Wetland Destroyed for New DNR Office

This is one of many pictures we have for evidence
of the incomprehensible: the DNR is destroying a
wetland to build its new office in Peshtigo.

Another

Local residents and environmentalists are dismayed that the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is building a new DNR office building in Peshtigo, [northeast Wisconsin] and destroying valuable wetlands in the process.

"It's ironic that Governor Thompson's DNR would set such a poor example for other developers in Wisconsin, when the DNR is responsible for enforcing state laws to protect wetlands," stated Rebecca Katers, Executive Director of the Clean Water Action Council of Northeast Wisconsin. "This creates disrespect for the law, and appears to be another case where political pressure and expediency overpowered the caution DNR staff would ordinarily show toward such projects. This wetland destruction also highlights the absence of a true Public Intervenor's Office and the direction of Governor Thompson's new control over DNR."

"It's a case of the fox watching the hen house. If the DNR stretches the rules to allow the state government to destroy wetlands, who's left to regulate the regulator?" added Laura Manthe, a concerned Oneida citizen.

"Currently, Thompson's DNR Board is proposing serious changes in Wisconsin's wetland rule (NR103), to give DNR staff more discretionary authority to issue wetland destruction permits. Given this Peshtigo example, along with other wetland fiascos such as Kohler's Whistling Straits Golf Course along Lake Michigan, we have serious questions about the potential for political pressure to dictate and overrule DNR's professional staff judgements," stated Pam Porter, Executive Director of Wisconsin's Environmental Decade, a statewide group.

In February, Wisconsin Department of Administration (DOA) leasing agents decided to hastily let bids to move the existing leased DNR office in Marinette six miles south to lease a new DNR Customer Service Center to be built on a 10­acre site in Peshtigo. The DOA rushed the project through, on the argument that the DNR's lease was about to expire in Marinette, and the old building had a leaky roof and other maintenance problems, though these problems were well­known for some time.

Unfortunately, the new building site had major wetlands and low lying soils which required extensive filling to allow construction, but the DNR had not performed a site inspection or environmental assessment prior to the contract being signed. Only when the bulldozers arrived this past July and exposed dark wetland soils and open water did the DNR staff express surprise and call in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (which also regulates wetlands) to assess the situation for possible federal and state law violations. At that time a decision was made to proceed with construction, and avoid some of the pockets of wetland. No Corps permit was required.

Local residents took dozens of revealing pictures throughout the summer, as the filling proceeded ­­­ showing broad areas of open water and wetlands being destroyed ­­­ however, both the DNR and the Corps insist that no "significant" or "designated" wetlands were impacted. An adjacent ditch was deepened to facilitate site drainage, and several groundwater pumps have been operating continuously over many weeks to de­water the site, as documented by the Channel 26 TV news cameras. The agencies claim they have no authority to regulate such drainage, but in this case the DNR and State of Wisconsin are themselves causing the drainage and wetland destruction to occur. They do control the situation.

"This is a classic example of the incremental loss of wetlands leading to large long­term cumulative losses, and it's very disturbing to hear the DNR and Corps claiming that this particular wetland loss is insignificant when it serves their purpose. If Wisconsin DNR hopes to sustain wild game for our hunters and fishermen, they must preserve the habitat this wildlife depends on," added Robert Schmitz, a local outdoor sportsman.

No public notice was issued informing local citizens that the DNR office was to be moved to Peshtigo, and no public hearing was held. No public comment was allowed on the choice of this building site on a wetland. The Department of Administration arbitrarily decided to move the office, with the foreknowledge and support of State Representative John Gard (who lives in Peshtigo) and the Peshtigo City Council. Officials with the City of Marinette were outraged when they were informed of the move after­the­fact. DNR representatives claim the move was part of a new DNR re­organization plan being tested in Northeast Wisconsin, but that plan did not mention or mandate the move to Peshtigo.

"As a state taxpayer, I'm concerned about the extra expense this filling and pumping represents, as well as the extra costs caused by the move from Marinette to Peshtigo. The DOA should have allowed more time for more bids and options to be evaluated before choosing this site, to ensure that taxpayers got the best possible value," stated Evelyn Nelson Kasel, a Peshtigo native currently living in Green Bay. Local contractors were caught off guard and unprepared by the rapid bidding and decision­making process. The usual 30­day notice was abbreviated to little more than a week. Only one bid was submitted and accepted, from a Marshfield contractor, Robert Merkel, who has received many other state building contracts in recent years (including another wetland site in Shawano.)

"If this is the kind of service that Thompson's newly re­organized DNR will provide, we're in deep trouble," concluded Curt Andersen, a Suamico resident.

Construction of a new regional DNR Office Building began this summer on a 10 acre site in Peshtigo. In the process, several acres of wetland were destroyed. The project raises many questions about the DNR's sincerity about protecting natural resources and the state's building acquisition process.

DNR Staff Claimed They Were Unaware of Wetlands

The DNR did not conduct an "Environmental Assessment" of the site prior to approval of the construction.

Both Neil Kutcheri, of the DNR, and Jerry Smith, of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, asked Howard Lorenz of the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service, to come inspect the site on July 1, because the bulldozers were clearly scraping through water and marsh muck soils.

Mr. Lorenz reports that the DNR staff seemed genuinely surprised by the presence of wetlands, and it was clear that the agency hadn't performed a site inspection before or after approving the construction contract. The DNR simply accepted the contractor's assurance that the site was suitable for construction. However, several DNR staff people, including the DNR District Director, William Selbig, are pictured in the Peshtigo Times newspaper at the groundbreaking ceremony which was held on June 5. Surely, the DNR staff noticed the open water and wetland vegetation when they were digging with their ceremonial shovels.

The construction was not halted, even temporarily, once the wetlands were discovered. The bulldozers continued to work. No erosion control barriers or filter fabric was used.

The 1987 Marinette County Soil Survey (of which Mr. Lorenz is a major author) identifies this area as dominated by "Wainola" soils, where "soil wetness is a major management concern," and "hydric inclusions" (wetlands) are common features. It also states, "The soil is poorly suited to dwellings because of the seasonal high water table.... Because of the wetness, the soil is poorly suited to local roads and streets." Mr. Lorenz stated that 2 to 5 acre pockets of wetlands might be too small to be mapped in the Survey.

Mr. Lorenz reports that at least 25% of the site's 10 acres consisted of wetlands, where an old ox­bow of the Peshtigo River left a low channel through the area. In the spring the water table rises to the surface. Photos from this past summer and spring show large areas of open water. On one side, a large drainage ditch (a natural stream which has been straightened) channels water from the site. During those times of the year, especially during wet years, the water is high enough to float a canoe, which meets the state and county definitions of "navigable waterways." DNR code regulates wetlands within 500 feet of navigable waters.

The Marinette County Zoning Office regulates wetlands within 300 feet, but the County has no jurisdiction in this case because the site lies within the city limits of Peshtigo and falls under the City zoning ordinances. The County's Land Conservation Department was unaware of any wetland fill activity. The City of Peshtigo claimed that the wetland was not inventoried, therefore it didn't exist.

According to the Peshtigo Times newspaper, Jerry Smith, of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, had already informed a nearby resident in April that several flood plains crossed this general area, which would make sewer construction difficult. The Peshtigo City Engineer, Steve Cota, explained that the wetland interpretation was done from an aerial flood plain map and "there possibly is not as much [wetland] as it indicated." He also said the proposed development plan for the area was not sent to the state for approval.

In 1990, the City cut a new road (Pine Street) across one of the wetland strips to serve this industrial park area. Subsequent aerial photos from 1991 and 1992 show deterioration at low (wetland?) points in the road.

Extensive Filling is Underway

Photographs from this summer show several dozen dump truck loads of sand and dirt piled at one end of the site, and later photographs showing how the fill is being used to raise the groundlevel and level­out the low wet areas targeted for construction.

Dewatering is Underway

Several large water pumps have been operating night and day for many weeks, as documented by Channel 26 TV news cameras, removing water from this site It's unclear what the water contains, but it is dark brown, foamy, and smelly ­­­ and it is being routed through ditches to the Peshtigo River without treatment. It is also unclear how much total water is being pumped, and whether all the pumping is for dewatering the DNR building site, or for remediating some other problem.

After­the­Fact Permits

The 404 wetland permit review process by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was begun only after the bulldozers were changing the landscape at the site. Mr. Jerry Smith was called in after construction began, to map and mark the wetlands to avoid, to prevent the need for a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permit ­­­ but wetlands had already been destroyed by this time. (Currently, construction debris and dumping is also littering the wetland remnants at the site.) He found aerial photos from Bay Lakes Regional Planning Commission clearly showing two wide strips of wetlands on this site, but has decided that he is satisfied with the project and that no Corps permit would be necessary. He admits that the builders "might have encroached maybe a foot beyond my flags," but he didn't think the situation was significant. He also added, "Personally, I don't believe my job is to protect wetlands."

The building permit from the Peshtigo City Council was approved at their August 6 meeting, a month after construction had begun.

What Was Wrong with the Marinette Office?

The old regional DNR office was located at 1636 Industrial Parkway, at the southern edge of the City of Marinette.

The DNR had problems with the Marinette building lease holder, Chuck Dettman, Sr. The roof had a serious leak, the snow wasn't being shoveled off the sidewalks, and the parking lot was not getting plowed as required. Dettman attempted to repair the roof a few times, unsuccessfully.

When the DNR's lease expired last spring, Dettman doubled the rent and told the state to pay for roof repairs. Complaints were sent to Madison, to Richard Van Roo, the Department of Administration leasing officer.

Closed Decision­Making

The Dept. of Administration could have moved the DNR to several sites in Marinette, some in existing buildings, but chose instead to build on a new 10 acre site in Peshtigo.

Two possible office sites in Marinette, by the Aerial Corporation or by Shopko, were rejected because busy traffic at the intersection might obstruct fire control response by the DNR. (However, the new site also poses busy traffic problems.)

The City of Marinette is furious about losing the DNR headquarters without being informed or consulted. As Mayor Darryl Leroy stated in a July letter, "... at no time did the local staff, regional or state DNR personnel contact my office or any department in City Hall as to the phasing out of their Marinette facility." City officials claim that they could have accommodated the agency with new office space in Marinette.

Mr. Richard Van Roo, of the DOA, told news reporters that he had a "state mandate" to move the office from Marinette to Peshtigo.

The City of Peshtigo was informed and consulted early in the process concerning DNR's

situation, and the City offered DNR several incentives to move the office to Peshtigo. The Peshtigo City Council met in closed session to discuss arrangements. They were anxious for the increased tax base the project would bring.

Exactly Where is the New Office?

The new Peshtigo DNR Office will be located at 101 North Ogden Road, off Hwy 41 on the east edge of Peshtigo. It will be a 12,000 square foot structural steel building, located in the "Pine View Industrial Park" development area.

Re­organization?

The Lake Michigan District of the DNR, in Northeast Wisconsin, is the test area for DNR's re­organization plan, which was approved last year. This wetland fiasco could signal other major changes to come throughout the state.

The plan had specified that the agency's new "Customer Service Center" was to be located in Marinette, but a June article in the Peshtigo Times stated that the construction of the new Peshtigo facility "is part of the DNR re­organization plan to provide a gateway to DNR service and shift DNR staff from centralized offices to locations closer to the customers they serve."

Marinette is the County seat, the major population center for the County, and a natural site for a state building. Though Marinette is not centrally located in the County, a move to Pestigo would also not be central, because it is only 6 miles away and also located on the edge of the County.

No Public Notice and No Public Hearing

The public became aware of the move and construction only after­the­fact, when articles appeared in local papers and the bulldozers began their work. Within a period of a few days, the Marinette Eagle Star newspaper reported DNR's assurance that the DNR office would remain in Marinette, and then reported that contracts were signed to put the office in Peshtigo.

DNR Staff Were Muzzled

DNR staff were threatened with job loss if they talked with anyone about the situation.

Only One Bid Accepted From Building Contractors

This contract was for a million dollars (plus) for the new DNR Office, garages, storage sheds, parking lots, and access roads.

On the excuse that the lease was running out, the Dept. of Administration gave contractors less than two weeks to acquire 10 acres of land and send in detailed bids which met the state's specifications. The DNR sent out a formal notice of the "Request for Proposal" on about February 15, a meeting was scheduled for February 22 with developers to answer questions, and February 29 was the deadline for bids. Only one contractor met the deadline. One other late bid was rejected because it was tardy. Ordinarily, if only one bid is received it is thrown out and the project is opened again for new bidding ­­­ but in this case, the DOA immediately accepted the one bid.

One contractor said discussions of a possible new office building had gone on for at least two years, because the old Marinette Office was crowded. The Dept. of Administration had promised to notify all local contractors to give them time to submit bids, but many of the contractors were not notified directly, and several missed the small legal notice in the paper. As many as 6 local contractors would have been interested in submitting bids, but several found out only after it was a "done deal," in the DOA's words.

Local contractors are disturbed that the job was let to an outside Marshfield contractor, and the profits and jobs were not provided in the local Marinette/Peshtigo area.

One of the contractors complained that the specifications were prohibitively expensive, which also discouraged bidding on the job ­­­ but after the bid was let, several aspects of the specifications were renegotiated and changed. For example, the original specifications required that the building be located directly on the highway, but the new site is not on the highway.

Mr. Van Roo, the leasing agent for the Wisconsin Dept. of Administration, told a group of disgruntled contractors that, "a building that small doesn't require bids." Yet, according to state codes, a state building of this size does require bids.

This process raises serious questions about whether taxpayers are getting the best value for their investments in state properties. Apparently, competitive bidding isn't required.

Is the State Picking Favorites?

The one successful bidder, Badger Housing of Marshfield, Wis., owned by Robert Merkel, has gotten several recent contracts throughout Wisconsin to construct state office buildings. Local contractors felt this company had some kind of inside track and foreknowledge of this "Request for Proposal," because the company was unnaturally well­prepared for this bid.

Jerry Smith, of the Corps, reports that this same company was involved in constructing another state building on Hwy 29 in Shawano which also damaged wetlands.

There's some confusion about whether the state will lease­to­buy, or simply lease the building from Merkel.

Poor Working Conditions for DNR Staff ­­­ Bad for Morale

The staff were not consulted about the wisdom of moving from Marinette to Peshtigo. On May 21st, twenty four DNR staff people were moved out of the Marinette building into four construction trailers in a parking lot next to a boat landing and city garage site in Pestigo, at 411 East Front Street. These trailers have no restrooms or running water for washing hands, therefore staff are forced to walk a block to a Peshtigo municipal building to use the restrooms there. (Now, instead of suffering a leaky roof, staff must walk through the rain and snow to relieve themselves.) No cleaning staff were hired to clean the trailers. During the summer, staff suffered mosquito problems as people came in and out. The trailers are also not handicapped accessible.

The deadline for completion of the new building was supposed to be November 1st, but apparently it's taking longer. Staff fear that the trailers? heating systems might be inadequate for severe winter weather.

Related Move of the Dept. of Transportation

The regional DOT office is currently located in Marinette, but wants to move into the new DNR office building in Peshtigo, where space has been reserved for the DOT.

A state mandate encourages co­location of state agencies in a single building whenever possible to reduce state costs. The City of Marinette is fighting to keep the DOT in Marinette, and has tentatively received confirmation from DOT that the agency will stay.

Extension of Sewer and Water Services

Peshtigo City Engineer, Steve Cota, was quoted in the Peshtigo Times saying that the extension of sewer and water services to the Pine View Industrial Park and the DNR building construction site would require the City to petition the Wisconsin Public Service Commission for a 50% increase in the City's water rates. Cota said a lift station will be needed, 3,900 feet of sewer main, and about 4,000 feet of water main. Costs are estimated at $400,000 to $500,000. TIF money will fund the project.

The electrical and natural gas service extensions would cost more.