Washington Co., WI – The Germantown Village Board has voted to include a referendum question on the April 2, 2024 ballots. Voters will be asked whether or not they support an increase in the property tax levy to fund 10 additional firefighter-paramedics and four additional police officers.
The information sessions will be led by Germantown Police Department Chief Mike Snow, Fire Department, Chief John Delain and Village Administrator Steve Kreklow
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To provide the public with additional information and an opportunity to ask questions, the Village will host informational meetings on the following days:
* Friday, Feb. 23 at 12 p.m.
* Wednesday, March 13 at 6:30 p.m.
Meetings will take place at Germantown Village Hall at N112W17001 Mequon Road, Germantown, WI 53022 and will also be accessible virtually. To “attend” the meeting virtually, residents can:
1. View the information sessions broadcast on television on channel 25
2. Stream the information sessions via the Village of Germantown YouTube channel HERE.
3. Viewing the information sessions via WebEx will also be available. The WebEx links will be posted in advance of the session at the Village website: Germantownwi.gov/Public-Safety
Increasing calls for service are driving the Germantown Fire Department’s need for additional staff.
“The demand for emergency responses from the Germantown Fire Department has grown faster than our staffing levels,” said Fire Chief John Delain. “Insufficient staff to do more work puts pressure on our personnel, forces us to make our staff work long hours and rely more often on neighboring communities – all of which can compromise outcomes for those experiencing an emergency.”
If approved by referendum, the Fire Department will add 10 firefighter-paramedics, which would allow for 7-8 personnel to be on-duty per shift.
The Germantown Police Department is experiencing staffing challenges as the community grows. The type of calls for service by GPD has shifted over time, with an increase in drug-related calls – including overdoses – and retail theft.
“The Germantown Police Department is grateful for the ongoing support of the Germantown community,” said Police Chief Mike Snow. “Our department has worked with available resources to meet the increasing demands of a growing community. Over the past decade the change in the nature of calls for service have increased the need for a response by multiple officers to individual calls. Staffing levels have remained constant while the demand for police response has increased. We continue to explore cost saving measures to fund stop-gap measures which will allow us to immediately bolster our department while we continue important conversations with our neighbors about the need for additional staffing to ensure GPD can truly meet the public safety needs and expectations of our community.”
If approved by referendum, the Police Department will add four police officers, which would allow for two additional patrol officers on first and second shifts.
The referendum will ask Germantown voters whether or not they support an approximately $1,449,468 increase in the property tax levy going forward to add the necessary 10 additional firefighter-paramedics and four additional police officers.
This translates to a property tax increase of an estimated $51 annually. The impact to an average Germantown home valued at $350,000 would be $178.13 annually, or about $3.43 per week.
The referendum question will appear on the Tuesday, April 2, 2024, ballot as follows:
Under state law, the increase in the levy of the Village of Germantown for the tax to be imposed for the next fiscal year, 2025, is limited to 2.97%, which results in a levy of $16,212,166.
Shall the Village of Germantown be allowed to exceed this limit and increase the levy for the next fiscal year, 2025, and on an ongoing basis, for the purpose of hiring four (4) new police officers and 10 new firefighter-paramedics, by a total of 8.941%, which results in a levy of $17,661,634?
Additional information is available at Germantownwi.gov/Public-Safety
