Oktoberfest, Fair Society and 40 years of Jay addressed
There will be a new village president in Webster this April, after longtime village leader Jeff Roberts announced that he would not seek a return to the chair.
Roberts has served the village for over 20 years as both village president and as a village trustee, with a brief break a decade ago, but this time he decided to step aside on his own terms.
“I just decided it’s time,” Roberts said with a shrug and a grin after the village board meeting last Wednesday, Jan. 11.
Roberts has several meetings left to chair, but one current board member, Trustee Bill Summer, has decided to step up and take the reins from Roberts, and his name will be on the April 4 election ballot.
The rest of the Webster ballot is also set now after the village caucuses last week, and little will change as all three incumbent trustees: Tim Maloney, Aaron Sears and Charlie Weis renewed their place on the ballot, giving them a full slate of trustees, at least until Summer is elected, at which point they will need to appoint someone to fill the remainder of Summers’ term, which runs until April 2024.
In other village business
• Trustee Bill Summer outlined the payback, so far, from the new solar array the village installed recently near the village water tower. He showed the returns on how much the array has reduced both the village costs on both one of their wastewater lift stations and one of the village’s wells, with each receiving just under $290 worth of solar electricity.
Summer said he checked with NOAA on how last year shaped up for sunlight, and found it was indeed, sunnier than normal.
“After a year of metering, I checked with NOAA, who are claiming that the Upper Midwest got 22 % more sunlight in 2022 than the average, which we ca blame on climate change,” Summer said.
• Traci Hopkins of the Central Burnett County Fair Association gave a report and update, noting the 2023 version of the Fair will take place on Sept. 22-24.
Hopkins noted grandstand improvements, how weather affected sales and how they are putting more emphasis on grandstand events, which she said were “coming along really well, compared to what we used to have.”
• There was some talk about the Oktoberfest celebration, which will move from Danbury to Webster this summer on August 19 at the Fairgrounds. However, the event will not be run by the Danbury Lions, which have dissolved, and the Webster Lions are also unable to assist, as they have several events pressing at around that time.
“The (Webster) Lion’s Club was going to do it, but we crunched the numbers and realized we couldn’t,” stated trustee and Lion member Charlie Weis.
There are several people looking to assist with an Oktoberfest event, regardless, and the village is hoping the details will soon be set, so the planning and the like can move ahead.
• The board spent quite a bit of time debating and discussing setting the rental rates for village properties, from the community center to the fairgrounds and the various buildings and even the grandstand. In the end, they agreed to adjust most of the rates up, and will release the final spreadsheet for costs soon.
The changes also reflect new details on waivers of liability, as well as deposits requirements for every rental.
“Anyone renting village property will need to sign a hold-harmless agreement,” stated trustee Tim Maloney.
• The new village office/police department on Main Street is nearly ready for use and occupation, with just a few furniture and wiring issues to be finished. The village plans on holding their first public meeting at the facility on Monday, Jan. 23, when they host a Public Property Committee meeting.
• Longtime Webster Public Works director Jay Heyer was the man of the hour, as the village celebrated his 40 years of working for the village with a party and a custom cake.
“Thanks for all your dedicated, hard work as a public works director,” Village President Jeff Roberts said. “We really appreciate all you’ve done for us over the years.”
Heyer smiled and quietly thanked the board and village.
“It’s really been great,” Heyer said. “Lots of good people in the village and working with you guys has been great.”
Heyer first began working for Webster in December 1982, and plans on retiring later this year, if they let him, Roberts joked.
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