Committee Members Present: Borleske (new member), Carlson, Dalhoff, Davis, Gerdman, Godfriaux-Leystra, Knight, Kriegl, Lanter, Ladas, Lehman, Murray, Olson, Robkin, Wenzel, and White.
Others Present: Steward, Tremble, Vondra, Wenzel, Scott Alexander, Sauk County Board of Supervisors, and Sharon and Warren Terry, Town of Baraboo.
The meeting convened at 6:35 p.m. Mark Steward, Planning and Zoning Director, asked members to review the agenda. Steward noted that the date for the next Steering Committee is incorrect and should be changed to read August 27, 2008. Members approved the revised agenda by consensus.
Steward asked members to review the minutes from the June meeting. Members approved the minutes as written, by consensus.
Sharon Terry addressed the Committee with comments regarding mineral extraction, and asked for careful consideration of policies related to mineral extraction. Warren Terry followed with a request that in the future the Steering Committee post notice of cancellations of its meetings. Mr. Terry also pointed out a lead article in a recent The Country Today newspaper titled “Rocky Issue” about a local land use dispute centering on siting quarries. Steward distributed photocopies of the article to members.
None
Steward distributed mileage and per/diem vouchers for members to fill out and submit for reimbursement.
Ben Vondra briefed members on updates the County Profile, which was first distributed in June. Changes recommended at that time have been incorporated, and the web-site version also corrected.
Jenny Erickson led the Committee through a discussion of the Value concept Statements
Drafted by teams of Committee members. She first clarified a definition of the term “Value) as “something that we hold important, that will help us make decisions.” Most of the draft statements were printed on large sheets and mounted on the wall, or (for the longer statements, on 8.5 x 11 paper). Members read each statement, and team members offered some explanation of the intended meaning. Members identified the statements they were ready to approve, those that were close to being complete, and those that need more intensive editing. Of nine statements reviewed, two were adopted by consensus (“Sustainability” and “Diversity”). Members agreed by consensus to “hold” action on the “Quality of Life” statement. Suggestions included mentioning family, connections to history, and rural character in this statement. The remainder of the draft statements was sent back after discussion for reworking. The following volunteered to edit these drafts:
Member’s re-drafts should be forwarded to Brian Simmert or Mark Steward by August 13.
Tremble distributed copies of the draft Sauk County Inventory of Relevant Plans, and spent a few moments covering the major elements. Members were asked to review the draft before the August meeting.
Erickson reviewed the current status of the planning process, referring to the process timeline included in the Public Participation Plan.
She then briefed the members on the proposed Issue Identification Survey, which is intended to gather input from community leaders on a series of short open-ended questions, to begin the process of focusing the Committees attention of critical community issues. The survey will be distributed by email using the Zoomerang survey program. Erickson distributed a draft list of recipients, with email addresses, and asked members to review and add to the list as they feel necessary, or to make corrections to names and addresses. Members discussed the proposed questions. In the end, they agreed to add one question asking if participants have any additional comments. Members also decided that the survey should be distributed to area libraries for participation by the general public, and that a media invitation to participate in the survey be offered to the general public.
Erickson asked that members’ additions and corrections to the email list be forwarded to Lynn Zick at the UWEX office during the week of August 4th.
Steward discussed committee membership, taking a moment to introduce Irv Borleski, a new member taking the place of Ron Churchill. He mentioned that Ed Brooks remains a committee member, although he will miss the upcoming meetings due to his commitment to run for a state assembly seat. Steward also mentioned that Marty Krueger, Sauk County Board Chair, will send a letter to Ho Chunk Nation President Wilfrid Cleveland requesting that he appoint a delegate to represent the Nation on the Steering Committee.
Steward updated members on the status of the website, especially with regard to their participation in the blogging and discussion forum features. He said the Executive and Legislative Committee of the County Board will have an opportunity to review the website and discuss the public participation aspects at its August meeting.
Steward asked for feed back from the members regarding the planning process so far, e.g. “how is it working?” A couple of members have problems with the Committee schedule. Future meeting locations and their length was discussed. Members asked to have the Committee groundrules posted.
Mark Steward asked members to identify agenda items for the August meeting. Items include:
Steward also members to identify alternative November and December calendar dates. November 19th and December 17th were suggested as possible alternatives.
Scott Alexander suggested having local newspapers print the Issue Identification Survey.
The next meeting is set for August 27th. Members are assigned work to edit the Value Statements, and to suggest changes to the email list for the Issue Identification Survey.
The meeting adjourned at 9:17 p.m.
Respectfully submitted: Mark Steward