Marshfield school district and public safety referendums fail, and other election results

MARSHFIELD ?Incumbent Mark Konrardy and newcomer Tara Tremelling were elected to two seats on the Marshfield School Board in Tuesday's election. They defeated incumbent Dan Neve and challenger Nicole Forst for three-year terms on the board.

Tremelling is a 2003 graduate of Marshfield Senior High and a 2007 graduate of Mid-State Technical College. She told the Marshfield News-Herald ahead of the election that the biggest issues facing the district are a lack of transparency in decisions being made by the board and no accountability for the results of those decisions, and a need for the superintendent and board members to work together to address concerns voiced by students, parents, teachers and community members.

Konrardy has served on the School Board since 2011.

Tremelling received 4,509 votes, Konrardy earned 4,321 votes, Forst got 4,308 votes and Neve had 3,760, according to unofficial election night results.

More: Marshfield-area election results

Reigel tops Andres by 2 votes in City Council race

By a margin of only two votes, Andrew Reigel defeated Bonnie Andres in the District 10 race for the Marshfield City Council. Reigel received 257 votes, with Andres getting 255 votes, according to unofficial election night results.

The newcomers faced off for the seat previously held by Alderman Peter Hendler, who did not seek reelection.

Alderpersons serve a two-year term.

Reigel, an attorney, told the News-Herald the biggest issues facing the city are an aging population and keeping necessary service available to Marshfield citizens while keeping tax increases to a minimum.

Referendum to increase public safety spending fails by 71 votes

A referendum seeking $1.1 million annually to pay for public safety measures in the city failed to get enough support from Marshfield residents Tuesday. In a tight vote 3,038 citizens said no to the proposal and 2,967 supported the move.

Had the referendum passed, the tax levy increase would have paid for hiring nine firefighter/paramedics, one police officer, one police department records specialist and one administrative assistant whose time would be split between the two departments.

The police and fire chiefs said the referendum was necessary because the city had to cut 4% of each department's budget for 2023 to balance its budget. Because of this, the police and fire departments would have to make serious cuts to services.

Marshfield Fire and Rescue also has seen its calls for service increase by 55% during the past decade while its staffing has remained the same, which has made if difficult to respond to calls in a timely manner.

Marshfield School District's $99.5M referendum fails

Voters said no to a $99.5 million referendum Tuesday that would have paid for district-wide school building and facility improvement projects at Marshfield High School, Marshfield Middle School and the district's elementary schools.

At the high school, those projects included the replacement of the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system, some parts of the electrical system and aging windows, and expanding the cafeteria, career and tech ed classrooms and science and engineering classrooms.

At the middle school, projects included replacing the plumbing systems, some of the light fixtures and some of the interior portions of the building that are aging.

At the elementary schools, projects included replacing some roofing sections and aging windows, addressing areas of some schools that are not air conditioned and improving security at Grant Elementary.

Vote totals were 5,425 against the referendum and 3,950 in favor of the proposal.

In a news release from the Marshfield School District early Wednesday morning, the district said while the aging infrastructure and building systems, site safety and academic needs of the district remain, the School Board and district administration will take time to reevaluate the proposed solution and will reengage the community when the next steps are determined.

“We appreciate the feedback we received from voters on the proposed facility improvement projects," Marshfield School District Superintendent Ryan Christianson said. "Though the April 4 facility referendum was not approved by voters, we remain positive about the future as we look ahead to getting back to work on how best to address the facility challenges that remain in the school district.”

Gebert elected as Wood County Circuit Court Branch 4 judge

Tim Gebert has been elected to serve as judge in Wood County Circuit Court Branch 4, a new position created by the Wisconsin Supreme Court. He defeated current Wood County District Attorney Craig Lambert by a vote of 12,722 to 9,031.

His term will begin Aug. 1.

Gebert has practiced both criminal and civil law for the past 28 years and also has served as the city of Wisconsin Rapids’ prosecutor in its municipal court and as a mediator for Wood and Clark counties.

Ahead of the election, he said the top issues that need to be addressed in the local court system are criminal defendants who remain in jail because their cases are on hold due to the lack of attorneys who will take public defender appointments and communication and accountability between the various players involved in the court system, including county agencies, judges, the district attorney’s office, law enforcement, probation and parole and attorneys.

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Contact Editor Jamie Rokus at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter at @Jamie_Rokus.

This article originally appeared on Marshfield News-Herald: Marshfield, Wood County election results: 2023 spring races