City buys computers for elected officials
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Responding to an editorial that appeared in the Tribune Press Reporter a couple of months ago suggesting that elected officials should not be using their own computers for officials business and then bring their computer to the public meetings.
The idea is that an elected official’s private information is on computers they own and that information should not be shared with the public. In Wisconsin records that public officials obtain while in office needs to be passed down to the next person that may take that seat on an official board. With information on private computers that makes passing on official information difficult.
With that idea in mind, a couple of months ago, Mayor John Larson suggested that the city look into city owned computers for elected officials and asked City Clerk/Treasurer Sharon Rosenow to get information for the members of the City Council to ponder.
Rosenow presented a proposal from Sunnylink Systems out of Somerset for a lap top computer at a price of $539.00 each. After some discussion the Council approved purchasing one for each of the seven members of the City Council.
The Council also pondered the work being done to remove the old school building along East Oak Street. Apparently the contract for demolition with Albrightson Excavating did not address the retaining wall that abuts Oak Street and there is an optic line underground along the street that prevents further work on the site. The Council learned that replacement of that optic line might not happen until next year. Lynn McIntyre of Cedar Corporation was asked to find out more information for the Council, on the work, so the site work can be completed. The Council did approve the first payment to Albrightson for $138,697.63 for the demolition work that has been done.
In other meeting notes of the Council meeting of May 16th, it was learned from Police Chief Robert Darwin that Police Officer Justin Malean’s last day in Glenwood City was May 16th.
The council heard from Librarian Rochel Karlson about the activities at the new library and they had about 700 walk-ins last month and issued eleven new library cards, and the summer reading program will start on June 6th.
The Council also heard from Anna Mewis about a $250 grant that was received and will be used to plant flowers and shrubs in three locations in the city.
In other city business, approval was given for a contract with Cedar Corporation to apply for a grant to address the needed repairs on 320th Street. That street is located to the west of the school. They also approved a new safe zone restricted to Sex Offenders map. Chief Darwin explained that the old map listed a couple of location where children were present that no longer exist and that the library is in a new location so that data had to be updated.
Approval was given to the following for operator’s licenses: Morgan E. Gedatus, Emily A. Rutske, Dana J. DeSmith, and Thomas E. Moe.
Before the meeting, Mayor Larson had the results of a survey of water and sewer billings in St. Croix and Pierce counties. Glenwood City’s rate for quartering billing for those utilities was the lowest of the nine communities in the survey. Glenwood City’s quarter billing for water and sewer is $95.85 while the Village of Roberts was listed as the highest in the survey at $201.50.