Becky Beissel

Before being elected to the Ellsworth Village Board as a trustee in 2020, I attended all board meetings for about two years to learn as much as I could about village government. Once elected, however, sitting on the other side of the table was a different experience. The rest of the board and staff had institutional knowledge on their side, while I, as a newcomer, was just trying my best to follow along. 

I've always been a planner. As a kid, I was the "official navigator" on road trips with my family, using paper maps long before GPS was even a thing. I’ve always been good at “give me a destination and I can get you there.” When I joined the Village Board, it felt like we were missing our plan. So, when elected Village President in 2021, one of my first initiatives was to ask the community, "Where do we want to go?" This crucial question guided the process of updating our Comprehensive Plan. 

We enlisted the help of the UWRF Planning Program faculty and students to draft the plan, placing great emphasis on gathering input from the community. Over the course of 10 months, they drew information from the 2018 Design Ellsworth Report, which had over 350 community participants, a community survey with over 600 responses, input from three town hall meetings, and feedback from village staff and board members. The final plan was unanimously approved by the Village Board in October 2022. 

With the community's map in hand, the challenge now is prioritizing projects with limited financial resources. Here's how we determine which projects move forward: 

1. Alignment with the Comprehensive Plan: Ensuring projects adhere to the Comprehensive Plan guarantees that the board and staff are fulfilling the community's wishes. 

1. Assessing the need: Feedback from the community and village staff gauge the importance of projects. Questions like "Is our infrastructure failing?" and "Do we have a safety issue?" help prioritize needs. 

1. Seizing opportunities: Sometimes, projects move to the front based on new opportunities, such as grant availability. We constantly watch for these to maximize all available resources. 

1. Funding the project: Projects funded through the regular operating budget begin with department heads creating draft budgets. These drafts are reviewed by the Finance, Purchasing, and Buildings Committee through several meetings. The proposed annual budget then goes to the full board for a public hearing and final approval. For projects outside the annual budget, funding sources include grants, loans, Water/Sewer Fund, or Tax Increment Financing. 

1. Committee meetings: Most project discussions occur at this level. Committees make recommendations to the full board. 

1. Village Board approval: While staff have discretion for nominal or routine purchases, most items and projects require full board approval. Some projects, depending on state statutes, may also require a public hearing. 

As Village President, I often receive a lot of the credit or blame for projects. However, each project is a collective effort involving the entire Village Board and staff. This lengthy process ensures important checks and balances, preventing any one person from directing the village. 

How can you be part of this process? 

1. Review our Comprehensive Plan, which can be found on our village website. 

1. Attend our committee and board meetings, especially our budget meetings. 

1. Stay updated on village happenings by reading our quarterly newsletters, The Journal (our official newspaper of record), and following us on Facebook.  

Together, we will continue to work towards a vibrant Ellsworth, ensuring a sustainable and prosperous future for all!