Land Annexation Leads to Recall Effort

According to Wisconsin Public Radio, a citizens’ group in Glenwood City, Wis., has filed petitions to recall the mayor and two city council members. They are upset over how the city council has handled the possible annexation of a 400-acre sand mine. This would allow Texas-based Vista Sand to negotiate regulations with the city instead of the county.

Julie Augesen is spearheading the recall attempt. She says council members refused requests to hold a referendum, changed its mining ordinance and had a closed session with the company. “Basically, all they have to do now is vote, get the land annexed in, and then it’s just a snowball from here,” she said. “There is nothing that we know that we could do. So, time is of the essence, definitely.”

Augeson says her group opposes the mine because it would be located within a quarter mile of a school and would be too close to Glenwood City and a neighboring community. She says the proposed mine has split the community. “It’s so unfair, and when things start getting dirty in a small, little town, somebody’s got to stand up and say, ‘This isn’t right.’”

The city clerk confirms that the petitions have been delivered, giving her 31 days to verify signatures before a recall election is triggered.

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