GREENWOOD TWP- Greenwood voters will have decisions in the March 11 township election, with contested races across the board.
Steve Bradach and Sue Drobac filed for the supervisor seat currently held by Rick Stoehr, who is not seeking reelection. Drobac formerly served as the town clerk, a position she resigned back in 2020 before running for supervisor the following year. She served one term until losing the election in 2024 to Lois Roskoski. Bradach would be a newcomer to township politics.
Meanwhile, Paul Thompson and JoAnn Bassing both filed for the treasurer seat, currently held by Jeff Maus, who also is not running for reelection.
JoAnn Bassing formerly served as interim clerk, appointed after the resignation of Debby Spicer in June 2022, and was elected to fill the remainder of that term in 2023, ran again against Spicer in 2024 but lost, and is currently deputy treasurer.
Thompson, who was a major force behind the fundraising for the new pickleball courts, has become a regular at township meetings. He spoke recently during public comment to urge township residents to vote for Option B, which will also be on the March 11 ballot.
Option B would change the clerk and treasurer positions from elected to hired, creating two new township employees working under the direction of the town board. Thompson said he is hoping that Option B passes, which means he would only stay in office only until the board is able to hire a treasurer.
Absentee voting in the township opens Feb. 7 and runs through March 10. Absentee ballot applications are available at the town hall office Tuesday through Thursday from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. or online at www.greenwoodtownshipmn.com.
Other business
In other business at the Jan. 14 meeting, the board:
• Passed a motion regarding the renewal of the township’s large CDs to invest $50,000 into a six-month CD for the broadband account, $100,000 into a one-year CD, and $107,000 into a six-month CD. The CD interest rates will be around four percent, or a little higher.
• Once again, failed to approve the treasurer’s report, even though all the requested information was made available by treasurer Jeff Maus.
• Discussed a $6,200 bill from B & D for plowing services for the town hall and Birch Point Extension in December. “It is very excessive,” said Supervisor Paul Skubic, who said they need to make sure plowing is only done if the snow total is two inches or higher, and also request that the plow operator get permission for other plowing such as removing slush or other clean up.
• Decided not to do any further testing on the town hall water supply at this time and will continue to post the outdoor faucet as non-potable due to high levels of arsenic. The township did have a quote to replace the treatment system’s filtration media at a cost of over $2,000, but were concerned that this would be an ongoing expense, perhaps every 10 months. The idea of installing an under-the-sink water treatment system in the town hall kitchen was discussed.
• Heard a request from a group of residents to improve the kitchen facilities so it could be used by those renting out the town hall. Right now, there is not a working stove or potable water. Roskoski offered to meet with the group of residents hoping to get the kitchen back in working order, and then come to the board with recommendations.
• Agreed to pay clerk Debby Spicer $25 per hour for the 58.5 hours she spent working on resolving the missing PERA payment issue. When the previous treasurer quit and interim treasurer Maus was appointed, he was not made aware that the township was responsible for making these payments to cover the township’s matching amount. These payments do not go through the township’s ADP payroll service. The township’s back amount due is $4,990 which includes some interest but no penalties. The issue affected 10 township employees. Maus noted that he could have worked on correcting the issue if he had been asked. The motion to pay Spicer was 3-2 with Bassing and Stoehr voting against.
• The board appointed election judges and the absentee ballot board members and voted to increase the hourly pay rate to $17.
• Set a special meeting for Jan. 22 for a performance evaluation of the fire chief on a 3-2 vote with Bassing and Stoehr voting against.
• Will hold the annual board of audit on Tuesday, Feb. 11 following the regular meeting. “We need to have the clerk’s and treasurer’s financials matching by then,” said Chair Lois Roskoski. “I hope they can work it out and they balance.”
• Approved a $100 donation to the W. C. Heiam Foundation of the Cook Hospital.