The Greater Whitewater Committee (GWC) hosted its board meeting at the 841 Brewhouse in Whitewater, Feb. 13. The meeting included discussions on GWC’s achievements and two PowerPoint presentations by Whitewater Unified School District and city officials supporting the two referendums on the April 1 ballot.
GWC President Jeff Knight discussed their accomplishments, including securing $78.9 million for Winter and Heide Hall and raising $294,000 for charity through the Discover Whitewater series. He also highlighted two ongoing projects: Meadowview and Park Crest, new subdivisions that will provide single-family homes. The committee also supports Whitewater LEADS, which focuses on academic excellence and literacy improvement in the Whitewater community. Additionally, they are working to expand healthcare facilities, including urgent care and emergency care, with potential announcements forthcoming.
As the board meeting progressed, the first PowerPoint presentation was given by Superintendent Dr. Caroline Pate-Hefty, UW Associate Professor Dr. Lisa Huempfner and Dr. Tony Burzewski. They presented reasons why the community should support improvements to the Whitewater Unified School District (WUSD).
Pate-Hefty discussed improvements in math models and literacy achievements and emphasized the importance of attendance support throughout the community. She also highlighted the district’s dedication to funding professional development, which has received positive feedback from staff, and expanding the Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs through Work-Based Learning.
(Josh Stoughton)
“Career and technical in our schools,” Huempfner said. “We’ve moved from zero to 21 students with work-based learning. Work-based learning has allowed our kids to learn on-the-job industry-related positions where they are actually learning from other individuals. Our goal with the referendum is to increase those opportunities and provide support.”
Huempfner also explained that the referendum would help prioritize CTE programs by improving shop and robotics sections. The district had to cut back on other areas, such as cafeteria improvements and new parking lots. Burzewski noted that, in addition to supporting CTE programs, the referendum would help upgrade HVAC systems and renovate the auditorium and cafeteria. They encouraged the community to visit the district’s website for more information.
The second presentation at the meeting was given by Police Chief Dan Meyer, Assistant Fire Chief Ryan Dion and City Manager John Wiedl.
“You will see there are increasing calls for service in Fire/EMS and the Police Department,” Wiedl said. “There are more complex calls coming in, and the chief will go over those specific calls. Certain call types have risen over the decades, and these increasing calls are complex and take longer to handle. The staffing model in fire, combined with the declining availability of personnel, is creating a slight issue for the Fire Department.”
Wiedl explained that the Whitewater Police and Fire Departments have experienced an increase in calls and a decrease in staff, leading to an increase in overtime and burnout among officers and fire/EMS personnel.
(Josh Stoughton)
“What it comes down to for us,” Meyer said, “is the increase in call volume. What this shows is the call volume in 2010 and that call trend consistently picking up through 2024. We had roughly 7,500 calls in 2010, and last year in 2024, that number was 14,225. That would be hard for any department to handle, but the challenge for us is that in that time, we have almost the same number of people handling nearly double the calls.”
Meyer also explained that the strained staffing model led to the referendum proposal, which asks the community to vote on increasing the property tax levy to fund five additional police officers, two cross-trained firefighters, a dispatcher and equipment. If the referendum is rejected, the city will face the difficult decision of how to address the growing need for public safety services.
