The city of Rhinelander has rejected a proposed budget increase for the Rhinelander District Library and the matter will likely go to arbitration.
Five entities form the district....the city of Rhinelander and the towns of Newbold, Pelican, Crescent and Pine Lake. The library's budget needs a majority approval by the five or it goes to arbitration. The Rhinelander city council last night rejected the just under five percent raise, or $41,000. Interim Library Director Tom Hurlburt indicated the library needed the extra revenue to again pay for health insurance. He also requested a 3 percent pay increase for employees.
City Administrator Blaine Oborn felt the library could scale down the pay increase request to the one percent given to city workers...
".....one of the major increases they had in there was weighted to their salary increase at 3 percent, my recommendation is notch it back to one(percent) comparable with the city..."
Oborn says the towns also have requested an arbitration hearing to work out the budget differences, likely to be held in a couple of weeks.
The city council also approved a contract with C& D Excavating to tear down the Lindey Cleaners building across from city hall on Stevens Street. The EPA says there's hazardous chemicals on the site. The low bid was about $47,000.
