Cross Plains committee approves EMS report, readies public outreach on Option 1

The Village of Cross Plains Finance Advisory and Enhancement Committee approved the Cross Plains Area EMS review and financial analysis with specified edits and agreed to begin community outreach focused on the report's Option 1 proposal.

The committee's vote to forward the revised EMS document to the Village Board passed after a motion and second; the committee chair said the report will be presented to the board at the end of the month and to the Public Safety Committee in August to start community discussion and question-and-answer sessions.

Committee members said the report's financial scenarios show different revenue and cost outcomes depending on whether townships remain in a shared-service arrangement. One scenario presented in the report showed a net of $485,001.63 if all parties remain; a different scenario projecting full payment by the village produced a notably lower total driven by decreased ambulance revenue and changes in fee assumptions. The committee asked staff to be prepared to explain those assumptions in plain language during public outreach.

Members reviewed a companion slide deck intended for community meetings and township briefings. The slide deck is focused on Option 1, is about 10–11 slides long, and is designed to be adaptable (a 10–15 minute summary for township meetings or a longer 45-minute presentation for a community meeting). Committee members asked that one graphic labeled “Figure 5” be removed and that a period be added to one sentence on page 12; staff confirmed those edits would be made before forwarding the packet.

Committee discussion also described operational context: the EMS provider has moved partly from a volunteer model toward paid staffing over recent years, increasing operating costs; committee notes identified roughly four full-time staff, an additional set of paid hours (discussed as about 15 full-time–equivalent roles in the narrative), and about 25 volunteers (figures discussed as committee recollection and flagged for confirmation in the report). Members discussed a community EMS model (preventive and post-hospital services) as a potential complementary approach to traditional emergency response, noting it would require time to build relationships with social-service partners and would change staffing patterns.

Committee members agreed to share the deck with the Village Board as a courtesy so board members are aware of the outreach materials and to present the slide deck at the Public Safety Committee meeting (noted in the meeting as Aug. 19) and at township and community meetings. Staff were asked to collect suggested edits and to coordinate presenters so public presentations are consistent with the underlying report.

The committee made no final budget appropriation at the meeting; members discussed funding options the report outlines (increasing service area to reduce per-capita cost, referendum, incremental property-tax approaches, and use of impact fees) and emphasized that funding and implementation timing would be addressed in later board-level decisions.

The committee voted to forward the revised report to the Village Board for consideration and to proceed with the described outreach schedule.