Letter to the Editor: An Open Letter to Ephraim Residents

April 3rd is Election Day, time again to select our local leaders for the next two years. One of the many benefits we enjoy in a free society is being able to choose our elected officials through the voting process. In the Village of Ephraim, of course, we – the residents – are the government, not our Board of Trustees.

As you may know,  Paul Roppuld has been advocating abatement of Ephraim’s storm water issues since being elected. While he doesn’t object to portions of the four-year-old streetscape issue, he does object strenuously to the way it’s being implemented.  

Our 2018 village budget has already been amended once. How many more times will it be amended with budget increases this year and in the future? Think of how much more the streetscape will cost us as Ephraim property taxpayers in 2018, 2019 and beyond – without proper oversight by every discerning member of our board, now and in the future.  

Already in his first term as a village trustee, Paul has been responsible for instituting the village ‘s first formal 20-year budget plan. And he has achieved a complete rewrite of our sometimes contentious nuisance ordinance which since has been adopted by the village. As a result, perhaps for the first time in Ephraim’s history, our local ordinances are now compatible with those of the county and the state.

Our ballot states that you can vote for two trustees. Rest assured that you can mark your ballot with confidence for Paul Roppuld, a first-term incumbent with the already proven experience and demonstrated ability to represent us. In my opinion, Paul possesses and has demonstrated the kind of professional background, education, dedication and loyalty we continue to need for the successful functioning of our government in Ephraim.  

Board decisions made in the next few months will involve millions of tax dollars and will impact the village for many years to come. Again, I urge you to vote for Paul for the sake of good, honest, and responsive government in the Village of Ephraim.

Dick Van de Ven

Ephraim, Wis.