Votes at a glance: Richland County Board actions on Sept. 16 — rezoning, appointments, Pine Valley, contracts, grants and staffing changes

The Richland County Board of Supervisors on Sept. 16 considered and approved a series of ordinances and resolutions. Below is a concise summary of each formal action taken, the motion outcome and key details drawn from the meeting record.

Votes at a glance

- Rezoning (Parcel 012-2044-3000) — Ordinance No. 2521 (amendment 629 to chapter 119): Rezone a two-acre parcel from industrial to residential. Motion to adopt passed by voice vote; no petitions were reported against the change.

- Committee on Committees election (item 9): Secret ballot produced a winner recorded in the minutes as "Supervisor Berries" (transcript text). The board then proceeded to appointment votes at-large.

- Appointments to boards/committees (item 10): The board approved a slate of committee appointments submitted by the administrator and committee on committees. An amendment was offered to replace Randy Scoot with Elaine Hendrix as Pine Valley representative; the amendment passed (vote recorded as 8 yes, 7 no) and the amended list was adopted.

- Initial resolution to issue general obligation promissory notes up to $1,085,000 (item 15, Res. 25-68): Adopted; staff will solicit bids and return an award resolution for Oct. 20, 2025.

- Municipal advisor agreement (item 16, Res. 25-69): Approved; Wisconsin Public Finance Professionals LLC will advise on the bond/notes sale.

- Engagement of bond counsel (item 17, Res. 25-70): Approved; scope of engagement with Corals & Brady adopted.

- Radio tower change order (item 18, Res. 25-71): Change Order No. 2 for $251,701 approved to address site changes requiring a retaining wall and related work; staff to provide detailed cost breakout for retaining-wall line item.

- Ambulance services (item 19, Res. 25-72): Board repealed the 2014 resolution governing ambulance oversight, moved from a memorandum to a contract approach, set $2.25 per dispatch with a $2,500 minimum municipal payment and amended language to apply when an ambulance is dispatched; directed staff to draft a contract and circulate to municipalities for acceptance by Nov. 1.

- SIMON intergovernmental agreement (item 20, Res. 25-73): Approved updated intergovernmental agreement with an explicit 2026 sunset and direction to commence renegotiation discussions no later than July 1, 2026.

- Amendments to Appendix A (committees and boards) (item 21, Res. 25-74): Adopted language cleanup and composition updates for standing and advisory boards; included statutory references and removed a committee no longer funded by the county.

- Holiday policy changes (item 22, Res. 25-75): Adopted changes to harmonize holidays across county staff to 12 holidays, with implementation and subsequent union negotiations noted.

- Provider contract amendments and contracts for Health & Human Services (items 23-24, Res. 25-76 and 25-77): Approved multiple contract amendments for placements and new provider contracts for 2025 to cover unplanned placements and ensure service continuity.

- Treatment Alternatives and Diversion (TAD/TAB) grant (item 25, Res. 25-78): Approved application and acceptance of grant funds totaling $177,333 with a required match of $43,333 (about $36,351 in in-kind) to support treatment court programs.

- Pine Valley personnel and pay resolutions (items 26-27, Res. 25-79 and 25-80): Approved staff addendum changes (effective Sept. 16) aligning time and leave policies with county handbook and approved new private-pay rates for Pine Valley: assisted-living rates +$96 per month and skilled side +$10 per day.

- Sale of sheriff's vehicles (item 28, Res. 25-81): Board amended and approved a resolution directing proceeds from sale of sheriff vehicles to be placed in Fund 170 (new sheriff car fund); amendment clarified proceeds go into Fund 170 when vehicles are sold rather than automatically sold if departments can reuse vehicles.

- Transfer of funds from Fund 980 to Fund 320 (item 29, Res. 25-82): Approved a transfer of $148,556.70 from Fund 980 (proceeds from prior East Hall sale) to Fund 320 (campus fund) to cover campus-related expenses.

- Pregnant Workers Fairness Act policy (item 30, Res. 25-83): Adopted a county policy implementing state law expectations for pregnant workers.

- Designate county clerk as backup county administrator (item 31, Res. 25-84): Approved designation of the county clerk to serve as backup administrator for emergency or short-notice needs; board discussed scope and documentation.

- Plow truck body build bid award (item 32, Res. 25-85): Board accepted a bid from Universal Truck Equipment to build a plow truck body totaling $198,856; public works explained the two-step chassis-plus-build process and timeline for delivery (expected late 2026).

- Closed session and post-closed-session motion (items 34 and 36): Board entered closed session for deliberations on campus property negotiations under state law; on return to open session the board approved continued negotiations with the other party contingent on approval and public disclosure of said negotiations.

Ending: The board approved the slate of resolutions and instructed staff on a series of implementation tasks, including drafting the ambulance contract, providing additional cost detail on the radio-tower change order, preparing bond sale documents and continuing negotiations on campus use under the direction noted in closed session.