Town of Brooklyn
In the Town of Brooklyn, Rob Bartle and Rex Tilley are running for Supervisor 2. Incumbent Russell Cichy is unopposed for treasurer. Garth Langhammer, the incumbent, is unchallenged for chairman. Incumbent Jeff McNeely is running for Supervisor 1, while incumbent Amy Ross is unopposed for clerk.
Position sought: Town of Brooklyn chairperson
Age: 49
City/town of residence: Town of Brooklyn
Family: Wife and two children
Education: Attended UW Madison 3 years
Occupation: Property owner/management
Previous elected positions held: 2 years town of Brooklyn chairperson, 3 years Belleville school board
What are the top issues facing this district/municipality and how would you work to resolve it?
Clearly, the funding for our rural road system is one of the top issues facing many municipalities. The burden of paying for the necessary reconstruction has fallen directly on the residents. Regular sources of tax monies that served to pay for the roads in the past are simply insufficient to keep them maintained at a reasonable cost. It is not enough to just perform maintenance on every road. You need to rebuild a road at the end of its usable lifespan. Our residents have made it clear that they do not wish to fall behind and allow the road system to cost more to maintain in the future. We currently maintain the roads through chip sealing, ditch clearing, and wedging. We also perform road reconstruction projects that include culvert replacement. There is no permanent resolution to the problem unless state and federal funding increases. The cost differential has been picked up by our residents over the last few years knowing that if we do not act now the larger burden will be passed on to our next generation.
What are other key issues facing the district/municipality, and how would you work to resolve them?
The need to properly fund fire/EMS is also problematic. The need to properly staff is critical and is directly related to the funding problem. Until recently, Brooklyn EMS was 100% volunteer 24/7. The number of volunteers across the country is down and in rural areas, way down. I served as an EMT in Brooklyn for 12 years and Belleville's fire EMS commission for 10+ years, so I am acutely aware of the needs. The district has had to hire 2 EMT's for 8 hour daily shifts during the week to cover those hard to fill time slots. We take it for granted how much real money the volunteer EMT's and firefighters save their communities. There are things that can be done to make it easier to retain and recruit volunteers. Make sure that their facilities, buildings, equipment is properly funded. Make it easier to train them by having more days, hours, and locations of training facilities. Allow trainers to come to the municipality for training. Local businesses allowing volunteers stay on call during the day. Volunteers are our neighbors and friends who live among us and come to our aid at all times possible.
Age: 49
City/town of residence: Town of Brooklyn
Family: Wife and two children
Education: Attended UW Madison 3 years
Occupation: Property owner/management
Previous elected positions held: 2 years town of Brooklyn chairperson, 3 years Belleville school board
What are the top issues facing this district/municipality and how would you work to resolve it?
Clearly, the funding for our rural road system is one of the top issues facing many municipalities. The burden of paying for the necessary reconstruction has fallen directly on the residents. Regular sources of tax monies that served to pay for the roads in the past are simply insufficient to keep them maintained at a reasonable cost. It is not enough to just perform maintenance on every road. You need to rebuild a road at the end of its usable lifespan. Our residents have made it clear that they do not wish to fall behind and allow the road system to cost more to maintain in the future. We currently maintain the roads through chip sealing, ditch clearing, and wedging. We also perform road reconstruction projects that include culvert replacement. There is no permanent resolution to the problem unless state and federal funding increases. The cost differential has been picked up by our residents over the last few years knowing that if we do not act now the larger burden will be passed on to our next generation.
What are other key issues facing the district/municipality, and how would you work to resolve them?
The need to properly fund fire/EMS is also problematic. The need to properly staff is critical and is directly related to the funding problem. Until recently, Brooklyn EMS was 100% volunteer 24/7. The number of volunteers across the country is down and in rural areas, way down. I served as an EMT in Brooklyn for 12 years and Belleville's fire EMS commission for 10+ years, so I am acutely aware of the needs. The district has had to hire 2 EMT's for 8 hour daily shifts during the week to cover those hard to fill time slots. We take it for granted how much real money the volunteer EMT's and firefighters save their communities. There are things that can be done to make it easier to retain and recruit volunteers. Make sure that their facilities, buildings, equipment is properly funded. Make it easier to train them by having more days, hours, and locations of training facilities. Allow trainers to come to the municipality for training. Local businesses allowing volunteers stay on call during the day. Volunteers are our neighbors and friends who live among us and come to our aid at all times possible.