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EM resident wants siren lot back for $1

ELK MOUND — An Elk Mound resident says she was promised that she and her husband could buy back a 33-foot by 60-foot parcel for $1 when the village no longer needed it for a warning siren.

Lisa Hassemer appeared before the Elk Mound Village Board at the August 1 meeting to talk about the lot.

The Hassemers moved to Elk Mound 17 years ago and have had the warning siren in their backyard until this year when a new siren was installed by the new village hall.

“It’s nice not to hear it anymore. We would like it removed,” Hassemer told the village board.

Hassemer said that when they purchased the property, they were promised they could buy back the 1,900 square feet where the siren is located for $1.

Andy Peterson, village president, said the village would need to research any agreements that may have been made with the Hassemers and previous residents of the home.

The warning siren was installed in that location in the 1950s.

Hassemer said she wanted to plant a garden in the space occupied by the warning siren.

“We need to research and then have a meeting with the property owners,” Peterson said.

Village Trustee Kelly Droege wondered if the agreement with the Hassemers was in writing.

“It was a verbal agreement,” Hassemer said, although she did not elaborate on who had made the agreement.

Pat Hahn, village clerk-treasurer, and Terry Stamm, public works director, were both employed by the village at the time the Hassemers purchased their property but neither could recall anything specific about an agreement for the siren lot.

“We will have to see what we can find, and then we will have you come back (to the village board),” Peterson said.

Randy Bartelt, Elk Mound police chief, noted that the old warning siren was very loud.<

If the siren needed to be manually activated for some reason, it was best to “get back in your vehicle right away and make sure the windows are rolled up,” he said.

Other business

In other business, the Elk Mound Village Board:

• Approved purchasing a trailer for the public works department at a cost not to exceed $1,025.

• Learned that three new barbecue grills had been installed at the Lions Club park at a total cost of $170. The Lions Club donated two of the grills and the labor to install the grills.

• Approved putting up for sale Truck No. 3, a 1995 GMC, for a minimum bid of $750..