Letter to the Editor | Property purchase in Village of Germantown – Illegal no, Unethical yes | By Sarah Larson

June 26, 2024 – Village of Germantown, WI – To the Editor, Recently the Germantown Village Board purchased 2 parcels in Germantown (the former Exit Realty property on Fond du Lac Ave and the vacant parcel directly behind) for a little over $1M without residents knowing intended use or given any opportunity for input as all Board discussions on the topic were conducted in Closed Session.  When examining this through open records requests several things came to light.

To begin, this parcel was identified as the #1 opportunity in the Next Generation Housing initiative being promoted by the County.  Also identified in a market study report presented by Tracy Cross (report paid for by County w/NGH funds).

In seeing these parcels in the report along with closed session notices, the community raised questions in subsequent board citizen’s comments.  In response, the Village President and a couple Trustees indicated the Board had no identified use for the property and they had no intention of Next Generation Housing for Germantown—that their purchase intent was to block a local business from purchasing it at some point in the future for additional parking.   In my opinion, this response was certainly not a very good “business friendly” look to take against a longtime community business.

Having no “identified” use for the acquired parcels, it was curious that just weeks following the purchase becoming public knowledge, renderings were at the meet your public official’s booth at Maifest.  Through the open records process about the renderings, it was determined the Board didn’t request them, but rather they were prepared on the whim of a Trustee who is an architect.

The Trustee indicated in his response that he believed having a visual helps community members articulate what they would like to see.  He was not compensated for these by the Village and indicated they were things he prepared several years back.  The Village President indicated they weren’t actively presenting them, but rather only when the topic of development came up in the conversations they were having with the community.  These renderings coincidentally are depictions of the properties just purchased by the Village.

I question the decision to have drawings such as these at a venue such as this when they were not requested nor authorized by official Board action and could lead the community to believe the intention for the purchase of the property was development such as was depicted.  When officials are manning a booth intended for meeting your elected officials, they are presenting themselves in official capacity not as private citizens.

Further to the story:

• 5-17-23 Germantown resident emailed the Village Planning Director about the Conditional Use Permit (CUP) process indicating he intended to purchase the Exit Realty property but needed to confirm no conflict existed between zoning and business use before finalizing the purchase. The Planning Director didn’t disclose the Village being in any negotiations on the property.
• 6-12-23 Resident submitted CUP application and fee with the co-signature of the Property Owner.
• 6-17-23 Planning Director emailed Property Owner inquiring whether the CUP application meant he didn’t intend on moving forward in negotiations with the Village.
• 6-21-23 Property Owner responded the Village has dragged their feet for 15 months along with lack of response from the Village Attorney making it apparent that the village wasn’t very interested. If the village was truly interested, they should put together an offer to purchase with the terms discussed.
• 6-23-23 Planning Director emailed the Village Administrator with the Property Owner’s response to his inquiry which was prompted by the CUP application they received.
• 6-23-23 Panning Director emailed Village Administrator and Village President with further response on terms from Property Owner.
• In the following weeks communications appear to be taking place between the Village and Property Owner.
• 8-9-23 Plan Director email to Village Administrator, Village President, Village Attorney –if the Village doesn’t reach an agreement very soon on the Exit Realty parcel, we shouldn’t pursue the 5 acre parcel because Exit Realty provides the critical access to the 5 acres for future development. The CUP for the resident will be on the August 14^th Plan Commission Agenda where he didn’t think there would be anything to disqualify it.
• 8-14-23 Plan Commission approved the CUP to move forward to the Village Board for final approval.
• 8-14-23 Property Owner issued a bottom line to the Village wanting a call scheduled with Village Administrator, Village President, and Village Attorney since the Village Attorney was struggling to get terms correct. If no call, he was moving on.
• 8-21-23 The call was held.
• 8-24-23 Executed purchase contract was emailed to the Village Administrator from the Village Attorney.
• 8-28-23 Resident emails Planning Director about next steps since the CUP passed the Plan Commission.
• 8-28-23 Planning Director emailed the Owner indicating he should notify the resident of the accepted offer and the need to pause action with the Village on the CUP.
• Resident, upon finding the Village had knowingly been negotiating for the property while he was pursuing the CUP, requested the return of the $1,460 permit fee. Village Board denied request on advice of the Village Attorney.

Actions like these are what cause public mistrust of the government.   Our hired administration, legal, and elected officials are not engaging the public for input and certainly not disclosing information in a manner and to the extent they could.  The frequent use of Closed Session for the purpose of protecting negotiations is merely a blanket to forward an agenda that doesn’t necessarily align with public wishes or priorities.  Ethical practice would be to return this resident’s permit fee as well as issue an apology.  Further I believe the board needs to evaluate their practices on disclosure and seeking input/approval before embarking on initiatives that will have a long-term impact on the community, especially where money is concerned.

I’ve made an open records request on an area they term “Village Center District – Mequon Rd & Pilgrim Rd” in late April 2024 and have yet to receive that documentation.  With time looming there is now a Special Meeting called for tomorrow, 6/24/24, with only a closed session on that agenda to discuss negotiations for property under this heading.  Again, there has been no public discussions or opportunities for feedback on whether the Village should be embarking on investing funds or conducting developer activities.  We overpaid for the Fond du Lac Ave parcels, so I am not optimistic on the financial outcome for taxpayers on this.

Please join me in contacting the Village Board to get the return of the resident’s permit fee on the next board agenda.  Further I encourage community members to commit to attending a committee meeting, board meeting or engaging in the live stream of meetings.  I’ve yet to encounter someone who isn’t living a busy life, so that can’t be an acceptable excuse for apathy and lack of participation.  Inaction is the signature on a blank check of acceptance for the board to do as they please.

By Sarah Larson

Germantown, Wi

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