Poll Opportunity: Village Seeks Citizen Input

As set by Wisconsin State Statute, the Village President and Board of Trustees are elected to two-year terms.  Recently the Village staff has been working with the Village Board, other communities and the Village Attorney to explore the possibility of changing the terms of office from two to three year terms for the Board of Trustees and the Village President. 

Of the approximate 402 Villages in the state of Wisconsin, there are roughly 15-20 Villages that have enacted charter ordinances to change terms of office from two to three year terms for their Boards.  Some of the communities that have initiated this change include (but not limited to) Ashwaubenon, Germantown, Suamico, Greenville, Whitefish Bay, Brown Deer and Menominee Falls. 

Generally, communities with three-year terms opt to have a 2-2-3 election cycle, so that two trustees are up for election each year and in the third year the Village President is also elected.  Under two-year terms, the Village of Little Chute Board is elected under a 3-4 election cycle, where the Village President is elected every other year.

Communities that elect their Board to three-year terms do so to allow newly elected Trustees more time to learn the issues and have a greater impact during their term.  In addition, three-year terms arguably allows for greater continuity in leading the community at the Board level.

The Village Board is looking for public input on this topic and would like your feedback.  If you clink the following link, you will be directed to take an interactive poll that will be used to inform the Village Board on this matter.  The poll can be found here:    https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/terms_for_Village_Board

Should you have any other questions or comments, just let us know.  Thank you.

Frozen Storm/Mini Storm Lines

Due to the severity of winter, the Department of Public Works is experiencing an over-whelming amount of frozen storm and mini storm sewer lines.  If you are experiencing issues with your sump pump, you will probably want to discharge your sump pump to your backyard.  Please keep in mind that it is illegal to run it to the sanitary sewer.  Also, please be respectful of your neighbors in positioning your discharge hose.  If you have any questions, please let us know.  Thanks.

Volunteer Needed for Downtown Farmers Market!

The Little Chute Business Association is looking for a volunteer to serve as the first Downtown Little Chute Farmers Market Manager. The manager will be responsible for the daily operations of the market on Thursday’s from mid-June through mid-September.  Non-market time hours are also required for marketing and other administrative duties.   Attendance at all general market meetings is suggested.  The Village of Little Chute will provide logistical and administrative support as needed (leading up to the market and during its operation, average hours would likely be 15 hours per week).

The market manager is the “go-to” person for vendors and customers during market hours and is the market representative on site. The job requires personal confidence and the ability to communicate with a variety of people. The market relies on the market manager to be its liaison with and between all parties served by the market, helping promote the market and keeping accurate weekly records of market activities. The manager understands both the vendors’ and the customers’ needs and implements strategies to meet those needs with the help of the Little Chute Business Association and the Village of Little Chute. 

Primary Responsibilities:

• The manager enforces the rules of the market.
• The manager is responsible for providing the vendors with pertinent information.
• The manager is responsible for keeping accurate weekly records of the market.
• The manager will manage any volunteers/interns who may be involved with the market.

If this opportunity is something that you are interested in, please get in touch with the James Fenlon no later than APRIL 1, 2014 at jfenlon@littlechutewi.org or at 920-788-7380.

We look forward to hearing from you!

2014 Summer & Fall Program Book

We have some great news!  Little Chute received several inches of snow the past couple of days, and there is more on the way this month.  That is great news for everyone who has been enjoying the village's two sledding hills, but for those who are looking forward to throwing something besides snow that is not great news.  They say that when March comes in like a lion, it should go out like a lamb.  Let's hope that saying is true.  Spring will be here soon, we promise!

Your Park and Recreation Department has been working tirelessly through this long winter to make this summer better than ever.  Some new and exciting programs have been added this year, like the Bricks 4 Kidz Program, Sports 60 Program, Creative Corner Program, and Water Rockets.  Your kids are going to love all the programs Little Chute has to offer.  The Doyle Park Pool will open this year on June 2.  The pool basin was sandblasted and repainted, and the new waterslide was finally installed.  We can't wait for opening day!

Little Chute residents/taxpayers should watch for the 2014 Summer & Fall Program Book in their mailbox this week.  The book cover this year is green and features a picture of the playground equipment that was installed at Van Lieshout Park last fall.  It's the first completely handicap accessible playground in our area with a rubber pour-in-place surface.  If you haven't had a chance to see the new brightly colored playground yet, we encourage you to check it out when the snow melts.

Little Chute residents/taxpayers can start to register for programs (excluding swim lessons) on Monday, March 10.  Registrations will be accepted on a first-come, first-serve walk-in or mail-in basis at the Park & Rec Department (1940 Buchanan St., Little Chute).  Our office is open weekdays from 8:00am to 4:30pm. and we can accept payments   by check or cash only.  Please register early as programs are limited in size. 

Non-residents can view Little Chute's 2014 Summer & Fall Program Book online at www.littlechutewi.org/recreation.  Non-residents who have children attending Little Chute schools will be allowed to sign up for programs starting Monday, April 7.  Other non-residents will be allowed to sign up for programs starting on Tuesday, April 8.  Please register early as programs are limited in size.

We are pleased to announce that there is no longer a $20 per family late fee charged to late registrants for our youth/adult programs and classes.  We still have deadlines for all our programs and classes because we need to do program schedules, order supplies, schedule needed staff, and make sure we meet program/class minimum requirements.  But this change should be a huge benefit to parents who have a child that decides after the deadline that they want to register for a program or class that their friend is in.  Registrations will only be accepted after the deadline if there is space available in the program/class or on one of the teams created.  We hope this new change will help even more people to enjoy the awesome programs we offer.  However, our special one-day youth events held on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons will continue to have a $3 per child late fee added if the registration is accepted after the deadline listed on the sign up form.

We are looking forward to a fantastic summer!  We will soon be in full swing with our whole staff back.  We can't wait to see everyone again.  If you will be registering your child for one of our youth baseball/softball teams this year, we are looking for outgoing parents who enjoy working with kids to help coach their child's team.  Please give it some thought when filling out your child's registration form.  Working together we make the strongest community for our kids.

As always, our staff is constantly striving to find new ways to improve our programs.  If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact the Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department at 788-7390.  We are looking forward to seeing everyone and kicking off the best summer ever!  Let's start thinking about warm weather, sunshine, and fun times!

- Donna Koebe
  Program Supervisor
  Little Chute Parks, Recreation & Forestry Dept.