By Kim McDarison
With every election comes changes, and April 4 will be no exception. In the town of Koshkonong, Bill Burlingame will be stepping down as town board chairman.
For eight years the retired UPS employee has occupied the guiding chair, but this year, he said, he opted not to run. He cited two reasons: first, he is building a new home outside of the town in the neighboring community of Milton, and second, he said, it was time for someone else to take the proverbial kick at the can.
“It’s time for new leadership and fresh ideas,” Burlingame said, noting that Kim Cheney, who is running unopposed to fill the town board of supervisor’s seat, will be a good fit. She serves in the role of administrative assistant and interim Koshkonong town clerk, and, in past years, has served as the town clerk, he said. He expressed confidence that the community will be in good hands.
Known for his direct nature, in a recent interview Burlingame’s direction remained clear: “I want to thank all the people who work so hard for this town. People don’t always understand how hard they work,” he said.
Finding involvement
Burlingame was new to the workings of local government when he decided to become involved, first by attending meetings, and then through appointment to the Plan Commission a decade ago, he said.
A Wisconsin native born in Green Lake County and moving with his family to Rock County when he was 5, Burlingame graduated from Janesville’s Craig High School in the 1970s, and began a 30-year career with UPS. He started as a driver and moved into different roles within the company, including those of driver trainer, customer service, and sales, he said, retiring from the company in 2006.
He and his wife, Diane, moved to the town of Koshkonong in the early 1990s, he noted, adding that he was drawn to Lake Koshkonong because he likes to fish. He described Koshkonong Lake as “one of the best kept jewels in southern Wisconsin.”
In 2008, Burlingame recalled, the Rock and Jefferson county areas, including Koshkonong, endured flooding.
“When we had the flood, everybody forgot about the people on the lake, and the first people who came to help were the Red Cross,” he said.
Burlingame said he attended Koshkonong Town Board of Supervisors meetings, hoping to gain some attention for the people living along the lake.
Some years later, as he attended a meeting, he said: “I was asked to be on the Plan Commission.
“They asked me because I came to the meetings so often. That was two or three years before I became chair (of the board of supervisors),” he said.
According to Burlingame, during that period, the chairman of the Plan Commission resigned. Burlingame was appointed by the town board as chairman of the Plan Commission for one month, he said. In those years, he recalled, Fred Walling was the chairman of the town’s board of supervisors. Shortly after Walling was elected to his second term, he resigned, Burlingame said, citing “changes in his personal life.”
“He was elected in April (2015) and I became the town chair (through appointment) in May or June,” Burlingame said.
Burlingame said he believed he was chosen because of his background associated with UPS, which, he said, gave him discipline.
“I think the board thought I could be objective, and everybody gets treated the same. I live by very simple rules: I respect your opinion and please respect mine. UPS taught me to follow the rules,” he said.
In describing his own character, Burlingame said: “I’m rigid; I’m a black-and-white person, and we live in a grey world.” He recognized, he said, that while the aspect of his personality helped in decision-making, it could sometimes bring challenges.
A look back
“Koshkonong is very unique in its demographics because it is a rural farming community, but it has subdivisions around Fort Atkinson, and it also has the (Rock) river and the lake,” Burlingame said.
Statistically, the town, which completely surrounds the city of Fort Atkinson, includes within its borders some 42.6 square miles, with 41.4 of those considered “inland” and 1.2 square miles of water, making it, by mass, the third largest town in the state of Wisconsin, Burlingame said. The town is responsible for 71 miles of roads, and, as of the most recent censes, 3,600 people.
When he assumed the role of town board chairman, Burlingame recalled, the town was in possession of a series of CDs (Certificates of Deposit), holding monies paid by taxpayers into the town’s “rainy day” account.
The town board which assembled in 2015 began to use the funds — in collaboration with four other towns — to support the Fort Atkinson Fire Department, through which it contracted for fire protection serves, with the purchase of equipment, which, Burlingame said, came at a cost of $100,000. In total, he said, three CDs were used to cover those costs, and other costs associated with other pieces of equipment, adding: “The first two years, we had snowplow issues.”
The board evaluated the town’s plowing practices and made some adjustments, he said, adding that in the aftermath of the decision, all but one of the town’s maintenance employees resigned.
“I have a big appreciation for our employees. The town board can be the town board, but without proper staffing, they don’t get things done efficiently or timely,” Burlingame said.
Describing the role of the town’s Plan Commission, Burlingame said in the 1990s, “the town put a survey out wanting to know what kind of a community the residents wanted, and over 90% wanted it to be (a) rural farm (community),” he said.
Around 2012, he noted, the town created its comprehensive land use plan, designating areas along Koshkonong Mounds and Koshkonong Lake roads as available for future development.
“That was the growth area that the town board and the people agreed upon,” Burlingame said, noting that since his time as chairman, the town has grown in the designated area by one subdivision and recently the Plan Commission has been working with a developer to build 10 duplex buildings near Koshkonong Mounds Road.
According to Burlingame, the town’s Plan Commission meets as needed when growth opportunities arise.
Additionally, Burlingame spoke about updates made to the town’s ordinances.
Said Burlingame: “Koshkonong is in Jefferson County, so much of our rules are governed by the county. We re-codified our ordinances to mirror the county about four or five years ago. All of our ordinances were re-codified. Before that, it had not been done in 20 years.”
He noted that during the process, the board discovered that the town had several ordinances that were obsolete.
Burlingame also cited improvements made to the town’s network of roads.
“I’m proud of the residents of this township, and the four different boards that took on the challenges of the township, and were willing to borrow money to improve roads and have proper equipment to maintain roads in our township, and hire the right employees at living wages,” he said.
“We were willing to apply for grant money for roads and borrow money for roads and equipment,” he added.
Over the course of his eight years on the board, he said, the town repaired some 50 miles of roads, purchased two new plow trucks and other pieces of equipment, added an addition to the town’s shop, and remodeled the town hall. Money also has been allocated to renovate the clerk’s office. The town also hired a support company to help facilitate its payroll.
Lessons learned, advice, looking ahead
Looking back over his time as chairman of the board of supervisors, Burlingame said he learned many lessons. He cited listening to residents, treating people fairly and working towards compromise as among them.
“As an adult, I’ve always had an interest in government and I believed you can run government like a business, but, you can’t. There are rules and amendments, and statutes in place to protect the electorate,” he said.
Remembering a lesson learned within the first few months of his taking office, he said: “I got called on a walking quorum. I could not go from one board member to another board member and discuss an issue. Only the clerk can send out an email to all. I didn’t understand that.”
Working with the boards over the years was fun, he said, adding that each worked to discuss and evaluate the issues of the day and then “come up with a plan to move the township forward.
“I will miss the involvement with constituents, the board and the employees. It’s been a very enjoyable eight years. Learning government, learning how a township functions is so much more than people realize. Elections, that’s all the clerk, not the board members. The role of the board is to protect your people and maintain your roads — that’s the goal of a township in a nutshell. In my heart, I believe townships in Wisconsin do that; they do their darnedest.”
He remains thankful that the board and employees do their work.
“It takes dedication,” he said.
Seated recently in the Koshkonong Town Hall, Bill Burlingame talks about his eight years of service as chairman of the Town of Koshkonong Board of Supervisors. Opting not to run in April, he said he wanted to thank those involved with operating the town and offer his confidence in Kim Cheney, who is running unopposed for his seat. He looks forward to the construction of his new home in Milton, riding his motorcycle and fishing, he said. Kim McDarison photo.
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