Rural, town government in Wisconsin can be confusing for people moving here from cities or another state. Though the services town governments offer vary throughouout the state, here is how the Town of Dakota (and many small, rural towns) work.
Q1: DOES THE TOWN HALL HAVE OFFICE HOURS?
A1: No, the town hall does not have regular office hours. This is because the town does not have any “employees” per se, but instead has six very part-time, elected town officers. Please see the Government/Town Board portion of the website for specific contact information. These officers are:
* A three-member town board, which sets policy for the town at its monthly board meeting (held the second Monday of every month except in April–that is held the THIRD TUESDAY of the month). Town board members are also responsible for keeping TOWN roads (NOT state or county highways) passable at all times. The board–mainly the chair–also makes sure the town’s three cemeteries are maintained, and assists people who wish to obtain plots in the cemeteries.
* A town clerk, who is responsible for election administration (registering voters, facilitating absentee/early voting, training and scheduling poll workers, documenting all aspects of an election, maintaining the town’s voter rolls, etc.), formatting and posting board agendas and minutes, creating the town budget for consideration by the public and the town board, paying the town’s bills (accounts payable), calculating the town tax roll, scheduling town hall rentals, etc.
* A town treasurer, who mails tax bills and collects the resulting payments mid-December through February, as well as deposits other payments received by the town (accounts receivable), reconciles the town’s bank accounts, monitors cash flow, etc.
* A town assessor, who maintains records on every parcel in the town and assigns them a value. This ensures that each landowner pays their “fair share” of property taxes, and keeps the town in compliance with state requirements for assessing properties.
Q2: DOES THE TOWN PROVIDE SEWER/WATER UTILITIES AND GARBAGE PICKUP?
A2: No, and no. Due to the town’s rural nature, the majority of Dakota’s landowners have private onsite septic systems and wells. The only exceptions to this are the properties near Silver Lake, which may be provided these services through the Silver Lake Sanitary District. If you think this pertains to where you live, call the sanitary district at 920-787-7622 with any sewer/water-related questions. Dakota residents also do not pay town taxes for garbage pickup. This means that most people take their garbage and recycling to county collections sites themselves (see the Waushara County website for collection site location information). Some property owners choose to contract with private companies for garbage pickup.
Q3: WHO DO I TALK TO AT THE TOWN ABOUT PUTTING A DECK ON MY HOUSE, REZONING MY PROPERTY, RESTRICTIONS ON HOW I CAN USE MY PROPERTY, ETC.?
A3: Since the town has no full-time employees and no zoning code of its own, it relies on Waushara County Zoning for these land use- and zoning-related functions. The county zoning office can be contacted at 920-787-0453.
Q4: CAN I ‘VOTE EARLY’ IN THE TOWN OF DAKOTA?
A4: Yes, in the two weeks prior to each election, Dakota residents can vote in-person by absentee ballot (“early voting”). However, Dakota has only one, part-time person (the clerk) providing this alternate method of voting, so you must make an appointment with the clerk ahead of time if you want to vote early. You cannot simply stop by the town hall anytime Monday through Friday and expect the clerk to be there, like you could at a city clerk’s office. You can also request an absentee ballot by mail. See myvote.wi.gov for more information. Keep in mind that Wisconsin law considers absentee voting to be a privilege–not a right, like voting on Election Day is (Ch. 6.84(1), Wis. Stats.). Dakota’s polling place is at the town hall, and is open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. every Election Day to serve voters.