Dr. Rick Spicuzza, Superintendent of Prescott Public Schools, and Mike Matzek, Board Chair of the Prescott School Board, attended the Oct. 14 Prescott City Council meeting to share information on the upcoming referendum Nov. 5.

“Every district receives a different amount of money for the students that walk through their building. Prescott is at the lower end of that distribution,” Spicuzza stated, referring to districts in Wisconsin. He added that Prescott is $74 above per pupil than the lowest funded school in the state. He explained that public education funding used to keep pace with inflation, but that has since been decoupled. Key budget items include staff, curriculum, technology, transportation, operations, and maintenance. Since 2010, resources for schools have been shrinking year after year, forcing school districts to trim costs by deferring school maintenance, cutting programs, and reducing school staff. Many districts are now turning to their communities to fill the funding gap left by the state.

Matzek said after the April referendum failed by just 12 votes, they worked to reduce the operating budget in order to achieve a balanced budget for the upcoming school year. Some of the items eliminated or reduced included cutting seven teaching positions from Kindergarten through fifth grade, resulting in class sizes at or slightly above the targeted maximum. Various programs were also cut and busing within town was eliminated. An open middle school choir position was absorbed by the 6-12 grade Music Department while several high school level courses were reduced. Additionally, athletic C-Team schedules were trimmed, the theater budget was reduced, and departmental budgets and supplies faced cuts of 10-15%.

“That got us into a balanced budget,” admitted Matzek. “Coming into the school year, Prescott is operating on a balanced budget.”

He said state funding for the last nine years, for Prescott in particular, has been less than 1% a year.

“We’re asking for $1.2 million in November here,” he continued.

After numerous meetings, the Prescott School Board identified key priorities, naming staff compensation to stay competitive with neighboring districts, educational programming, reinstating athletics and extracurricular programming, and operational expenses.

“We want to try to bring back, fill some of the gaps that were cut from the unsuccessful referendum back in April.” He added, “We think with this ask we can get all of that back if it’s successful.”

Spicuzza stated if the referendum is unsuccessful then Prescott Public Schools would be forced to cut about $500,000 to $750,000 from next year’s budget, likely resulting in increased fees for students, deeper cuts for athletics, arts, and extracurricular programs, larger class sizes, further reduction of staff, and ultimately, considering consolidation from the current four instructional buildings to three. If the referendum passed, the estimated tax impact to taxpayers would be an increase of $4 per $100,000 in property value, with an approximate mill rate of 7.74.

“We’re top of the line academically across all of our competitors and to do that on a shrinking budget over the course of the last decade, I think it speaks for itself,” Matzek said. 

Spicuzza echoed this sentiment, emphasizing that their primary goal is to support students’ academic, social, and emotional learning.

WESTconsin

With alderpersons Lindsey Sorenson and Mike Gerke absent, the council approved the site plan review for WESTconsin Credit Union at 1430 North Acres Road.

“It’s a beautiful building. It’s going to be great,” commented Alderperson Dar Hintz with Alderperson Maureen Otwell echoing her agreement.

Tara Buechner, Regional Vice President at WESTconsin Credit Union, said they have been in their current building since August 2007.

“We just want to continue our service to the community and to our members,” she said, highlighting member experience and their dedication to financial literacy for both their members and the school system. “We look forward to many more years and we’re excited to have your approval,” she concluded.

Bike Pedestrian Planning Study

The engineering services contract between the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, City of Prescott and Cedar Corporation for a Bike-Pedestrian Planning Study for US Highway 10 and State Highway 29/35 for $227,632 was approved.

“This is part of the TAP Grant that we got so up to $194,000 of this would be covered by the State of Wisconsin Department of Transportation Alternative Program,” said City Administrator Matt Wolf.

He said the City of Prescott would be responsible for up to 20% of that which comes to $45,526 to be included in this year’s budget.

After receiving proposals for assessment services from Prochnow Assessing and Accurate Appraisal, the Prescott Council approved an agreement for assessment services by Accurate Appraisal, LLC for the City of Prescott at $22,200 per year. “This would see us have maintenance years for 2025 through 2027,” Wolf explained, mentioning that a market interim update would be completed in 2028.

Boat launch ordinance

The council heard from Wolf regarding Ordinance 07-24 concerning boat launching regulations.

“Since that time, we have not had any comments from the public about the reading,” said Wolf.

He stated that since there have not been any comments or any suggestions, they are recommending that council approve the overall ordinance and not move it to a third reading. The ordinance added, “The parking lot at the Prescott boat launch shall be designated and marked only for vehicles that have trailers attached for launching at the Boat Launch. Any vehicle parked in the designated area without a trailer shall be in violation.”

With no opposition, the council approved Ordinance 07-24, an Ordinance to Amend and Additions to City Ordinance, Chapter 421-7 Boat Launching Regulations.

The council also approved Ordinance 08-24, an Ordinance to Amend and Additions to City Ordinance, Chapter 545-15 Stopping or Parking Prohibited in Certain Specified Places. They approved the addition of F. Prohibited parking which states, “It shall be prohibited for any vehicle, trailer, motorcycle, golf cart, ATV or any other motorized machine of any kind to park in a manner that is inconsistent with the posted signs or marked parking regulations within any City right of way, parking lot or street.”

Compost site

Wolf shared that since the implementation of the new compost system and the addition of security cameras, city staff have become aware of violations occurring at the compost site, including individuals disposing of prohibited types of waste and companies dumping large amounts of waste that the site cannot handle. In order for the city to be able to enforce the compost site rules effectively and penalize those who disregard them, they recommended that council approve the additions to Ordinance 09-24, an Ordinance to Amend and Additions City Ordinance, Chapter 329-9 Compost dumping to a first reading.

The council approved the first reading with the additions that state, “The City of Prescott compost area is open to residents of Prescott and adjacent communities, but use is restricted to individuals who have obtained an annual permit. Permits are required for all users and are subject to an annual fee set by the City. The permit allows the disposal of organic waste as defined and limited by Section 329-8 and Section C of this ordinance. All users must present a valid permit, authorized by the City, to gain access to the compost site.” Also, “C. Only yard, garden, and kitchen waste (defined in Ordinance 329-8) can be dropped off at the compost site. Tree limbs will be accepted if no larger than 6" in diameter. Larger tree trunks and root balls of any size are not accepted. Other wood items (consumer products) of any kind are not accepted. D. Commercial entities including but not limited to landscaping companies, agricultural operations, and any business or organization that generates organic waste as part of its business operations, are strictly prohibited from disposing of materials at the City compost site.”

Other business

The Council approved Resolution 43-24 to support the 2024 Scenic Byways Grant Application and Project. Wolf explained that while the council is not approving funding for the project at this time, they are demonstrating that the city takes it seriously and would move forward with the project if the grant is approved.