Finance committee accepts community donations for parks programs and adopts emergency measures for rain/flood repairs

The West Bend finance committee on Monday approved a package of donations to the Parks, Recreation & Forestry Department and adopted a resolution to streamline recovery from recent heavy rains and flooding.

Donations accepted

City staff presented a list of monetary and in-kind donations the committee accepted by voice vote. Highlights included:

• $5,000 from Westbury Bank Charitable Foundation toward Beach House renovations (described as the fifth and final installment of a $25,000 pledge). • $1,250 from Synergy Ops to sponsor the 2025 Dirty Ninja mud run for kids. • $1,650 from Gears Incorporated (proceeds from a May Beach House beer garden). • $400 from West Bend Disc Golf Club for Riverside Park Disc Golf Course. • $5,100 from West Bend Friends of Parks and Recreation for youth recreation program and staff T‑shirts. • In-kind and smaller donations supporting the Dirty Ninja mud run (PLM water bottles valued at $1,500, Sundex event bags $250, Sarah Graff $250 for printing signage, West Bend Friends of Parks & Rec in-kind valued at $4,000 to help provide meals).

Staff thanked donors and noted that donations and volunteer work help support programs and facilities.

Resolution 28 — rain/flood emergency response

The committee then considered Resolution No. 28 addressing permit and emergency-response provisions after recent rain and flooding. City staff member Ian explained the resolution contains two primary elements:

• Permit-fee relief tied to storm damage repairs: fee waivers apply only to work that had been previously permitted; the city had already waived late-permit fees and double-penalty damages as discretionary relief. Permit applications must be submitted on or before March 1 (next year) to qualify for the fee-waiver provisions.

• A general declaration of emergency and reporting requirements: staff added a declaration of emergency to ensure city eligibility for any available reimbursement funds. Residents must report damage via the county 211 system or the city’s reported survey process ("Survey 123") and damage needs to be reported by August 29 to be included in initial damage tallies; staff retained discretion to address damage discovered later in the year if circumstances warrant.

Committee members asked that the city publicize the permitting/fee-waiver program and staff agreed to coordinate with communications to notify the public.

Actions

• Motion to accept the donations list — moved and seconded; vote carried by voice vote.

• Motion to approve Resolution No. 28 (rain/flood emergency response) — moved and seconded; vote carried by voice vote.

Provenance

topicintro (donations): "Our next item is resolution number 27 to accept donations to the parks, recreation, and forestry department. Welcome, Mike." (Finance Committee)

topicfinish (resolution): "There being none, all those in favor, signal by saying aye. Aye. Any opposed? That motion carries." (resolution vote)

Speakers

• Mike (Mike Faulkner) — representing Roots and Branches for the donations presentation (identified in the transcript as Roots and Branches presenter) • Ian — city staff (presented Resolution No. 28 and explained reporting/fee-waiver provisions) • Alderman Sizer, Alderman Butchlich, Alderman Bergquist — committee members who participated in motions and discussion

Clarifying details

[{"category":"donation","detail":"Westbury Bank Charitable Foundation fifth installment towards Beach House renovations","value":5000,"units":"USD","approximate":false,"source_speaker":"Mike"},{"category":"donation","detail":"Synergy Ops sponsorship for Dirty Ninja mud run","value":1250,"units":"USD","approximate":false,"source_speaker":"Mike"},{"category":"grant-procedure","detail":"Damage must be reported via 211 or "Survey 123" by August 29 to be included in initial tallies for emergency assistance; permit applications to be submitted on or before March 1 to qualify for fee waivers","source_speaker":"Ian"},{"category":"fee_policy","detail":"Permit fees waived only for work that was previously permitted; late fees and double damages already waived at staff discretion","source_speaker":"Ian"}]

Proper_names

[{"name":"Westbury Bank Charitable Foundation","type":"organization"},{"name":"West Bend Friends of Parks and Recreation","type":"organization"},{"name":"Dirty Ninja mud run","type":"event"},{"name":"Survey 123","type":"program"}]

Community_relevance

geographies:["West Bend City"], funding_sources:["private donations","in-kind sponsorships"], impact_groups:["youth recreation participants","park users","residents affected by flooding"]

meeting_context

engagement_level:{"speakers_count":6,"duration_minutes":70,"items_count":2}, implementation_risk:"low to medium", history:[]

searchable_tags:["donations","parks-and-rec","flood-response","permit-fees"]

salience:{"overall":0.48,"overall_justification":"Local program funding and procedural emergency-response policy that affects residents needing storm-damage repairs.","impact_scope":"local","impact_scope_justification":"Directly affects those repairing damaged property and users of city parks."}

provenance:{"transcript_segments":[{"block_id":"395.935","local_start":0,"local_end":160,"evidence_excerpt":"This evening, we have a very impressive list of community donations... The first donation of $5,000 is donated by Westbury Bank Charitable Foundation for the regular Beach House renovations.","tc_start":"00:06:35","tc_end":"00:07:20","reason_code":"topicintro"},{"block_id":"597.735","local_start":0,"local_end":200,"evidence_excerpt":"Our third agenda item this evening is resolution number 28 addressing rain and flood emergency response. Ian, I'll turn it over to you.","tc_start":"00:09:57","tc_end":"00:10:40","reason_code":"topicfinish"}] },