By SARAH PARKER | County Line Editor
Though the situation could change in a matter of days, the Kendall School Marketplace remains open, as the company that may convert it to a hemp-processing plant has not bought the building.
At this stage, no plan for the building is certain; i.e., no property transfer has occurred and no contracts have been signed. Now owned by Bill Rogge, the former Kendall Elementary School houses a café, which will continue to serve food. In the event that the building does not sell, the Kendall Village Board approved a renewal of its liquor license at its Monday meeting.
Rogge purchased the building for $45,000 in 2015. The Royall School District had ceased operations at Kendall Elementary School in 2011 and had sold the structure to the Village of Kendall for $1 in 2013.
If plans for a hemp-processing plant do materialize, they could warrant significant changes for that area of the village. The village board may consider annexing about 30 acres from the Donald Braund farm, currently in the town of Glendale, and creating a Tax Increment Finance District to support the costs of upgrading infrastructure in the area. Additionally, some of the land would have to be rezoned to manufacturing.
All plans are only provisional at this point, however.
Other business
• The board approved a contract amendment with its engineer, MSA Professional Services of Baraboo, Wis., for $40,000. The amend will cover costs related to the 2018 flood, wastewater-treatment-plant contractor Stobb’s transition of onsite personnel, subcontractor performance, administration of construction change orders and administration of USDA grant funds remaining after the project reached substantial completion.
In light of post-flood progress, board member Art Keenan urged the board to approve the amendment. “We would not be where we are if we didn’t have an advocate.”
The motion passed unanimously.
• The board denied Daron Smalley’s request to pay his business’s snowplowing bill to Kendall Trucking, Plumbing and Excavating. His business, the Kendall Mill, is usually plowed out by the Village of Kendall employees. During heavy snowfall this winter, Smalley apparently instructed a mill employee to have the lot plowed immediately, reportedly because the village employees had not yet made their way to the mill to remove snow. That employee then called Kendall Trucking, Plumbing and Excavating.
Richard Martin, the Kendall Village Board president, is the owner of Kendall Trucking, Plumbing and Excavating. He did not vote on the matter.
• The board forgave half of the recent sewer bills for Bob Benish and for Sugar Maple Motel. At both places, the owners were unaware of leaks that had occurred. It’s Kendall policy to forgive such leaks only once.
Damaged in the August 2018 floods, the Sugar Maple Hotel has yet to reopen, though renovation efforts are underway at the business.
• At the Kendall American Legion’s request, the board will consider installing a flag collection box in Central Park.
• The owners of 3 Sisters Treasures, a downtown Kendall business, have taken over care of the landscaping at Central Park.