Mayor's Community Update - 02/22/2019

Greetings! On Tuesday, February 12, the Common Council heard from a citizen requesting we consider enacting an urban chicken ordinance. More than 500 citizens signed the initial petition to bring this request before the council. As part of the presentation several ordinances from surrounding communities were identified. Staff is currently conducting an analysis of this issue and will bring results of their evaluation back to the council for further discussion in the near future. If you have an opinion on this issue, I ask that you contact your alderman to share your views.

Also at the February 12 meeting, the Council heard a presentation from a consultant from Carlson Dettmann that has been retained to conduct a compensation study for the city. It’s been more than fifteen years since the city has done this type of a study. Over that time, staff roles and responsibilities have changed and technology has transformed the way work is performed. Also, like most employers in the region, we are facing retirements within our ranks. Given the current workforce shortage, it is critical that we understand our compensation levels as compared to the marketplace to enhance about ability to attract and retain the right talent to deliver service excellence. This study will help us to ensure we have a compensation system that is objective, fair and equitable while helping us to understand how our compensation aligns with market rates. The study will evaluate all regular full- and part-time positions in the City not including seasonal, police union, and volunteer firefighter positions.

Around town, city staff will be holding a meeting with business owners who will be affected by the Madison Street construction project which is slated to begin this spring. That meeting is scheduled for Monday, February 25, at 5:30 at the City Hall and downtown business owners are encouraged to attend. Also, Waupun Fine Arts will be hosting an artist reception, featuring Michael Wiechmann, on Thursday, February 28, beginning at 5 p.m. on the second floor of the Waupun Public Library. I hope to see you around town!