Pewaukee fire, emergency services fee; seniors protest change
PEWAUKEE, Wis. - A fee for fire and emergency services? It is making a certain group of Pewaukee residents feel targeted.
A busload of senior citizens showed up to protest outside Village Hall on Tuesday. The village board president told FOX6 News that the village started charging the fee at the end of 2023.
"It doesn’t add up," said Barb Flickinger.
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Flickinger started paying more for rent this year at her village of Pewaukee 55-and-older community. The cost stems from a new fee in place for fire and EMS services.
"It should be assessed across the board to every resident if they are going to do that," said Flickinger, who feels the fee unfairly targets older people.
Village of Pewaukee
The fee is based on zoning and emergency service call volume over a three-year period. It means senior facilities are paying roughly four-times more than a single-family household. That cost is passed on to people, like Flickinger, through rent.
Flickinger told FOX6 she now pays $100 more per month "with no end in sight." Village seniors have been vocal about the fee for months – sharing their opinions with the board in March and now picketing outside Village Hall.
Residents, village at odds
Two property owners filed paperwork by a January deadline to challenge it, said Village President Jeffrey Knutson.
"If the people in the communities and counties don’t like how things are being run, they can be kicked out by voting," Knutson said.
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Jeffrey Knutson
Knutson said property tax revenue is tied to new construction – something the village doesn’t have a lot of. A fact sheet on the village website said one-third of the properties there are tax-exempt. It means the remaining properties must bear the cost for fire and EMS services.
FOX6 asked Knutson how much extra he now pays. He said he's never even looked.
Flickinger told FOX6 her neighbors and property owner are considering a lawsuit. Knutson said the board will discuss some of the legal challenges to the fee on Tuesday night.