Note: The Chamber has provided two of the key players in the legislative debate about so-called "Dark Store" property tax assessments with an opportunity to present their arguments.  This post was provided by the League of Wisconsin Municipalities, and the other by Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce.

The Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC) association has consistently argued that the dark store issue in Wisconisn is an attempt by local governments to raise more revenue.  This could not be farther from the truth.  Municipal officials are asking the Legislature to close the dark store loophole and reverse the Walgreens court decision to avoid having more of the property tax burden shift from commercial and manufacturing property to homeowners and small businesses.     
Unfortunately, WMC convinced legislative leaders to kill the assessment reform legislation that had overwhelming bi-partisan support in the Legislature last session. The dark store bill had 84 co-sponsors (63% of the Legislature).  The Walgreen’s reversal bill had 61 co-sponsors (46% of the Legislature). If the bills had been scheduled for votes, they would have passed both houses by huge margins.

WMC contends that cities and villages “have a self-interest in assessing property higher because it means they can collect more taxes.”  This statement reveals a fundamental misunderstanding about property taxes in Wisconsin.  State law strictly limits a community’s ability to increase property taxes.  Even if the assessed value of a particular property were increased, the total amount of taxes collected by the community stays nearly frozen under state law. 

Higher assessments do not equate to more tax revenue. Assessments determine who pays what portion of the tax levy, not the size of the levy.  

The dark store loophole and the Walgreen’s decision shift more of the burden of paying for local services from one group of taxpayers to another. Currently, residential property owners pay $68 of every $100 of the statewide property tax levy, a share that has grown dramatically over time.  In 1970, homeowners paid only $50 of every $100 that a community needed to pay for services.  For comparison, homeowners in Minnesota still pay only 50% of the property tax levy. Shifting more of the burden on to Wisconsin homeowners is not sustainable.  

Assessors are required to assess property for property tax purposes at its fair market value. The best evidence of the fair market value of a property is usually a recent arms-length sale price of that property.  There is an odd exception to this rule created by the Wisconsin Supreme Court in a 2008 decision involving a Walgreens store.  The exception requires assessors to value property that is leased to a single business at half of the recent sale price of that property. For example, Walgreens and CVS typically lease their store space.  The buildings leased by Walgreens and CVS are popular investment properties and typically sell for $4 to $8 million depending on their location.  Yet, these properties are required to be assessed for property tax purposes at $2 to $4 million.  The League of Wisconsin Municipalities and a majority of state legislators think that isn’t fair to other property tax payers.  That’s why we are asking the Legislature to end this court created exception.
We will work with legislators again next session to try to restore common sense and fairness to the property tax assessment process.  Maybe next year homeowners will win. 

​Written by Jerry Deschane, Executive Director, League of Wisconsin Municipalities
league@lwm-info.org

Note: The Chamber has provided two of the key players in the legislative debate about so-called "Dark Store" property tax assessments with an opportunity to present their arguments.  This post was provided by Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, and the other by the League of Wisconsin Municipalities.

“Dark Stores” became a popular populist rallying cry during the last legislative session. The prevailing narrative, that “big businesses” are shifting their tax burden onto homeowners, resulted in two of the most heavily debated bills of the legislative session. The only problem, the narrative is false.
 
The Wisconsin Department of Revenue’s own data shows that over the last ten years the statewide property tax burden has shifted from homeowners to businesses by approximately 3-percent. Businesses are paying a larger portion of the property tax than they were ten years ago.
 
The real story is that a decade ago, some tax assessors and local officials decided to adopt a novel, and illegal, property assessment theory to target businesses with tax increases. When businesses challenged these illegal tax increases in court and won, these very same tax assessors tried, and failed, to get the Legislature to pass two bills to legalize their illegal actions. Now local governments are spending millions of taxpayer dollars on campaign ads, PR firms, and lobbyists to cover up their actions by selling the bills as a fix to a “loophole.”
 
Assembly Bill 386/Senate Bill 292 (AB 386) would have allowed tax assessors to value occupied property higher solely because of its occupancy. For example, if you had two homes identical in every respect except that one was occupied and one was vacant, the occupied home would be valued (for tax purposes), and taxed, more than the vacant one. No rational buyer would pay more for the occupied home than the vacant one. The idea is absurd on its face. The fair market value of each property would be the same, but this legislation would increase the assessed value and thus the property taxes for the occupied home.
 
Assembly Bill 387/Senate Bill 291 (AB 387) would have allowed tax assessors to value and tax financial agreements, contracts, and other things of value that are “inextricably intertwined” with a property. This bill targets the value of financing agreements that help businesses open or grow. Tax assessors want to add the value of those agreements to the value of the building and land when determining the amount of property tax you owe. If this were applied to a residential home – which it could be because of the Wisconsin constitution’s uniformity clause – your local government could raise your property taxes because you took out a mortgage. However, property taxes would not be hiked on your neighbor who bought the same exact house but had the means to purchase it with cash.
 
These pieces of legislation would result in tax increases on businesses through no fault of their own. Increasing the tax assessment on a property based on occupancy as AB 386 would do or based on financing as AB 387 would do does not reflect economic reality. The business will not have expanded, improvements will not have been made to the property, and the neighborhood will not have become more attractive to the market. In short, the market value will not have changed – just the tax bill. Arbitrarily increasing property taxes is bad for Wisconsin.
 
WMC ranked these bills as two of the ten worst bills for business introduced this session. We believe these job killing tax increases are bad public policy.
 
First, these bills are a solution in search of a problem. As stated above, the statewide property tax burden has steadily shifted from residential property to commercial and manufacturing property over the last decade. This legislation would cause that disparity to become even wider.
 
Second, the Wisconsin Constitution’s Uniformity Clause will spread these tax increases to all property taxpayers. The state constitution requires all property to be taxed in a uniform manner. There is not an exception that allows small businesses, manufacturers, and residential properties to be taxed differently from “big box” retailers. All businesses and residential properties will be roped into abiding by these new property tax assessment laws, which will increase their property tax burdens.
 
Finally, the legislation creates uncertainty and will lead to more litigation. The legislation creates uncertainty because it changes bedrock rules of property assessment that Wisconsin has followed for decades. Local governments and property owners will both attempt to clarify the new law through more litigation.
 
Higher taxes and more litigation is not the kind of change Wisconsin needs. WMC is a strong supporter of the reforms taken place over the last seven years that make Wisconsin a more competitive place to work and live. Let’s not go backwards now and raise taxes on job creators and working families.
 
Written by Cory Fish, Director of Tax, Transportation, and Legal Affairs at Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce. He can be contacted at cfish@wmc.org. 

Governor-elect Tony Evers announced more cabinet picks late last week, including transportation advocate Craig Thompson to head the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. Thompson is a familiar face to members of the Eau Claire Chamber, having spoken multiple times at Eggs & Issues breakfasts and other venues in his role as Executive Director of the Transportation Development Association of Wisconsin. 

Business, labor and other groups positive on choice of Thompson
Eau Claire Chamber President & CEO Dave Minor said, "Craig Thompson is a great choice for the business community and those who want to see a long-term funding solution to meeting our transportation needs in Wisconsin." 

During the discussion of regional legislative priorities for 2019 at the Chamber's Eggs & Issues Holiday Legislative Breakfast on December 21, Rep. Rob Summerfield (R-Bloomer) said "I was very happy to see Craig Thompson is going to be the DOT Secretary." 

A wide cross-section of organizations had praise for Evers' choice of Thompson, including AAA, the Wisconsin Towns Association, the Wisconsin Economic Development Association, the Wisconsin Motor Carriers Association, the Wisconsin Railroads Association, the League of Municipalities, the Wisconsin County Highways Association, the Wisconsin Counties Association, the Wisconsin Commercial Ports Association, and several others including key unions like the Wisconsin Laborers' District Council, and the International Union of Operating Engineers.

Praise from former Gov. Tommy Thompson: "A wise choice in this selection of a bi-partisan consensus builder"
Former Governor Tommy G. Thompson (no relation) said, "Craig has developed a deep understanding of the connection between a strong infrastructure and a strong economy and how all modes of transportation play a role in our economic success."  He said, “I commend Governor-Elect Evers on his appointment of Craig Thompson as Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. As leader of the statewide, multimodal Transportation Development Association of Wisconsin for more than 10 years.  Craig served on Gov. Walker’s blue-ribbon Transportation Finance and Policy Commission in 2012 and played an important role in the successful campaign in 2014 to amend the state’s Constitution to ensure that transportation revenues be used exclusively for transportation investments. He understands the needs of our transportation system as well as anyone who has ever held the position.  Gov.-Elect Evers has made a wise choice in this selection of a bi-partisan consensus builder to tackle the significant transportation challenges facing Wisconsin.” 

Transportation's role in economic and workforce development
At the Governor-elect's news conference announcing his appointment, Thompson noted that, “Access to highways and access to skilled labor have been the top two issues of how businesses decide to located in a given area. If we think about access to skilled labor, in this hyper-competitive economy we’re in right now, the race to attract young talented people is the hottest commodity out there. And these young talented people are demanding modal options when they decide where they want to plant their flag and offer their wares. We need to provide those modal options to those people."

Given the state's workforce concerns, Thompson also pointed out that transportation can play a key role in removing barriers to employment by helping “individuals that live in our cities and don’t have access to a vehicle or own a vehicle. Their ability to have reliable transportation to get to and from a a job has to be a number one issues to remove those barriers.” 

"We will not solve our transportation issues until we view  our transportation system as just that, a system," concluded Thompson.

Push back from Senate GOP leader 
Although Evers' pick of Thompson also received praise from a wide variety of statewide business, labor and transportation groups, Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald told a Milwaukee radio station, "Governor-elect Evers would be better served by nominating someone who worked in a less controversial role during previous policy debates."  

More information:
​Video: Tony Evers news conference with new cabinet picks (Wisconsin Eye)
Gov-elect Evers announces additional cabinet appointments (News release)
Tony Evers' pick for Department of Transportation could face rough road to confirmation (Journal-Sentinel)
Former Gov Tommy Thompson: DOT pick is a bi-partisan consensus builder (News release)

​Posted by Scott Rogers, Governmental Affairs & Workforce Director
​rogers@eauclairechamber.org

WNB Financial has announced its plans to build a new, full-service office in Altoona, Wis. The ground breaking is scheduled for spring 2019, with completion projected in fall 2019. The new WNB office will be located in the River Prairie Development at the corner of Blazing Star Blvd. and Woodman Drive. The office will offer a full range of personal, mortgage, and business banking services, as well as retirement planning, wealth management, and financial advising. WNB currently operates a Loan Production Office (LPO) in Eau Claire.
 
The laboratory at HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital recently earned accreditation renewals from the College of American Pathologists and the American Association of Blood Banks. The voluntary inspections and subsequent accreditations follow an intensive onsite assessment of policies, procedures and practices of all aspects of laboratory testing and anatomic pathology, as well as an onsite assessment of lab equipment, staff qualifications, safety programs and overall management.
 
Royal Credit Union (Royal) has named Tim Sass Branch Manager of the New Richmond office. He will be responsible for the overall operations within the branch as well as team member engagement. This will entail ensuring that the branch is meeting financial, operational, and growth goals. In addition, Sass will meet with the team to provide an exceptional experience for Royal Members and the surrounding community.  Sass brings financial experience to his new position at Royal. Most recently however, Sass spent 8.5 years as a Sergeant with the Bismarck Police Department. He worked as a patrol officer, a K9 handler, and was leading the community policing division. Sass received his Associates degree from the Minnesota State University in Mankato and received his Bachelor’s degree from Capella University. 
 
Per Mar Security Services, a leading provider of total security solutions for residential and commercial clients based in Davenport, IA, was a recipient of the 2018 Honeywell Community Service Award. This award recognizes authorized Honeywell Dealers who are committed to community service, and supporting their local communities. Per Mar received the award for its efforts in supporting Hand-in-Hand.  Hand-in-Hand is a non-profit organization whose primary purpose is to expand the capabilities, confidence, and quality of life for children and young adults of all abilities by providing programs designed to encourage fun, learning, and social interaction in a positive environment. Per Mar has been a long-time supporter of Hand-in-Hand and a sponsor of its largest fundraiser, the Hand-in-Hand Chili Cook-Off.  The Per Mar Charity Fund matched the money raised by Per Mar employees dollar for dollar, bringing the donation total to more than $4,300.
 
Larson Companies is pleased to announce Cassandra Lueck as the Events & Marketing Director at the Oxbow Hotel and The Lakely. Lueck will assume the role moving into 2019.  Cassandra joined Larson Companies in July of 2015 working in various roles. Her experience in the hospitality industry, degree in Business Management as well as her current undergrad studies in Communications have made her a great asset to the team.
 
Charter Bank has announced Suzanne Twite as a Mortgage Officer. Twite is responsible for providing consumer real estate lending services and focusing on both in house loans and the secondary market.  Twite comes to Charter Bank with over 20 years of experience in the financial services. She started her banking career in LaCrosse after attending the city’s university. She moved to Eau Claire in 1990 to further her career in banking. Twite was a successful mortgage loan officer at Royal Credit Union, United Bank, and most recently, US Bank.  
 
Melina Kambitsi, Ph.D., has been promoted to senior vice president of business development and strategic marketing at The Alliance®. The Alliance is an employer-owned not-for-profit cooperative of more than 240 self-funded employers and not-for-profit insurance trusts. In this newly expanded role, Kambitsi will lead the teams responsible for membership growth and retention, as well as marketing and product innovation.  Kambitsi previously was the vice president of business development and member services for the cooperative since Oct. 2017.  The Alliance is a not-for-profit cooperative that moves health care forward by controlling costs, improving quality and engaging individuals in their health. Members include more than 240 self-funded employers and multiemployer plans in Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa.
 
Royal Credit Union announced it has purchased land in St. Croix Falls, WI to build a new, free-standing office. Royal has purchased land across Highway 8 from its current location on Glacier Drive. The new office will include a full-service lobby, drive-up and ATM.  The new St. Croix Falls office will feature teller services, new accounts, business services, consumer loans, home loans, investment services, and more. The new office is expected to open in 2020. The current Royal Credit Union St. Croix Falls location will continue to operate as usual until the new office is open for business. 
 
Eight established Wisconsin Retirement Living Communities owned by AbiliT Senior Living will soon be under new management. The Milestone Senior Living Communities will be managed by Senior Housing Management of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, as of January 14, 2019. The communities undergoing this change include:
·  Milestone Senior Living Community – Cross Plains, Wisconsin
·  Milestone Senior Living – Eagle River, Wisconsin
·  Milestone Senior Living – Eau Claire, Wisconsin
·  Milestone Senior Living – Hillsboro, Wisconsin
·  Milestone Senior Living – Rhinelander, Wisconsin
·  Milestone Senior Living – Stoughton, Wisconsin
·  Milestone Senior Living – Tomahawk, Wisconsin
·  Milestone Senior Living – Woodruff, Wisconsin
 
All eight communities offer month-to-month rental of apartments with available health care services to seniors over 55. Senior Housing Management provides healthcare and management services for Retirement Living communities throughout the states of Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin. 

​PASSIONATE ABOUT WELLNESS AND PERSONALIZED CARE
We’re dedicated to bringing you the highest quality of health care and a personalized approach to managing your wellness. Our patient-centered style of care empowers you with the resources to become a strong advocate for your own health and make decisions with your health care provider.
 
FIND US IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
We offer a broad range of primary and specialty health care services with locations in Altoona, Arcadia, Augusta, Chippewa Falls, Cornell, Eau Claire, Ladysmith, Menomonie, Mondovi and Rice Lake. For a complete list of medical specialties and providers, visit prevea.com. We are also a proud partner of HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire and HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital in Chippewa Falls.
 
THE RIGHT CARE AT THE RIGHT TIME
It’s easy to access our services when you need them. Need to schedule an appointment for a routine exam or with a specialist? Call (888) 277-3832 or schedule your appointment with select providers at prevea.com. Maybe you are looking for a new doctor. No problem. We’ll guide you through the process.   

As a better way to serve you, visit prevea.com/urgentcare to check out our estimated wait times or “save your spot” by making an online reservation.

​Prevea Care After Hours
If you have an injury, illness or medical question after our health center is closed, use Prevea Care After Hours. It’s a 24-hour phone service staffed by our experienced medical professionals who will answer your medical questions after our health centers are closed. Call (888) 277-3832

HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital announced Kimberly Ball, a registered nurse in the hospital’s Emergency department, has received the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses ®. This marked the first time the DAISY Award has been given at HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital. Ball, who has served at the hospital for 23 years, was nominated by a fellow colleague.

Suzanne Linton, a nurse practitioner, recently joined the Urology Department at Mayo Clinic Health System in Eau Claire. She has 13 years of experience providing urological care to patients. Linton earned her master’s degree in nursing at Marian College in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.  Linton is a board-certified adult nurse practitioner by the American Nurses Credentialing Center and is an advanced practice nurse prescriber. She also is a member of the Wisconsin Nurses Association.

Forrest Delikowski, a physician assistant, recently joined Urgent Care at Mayo Clinic Health System in Eau Claire.  Delikowski completed a master’s degree in physician assistant studies at the University of Florida in Gainesville.  He is certified by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants and is a member of the American Academy of Physician Assistants.       

Security Financial Bank recently donated $2,000 each to the Bloomer, Durand, Eau Claire and River Falls school districts to assist in the payment of negative school lunch account balances as part of their No Negative Balances campaign raising awareness of the issue for the communities they serve. In addition, tellers in each location collected funds from customers for the cause. Bloomer raised an additional $267.35, Durand $56, Eau Claire $15 and River Falls $74.83. For those interested in contributing to the cause, please contact a Security Financial Bank office in your community.  
 
Charter Bank announced Chad Plath as Branch Manager of the Eau Claire office. Plath is responsible for the administration and daily operations, including sales, service, facilities management, and purchasing.  Plath comes to Charter Bank with close to 20 years’ experience in the financial services. He started his career in the Twin Cities at Wells Fargo and Novation Credit Union. For the last eight years, he’s been at Royal Credit Union as the Branch Manager of the two Menomonie offices.
Plath received his associated degree in Sales and Management from St. Cloud Technical College.
 
Royal Credit Union (Royal) has named Nicole Frederick Branch Manager of the Bay Street and Woodward Avenue offices in Chippewa Falls, WI. She is responsible for the overall operations in the branch and team member engagement. This includes ensuring that the branch meets financial, operational, and growth goals. In addition, Frederick will work with her teams to provide an exceptional experience for Royal Members and the Chippewa Falls community. Frederick joined Royal in October of 2015 and most recently served as a Member Account Representative. Prior to joining Royal she was a General Manager at Culvers. Frederick has an Associate’s Degree in Business Management from Chippewa Valley Technical College.
 
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Lovejoy Realty announced a name change for its brokerage that better reflects its growing regional presence in Minnesota and Western Wisconsin. The brokerage now operates as Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices North Properties with aspirations to serve all of Minnesota and fortify its presence in Wisconsin.  North Properties is a full-service real estate company also offering relocation and title services in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The brokerage operates 12 offices with more than 130 agents. 
 

​Ruta Kirstein, a nurse practitioner, recently joined Mayo Clinic Health System in the Oncology Department in Eau Claire and Menomonie.  Kirstein completed a master’s degree in adult nurse practitioner studies at the State University of New York Institute of Technology in Utica. She previously practiced at the Lipson Cancer Institute in Rochester, New York.  She is a member of the Advanced Practitioner Society of Hematology and Oncology, Oncology Nursing Society and Sigma Theta Tau Honor Society of Nursing.
 
Hope Gospel Mission has recently hired Brett Geboy as Community Relations Director. He is responsible for directing community engagement efforts, enhancing community partnerships and helping in strategic development as Hope Gospel Mission moves forward in helping see lives rescued, rebuilt and renewed. Geboy comes to Hope Gospel Mission with experience in sales, marketing and public relations most recently with North Central Insulation as well as the Eau Claire Area Chamber of Commerce.
 
Charter Bank announced the hiring of Daniel Pohnl as the Assistant Vice President of Business Lending. Pohnl will be responsible for establishing and maintaining business relationships with customers and manage a portfolio to ensure customers receive the service they deserve.  Pohnl joins the Charter Bank team with many years in the commercial loans and real estate business. Prior to Charter Bank, Pohnl was a commercial lender for Merchants Bank in Eau Claire, and also worked at Wells Fargo and Northeast Bank in the Minneapolis market.
 
River Valley Architects, Inc. (RVA) is excited to announce that they have moved from Chippewa Falls, WI to 3300 Birch Street, Suite 1A in St. Andrew’s Office Park in Eau Claire, WI. The move stems from RVA’s unprecedented growth over recent years and will enable RVA to add additional staff, continue to meet the growing needs of their clients and strengthen relationships with their valued partners. River Valley Architects, Inc. is a full-service architectural design firm that is built upon a commitment to keeping up with the current trends in their industry, continuing education and learning from each of their experiences along the way. 

​The midterm elections are over, and you have chosen your statewide officials. But another election is looming, this one  touching more local issues—your home, your parks, your job, and, perhaps above all, your children’s education. The Eau Claire and Altoona City Councils, as well as the Eau Claire and Altoona School Boards, have seats that will be up at the April 2 election. This means you have a chance to influence the direction of those bodies, and, by extension, the direction of the policies that matter most.

You can do more than just vote. In fact, you can run for office yourself, or you can convince a friend to undertake that challenge instead.

Given the wide range of points of view and experience among citizens in the community, it's valuable to everyone to have those with business experience participate in the process because of their practical knowledge of the economic environment and the impact of government regulations, taxes and other governmental policies. When working with educational policies, employers know which skills are necessary for practical success in the workplace, and can evaluate which programs will cultivate those skills most effectively in our students. 

In whatever way you wish to participate, we at the Chamber urge you to get involved, and we have provided information to do so below.

Six positions on the Eau Claire City Council will be up for grabs this spring. The Council has eleven members overall, five at-large representatives, five elected from districts, and the City Council President. The current holders of the district seats were elected at the 2018 election for three years and are not on the ballot next spring.

Perhaps most prominent, the remainder of the City Council President's term will be open. Andrew Werthmann, who represents District 5, currently serves as the Acting President, a position for which he was chosen by the Council after former Council President Kerry Kincaid, whose term was scheduled to run to 2020, resigned last spring. One year remains in the presidential term, and Werthmann has announced that he will run for it. To run, one must submit a minimum of 200 and maximum of 400 signatures to the City Clerk's office by January 2. Forms for those signatures are available there as well. Contact information for the office is provided below.
 
If the presidency doesn't suit you, five at large seats will be open as well. At-large representatives serve for three years, and are accountable to the whole city, not just a district. Their work is vital to solving important issues facing the community. These seats also give their occupants a unique opportunity to develop a deep knowledge of a diverse set of issues.  To run for an at-large seat, one must submit 100-200 signatures to the City Clerk's office by January 2. 

The at-large representatives whose seats will be up for election in the Spring include Kate Beaton, Catherine Emmanuelle, David Strobel, Terry Weld and Michael Xiong. If an incumbent decides not to seek re-election, he or she must submit a non-candidacy form, which is due before the end of December. 
 
To run for an of these positions, an Eau Claire resident must pick up a signature form from the City Clerk's office. It's currently located at the temporary City Hall at 2020 Prairie Lane. A packet is available for potential candidates which includes all required information and forms.  If you have questions, call (715) 839-4912. The office is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, except December 24 and 25, and January 1.

Altoona City Council
On the Altoona City Council, three of its district seats—Districts 4, 5 and 6—will be open, each term lasting two years. Altoona's City Council has six members overall,  with the elections for each district alternating each year.  Altoona also has a Mayor, who is elected to a two-year term in even numbered years.
 
Here are the names of the incumbents from those district seats up in 2019: 

• District 4: Matt Biren
• District 5: Tim Sexton
• District 6: David Rowe

Click here for a map showing the Altoona voting wards and council districts
Incumbents are required to submit a non-candidacy form if they do not wish to run again. 

​To run for one of these positions, an Altoona resident must pick up a signature form from the City Clerk's office and submit 20-40 signatures to that office by January 2. The address for the office is 1303 Lynn Ave and the phone numberis  (715) 839-6092.

A position on the school board gives you a direct avenue toward effecting policies for our community's educational system. 

The terms run for three years, and three positions will be open in the spring. The incumbents are Chris Hambuch-Boyle, Aaron Harder and Eric Torres.  Overall, the School Board has seven members. 

To run, you must turn in 100-200 signatures to the Administrative Building (500 Main Street) by January 2. If you have questions about the process, you can reach the office at (715) 852-3000.
​

Two positions will be up for election to determine who sits on the board for the next three years. The incumbents are Bradley Poquette and David Rowe. Overall, there are five members of the Altoona School Board.

Running in this election requires 20-100 signatures, all of which you must submit to the School District Clerk's office by January 2. The address of that office is 1903 Bartlett Avenue, and its phone number is (715) 839-6032.

Questions or connections needed?
If you have questions about the process or simply want to touch base about considering a candidacy, contact Scott Rogers, the Chamber's Governmental Affairs & Workforce Director, at: rogers@eauclairechamber.org or 715-858-0616.

Posted by Nate Kane, Legislative Intern
kane@eauclairechamber.org