The public turned out to support three programs that are facing changes in Oneida county.
The Oneida County Board is considering it's budget for next year.
One proposal merges the Aging and Disability Resource Center of the Northwoods into the Department of Social Services. Another action involves cutting $16,000 from the Oneida County Fair budget, and a third involves moving UW-Extension to Nicolet College, away from offices at the airport.
Mary Martin of Pelican Lake didn't like the idea of merging ADRC with Social Services. She says the idea is to save $100,000 but felt key committees were not given full input on the decision...
"....What they need is an ADRC as a stand alone important department with a director and a committee that will keep the services flowing. I ask that today you vote to keep the ADRC as a separate entity..."
Oneida County Fair Coordinator Tom Barnett said losing the $16,000 from the county to support the fair would have a devastating effect...
"...We are at a turning point. There has been suggestions that the county board would like us to be self-sufficient. We are on that track. We're just not there yet. We have been working harder than any fairboard has been in the past toward becoming self-sufficient..."
John Stauner of the Three Lakes Community Foundation says UW-Extension is helping them rebuild after two fires damaged key businesses. He felt without adequate local Extension backing a proposed planning process would not happen...
"...2019 has been a challenging year for Three Lakes. The downtown fires have asked, 'where is this community going?"We needed to find a way forward to energize the community and seek out a shared vision for Three Lakes in the future. We went back to UW-Extension."
The board spent nearly two hours debating whether to borrow $4 million dollars for a series of capital projects, including a needed communications upgrade for the sheriff's department. In the end, after amendments were offered, the borrowing was rejected, as some opponents felt the county didn't need to borrow the money and could find it elsewhere.
We'll update you with the results as they become available.
