Sewer and Water Wars

Sewer and Water Wars

Let water project proceed, PSC urged

By Darryl Enriquez
of the Journal Sentinel staff

August 22, 1996

State Public Service Commission staff are expected to recommend today thatcommissioners not reconsider their earlier approval of a controversial watersystem in Lannon.

Peter Feneht, a PSC staff engineer, said it would be unwise for the waterproject to be halted, which could happen if the case is reopened. Commissionersapproved the project in April.

The Lannon Village Board approved the water project in July and has awardedconstruction contracts.

Feneht said the project’s increased cost — from an initial cost of $3.8million to $4.7 million — was not enough of a reason to stop the project.

At its meeting today in Madison, the commission will consider a letter fromRobert Barisas, a businessman who opposes the project, that asks forreconsideration of the April approval.

Feneht said halting the project would cost Lannon and Menomonee Falls, apartner in the water project, a lot of money, although he could not say howmuch. Engineers also are concerned about the public health issues of delaying anew water supply to Lannon citizens, he said.

The increase in cost is due to the project being “oversized,”allowing Menomonee Falls to share in use and storage for well water, Fenehtsaid.

The public can attend the meeting, but comment from audience members will notbe taken, Feneht said.

Barisas says he gathered about 240 signatures of Lannon residents who opposethe project.

Some residents fear that the $3,900 fee to connect a single-family home tothe water system will drive moderate- and low-income people from their homes. Inaddition, residents will pay a monthly fee of $44.50.

Residents also are being hit with sewer installation charges of $5,864 perhome, plus $50 a month.

PSC turns down request to re-examine Lannon water plan

By Darryl Enriquez
of the Journal Sentinel staff

August 26, 1996

The State Public Service Commission has turned down a request to re-examinethe municipal water system project in Lannon, a state official said.

The commission reaffirmed its April approval of the project by votingunanimously Thursday to not reopen the case.

Robert Barisas, a Lannon businessman and project opponent, had asked thecommission to reconsider its approval because of mounting public opposition andrising costs.

A commission memo said it had received 203 faxed letters stating oppositionto the project. The village has about 900 residents.

In a reply letter to Barisas, the commission explained that there had notbeen a change in the need for a public water system and that delayingconstruction would add significantly to the cost of the project.

The PSC authorized $5.25 million as the latest cost of the project, withMenomonee Falls contributing $735,625.

The Lannon Village Board approved the water project, 4-3, in July and hasawarded construction contracts.

Opponents fear the $3,900 fee to connect a single-family home to the watersystem would drive residents from their homes.

Water project ignites recall effort

By Darryl Enriquez
of the Journal Sentinel staff

August 29, 1996

Lannon — An opponent of the village’s new $5 million water utility projectsaid he would present recall petitions against Village President Terry Gissaland Trustee LaVern Ehley to the village clerk by Friday.

“I guess they say I didn’t listen to the people, but I think that’swrong,” Gissal said Wednesday night. “No one spoke against it (theutility project) at the first two public hearings, and now all of the suddenthere are all of these people who have come out of the woodwork againstit.”

He said all Village Board members initially were in favor of the project,which he estimated would now cost more than $500,000 to halt.

“We can’t shut it down because of the money we’ve already spent,”Gissal said. “Things will have to come out in the wash, if that’s what theywant. If I’m gone, a lot of volunteer services would be lost, and I’m proud ofwhat we’ve done in the past years to keep the tax rates down.”

Ehley could not be reached for comment.

A report from Ruekert & Mielke Inc., the village’s engineeringconsultant, says the village stands to lose an estimated $470,000 if it decidesto stop construction of the water system. The Village Board is planning to meetat 6 tonight to review contracts for the project.

Robert Barisas, owner of a furniture store in Lannon, said he has collected225 signatures from eligible voters in the village since launching the recalldrive on Aug. 19. He needed 145 signatures on separate petitions against Gissaland Ehley and had 30 days to collect them, he said.

Barisas said he would turn in the petitions early with the hope that theVillage Board would set the recall election on the day of the general electionin November. The village then could save money by not having to hold separateelections in December, he said.

Two weeks ago, when the recall was brought up, Gissal said: “Bring iton. I have nothing to hide. I’m proud of my accomplishments in the last eightyears.”

Reacting to the engineers’ report, Gissal said Monday that he suspected thecosts would be closer to $600,000, based on money the village would have to payto contractors who already have been awarded the bids.

“There’s going to be a substantial cost to close down this waterproject,” Gissal said.

A letter sent this week from the engineers to Gissal says: “As you know,the water main projects have been awarded and the contractors now have contractsfor the work. Even though actual hard copies of the contracts have not beensigned and notice-to-proceed issued, the contractors undoubtedly have incurredcosts.”

About $250,000 already had been spent by the village for engineering,financing, legal and administrative costs. Other costs include $120,000 forpipe, $80,000 for cost of contracts and $20,000 for legal matters, the lettersays.

The letter stresses that the estimated costs were “ballpark”figures.

“Actual damages incurred by the village may be substantially differentdepending on when work stoppage occurs, loss of work claims by contractors andother unforeseeable factors,” the letter says.

Last week, the state Public Service Commission turned down a request fromBarisas to reconsider its earlier approval of the water project, saying that theneed for a new village water system was too great to halt the project.

Opponents contend the special assessment for the new water system — $3,900per single-family home — is too expensive for moderate income homeowners andwill force them to sell. Homeowners also will have to pay for hookup costs.

In addition to the water project, homeowners also will be charged a specialassessment of $5,864 per home for a new sewer system, which is almost complete.

The recall is not only an attempt to stop the project but to make villagegovernment more responsive to the wishes of citizens, Barisas said.

Lannon meeting gets hostile

By Elizabeth Neff
of the Journal Sentinel staff

August 30, 1996

Lannon — Audience members yelled, threw a chair and cursed one another andtheir elected officials Thursday at a question-and-answer session about thevillage’s $5 million water utility project.

It was the third village meeting this month that elected officials cut shortbecause of rancor among audience members over the installation of the watersystem.

Residents are upset over the combined cost of the water project and theinstallation of a village sewer system. For a single-family home, specialassessments for the water and sewer projects total about $9,764, plus monthlycharges of nearly $100.

After two hours of heated debate and questioning in the meeting, held at thevillage’s firehouse garage, tempers flared out of control.

A uniformed police officer at the meeting stepped between two men who werepushing and threatening each other.

Village President Terry Gissal abruptly adjourned the meeting.

“I’m embarrassed to be a part of this community,” resident KarenNellis, 45, said after the meeting. “These attacks were inexcusable.”

Dispute on hold — for now

By Darryl Enriquez
of the Journal Sentinel staff

September 5, 1996

Lannon — More than 100 audience members hooted and cheered and someoneshouted, “Free beer, I’m buying,” after the Village Board failed toadvance a controversial water utility project Wednesday.

Gail Schiller, a village resident and opponent of the proposed utility, saidresidents showed up in force to intimidate trustees into not approving anywater-related issue.

Schiller said water project opponents want to delay any board action to givetheir lawyer time to obtain a court order to halt the $5 million project, whichwould cost each homeowner $3,900.

They apparently succeeded, despite an earlier threat from Village PresidentTerry Gissal that anyone who became unruly during public meetings would beticketed by one of two Lannon police officers.

Barbs of “This isn’t Lannon, it’s Moscow,” and “SaddamHussein” were directed at board members.

Schiller was ejected from the meeting after repeatedly calling financingfigures from Gissal “lies.” Schiller wasn’t given a ticket, however,and was allowed to return to the crowded boardroom. But by then, the audiencehad forced Gissal to call a five-minute recess to restore calm.

A ruckus last week that involved the exchange of insults and the hurling of ametal chair brought a board meeting to a hasty end. Gissal had warned Tuesday hewouldn’t tolerate a repeat episode.

Gissal tried at Wednesday’s meeting to settle how residents would pay forfire protection under the new utility. Village engineers had recommended somewater-related fire protection costs be placed on the property tax, but fourboard members — Dennis McCarthy, Shirley Ravnik, Danny Martin and Stephen Semo– abstained, killing the proposal.

After that, Gissal announced that he wanted to table remaining water-relateditems on the agenda because the village was still “negotiating with thecontractors” on water line installations

The meeting was adjourned and trustees will try tackling water project issuesagain Monday.

Semo was appointed by the board Wednesday to fill the unexpired term ofTrustee William Galbraith, who resigned last week. Gissal indicated to theaudience that Galbraith had resigned over the water flap. “He told me,’Enough was enough,’ ” Gissal said.

In related action, Robert Barisas, a Lannon businessman and project opponent,on Wednesday filed petitions demanding recall elections for Gissal and TrusteeLaVern Ehley, supporters of the new water utility.

A petition containing 308 signatures was filed against Gissal; anothercontaining 297 signatures was filed against Ehley. Only 145 signatures arerequired in each case.

Water project plans OK’d

By Elizabeth Neff
of the Journal Sentinel staff

September 10, 1996

Lannon — The Village Board forged ahead with plans for its $5 million waterutility project Monday evening, rapidly approving three related project-relatedresolutions.

Trustees voted to use the property tax levy to pay for municipal water systemfire protection costs instead of having a user fee and to allow two firms withconstruction contracts to proceed to put in a pump and the system’s main pipebefore cold weather arrives.

All three resolutions passed, 5-2, with Trustees Danny Martin and ShirleyRavnik voting against them.

More than 100 residents once again packed the firehouse where the meeting washeld. Three uniformed police officers were on duty, and one escorted an opponentof the project outside the firehouse temporarily before he was allowed toreturn. Comments from spectators usually indicated that residents could not affordthe cost of the system, especially those on a fixed income. Others present atthe meeting said they wanted the water service installed.

“I believe it’s going to come, and I would rather have the choice to doit now than have it come two years later at a higher price,” said residentRonald Nellis, 51.

Robert Beibel, a planner from the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional PlanningCommission, assured audience members that installing a water system was”the right thing to do.” He said Lannon was one of four similar southeastern Wisconsin communitiesthat did not have a water system. Two of those areas are planning to put in awater system, he said. “Between $3,500 to $4,000 is a common cost for this type of system insoutheastern Wisconsin,” he added. “You can’t go anywhere where thestart-up costs are less.” Each single-family home is facing a special assessment of $3,900 for thewater system and an assessment of $5,864 for a new sewer system. A monthly watercharge user fee also be enacted in addition to a monthly sewer charge of $50. Beibel said monthly fees were slightly higher because of the area’s rockysubsurface conditions.

But information distributed to residents by the Village Board said thevillage would lose $300,000 in funds borrowed in December 1995 if the waterproject is dropped.

Claim filed against village water system

By Darryl Enriquez
of the Journal Sentinel staff

September 12, 1996

Lannon — A Milwaukee law firm has filed a claim with the village clerk onbehalf of 225 residents demanding that the Village Board abandon all attempts toproceed with a $5 million municipal water system.

The claim is the latest maneuver by village residents opposed to the creationof a water system and a related requirement to cap private wells.

Village meetings on the contentious issue have ended in fist-pounding,chair-throwing incidents, and police have escorted a few boisterous opponentsfrom meetings in an attempt to preserve order.

Opponents have filed petitions with the village seeking the recall of twosupporters of the water utility — Village President Terry Gissal and TrusteeLaVern Ehley.

The claim, filed Tuesday with Village Clerk Pamela S. Gall, containscomplaints expressed earlier by two citizens groups opposed to the waterutility: the Lannon Estates Home Owners Association and the Lannon Residents andBusiness Association.

A claim must be presented before a lawsuit may be filed.

Trustees failed to hold a referendum on the creation and financing of thewater utility, and by failing to do so the board is spending funds illegally,the claim alleges.

Opponents also contend they would lose investments they have made in privatewells, the vast majority of which are safe and meet code requirements, the claimsays.

The claim, written by lawyer John DeStefanis, was filed the day after theVillage Board approved three water-related resolutions involving theconstruction of the utility and the fire protection it would provide.

Opponents, especially those on fixed incomes, have said they cannot affordthe project. Each single-family home is facing assessments of $3,900 for thewater system and $5,864 for a new sewer system.

utility would bring much-needed commercial and residential growth to thevillage.

DeStefanis said the village has 120 days to respond to the claim. If itdisallows the claim or takes no action, opponents can then approach the courtsfor help.

Mark Blum, the village’s lawyer, would not comment on the claim, saying henot yet discussed it with village trustees.

Blum explained that the board took the faster route of creating a utilitythrough the state Public Service Commission instead of holding a referendum.Extensive reconstruction of Highway 74, the main street through Lannon, is underway, and the village can save money by getting water pipes beneath the highwaybefore Dec. 1, the date road work will be near completion, he said.

If the village waited any longer, it would have to tear up the new highwayand pay re-excavation costs, Blum said.

Lannon president wants calm at village meeting

By Darryl Enriquez
of the Journal Sentinel staff

September 5, 1996

Lannon — Village President Terry Gissal has cautioned vocal opponents of the$5 million village water plan that they will get only two warnings to remaincalm during a special board meeting today.

Misbehavior will result in residents being told to leave and may lead tomunicipal tickets for disruptive behavior, Gissal said.

The Village Board meeting at 5:30 p.m. to award water project contracts willcontinue a process that promises to open the village to more commercial andresidential development, Gissal said.

The board also will consider appointing a new village trustee to replaceWilliam Galbraith, who resigned at the height of the sewer controversy that hasemotionally rocked this village.

A stormy meeting and informational session about the financing of the projectwas adjourned abruptly Thursday when officials and audience members hurledinsults and, some say, a metal chair.

Galbraith could not be reached for comment about why he resigned. Gissal saidhe would make the reason public at the meeting. It wasn’t because of theThursday meeting, he added.

Gissal, who is the target of a recall petition over his support of theproject, had to hastily adjourn the meeting when the audience reacted to anoutburst from Trustee Nancy Sullivan during which she shouted at the audienceand pounded with both fists on a table, according to a videotape of the meeting.

Sullivan became upset when audience members attacked the integrity of thevillage officials, Gissal said.

Walter Sullivan, a member of the Village Plan Commission and husband of NancySullivan, was identified by residents John Hesse and Deborah Schultz as theperson who picked up a metal folding chair and threw it toward the audience.

Gissal said he didn’t see the incident but was told that Walter Sullivansimply pushed a chair out of his way. Nancy Sullivan declined to comment on theincident Tuesday, and she wouldn’t put her husband on the telephone.

Lannon schedules Nov. 5 recall election

By Elizabeth Neff
of the Journal Sentinel staff

September 25, 1996

Lannon — The Village Board Tuesday scheduled a recall election for Nov. 5for Village President Terry Gissal and Trustee LaVern Ehley, supporters of thevillage’s controversial new $5 million sewer system.

A petition containing 308 signatures had been filed against Gissal, andanother containing 297 signatures against Ehley. Only 145 signatures wererequired in each case to force a recall election.

Trustee William Galbraith resigned his post earlier this month, and Gissalindicated later that Galbraith had resigned over the sewer issue.

“I don’t care either way,” Gissal said Tuesday, during a specialVillage Board meeting about his recall. “I guess it’s up to the people.What they want, they will get.”

Village Clerk Pamela Gall said those interested in running on the recallballot have until Oct. 8 to file nomination forms with her, but no one hadexpressed interest in challenging the incumbents, whose names are automaticallyon the ballot.

Challengers must gather 20 signatures to be on the ballot.

The recall petitions filed by Lannon businessman Robert Barisas earlier thismonth represent the latest effort by concerned residents to halt the project.

Although two public hearings had been held before the sewer proposal wasapproved, the project was not put to a referendum. Barisas argues that thewishes of the public would have been better represented through a voterreferendum.

Large numbers of residents have attended recent board meetings on theproject, many of whom voiced their objections. Some meetings were cut short orended in disorder.

Opponents say the cost of installing sewers is too high, especially for thoseliving on a fixed income. They also point to existing wells in the area they sayare safe, effective and functional.

Each single family home is facing assessments of $3,900 for the water systemand $5,864 for a new sewer system.

Supporters of the project say they would rather have the system put in now ata cheaper price than later at a higher one. They also see it increasing thevalue of their property.

A Milwaukee firm has filed a claim with the village clerk on behalf of 225residents demanding that the Village Board abandon all attempts to proceed withthe project.

Trustees voted earlier this month to use the property tax levy to pay formunicipal water system fire protection costs instead of having a user fee and toallow two firms with construction contracts to proceed to put in a pump and thesystem’s main pipe before cold weather arrives.

Lannon goes to court on water system plan

By Betsy Thatcher
of the Journal Sentinel staff

September 26, 1996

Waukesha — The Village of Lannon has gone to court seeking a judge’s opinionon whether its approval of a controversial public water system was proper andlegal.

The village’s legal action Tuesday is in reaction to a claim filed againstthe village by 227 residents and businesses Sept. 10. The residents’ claim callsthe Village Board’s approval of a water system “unlawful” because itfailed to conduct a referendum.

The village contends that the $3.6 million water system is needed because offailing private wells, that the state Public Service Commission has approved theproject and that the best time to install the system is now because a sanitarysewer system is being installed.

Installing the two systems at the same time would save the village andproperty owners money, the village contends in court documents.

But the 227 residents and businesses that filed the claim argue they”are threatened with losing their investments in their wells.””The vast majority (of the wells) are safe and meet applicable coderequirements,” according to their claim.

John L. DeStefanis, an attorney representing the group, said Wednesday he wasnot surprised by the village’s court action.

“We welcome the opportunity for a court to make a ruling on thisissue,” DeStefanis said. “That’s precisely what the claimants wouldwant.”

Had the village not sought court intervention in the dispute, the residentswould have, DeStefanis said.

“The contention we’re making is the village was obligated to call for areferendum,” DeStefanis said.

The village says delay of the water project could cost hundreds of thousandsof dollars.

Although the village has awarded contracts for the work and has leviedspecial assessments, construction of the system cannot be completed because $3.4million in revenue bond anticipation notes cannot be completed while theresidents’ claim is pending.

“The village of Lannon has undertaken this municipal water systemproject simultaneously with the sewer project so as to save the pavementrestoration costs which would, in essence, be duplicated if the projects are notdone together,” court documents say.

By doing the projects together, the village would save $800,000 in pavementrestoration costs, the village maintains.

One of the major sections of the project involves installing pipe under stateHighway 74.

“The village has been informed by the (State) Department ofTransportation that the pavement on the roadway needs to be restored by Dec.1,” court documents say.

The village has given one of the water system contractors a “conditionalnotice to proceed” allowing it to begin work so that restoration costs onHighway 74 “are not lost,” the documents say.

DeStefanis has 20 days in which to file an answer in behalf of his clients.No hearing dates will be set until the answer is filed in Waukesha CountyCircuit Court.

The water system issue has deeply divided the community, ignited heateddebate at public meetings and helped spawn a recall drive against VillagePresident Terry Gissal and Trustee LaVern Ehley.

Recall in Lannon gets challenger for trustee Ehley

By Elizabeth Neff
of the Journal Sentinel staff

October 3, 1996

Lannon — Lannon Estates Homeowners Association vice president Doug Reptaplans to challenge Trustee LaVern Ehley for his spot on the Village Board duringa Nov. 5 recall election.

Repta filed nomination papers with Village Clerk Pamela Gall last week,making him the first candidate for the position. Both Ehley and VillagePresident Terry Gissal face recall elections after supporting installation of a$5 million water system.

Up to 100 or more residents have attended recent board meetings on theproject, many of them expressing fear that they could not afford to pay to addwater service on top of an already approved sewer project. Some meetings werecut short or ended in disorder.

Each single-family home owner is facing assessments of $3,900 for the watersystem and $5,864 for a new sewer system.

The water system has been approved, but opponents have challenged it inWaukesha County Circuit Court.

Supporters of the project say that putting in the water system along withsewers is cheaper than installing it separately. They also see it increasing thevalue of their properties.

Robert Barisas and Dave Droenen, Lannon residents who oppose the project,spearheaded the recall effort. The recall petitions ask for the recall of Gissaland Ehley for “ignoring and disregarding citizens’ concerns” about theproject.

The opponents gathered 308 signatures against Gissal and 297 against Ehley.The recall required 145 signatures.

Gall said anyone interested in running for either office has until Tuesday tofile nomination papers with her

From the Journal Sentinel

October 9, 1996

Challengers file in Lannon recall race

Lannon — Trustee Shirley Ravnik has filed nomination papers to run againstVillage President Terry Gissal in the Nov. 5 recall election.

Ravnik, who has a record of voting against the village’s controversial $5million water system, is supported by the Lannon Estates Homeowners Associationand the Lannon Residents and Business Association. Both Gissal and TrusteeLaVern Ehley face the recall election after supporting installation of thesystem.

Opponents of the water project gathered 297 signatures against Ehley and 308signatures against Gissal. Although the water system has been approved, it isbeing challenged in Waukesha County Circuit Court.

Ehley will defend his position against challenger Doug Repta, vice presidentof the Lannon Estates Homeowners Association. The deadline for filingnominations with Village Clerk Pamela Gall for either position was 5 p.m.Tuesday.

From the Journal Sentinel

October 18, 1996

 

DA won’t pursue open meetings complaint

Lannon — Waukesha County District Attorney Paul Bucher has told VillagePresident Terry Gissal he will not pursue a complaint filed last month by RobertBarisas and the Lannon Business Association alleging violations of Wisconsin’sopen meetings law.

The complaint alleges adequate space to accommodate citizens has not beenprovided at packed Village Board meetings on the $5 million municipal waterproject. Previous meetings on the issue had been held in various locations,including a packed village firehouse.

Although Barisas recently submitted additional evidence for the districtattorney to review, Bucher said Thursday he would not reverse his decisionunless he found “something significantly different.”

Bucher stressed in a letter to Gissal that state law requires meeting roomsbe large enough to accommodate all citizens for meetings, and noted the largecrowds that have gathered to protest the water project.

Village residents are divided on the water issue. Some residents say thewater system would be too expensive and they’d prefer relying on private wells.Others would like to see the project installed now rather than in years to comeat a higher price.

Gissal and Trustee LaVern Ehley have been placed on a Nov. 5 recall ballotafter supporting the water system

From the Journal Sentinel

October 30, 1996

Board votes to approve engineering agreement

Lannon — Despite having sought a judge’s ruling on whether a controversial$5 million village water project is proper and legal, the Village Board votedunanimously Tuesday night to approve an agreement between engineers Ruekert& Milke and the village.

A clause allows the board to get out of the engineering agreement withoutpenalty should there be an adverse court ruling, said Kurt Peot, project managerfor the water system.

The Village Board filed its action Sept. 24 requesting confirmation of thewater project’s legality in response to opposition from a citizens group opposedto the water system.

Proponents of the water system say it would be less costly to install a watersystem now while a sewer project also is being installed. Others say the costsinvolved are too much for residents to afford.

On Sept. 10, 277 residents and businesses filed a claim against the villagecalling the water system unlawful.

They said the system threatened their investments in their private wells andthat it should have been approved with a referendum vote.

The issue also prompted the recall election of Trustee LaVern Ehley andVillage President Terry Gissal.

Trustee Shirley Ravnik is campaigning to replace Gissal and Lannon EstatesHome Owners Association Vice President Doug Repta is hoping to replace Ehley.

Water, respect drive Lannon recall votes

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

October 31, 1996

Lannon — An attempt to recall two village trustees boils down to two issues,recall leaders say: water and respect.

The refusal by the Village Board to give residents a referendum on a $5.3million water system has rocked this normally quiet community for months andcould now cause two officials to lose their positions after Tuesday’s election.

“This is hurting us,” said Trustee Shirley Ravnik, who iscampaigning to unseat Village President Terry Gissal. “This is a littlevillage and we’re using tax dollars to fight our own residents because they wanta vote on a water system.”

Some residents are paying for two lawyers — one for the village and aprivate attorney — in a court action that seeks to resolve the legal questionof whether a referendum is required.

A group of residents — after turning out in droves to meetings where tempersflared, curses shouted and possibly even a chair was thrown — have filed alegal claim to halt water main installation.

Meanwhile, village streets remain torn up because of construction involving amunicipal sewer project. Maneuvering around the dusty, gravel-laden constructionis “an adventure,” Ravnik said.

Proponents of building the water system argue it will be cheaper and moreefficient to do it at the same time as the sewer work.

However, mingling with construction signs are signs reading “Say No toWater!” and election placards for the four candidates: Gissal, Ravnik,incumbent Trustee LaVern Ehley and challenger Doug Repta.

Gissal and Ehley said they don’t understand all the fuss.

“That referendum is nonsense,” Ehley said. “They had theopportunity at three hearings (to speak out). People who didn’t feel it wasimportant to attend those meetings now are doing all the crying.”

Gissal agreed. There was not enough time for a referendum, he said, if thevillage wanted to save some $800,000 by laying the water pipes at the same timeit was installing sewer pipes and repaving the roads.

Opponents have said the estimated $3,900 individual assessments and $44.50monthly service charges are too expensive, especially when residents are facinga $5,864 sewer assessment.

Repta said residents do not trust those cost estimates after watching theoriginal $3.8 million system turn into a $5.3 million project.

“Water would be a good thing if the costs weren’t so outrageous and ifit wasn’t shoved down people’s throats,” said Repta, who works for the Cityof Brookfield’s water department.

Ehley said stalling the project will only increase the costs. “If waterdoesn’t go in now, it (the cost) will be double or triple later,” he said.”We’ve got the road torn up and the time to do it is now.”

Water, however, is not the only issue driving the recalls. Perhaps moreimportant, Repta said, is the board’s lack of respect for residents’ wishes.

“They think they know better and it doesn’t matter what residentssay,” said Repta, vice president of the homeowners association for the150-home Lannon Estates mobile park.

“My biggest thing is they make a big show out of having public hearings,but they don’t listen to what the people say,” he said.

He cited the board’s decision to allow Lannon Stone Products to expand itsquarrying, over the objections of residents who said the blasting already isshaking their homes.

“They’re not doing what’s in the best interests of the residents,”he said.

Gissal disagreed. “I’ve done nothing that I’m ashamed of,” he said.”You try to do your best and not everyone agrees.”

Gissal argued strongly that the time for sewer and water is now, so that thevillage finally can open its doors to residential and commercial developers andincrease its tax base.

“We’ve got a guy who wants to put up an $11 million condo project, buthe doesn’t want to drill for water. He wants municipal water,” said Gissal,who has been village president since 1990.

“That would be almost one-fourth of the total value of thevillage,” he said. “We’ve got other developers who are just waiting tocome in.”

Also, municipal water would benefit the town’s two quarries, the owners ofwhich have pledged $2 million toward the utility creation. In 15 to 25 years,when the quarries are depleted, the owners want to build homes and apartments,Gissal said.

A “Gissal for President” sign has been erected on Lannon StoneProducts’ Good Hope Road entrance.

Repta said it’s time to shake up those political connections. “We want avoice,” he said. “We want change.”

Incumbents recalled in 2 communities

By Mark Lisheron
of the Journal Sentinel staff

November 6, 1996

Voters in two communities ousted incumbents — a village president and atrustee in Lannon and a New Berlin alderman — over acrimonious issues foughtout in separate recall elections Tuesday.

Lannon Trustee Shirley Ravnik, an opponent of a proposed $5.3 million watersystem for the village, got twice as many votes as Village President TerryGissal. Doug Repta also won by a 2-1 ratio, knocking out Trustee LaVern Ehley.

In Lannon, Gissal had tried without success to convince voters that aninstallation of water pipes at the same time as the village was doing sewer workwould save taxpayers in the long run.

“God help ’em,” Gissal said after the results were in. “Thepeople are going to get what they deserve.” Ravnik said that with about$500,000 in water pipe already laid, there is too much of an investment to stopthe project altogether.

“The successful recall does not stop the water project,” Ravniksaid Tuesday night. “What it will go is get a referendum on theproject.”

Ravnik said the overwhelming recall results attest that Gissal and Ehleydidn’t listen to residents who are facing combined assessments for the alreadycompleted sewer work and water work of $9,600 for a single-family home.

Turmoil in Lannon may not be over

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

November 7, 1996

Lannon — The turmoil in this small village will not end until residents getto vote on whether a municipal water utility should be built, newly electedVillage Board Trustee Doug Repta said Wednesday.

“Once the referendum goes through, we can get life back to normal,”he said. “We need to get an end to this one way or another.”

Village residents packed the polls Tuesday to recall two veteran villageofficials — President Terry Gissal and Trustee LaVern Ehley — and promotefreshman Trustee Shirley Ravnik to the village presidency.

Ravnik is to be the first female to hold that post in the village, andTuesday’s recall was believed to be the first in village history.

Of  Lannon’s 811 eligible voters, 77% went to the polls. Village Clerk PamelaGall said she registered 120 new voters. “People said there were lines going out of Village Hall,” Reptasaid. “We’ve never seen that before in Lannon.”

Ravnik beat Gissal, a former village fire chief, by a 2-to-1 ratio.

The winners are expected to take their new seats at a board meeting Mondaynight. Ravnik’s former seat needs to be filled, and she has authority to appointsomeone, subject to board confirmation. Ravnik said Wednesday she had some people in mind for the post but did notwant to say who until she could make sure they were interested.

“It’s been trying for everybody,” she said. “I am excited tomove forward. I really am looking forward to the challenge.”

She and Repta have said that two issues were driving residents’ stronginterest in local politics: water and respect. “I am certain that this vote said, ‘You have to listen to us,’ “Ravnik said. “I am not certain that this vote is a ‘no’ vote for water. Forsome, it may have been.”

She echoed concerns stated by Gissal and Ehley that the village has put toomuch money into the water system to halt it. “It’s going to be a good 10 years to pay off what we’ve got in it rightnow,” she said.

Neither Gissal nor Ehley could be reached Wednesday. Both have called wateropponents short-sighted. Residents have filed a legal claim, haltingconstruction. “It’ll cost the village nothing but money,” Ehley told a reporterTuesday night after getting word of his defeat. “People are narrow-mindedwhen it comes to a one-point issue.”

Repta had no sympathy for Ehley’s loss and accused him of 11th-hour dirtycampaigning, bringing up an alleged domestic matter. However, Repta said the only contact he ever had with the Waukesha CountySheriff’s Department officials, who patrol the village, was in July when a womanwas cited for disorderly conduct at his mobile home. The allegation against thewoman later was dropped.

Lannon merchants bewail road impasse

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

November 11, 1996

Lannon — The legal action that has brought a controversial water project toa screeching halt, leaving many village streets unpaved perhaps until spring,has Main St. business people saying they are suffering tremendous financiallosses. And the sales losses of up to 75% are causing some business owners in thisnortheastern Waukesha County community to consider legal action, said ownersMike Meyer and Dave Dronen. “I may have no choice but to file a claim,” said Meyer, whooperates the Main Street Cafe.

Dust and gravel from the ripped-up roads are the only things entering therestaurant these days, Meyer complained. “I’ve had a 75% drop in sales,” he said. Holding up two foodorders, he said, “This was what I had all day yesterday.”

Tony Singh, who built a new mini-mart and service station on Main St. lastfall, said, “I’m just hanging on for dear life. “I have actual losses of about 60% of my business. In cash terms, it’sabout $50,000 to $65,000 a month gross income.” Singh, however, doesn’t believe suing the village or its utility constructioncontractors would be successful or productive. Everybody is blaming everyone else, he said. He would rather hang his hopeson the village’s promise that Main St. will be repaved and open for traffic onDec. 1. “Once that’s opened, I can live through the rest of it,” Singhsaid.

Other village streets, however, may be torn up until spring, due to acontinued controversy over whether the village should build a $5.3 millionmunicipal water system. Contractors have delayed pouring concrete on side roads until they knowwhether water lines are going to be installed.

The Village Board’s original plan was to install water mains at the same timesewer pipes were laid this summer. Installing the utilities together would savethe village from ripping open the roads twice and mean an $800,000 saving,officials argued. But residents said they were blind-sided by the water plan and could notafford a $3,900 water assessment on top of a $5,864 sewer bill. When the Village Board advanced water plans over the residents’ objection, agroup hired an attorney and filed a claim that has essentially halted all work.

All work except that on Main St., that is. Despite the lawsuit, the VillageBoard voted to lay water pipe and repave that road. Residents who are callingfor a water referendum have called the vote arrogant, but Main St. businessesare thankful. “My impression of this whole project is that it has been grosslymismanaged,” Singh said. “They (contractors) shouldn’t have beenallowed to close (Main St.) all summer. “Everybody is passing the buck now. The Village Board to the sewer(contractors), sewer to the engineering firm, and so on and so on. Meanwhile,everyone is taking a hit.” Dronen, who owns the Whiskey Hollow Tavern on Main St., urged the village toblacktop one side of all streets, to give drivers a break from potholes.

The Village Board may discuss the controversy at its meeting at 7:30 tonight.Meanwhile, Waukesha County Circuit Judge Marianne Becker has given thevillage attorney and residents’ lawyer until Jan. 15 to file briefs on whetherthe village has acted illegally by advancing the water system without areferendum. Oral arguments are scheduled for February, and Becker would not issue a finalruling until March.

Board fails to appoint seventh member

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

November 12, 1996

Lannon — A deadlocked Village Board failed Monday night to appoint areplacement for the trustee position vacated by last week’s recall election,prompting some residents to say further recalls may be needed.

The board voted, 3-3, on a proposal by newly elected President Shirley Ravnikto appoint Plan Commissioner Robert Winter to the board’s seventh seat.

“We’re going to be in limbo for another year or at least untilApril,” recall organizer Deborah Schultz said angrily after the meeting.”This is ridiculous.”

Residents last week voted overwhelmingly to recall former Village PresidentTerry Gissal and Trustee LaVern Ehley. They replaced them with Ravnik, who wasalready on the board, and resident Doug Repta.

Ravnik’s promotion to president left her former seat open, a seat that couldswing the balance of power on the board.

Trustees Steve Semo and Nancy Sullivan questioned whether the seat couldsimply remain vacant until the April election.

“If it were a one-month thing or two months,” that could beacceptable, Ravnik said. But five months is too long, she argued.

Repta agreed. “We need seven different opinions,” he said. “Weneed them right away. The board is set up for seven people, and I believe weneed seven people.”

His comments drew applause from many of the approximately 70 residentsgathered at Village Hall.

But when the vote was taken, it was split, with Ravnik, Repta and DannyMartin on one side and Semo, Sullivan and Dennis McCarthy on the other. A tie isconsidered a failed vote.

The voting blocks were similar to those taken on the $5.3 million municipalwater system in recent months. Ravnik and Martin have supported a voterreferendum on the issue, a position favored by many residents.

From the Journal Sentinel

November 21, 1996

Plan Commission gets new members in Lannon

Lannon — Residents Daryl Fiene and Beverly Felten have been appointed tofill two vacant citizen positions on the village Plan Commission.

The Village Board voted Tuesday night to appoint Fiene to replaceCommissioner Walter Sullivan, who recently resigned.

Felten will replace Robert Winter, who will leave his commission seat to takeNancy Sullivan’s spot on the Village Board. Nancy Sullivan resigned from theboard last week.

Another Lannon trustee resigns

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

November 19, 1996

Lannon — Turnover turmoil continued on the Village Board Monday with theannouncement of a trustee’s resignation, which comes just weeks after votersrecalled the village president and another trustee.

Trustee Nancy Sullivan has formally resigned, board President Shirley Ravniksaid Monday.

Sullivan, who could not be reached for comment Monday, submitted a briefresignation letter that did not explain why she was resigning, Ravnik said.

At a special Village Board meeting scheduled for 6:30 p.m. tonight, trusteesmay vote to fill Sullivan’s seat, as well as the seat vacated when voterspromoted Ravnik to board president.

“I think we’re down to one-third of who we had,” Trustee DennisMcCarthy said of recent board turnover.

Sullivan is the fourth of the board’s seven members to leave in recentmonths. Board President Terry Gissal and veteran Trustee LaVern Ehley wererecalled, and another trustee, William Galbraith, resigned in July.

“I’ve given thought to it (resigning),” McCarthy said. “It’sgetting too hard. There’s too much conflict here. It has gotten to name-callingand threats.”

McCarthy said he plans to remain on the board, but added that he understandswhat pushed Sullivan to step down.

“This is something that she’s battled with for quite some time,”McCarthy said. “I respect her decision, considering the lack of supportfrom the community.

“The village has lost a very concerned person. She enjoyed working toimprove the village.”

Much of the turmoil on the Village Board stems from residents’ objections tothe trustees’ decision to create a public water utility without holding areferendum on the matter. Some residents said they could not afford a publicwater system in addition to the new sanitary sewer system that has beeninstalled this year.

After Gissal and Ehley continued to advance the water plan over residents’objections, a group organized a successful recall of both.

Galbraith resigned in July, reportedly because of the growing watercontroversy. In August, the board appointed resident Steve Semo to fillGalbraith’s seat.

Sullivan also voted in favor of the water system, agreeing with the formerboard majority that it was a necessary expense and that there was not enoughtime to schedule a referendum.

Sullivan was first appointed to the board in 1990 and had won re-election inApril.

Semo said Monday that he was sad to see an experienced member leave.

“I had hoped that Nancy would have held out,” he said. “Butit’s not a shock to see someone resign after all of this.”

Trustee Dan Martin said: “I’m sorry to see her go. I don’t know why(she’s leaving).”

Martin and newly elected Trustee Doug Repta said they were confident theboard would find residents interested in taking Sullivan’s seat and the seatvacated when voters in the recall election promoted Ravnik from trustee to boardpresident.

Last week, the board deadlocked, 3-3, on Ravnik’s request to appoint RobertWinter, a village plan commissioner, to fill her former seat. Sullivan, whovoted against the appointment, said the seat should remain vacant until theApril general election.

Sullivan’s resignation means the deadlock will disappear and both vacancieslikely will be filled, possibly at tonight’s meeting, McCarthy said.

From the Journal Sentinel

December 18, 1996

82% tax rate increase proposed in Lannon

Lannon — Residents can comment tonight on a proposed 1997 village budgetthat would increase the tax rate 82%.

A public hearing on the budget will be held at 7 p.m. at Village Hall, 20399W. Main St. The Village Board is scheduled to vote on adoption of the budget at7:30 p.m.

Under the proposed budget, the tax rate would increase from $4.26 per $1,000of assessed valuation to $7.74 per $1,000. The rate increase is due to debtpayments for a new municipal sewer system and costs incurred to date on astalled water project.

Most Lannon taxpayers will not see an 82% tax rate increase on their billsbecause the Legislature voted to pay for a greater share of the cost of publicschools. Because the tax bill also includes county, state and vocational andpublic school levies, the overall tax rate may be about $24.52, 3 cents higherthan the previous rate of $24.49, depending on the school district.

Vote might resolve Lannon legal dispute

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

January 10, 1997

Lannon — Attorneys have asked a Waukesha County judge to halt proceedings ina case to determine whether Lannon officials acted properly by approving a waterutility without a referendum.

The case may be dismissed, because the Lannon Village Board has scheduled aFeb. 18 referendum on the water system, attorney John DeStefanis said Thursday. In a stipulation filed in court Wednesday, attorneys for both sides agreedthat “the holding of said referendum may very well render the issuespresented in this . . . action moot.”

Attorneys this week asked Circuit Judge Marianne E. Becker to stay theproceedings “in order to avoid needlessly wasting the resources of thelitigants (and) the court.” DeStefanis filed a claim in September on behalf of some 200 residents whowere angry that they had no vote on the creation of a $5.3 million waterutility. He said that the residents were not interested in pushing for a courtruling now that the issue will be addressed through a referendum. “The point is that they wanted a referendum,” he said. “That’sall they wanted.”

Village Attorney Mark Blum said that although he had signed the stipulation,the Village Board would decide whether to dismiss its suit in the case. Board trustees filed the suit in response to the residents’ legal claimagainst the village. The claim alleged taxpayers had been damaged by thedecision and demanded that the water project be dropped. Village officials, in turn, asked Becker for a declaratory judgment that theyhad acted legally. The Village Board likely will discuss the situation after the Feb. 18 vote,Blum said.

Contractors hit gas lines 8 times in Lannon

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

January 20, 1997

Lannon — A natural gas line break Wednesday on Good Hope Road was the eighthtime contractors for a village sewer project had struck lines.

On at least two of the eight strikes, the location of gas pipes had beenclearly marked by Wisconsin Gas Co. officials.

While the breaks did not cause any major interruptions of gas service,evacuations or threats to public safety, they appear to be another sign of thesevere problems Lannon has endured with its rocky terrain. Rock blasting costshave fueled a $700,000 sewer project overrun.

Crew carelessness also could have been a factor in the two hits to markedpipes, Wisconsin Gas Co. spokesman Sue Riordan said.

“It appears that Lannon’s rocky soil condition was likely the mainculprit,” Riordan said. “There also was a lot of rain over theconstruction season, which saturated the ground and made for difficult diggingsituations.”

This number of hits on one construction project is high, according to gascompany statistics. However, it is not unprecedented, Riordan said. She notedthat the reconstruction of N. Oakland Ave. in Shorewood had a comparable numberof hits.

According to company statistics, there were 76,642 construction projects inthe four-county metropolitan area from January to October 1996.

From those projects, gas crews responded to 337 repair calls, Riordan said.Seven of the 337 came from Lannon.

Those seven all occurred on Main St. However, on Wednesday afternoon, crewsblasting rock on Good Hope Road near Lannon Road broke a three-quarter-inchservice line, Riordan said.

Workers from Kasbohm Custom Drilling, an Illinois contractor, were settingcharges for blasting, and an explosion broke a small pipe connection.

“The ground shook, and it pulled a coupler out of a service line,”Riordan said.

The break, which took about 1 1/2 hours to fix, did not injure anyone orcause other damage. There was no service interruption to area homes orbusinesses.

Riordan said that considering Lannon’s rough and rocky terrain, a largenumber of pipe strikes would not be not unusual.

“As a community, Lannon is more vulnerable to damages to undergroundpiping,” she said. “Normally, you’d like to see it minimized, but theyare hampered somewhat by their soil conditions.”

Of the eight incidents, five involved village contractor Mainline Sewer &Water Inc. Mainline is the contractor that billed the village $435,000 more inrock excavation charges than engineers had estimated for the project.

The $435,000 made up the bulk of the $700,000 in overruns announced to dateon the $14 million sanitary sewer project.

Al Wojtasiak, Mainline’s project manager on the sewer project, declined tocomment Friday on the gas line breaks. He referred a reporter to the companypresident, who was unavailable.

Board Trustee Doug Repta said he was not surprised or upset to learn aboutthe pipe strikes.

Repta, who works for the City of Brookfield’s water utility and hasexperience digging and installing water mains, agreed with Riordan that thelarge amount of rock was a problem.

“When you get into blasting, when you’re disturbing that much groundthat fast, that kind of stuff happens,” he said.

Even if the pipes are marked, crews sometimes can’t help but damage them ifthey’re too close to where the new utilities are planned, he added.

Trustee Dan Martin also said he wasn’t concerned — as long as the companypaid for any repair bills sent by Wisconsin Gas.

Riordan said the bills were sent to the contractors and typically were paidby their insurance carriers. She would not release the amount, if any, WisconsinGas charged Mainline, Kasbohm and Town & Country.

“There is no (financial) impact to the village” or its taxpayers,Riordan said.

Falls official has warning for Lannon

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

February 4, 1997

Lannon — If Lannon votes down a proposed municipal water system, the villagewould probably lose future financial help for its system from Menomonee Falls,an official warned Monday night.

If Lannon voters reject the proposal Feb. 18 in a referendum, the $750,000that Menomonee Falls already has borrowed and pledged to Lannon to pay for awell, pump station and water tower in Lannon likely would be used to insteadbuild facilities in Menomonee Falls, said Max Vogt, Menomonee Falls public worksdirector.

Menomonee Falls needs a water system to serve its developing western andsouthwestern quadrant, Vogt said, and it was hoped the two municipalities couldcoordinate their efforts.

Vogt was one of several engineering and financial officials who spoke at aninformational meeting Monday night attended by about 100 people.

The hearing and another hearing, planned for 8 tonight at Lannon ElementarySchool, were designed to answer questions about the Feb. 18 referendum onwhether to approve an estimated $5.3 million water system for Lannon.

The financial impact of voting yes or no on the referendum proposal wasexplained in a letter mailed to residents. According to the letter:

If the project is scrapped, property owners would have to pay $2.40 per$1,000 of assessed valuation during each of the next 10 years.

That tax levy would be necessary to pay for work that has already been done.The village has accrued about $870,000 in bills, including $608,000 forinstallation of water mains under Main St., $160,000 for design of adistribution system, $40,000 for engineering work and $20,000 for legal andfinancing work.

Completing the project would cost property owners $2.65 per $1,000 ofassessed valuation during each of the next 15 years.

That tax would be reduced if the village receives money from local quarries.Lannon Stone and Halquist quarries have pledged to pay the village 8 cents perton of quarried rock to help pay for the water system. The amount of a taxdecrease would depend on the quarries’ production.

Property owners also would have to pay a $3,900 special assessment, servicelateral connection charges, possible well abandonment charges and monthly userfees.

Lannon water system is the subject of 2 forums

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

February 3, 1997

Lannon — Residents will get a chance tonight and Tuesday night to ask questionsabout the impact of scrapping or completing a municipal water system that is onhold.

Financial advisers, engineers and officials from Menomonee Falls, which iscontributing to the project, will be on hand to answer questions and presentinformation at meetings at 7 tonight at Hamilton High School and 8 p.m. Tuesdayat Lannon Elementary School.

Voters will decide in a Feb. 18 binding referendum whether the system shouldmove forward.

Some financial information was released in a letter mailed to all Lannonresidents late last week. According to the letter:

Scrapping the $5.3 million construction of a village water system would costproperty owners $2.40 per $1,000 of assessed valuation during each of the next10 years. For example, the owner of a $100,000 home would pay $240 in propertytaxes annually for the project, although the annual taxes would rise if propertyassessments rose.

Under that scenario, a $608,000 water pipe already installed under Main St.would remain unused, and the village would continue to operate on private andcommunity wells.

Completing the system would cost property owners $2.65 per $1,000 of assessedvaluation for each of the next 15 years. Again, in the case of a home assessedat $100,000, the annual taxes for the project would be $265.

Under the second scenario, Lannon would switch from private wells to a publicwater system, with a water tower, well pumping stations and reservoirs.Residents would have to pay a $3,900 special assessment, service lateralconnection charges, possible well abandonment charges and monthly user fees.

The $2.65 per $1,000 in taxes to complete the project would be reduced iflocal quarries contribute money. The letter, however, did not say how much ofthe tax could be eliminated.

“It depends on how much (rock) they sell,” Village PresidentShirley Ravnik said in an interview. “It could be part, it could be all, itcould be half.”

Two local quarries, Halquist and Lannon Stone, have pledged to give 8 centsper ton of quarried rock — up to a total of $2 million — to the village forthe water system. The quarries hope to benefit from the system when theirresources are depleted and they want to redevelop their sites.

On property tax bills mailed in December, residents were levied about $1.10per $1,000 of assessed valuation for work already done on the project, which washalted when a group of residents threatened to sue.

Trustees borrowed $500,000 last fall to install pipe on Main St. That is notthe only money, however, spent to date on the system.

About $870,000 has been paid out, including $608,200 for the pipe andinstallation, $160,000 for design of a distribution system, $40,000 forengineering, and $20,000 for legal and financing fees.

Those items have to be paid regardless of whether the system moves forward,and that is why residents would have to pay $2.40 per $1,000 of assessedproperty value for the next 10 years even if the project is killed.

Moving forward would cost $4.8 million more than what has already been spent.Most of that would be paid through the special assessments and user fees, Ravniksaid. That is why the annual tax would be only 25 cents per $1,000 more than itwould be under a “no” vote.

Some extra borrowing would be needed for the construction.

“It’s unlikely there will be grants, but if there are, we will go forthem,” Ravnik said.

Monthly user fees still are estimated at about $44.60 per month for a typicalresidence that uses 48,000 gallons per year. Mobile home park residents likelywould see a smaller fee of about $22 per month. The mobile home owners’ one-timespecial assessment also would be smaller than other homeowners: $1,850 insteadof $3,900.

Ravnik called the figures the best estimates and the worst-case scenariosthat could be determined before the Feb. 18 referendum.

The two informational meetings will be taped and rebroadcast on the localcable access channel up until the referendum.

Fate of water system up to voters

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

February 12, 1997

Lannon — After months of fighting for a referendum, Lannon residents will getto vote Tuesday on whether the village should build a $5.7 million public watersystem.

In the binding referendum, voters will cast “yes” or “no”votes to answer a question that will determine whether Lannon will complete orabandon a water system that has already been partially built.

About $835,000 of the estimated $5.7 million cost has been billed, and watermains have been installed along Main St.

Experts agree that a municipal system tapping a deep sandstone aquifer wouldassure residents that their drinking water is safe and of high quality. But manyresidents say their water is fine now.

Robert Beibel, a planner with the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional PlanningCommission, told residents at a hearing last fall that installing municipalwater was “the right thing to do.”

Lannon’s high bedrock and shallow ground water source makes it highlysusceptible to contamination, the regional planning commission and stateagencies have said.

System opponents have argued that there hasn’t been enough contamination tonecessitate a $5.7 million expenditure.

Numerous water studies have been conducted since the 1960s. The most recentstudy, reported in February 1995 by engineering firm Ruekert & Mielke Inc.,tested 241 of 290 private residential wells in the village.

Of the 241 wells tested, 40, or 16.6%, showed the presence of harmfulbacteria. Three of the 40 tested positive for E. Coli, a bacteria contained inhuman and animal fecal matter.

Of the 241 wells, none showed nitrate levels that exceeded state publichealth levels. Of 77 wells tested for volatile organic contaminants (petroleumchemicals), none exceeded state safety standards.

The report did not investigate what had caused the contamination that wasfound. However, engineers listed historical causes of such contamination,including septic system failures and surface runoff of fertilizers and livestockmanure.

“A significant source of bacteria contamination is improper operation ofseptic systems,” Ruekert & Mielke reported. Most septic systems will bereplaced by municipal sewer connections following a village sewer projectconstructed in 1996.

But engineer Max Vogt, Menomonee Falls’ public works director, said the sewerproject would not eliminate ground water contamination.

Municipal water would make Lannon more attractive for residential and otherdevelopment, supporters have said.

Village growth has been stagnant for decades, and a growing tax base isneeded to ease the property tax burden on older residents who are living onfixed incomes, supporters argue.

Having municipal water service would increase property values and resaleprices, and give residents better fire protection with hydrants instead of onlyfire tanker trucks, supporters say.

An assistant fire chief argued that, without municipal water, a second$130,000 tanker will be needed within the next 10 years.

However, water system opponents have said they cannot afford to pay a monthlywater charge and other assessments at the same time they are being hit for a new$14 million municipal sewer system.

If residents vote “no” on water, they still will have to pay the$835,000 bill already accrued. That will mean an annual property tax levy ofabout $2.40 per $1,000 of assessed valuation in each of the next 10 years.

If residents vote “yes,” they will face an annual tax levy of $2.65per $1,000 of assessed valuation. It was initially thought that the levy wouldbe terminated after 15 years, but financial advisers have said the tax levywould remain part of village budgets forever, due to ongoing system costs.

Other costs to complete the system include a $3,900 special assessment,possible well abandonment costs, a service lateral connection charge and anaverage $45 monthly user fee.

If Lannon ever wants to build a municipal water system, this probably wouldbe the cheapest time to do it. Officials estimated that within five years, thecost to construct the system would increase by another $1 million.

Lannon also could now get financial help from Menomonee Falls and localquarries, and save about $800,000 in pavement restoration costs.

Menomonee Falls has agreed to split the $1.2 million cost for a new watertower and well, and to provide Lannon emergency water service from its fourtowers and eight wells.

Two quarries have agreed to pay a combined total of up to $2 million, or 8cents per ton of quarried rock.

Quarry supports water system despite delay

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

February 16, 1997

Lannon — A local quarry says it is willing to sign a new contract with thevillage to help pay for a $5.7 million municipal water system, the fate of whichwill be decided in a referendum Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Village President Shirley Ravnik scrambled to correct a villagemailing that erroneously said voters could cast ballots Tuesday and Wednesday.Voting time is only on Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Village Hall, 20399 W.Main St.

A typist not employed by the village made the error, but Ravnik used her ownmoney to pay for the second batch of envelopes and postage.

“It was my responsibility to read it over and catch that typo,” shesaid. “The village shouldn’t have to pay for it.”

She also stuffed the new envelopes. “Thank God we’re a small(community),” Ravnik said.

Lannon’s population is about 1,000.

A Main Street businessman used the referendum date confusion to voice hisopinion on the water system.

“Lannon: Feb. 18 vote YES, Feb. 19 vote NO,” said a sign made byMark Spranger, a Germantown resident who owns Repco Lawn & Garden in Lannon.

Other business people have complained that only homeowners, not businessowners, can cast votes on the water system.

The final vote will be a binding answer on whether village officials willcomplete or scrap a $5.7 million water system that is partially built. About$835,000 in bills have already been accrued for work done.

The fiscal impact of completing the project has been calculated withoutincluding any money from two quarries that last year signed agreements tocontribute up to $2 million to the project.

The agreements with Lannon Stone Products and Halquist Stone Co. werecontingent on completing the water system by Dec. 31, 1997. But officials nowestimate that the system probably couldn’t be operational until the fall of1998.

In Ravnik’s letter to residents, she said that Lannon Stone Products Inc. hadagreed to sign a new contract extending a water system construction deadline toDec. 31, 1999.

Halquist Stone Co. Inc. Vice President Tom Halquist said the village had nottalked to Halquist about a new contract and his firm has not decided whether toagree to an extension. He expressed surprise at Lannon Stone Products’announcement, saying that the two quarries previously had worked jointly on thecontract issue.

The quarries last summer pledged to pay the village 8 cents per ton ofquarried rock, up to a combined total of $2 million, to help underwrite the costof the water system.

As of Jan. 10, Lannon Stone Products Inc. had set aside $23,500 in an specialbank account for the system, said Virgil Dawson, company chief operatingofficer. The account was opened in September.

Dawson said his company would sign a new contract with no changes other thanthe 1999 date.

“We’ve always thought it (the per-ton contribution) was a good idea andwe still do,” he said.

Both quarries would like to tap into a village water system when they closeproduction and redevelop the sites.

Lannon residents approve abandoning village water project

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

February 19, 1997

Lannon residents voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to reject a $5.7 millionvillage water project and abandon $500,000 worth of pipe already installed underMain St.

By a nearly 2-to-1 margin, residents said they did not want to trade theirprivate wells for a municipal utility. The unofficial results in Tuesday’sreferendum were 294 to 165 against the project.

Residents, however, will have to pay about $835,000 in bills already accruedfor the water system, including the pipe that has been installed. That will meanan annual property tax of $2.40 per $1,000 of assessed valuation for the next 10years, Lannon’s financial advisers have estimated.

Former Village Trustee LaVern Ehley, who was recalled in November in partbecause of his push for the water system, said Tuesday that residents wereshortsighted.

“It’s just a sad, sad situation,” Ehley said. “Water is nevergoing to get cheaper. People are going to be paying for something that they getnothing for but empty pipes.

“The day will come when they say, we wish we would have (installedvillage water).”

Trustee Doug Repta, who defeated Ehley in the November recall election, saidthat many older village residents on fixed incomes could not afford theproject’s $5.7 million price tag.

“There were two main reasons (people voted no),” Repta said.”One was the cost. The other reason was that people were not convinced thattheir wells were that bad that they needed to spend $5 million.”

With water plan dead, roads will get fixed

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

February 20, 1997

Lannon — Whether it was rooted in financial concerns or political retribution,Tuesday’s 2-to-1 drubbing of a water project means construction-racked villageroads will finally be restored, an official said Wednesday.

“What we need to do now is just move forward with getting the roadspaved,” Village President Shirley Ravnik said. “Travel through thevillage is a real issue.”

Some village streets have been torn up for as long as nine months.

Last summer, contractors dug up roads to install sewer and water lines.Repaving was put on hold when village officials halted work and scheduled thereferendum. Work should resume now as weather permits, Ravnik said.

Village Trustee Doug Repta said he hoped the referendum would return somenormalcy to Lannon, where recalls and rowdy meetings have taken center stage.

“This should pretty much put a cork in all the unrest,” Repta said.”People got their say. Now we’ve got to move forward”

But Trustee Steve Semo, who was criticized for supporting the water project,said he expected more upheaval.

“There’s another election coming up,” he said. “I’ll besurprised if I make it.”

Semo is one of three incumbents whose terms expire in April, and fourcandidates are vying for the three seats. Since the water controversy boiledover last fall, three trustees have resigned and two others have been recalled.

Mark Lubenow, co-owner of M&D Auto Service on Main St., argued thatsystem opponents were motivated by political retribution, not financialconcerns.

“A lot of this is still fallout from the old village governance,”he said. “Some people just despised the former village president and formerboard, and whatever they were in favor of, people would reject.”

Repta disagreed. The water vote had nothing to do with revenge, he said.”Not at all. I think it had to do with the costs. People were not convincedthat their wells were that bad that they needed to spend $5 million.”

Business owner Mark Spranger, who backed the project, said residents basedtheir votes on the short-term costs rather than the long-term gains.

“I think this is going to stifle the quarries and any new businessesthat would have come in,” Spranger said.

Charles Edelbeck, owner of Lannon Estates mobile home park, distributed aflier last weekend that blasted the water system as too expensive and arguedproject cost overruns would occur.

Edelbeck, who plans to activate a second well he drilled for the park in1991, said he didn’t want to pay for a municipal system after spending $80,000on his own wells.

A reporter who informally surveyed voters outside polling places foundresponses mirrored the final result. Of 25 residents interviewed, seven said they had voted for the water utilityand 18 said they had voted against it. Opponents cited the cost and the lack of serious water contamination.Supporters said the system was needed and would only become more expensive inthe future.

A 65-year-old man who said he has lived in Lannon for 34 years said heopposed both the water system and the newly installed municipal sewer system. “I was against the whole thing in the first place with the sewer,”said the man, who asked not to be identified. “We’re not big enough forthese city-type utilities. I would prefer that we (buy water) from MenomoneeFalls or Sussex.”

Alan May, 25, voted for the system. “The water out here is iron,”he said. “We’ve had brown water, black water. We use bottled water fordrinking.” May listed increasing property values and home resale prices as other reasonsto install municipal water.

Joan McCartan, 60, said: “It’s too terribly expensive. We’re seniorcitizens. How are we going to pay for it? If they were going to put it in, theyshould have done it 20 years ago.”

Arlene Adams said: “It was sneaky the way they were going to build it.That angered a lot of people, including me.”

Lannon withdraws water utility suit

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

February 28, 1997

Lannon — The Village Board voted Thursday to withdraw a lawsuit that sought ajudicial ruling on whether the village acted properly by approving a waterutility without a referendum.

The board filed the court action last September in response to a legal claimbrought by a group of residents who demanded a referendum.

A referendum was later scheduled by a revamped Village Board, after five ofseven trustees either resigned or were recalled.

Voters rejected the proposed $5.7 million water system in the Feb. 18 bindingreferendum.

Village Attorney Mark Blum said the referendum had made the lawsuit moot.

In other action Thursday, the board approved:

A settlement with local property owner James Schaaf in a dispute over hissewer assessment.

Schaaf, who owns The Dug Out tavern at 7273 N. Lannon Road, sued the villagelast year, saying his $26,535 assessment was too high.

He disputed the village’s claim that his property had a sewer use equivalentto 5 1/2 single-family homes.

A compromise was reached in which part of Schaaf’s property, which is vacant,will receive a deferred assessment.

The exact amount of Schaaf’s new total bill was not immediately available.

The purchase of new village computer equipment. The system is need in part toprocess bills for the new village sanitary sewer system, Village PresidentShirley Ravnik said.

Falls official seeks end to Lannon water system deal

By Lisa Sink
of the Journal Sentinel staff

March 5, 1997

Menomonee Falls — The village should rescind its agreement to help Lannon payfor a new water system but keep the door open for future cooperation, VillagePresident Joseph Greco says.

Greco said the action by Menomonee Falls has been made necessary by Lannonvoters’ overwhelming defeat of a $5.7 million municipal water system in a Feb.18 referendum. Most residents said they could not afford the new utility at thesame time they were being charged for a new municipal sewer system. “Ifthey ever get another thing going, we’re always open (to considering a jointproject), up until the time we build another plant,” Greco said.

Menomonee Falls likely will not build another well or pump station to serveits southwestern corner for three years, Greco and Public Works Director MaxVogt said.

Greco urged against extending utilities sooner, saying that would encourageurban sprawl.

Menomonee Falls had been willing to accelerate its plans to accommodateLannon’s schedule. Lannon village officials, most of whom have since resigned orbeen recalled, had wanted to install water mains at the same time a new sanitarysewer system was created last year.

Menomonee Falls offered to pay about $750,000 toward Lannon’s water system ifLannon oversized its pipes primarily near Highway 74 to handle additionalcapacity from Menomonee Falls.

That agreement, which was never signed because of growing opposition to theproject by Lannon residents, should be formally rescinded, Greco said.

“I don’t want anyone to come back and say we reneged on anything,”he said.

Two quarries offered to jointly pay up to $2 million toward the water system,and an attorney for one of them said Tuesday that the quarry could sign asimilar agreement again in the future if the project were resurrected.

“Although it would be difficult at this time to commit to anything inthe future, I believe that (Lannon Stone Products) would be sympathetic toconsidering something like this in the future,” attorney T. Michael Schobersaid.

Schober said the owners of Lannon Stone Products were disappointed with theFeb. 18 referendum defeat but understood residents’ financial concerns.

“There were two sides to it,” he said. “Even though we feltthat it was wise to put it in now, we can sympathize with the people who weregoing to have to bear significant expenses.”

In related news, Greco said that without the Lannon water system, MenomoneeFalls will not extend water to the Walterwood subdivision and other homes nearthe two communities’ southern border. He left open the possibility that thesewer services could be extended to that area. Residents of the area will beinvited to a March 17 meeting on sewer services.

—

Lannon examines police reforms

By Betsy Thatcher
of the Journal Sentinel staff

April 1, 1997

Lannon — The village’s top goals should be depoliticizing the police chief’sposition and bringing more accountability to the Police Department, villageofficials said Monday.

The village should avoid past problems between elected officials and thechief, Village Trustee Steve Semo told the two other members of the VillageBoard’s Public Welfare and Safety Committee.

The committee is reviewing possible changes to the ordinance governing thehiring, duties and removal of the chief.

The village has been without a permanent chief since May 1, 1996, when JohnDenzin retired.

The current ordinance provides for an “indefinite” term, or whatcommittee chairman Semo said amounts to a lifetime term, for any chief appointedby the Village Board.

Village President Shirley Ravnik had suggested the village consider tying thechief’s position, which is part time, to a five-year contract.

But committee members shied away from limiting the chief’s term, saying aterm limit might create political problems similar to ones experienced in recentyears.

Former Village President Terry Gissal and Denzin clashed so much that theydid not even communicate, Trustee Robert Winter said.

“I think it’s safe to say the village has entered an era of opencommunication,” Semo said, referring to the upheaval that has taken placeon the board in the last year.

Gissal was recalled from office last year and five of the seven members ofthe board are new.

Semo, Winter and fellow committee member Danny Martin agreed that theordinance governing the chief’s position should include more specific languageon the chief’s duties and outline a structure for removal.

Currently, the ordinance provides for removal for “just cause” on athree-quarter vote of the Village Board, Semo said.

Martin suggested that a periodic audit or review of the department berequired.

“I think we were walking a pretty thin line at times,” Martin said,referring to past problems in the department.

Among problems noted Monday was that officers in the three-member, part-timedepartment did not get updated firearms training as required by the state,Acting Chief Gregg Malloy said.

Lannon looks to move beyond board turmoil

By Betsy Thatcher
of the Journal Sentinel staff

March 22, 1999

Upheavals in Lannon government have become the norm for the last few years ascontentious issues have bitterly divided residents of the small community andresulted in turnover on the Village Board.

While unruly board meetings, which featured chair hurling, expletives andthreats, are now just vivid memories, mistrust and divisiveness remain.

Village Trustee Robert Winter is hoping to unseat Village President Dan W.Martin in the April 6 election.

Also, village voters will select three trustees. Two political newcomers butno strangers to village affairs, Beverly Felten and Deborah Schultz are hopingto join the board, and incumbents Jerome Geiger and Gail Schiller want to retaintheir board seats. Trustee Doug Repta is not seeking re-election.

The president’s position, a two-year term, pays $2,400 a year. The trusteeposition, also for two years, pays $1,320 a year.

Neither Martin nor Schultz responded to a reporter’s repeated telephonemessages and a letter seeking comment for this story.

Martin, a former trustee, was chosen by board members in May 1998 to succeedShirley Ravnik, who resigned as village president. With Ravnik’s resignation,Martin became the only holdover to survive vicious battles over a municipalwater system. Two village officials were recalled and several resigned in theprocess.

Schultz, a frequent candidate and faithful attendee at village meetings,helped organize the 1996 recall.

Winter said that because discontent lingers, “a lot of people in thevillage have asked me to run” for village president.

“I would continue listening to and respecting residents,” Wintersaid. “That doesn’t happen all the time now. We’re there to represent ourconstituents, not to lord over them.”

Winter said there is “a regime” on the board that makes all thedecisions.

“Policies are decided before you get there. That’s just terrible. That’sa real concern to me,” Winter said. “My number one goal would be torestore confidence in Lannon residents that our board is working for them.Residents feel like they are not being listened to.”

Felten also believes that some board members do not listen to residents. Theoperations of quarries in the village are Felten’s main concern and arereflected on her campaign signs, which read, “Quality of life, not justquarries.”

“I don’t want to see the quarries expanding toward residentialareas,” Felten said. “I’m deeply concerned about water and the impactof quarrying and development on the ground water.”

Felten also said too much area was set aside in the land use plan formultifamily housing.

Geiger said the village needs to expand its tax base. “One of the waysof doing it is a properly planned multifamily project,” Geiger said.”If it’s done properly and well, it can be a tremendous boon for the taxbase.

“This idea that it’s going to ruin this, ruin that — no. We’ve gotmanufacturing, quarries, single-family homes. It’s a jigsaw community right now.This master plan will give us some order and help us plan better.”

Geiger said he was bothered by residents who said that apartments would bringlow-income renters. “This is a bunch of garbage,” Geiger said, addingthat a proposal currently before the village calls for a quality developmentwith monthly rents of $700 to $900.

Schiller agrees.

“We have very little (open) land left,” Schiller said. “Theland we do have left we should (develop) it wisely and help the tax base.”

Schiller said adequate controls were built into the land use plan to ensureprojects are well planned.

Schiller wants to help complete the planning for improvements at the villagepark and she wants to continue working on administrative issues that remainconcerning the recent installation of a municipal sanitary sewer system.

“And the last big shoe to fall is getting our quarries to havereclamation plans with some real dates involved,” Schiller said, addingthat the village needs to have greater control over quarries.

Beverly Felten, 43
Address; time in district: 19822 W. Good Hope Road; six years
Date of birth: July 28, 1955
Recent work history: Registered nurse for 22 years, owner of Gero-Psych NursingS.C.
Elective offices; other government experience: Member of Lannon Zoning Board ofAppeals for the past two years, former member of Lannon Plan Commission
Unsuccessful bids for office: None
Education: Working on doctorate in nursing research, University ofWisconsin-Milwaukee; master of science degree in community healthnursing-gerontology, UWM, 1988; bachelor of science degree in nursing, UW-GreenBay, 1983; attended Bellin Memorial Hospital School of Nursing, Green Bay, 1977;Green Bay West High School, 1973

Jerome Geiger, 59 (inc.)
Address; time in district: 20413 W. Good Hope Road; 16 years
Date of birth: Dec. 19, 1939
Recent work history: Employed at Firstar Bank
Elective offices; other government experience: Appointed to Village Board inNovember 1996, elected in 1997; Germantown Village Board for two terms in the1970s
Unsuccessful bids for office: Germantown Village Board
Education: Two years of college courses; Washington High School, Milwaukee, 1958

Gail Schiller, 49 (inc.)
Address; time in district: 7335 Davies Court; 30 years
Date of birth: Feb. 8, 1950
Recent work history: Employed by Ameritech in engineering department
Elective offices; other government experience: Elected to Village Board in 1997
Unsuccessful bids for office: None
Education: Pius XI High School, Milwaukee, 1968

Deborah Schultz, 48 (information based on data provided by candidate in 1994 andnewspaper clips)
Address; time in district: 21075 W. Good Hope Road
Date of birth: Aug. 23, 1950
Elective offices; other government experience: None
Unsuccessful bids for office: Village trustee, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1992, 1994,1995; village president, 1991 and 1993
Education: Nicolet High School, 1968

Robert Winter, 41
Address; time in district: 19315 W. Main St.; 12 years
Date of birth: Nov. 22, 1957
Recent work history: General contractor, owner of Bob Winter Builders Electiveoffices; other government experience: Appointed village trustee in November1996, elected April 1998; Lannon Plan Commission, 1994-’96
Unsuccessful bids for office: None
Education: Attended Marquette University on ROTC scholarship for 18 months,received honorable discharge from Marine Reserves in order to take overbusiness; Washington High School, Milwaukee, 1975

Dan W. Martin
Address; time in district: 7377 N. Lannon Road

Lannon’s small-town charm is carved out of native stone

History, and noise, of quarries is ingrained in homes and residents

By Luke Klink
Special to the Journal Sentinel

March 21, 1999

Quarry blasting and rumbling stone-filled trucks have been a fact of life forRonald and Patsy Monacelli for the last 25 years, having lived, worked andraised two children in the village of Lannon.

The Monacellis live near Mibb’s and Viv’s, the tavern and restaurant they runin the heart of this small village in northern Waukesha County.

The village is best known as the source of vast quantities of thecream-colored dolomite limestone used for home-building and landscaping.

Appropriately, many of the homes in this community of 924 residents werebuilt from the stone hauled out of the surrounding land. Today, gaping pits,hidden behind tall berms and fences, continue to churn out tons of Lannon stoneeach year.

The rock-splitting crack of explosives punctuate the atmosphere each springthrough fall, shaking walls and stirring dust. Even longtime residents like theMonacellis are still startled sometimes.

“We have a lot of dust but they have to run their businesses, too,”said Patsy Monacelli. “They blast and it really rumbles sometimes and itmight scare you. But the worst part of it is the truck traffic rumbling throughtown.”

Patsy said she and her husband purchased a home in the village after takingover the family business from Ronald’s parents because they liked Lannon’ssmall-town feel.

“This is a good place to live and we have nice neighbors,” saidPatsy Monacelli. “It’s a friendly community.”

Like their neighbors, the Monacellis were hit hard with special assessmentsabout two years ago when sewer was extended through much of the village. Eachsingle-family home in the village was assessed about $5,000 to help pay for thesewers.

When village officials push- ed to install public water at the same time,residents revolted, generating some fiery exchanges at village board meetings.Public water was defeated by referendum and several board members eitherresigned or were ousted in a recall election.

“We needed the sewers, but the village should have put in water at thesame time they did the sewers,” said Patsy Monacelli.

Long-running businesses like Betti Anne’s Antiques and Garry Joeck’s Serviceshare space along Main St. with tracts of farm land and vacant store fronts.Most residents work outside Lannon, so downtown often is a quiet place to be ona weekday.

“You don’t have the same amount of people coming in that you would havein a busier community,” said Patsy Monacelli. “The weekends, though,are excellent, but that’s because our food is so good.”

Many homes in Lannon were built near the intersection of Main St. and LannonRoad, close to village hall and the recreational facilities at Joeck’s MemorialPark.

Some newer homes have been built on the far west side of the village, in adevelopment called Lannon Village Hills.

Patsy said she is not looking forward to the day when the village’ssubstantial amount of undeveloped farmland is turned into commercial orresidential neighborhoods.

Village clerk Judy Hughes said there is currently not much real estateactivity in the village.

There were 541 zoned parcels in the village in 1998 with an average assessedvalue of $98,753. The tax rate varies slightly depending upon which schooldistrict a home lies within — $23.56 per $1,000 of equalized value in theHamilton School District in Sussex, $23.36 for the Menomonee Falls schools.

Jean Badzio, a sales agent for Century 21 Property Specialists in MenomoneeFalls, said homes do not go up for sale often in Lannon because there are not alot of homes in the village. Only 13 Lannon homes sold in 1998 at an average of$131,592, according to the Metro Multiple Listing Service in Wauwatosa.

“Lannon is a good area. Highway 74 goes right through the area giving itmajor access to the east and west,” said Badzio. “It’s a nice littlearea.”

Ward and Loretta Kunz built a home in the village 48 years ago on Main St.

Loretta Kunz said she believes the small-town charm of Lannon will be lost ifresidential development increases.

“I think the leaders are trying to make a city out of the town,”said Loretta Kunz.

“This used to be a peaceful town and it was a small town, and now itseems like we are trying to live up to Sussex or Menomonee Falls and then wewon’t be a small town any more.”

Former village president Shirley Ravnik said she anticipates only slightfuture growth in the village because much of the village’s undeveloped land iseither wetland or part of a quarry operation.

“A lot of people see all of our vacant land and think people will bebuilding on it, but the fact is that much of it is not buildable,” saidRavnik, who has lived 24 years in the village with her family.

Ravnik, who helped publish a book nearly 20 years ago on the 50th anniversaryof the village, said large quarry firms in Lannon like Halquist Stone and LannonStone Products make up much of the village’s history.

“Most of the people who have lived in the village were those who workedfor these quarries,” said Ravnik.