Town of Bayview Regular Board Meeting

August 12, 2026

Meeting was called to order at 6:06 p.m. by Chair Don Jenicek.

Roll Call:  Chair Don Jenicek, present; Supervisor Mike Garnich, present; Supervisor Bill Bodin, present; Clerk Kim Suske, present; Treasurer Kelly Warren, present.

Others in attendance:  Mike Yonan, Cary and Kim Bachard.

Approval of Town Board Meeting Minutes from July 14, 2026:  Motion made by Mike Garnich to approve as submitted; seconded by Don Jenicek.  All in favor, motion carried.

Approval of Road Crew Interview Minutes from July 27, 2026:  Motion made by Mike Garnich to approve as submitted; seconded by Bill Bodin.  All in favor, motion carried.

Treasurer’s Report by Kelly Warren:  Checking $29,526.78; Equipment $8,794.32; Room Tax $18,158.42; Contingency Fund $ 34,721.22; and Tax Levy Savings $75,485.97.

Citizen’s Concerns and Comments:   None.

Houghton Falls Nature Preserve (HFNP) signage and swimming policy—Discussion and possible action:  Don Jenicek met with Erika Lang from Landmark Conservancy and discussed signage.  We can put signs on railroad easement if not obstructive; we want to put signs on the north side by Bouchard’s; south side by Lean’s; and south side of 40’ easement where Lean’s property goes into the preserve.  Signs will say:  Nature Preserve, No Entrance, Please Use Entrance at Parking Lot, and then some pictures showing no biking, no ATVs.  The back of the sign would say: No Trespassing, Private Property After This Point.  Might add additional No Bikes signage.  Town will pay for the signs with room tax money.

Kim and Cary Bouchard report that diving and jumping off the rocks on the point has become a safety, noise, and erosion issue.  The screaming starts at 10 a.m. and there are upwards of 20+ people on the rock at one time.  Extensive discussion was held as to how to put a stop to it and how do we enforce it.  Our agreement allows swimming but Kim and Cary pointed out that wading was stated in the plan but it said at the cove.  That would be better as the cove blocks noise.

Motion made by Bill Bodin for Don Jenicek to pursue action at HFNP after discussion with Erika Lang at Landmark Conservancy as follows:

1. Remove stairs and access to rock
2. Build fence on boardwalk where access to rock existed, closing rock off for preservation of rock and safety
3. Improve access to cove for swimming
4. Put up signage indicating swimming and diving are not allowed for safety purposes

Motion seconded by Mike Garnich.  All in favor; motion carried.

An additional concern was brought up that someone mowed the railroad grade near Bouchard’s and trees were cut.  Neither Landmark nor the Town of Bayview had anything to do with this so we don’t know who mowed there.

Propane pre-buy—Discussion and possible action:  Bids from Midland, Zifkos, and Ferrel Gas were compared.  Midland had the lowest price bid.  Motion made by Mike Garnich to contract with Midland for 2800 gallons of propane at $1.35 plus patronage refund for the 2026-2027 heating season; seconded by Bill Bodin.  All in favor, motion carried.

Business of the Quarter—Discussion and possible action:  Motion made by Mike Garnich to nominate Ma and Pa’s Lighthouses as Business of the Quarter; seconded by Bill Bodin.  All in favor, motion carried.  Ma and Pa’s Lighthouses is a home-based business which is in keeping with the Town’s character.  They keep us warm with their firewood and sell fresh eggs.  Thank you!

Continue discussion regarding creating a records retention policy—Tabled.

Ordinance 26-02 Continuation of Business Ordinance—Discussion and possible action:  Ordinance as drafted by Mike Garnich reviewed.  Motion made by Mike Garnich to accept Ordinance 26-02 as written with the exception of changing open business hours from 6 hours daily to 4 hours daily; seconded by Bill Bodin.  All in favor, motion carried.  Clerk will send copies to Pub and Grub and Good Thyme.

Update on Town Hall siding progress:  Waiting for gable end vents to come in.  Steward LLC was paid $12,000 for labor and will be paid the remainder ($4,000) after the work is complete.

Town Hall painting—Discussion and possible action:  Still don’t have a second estimate.  Will reach out to more people for bids.

Update on new water filtration system for Town Hall:  This will go in on August 25.

Repair or replace New Holland Duradisc Mower—Discussion and possible action:  Board discussed options.  We have an estimate for $16,417 from Lulich’s to repair it (would be like new) or to do a “Farmer’s fix” at Lulich’s for about $7,000.  Or, with our municipal discount, we could replace it for about $18,000 but the problem with that is we would have to order one and it might not come in yet this season.  We could order a smaller (6 ft 8 inch vs current 7 ft 10 inch) and that would be in stock; cost is about $15,500.  Discussed whether or not there are different brands or types of mowers we should consider but M107/M108/M109 are considered best for our needs.  Also discussed getting a second estimate from Don’s Repair.  We have $13,900 in insurance coverage less $1,000 deductible.

Motion made by Mike Garnich to allow Town Chair to make a final decision on mower repair after getting second estimate; seconded by Bill Bodin.  All in favor; motion carried.

Financing new Ford F250 pickup to replace our existing Ford—Discussion and possible action to borrow up to $56,000:  It is better to borrow for roads than for Town Hall siding due to highway aids.  We will be spending all total about $53,000 on the Hall for water/siding/labor and we can take money out of contingency later for those or other costs if needed.  Motion made by Don Jenicek to borrow $50,000 from Old National Bank for a new 2027 Ford F250 with the remainder to be paid out of checking; seconded by Bill Bodin.  All in favor; motion carried.

Discuss August 22 Town picnic:  Discussed what each Board member will bring.  Kim—plates, napkins, utensils; Don—Brats, hot dogs, buns, condiments; Bill—ice, soda, water, smoked fish; Mike—ordered tablecloths.

Roads Report:  Cutting grass.  Need to figure out sand/gravel/road rebuild.  Ditched Burlager Road—County will spray it with grass seed.  Will have Viking Motors start tearing up Maki Road where it is bad so it can be patched—will need prices first though.

Mike Garnich got our FCC license renewed.  Clerk will keep all the relevant info (usernames/password) in the permanent files so this is not such a difficult mess next renewal, which is in 10 years.

New roads employee Jamie Warren starts next week Monday.

Board Comments:  Purchased a Cub Cadet lawn mower for $3,500—do we want to insure it?  No.  Town Hall lights over voting booth area were not working the week before election and Mike Yonan had Cadotte come and fix it; clerk stayed in Hall during repairs as voting equipment could not be left unattended with repair people there.  WiFi at HFNP gate did not work—Cadotte also fixed this; money to be paid out of parks budget.

Correspondence:  Issue of Lot #81595 owned by Zienty was brought up as we got an email from Bob Bodin about this but there is nothing the Town can do if people are parking on DNR land overnight while staying there.

Holden insurance offered to give the Town an insurance quote but we have been very happy with our insurance through Rural.

Bayfield County EMS was discussed and we are not altogether pleased with the plan; Mike Garnich will go to the County meeting on this topic tomorrow night.  Last meeting the County Board voted 7 to 6 to pay $1 million for 1 year divided among ALL services, even the ones that are doing well, for paying staff etc.  This does nothing to fix the long-term understaffing problem.  Creating a County service had been a possible 5-year plan with a paramedic unit from a medical center as a back up.

There will be a Fire/EMS meeting on August 25 at Washburn City Hall.  The City contract we are looking at currently says that there will be no response to calls 25% of the time.

Payment of Bills:  Motion made by Don Jenicek to approve payment of Town bills from July 17, 2026, to August 12, 2026, in the amount of $114,016.55; seconded by Mike Garnich.  Motion carried.  This amount included loan payments on Maki Road W and Big Rock/Bodin Roads.

Next Town of Bayview Regular Board meeting is set for Tuesday, September 8, 2026, at 6 p.m.

Moton to adjourn was made by Don Jenicek and seconded by Mike Garnich.  Meeting adjourned at 8:08 p.m.

Submitted by                                                                                                     Approved 09/08/2026

Kim Suske, Clerk

Vol. 17 page 30