions um I'd be glad to answer them.
[9:27] or if you need clarification of what I
[9:28] just said because I probably said it
[9:30] pretty quick.
[9:33] » So, John, what you're saying is strip
[9:35] the 6,000 from the skyline lighting
[9:37] upgrade. That doesn't need to be there.
[9:39] » I don't believe it needs to be there
[9:41] because we've you've already taken
[9:42] action last month. And then when we just
[9:44] double checked, uh we did find one line
[9:47] item that was dropped out in landscaping
[9:49] that was for irrigation for the hanging
[9:51] baskets. That would be 3,000 we should
[9:53] put back in
[9:54] » And then we could put the other 3,000 in
[9:55] future funds.
[9:56] » The other 3,000 could go back to the
[9:58] future funds.
[9:58] » Thank you for the clarification.
[10:10] » Any questions?
[10:12] You want to open up for public comment?
[10:17] Yes, we can open it up for public
[10:19] comment for the large public that has
[10:22] come to our bid meeting this morning.
[10:24] [laughter]
[10:26] I think though this is this is one of
[10:28] those reasons why we had initially
[10:29] talked about possibly having this
[10:32] particular meeting at a different time.
[10:34] Um it might be the one time a year that
[10:36] maybe if we had it in the afternoon or
[10:38] early evening that maybe we'd get
[10:41] somebody. I think it's not it's not
[10:42] worth um or it's worth mentioning that
[10:45] maybe we try it one year.
[10:47] » Okay.
[10:47] » Because this might be a difficult time
[10:49] for people to get here start at the
[10:50] start of their day. School's just
[10:52] starting today. There's a lot going on.
[10:53] You know what I mean?
[10:54] » Yeah. It's hard. I mean, I think it's
[10:56] hard for a downtown because you have
[10:57] people who are obviously getting
[11:00] families and stuff off to work and that
[11:02] kind of thing. And it's right before a
[11:03] lot of shops open. But then on the other
[11:05] hand, late afternoon is also when the
[11:07] restaurants are ramping up for their
[11:09] busiest part of the day, too. So, you
[11:11] know, downtown really is busy from 7:00
[11:14] a.m. to 10 at night. So, I probably
[11:16] never find a perfect time, but we can
[11:18] certainly try that.
[11:19] » Yeah.
[11:20] » Do we feel like too that we've kind of
[11:23] publicized that there is this type of
[11:25] form for people to kind of
[11:26] » Oh, it's publicized. Yeah. I mean, it's
[11:28] it's the on the city website. They put
[11:30] out a notification. It's in the paper.
[11:32] Um, yeah, it's definitely and we we let
[11:34] the members the bid members know. We
[11:35] definitely let them know. So, it's just
[11:38] um you know, I think that it's our job
[11:40] to try to find a time that even if we
[11:43] got a few people here, it would be
[11:45] better than nobody here.
[11:47] » Yeah. I don't believe we've had I don't
[11:50] believe Ashley or I have had any contact
[11:53] from anybody with any questions.
[11:54] » Yeah. I was wondering like did anybody
[11:55] email in or anything? No.
[11:59] » No.
[11:59] » I think last year I had one person call.
[12:02] So,
[12:04] » Not a big deal. Today's also the first
[12:06] day of school.
[12:07] » I It is. I know.
[12:08] » So, it's Yeah,
[12:09] » I was almost late because of that kind
[12:11] of thing, but
[12:12] » Yeah,
[12:15] » We could certainly try the afternoon
[12:16] next year if you would like.
[12:17] » Okay. Thank you.
[12:18] » We'll put on the calendar so we don't
[12:19] forget.
[12:20] » Yep.
[12:20] » Yeah.
[12:24] » Um otherwise, the only other action that
[12:26] we would need to see today is for your
[12:28] recommendation of approval. It would
[12:30] then be forwarded to common counsel.
[12:32] Common council then holds a public
[12:33] hearing and then they would take action
[12:35] on it. So there is another opportunity
[12:36] by the way for an evening opportunity
[12:38] theoretically at the council level um
[12:41] for comments. But
[12:45] » Okay,
[12:47] » Then I'd make a motion to recommend for
[12:50] approval uh the 2027 operating plan uh
[12:53] removing the $6,000 from the uh lighting
[12:57] and adding $3,000 to landscape
[13:02] » And 3,000 to future funds
[13:04] » And 3,000 future funds.
[13:07] » I'll second that.
[13:09] » Great. Thank you guys. Uh all those in
[13:11] favor say I. I
[13:13] » Opposed. Okay, motion carries.
[13:20] » Then we have the um
[13:25] pretty much any agenda items for the
[13:27] next meeting which would be when
[13:29] » It would be the first Tuesday of o are
[13:33] we meet I think we're meeting October.
[13:34] Yes, we meet in October.
[13:35] » October or November. I think we meet in
[13:36] October because if we meet in before
[13:39] Chris Yeah. But we usually meet in
[13:41] October before the holiday um event. So
[13:45] » And when is the lighting event this
[13:46] year? November.
[13:47] » Uh it's o next meeting is going to be
[13:49] October 6th.
[13:50] » Okay.
[13:50] » And the first Thursday of November,
[13:53] which would be the tree lighting would
[13:55] be November 5th. Um we've already been
[13:57] in contact with the tree installer. they
[14:00] will be installing the week uh probably
[14:02] starting the 28th, 29th, and 30th of
[14:05] October. Um because we leave the first
[14:09] three days before the tree lighting as
[14:11] reserve days just in case the weather's
[14:13] bad. Um so Yep.
[14:18] » Okay. So, next meeting is October 6th.
[14:22] All right. Any agenda items for next
[14:24] meeting that anybody would like to put
[14:26] on the agenda?
[14:29] Hopefully by next month, um Rhett and
[14:34] Rhett has agreed to help me um call some
[14:37] of the building owners that are downtown
[14:39] that don't have lights on their
[14:40] buildings. Um we thought just going out
[14:43] and actually kind of talking to the
[14:46] individuals would be better than sending
[14:47] emails or that just get out there and
[14:49] start talking to them. So, um I've been
[14:52] in contact with the um Academy of Music,
[14:55] um with Chad Gaiman on the Saloon
[14:58] Royale. Um I talked to the executive
[15:01] director of Seed of Hope. Um she has
[15:03] agreed to do the lights already. So, I
[15:06] think that just getting out and talking
[15:08] would be better than the other way of of
[15:10] just waiting. So, um I'm going to be
[15:13] leaving this afternoon. So Rhett is
[15:15] going to try to reach out to some of the
[15:16] people and then hopefully we'll have a
[15:18] um when I get back then I'll meet with
[15:20] Rhett and we'll try to get more of these
[15:22] people on board. So hopefully we'll have
[15:24] a nice report for you next time.
[15:29] Other than that, um I think that would
[15:32] be it. Then I guess we make a a motion
[15:35] to adjurnn.
[15:37] » So moved.
[15:38] » Second.
[15:40] » Second. Thank you. All right. Motion
[15:42] carries. Have a great day.