DANIEL J. FEDDERLY
TOWN OF SHERMAN — Daniel J. Fedderly has been chair of the Town of Sherman for more than 20 years and is running for re-election in the April 2 election.
Fedderly, age 59, and his wife, Julie, have two daughters, Morgan and Ashley.
The Tribune Press Reporter sent out a questionnaire to Fedderly, and here are his answers:
• What is your occupation? — Self employed engineer and land surveyor; D.J. Fedderly Management Consultant LLC; owner and operator of The Raw Deal LLC in Menomonie; executive director for the Wisconsin County Highway Association representing all county highway commissioners and elected county highway committee members in Wisconsin.
• What is your educational background? — Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Computer Science from Mount Senario College in Ladysmith.
• What experience do you have as an elected official? — Town board chairman in the Town of Sherman for over 20 years; eight years as Dunn County supervisor for our district in the Town of Sherman; over 25 years on the National Association of Counties transportation steering committee; over 15 years as the chairman and vice chairman of the National Association of Counties Highway/Highway Safety Sub Committee; 10 years as the chairman of the National Association of County Engineers Legislative Committee.
• Why did you decide to run for town chair again? — I believe that the Town of Sherman has maintained a valued and important culture that the residents support and desire. This culture is what we, as a town board, have been told by the residents on a regular basis over the years is an important element for the town board to maintain and preserve. This culture, in simple terms , is preserving the “Rural Character of the Town of Sherman.” This is what has made the town attractive for people to move to, yet we have been able to honor the past and the town’s heritage in doing so. I believe it is important to continue the efforts we have put forth for the last several years going into the future as the town faces new challenges, and experience is going to be critical in maintaining the rural character of the Town of Sherman while preserving the culture that makes the Town of Sherman attractive to new residents.
• What makes you particularly suited to continue serving on the town board? — I recognize the importance of responsibility and the responsible exercise of individual rights, so that all residents in the Town of Sherman are represented equally and fairly. I am involved in government at all levels and can use that experience and the opportunities that exposure offers to the benefit of all the residents in the Town of Sherman.
• What do you believe are the biggest challenges facing your township? — By far, the biggest challenges will be funding in relation to the needs in the town. The Town of Sherman will be facing several large expenditures in the next few years and with limited funding, the ability to continue to make ends meet will present significant challenges. This combined with the current and ongoing need to maintain a strong fiscal responsibility that resulted in an average 10 percent reduction in the town’s share of everyone’s recent property tax bills will be critical to not having to either raise taxes significantly in the next few years or virtually eliminate the day to day services of the town, including keeping up on our road maintenance.
• What do you hope to accomplish by continuing to serve as chair of the Town of Sherman? — I hope to offer the experience and responsible administration of our town government to first ensure that the rural character of the Town of Sherman is maintained, and second, that we can continue the fiscal responsibility that we have maintained over the years that has allowed the town to build a new shop, a new town hall, pay off the town road equipment and continue cost effective and innovative road improvements all with zero debt, and all to the benefit of all town taxpayers.
• Other comments? — I encourage all the town’s residents to exercise your rights by voting on April 2nd and ask for your support to continue with the responsible administration of our town government to maintain the Town of Sherman that we all enjoy and support.
