By SARAH PARKER | County Line Editor
Concerned about risks associated with Covid-19, the Kendall Village Board denied Monday the Kendall Mustangs ATV/UTV Club’s request to host a tractor pull Labor Day weekend at Glenwood Park or on a village street.
The village’s annual Labor Day celebration, of which a tractor pull has been part, already had been canceled.
At Monday’s meeting, board member Marlin Prell made a motion to allow the tractor pull, but the motion died for a lack of a second.
The board will revisit the matter next month, but expressed doubts that the club could organize the pull in time if it were approved then.
Other business
• According to board president Richard Martin, Kendall residents Steve and Lori Peterson are not interested in operating the DNR-owned Kendall Depot this summer. The board will work with Laurie Thompson, owner of 3 Sisters Treasures, who is considering running the facility.
The DNR leases the depot to the village, which in turn sublets to a vendor.
• Ultimately tabling the matter until next month, the board debated buying either a $6,600 or a $3,875 voting machine. The latter would consist of a touchscreen, while the former would essentially be a return to paper ballots, with an automatic tabulator that could also count absentee ballots.
Clerk/treasurer Jessica Palamarak noted that the more expensive machine would reduce labor, particularly in an election with a lot of absentee ballots.
Board member Lee Wyttenbach questioned if the village could instead hire more poll workers.
In the end, the board advised Palamaruk to ask other municipalities that use the more expensive voting machine how well it works.
• A walkway bridge that had been washed away in the August 2018 flood was pressure washed and painted, according to Public Works Director David Gruen. The next step is installing new deck boards.
“It really looks good,” said board member Richard Martin.
• The board agreed to set up a second water meter, which will be used for a swimming pool and irrigation system, for a Kendall resident.
• Excessive heat is the likely culprit of control malfunctions at the village water tower, Gruen said. He will continue to investigate the matter.
• The board tabled a decision on hiring a work-study student from Royall High School, noting that it needed more direction from the school district. The school’s guidance counselor, who would handle the matter, has resigned, and a replacement just has been hired.
The student would work part time with the public works department.