Three incumbents, one challenger vie for trio of seats on Village Board

Four candidates, including three incumbents, are vying for three open seats on the Saukville Village Board.

Scott Fischer, 52, is the longest-tenured board member on Tuesday’s ballot, having first been elected in 2014.

Jim Nowlen and Trevor Seitz were both elected for the first time in 2018.

Mike Adams is the lone challenger seeking to join board.

Fischer is director of facilities at St. John the Evangelist Cathedral in Milwaukee.

He said his main concern as a trustee is keeping a close eye on spending and avoiding tax increases.

“As long as I’ve been on the board, I’ve tried to avoid any tax increases. I’ve voted against raises and increasing the budget and bonuses. That’s pretty much my reason for being on the board  — to either reduce or minimize the tax increases,” he said. 

That sometimes puts him in the minority on the board, sometimes being joined by Seitz, he said.

“I think we’ve done fairly well” at keeping spending down and tax increases to a minimum,” he said.

Fischer and Nowlen said the major issues facing the village include the fate of land in the City of Port Washington proposed for a new fire station that lies within Saukville’s sanitary sewer district.

The village has made a proposal to resolve the issue to the city but has not received a reply, both trustees said. 

The other issue facing the village is the development of Destination Saukville, a  99-acre mixed-use development north of Highway 33 and west of Northwoods Road that could include an indoor sports facility, public plaza and hotel.

“I’m looking forward to the best that Saukville can get out of that land,” Fischer said. “I would hope that with the amount of moneyit would bring in tax revenue that taxes would actually go down.”

Nowlen, 71, said he thought the Village Board has “done some prettty good things at managing our community” since he was elected two years ago.

On dealing with Port Washington, he said: “I think our efforts have been thoughtful and we’ve kept a good sense of intercommunity fair play going.”

He also pointed out that the board has hired a new police chief and fire chief since 2018 

“Both Chief (Rob) Meyer and Chief (Thad) Trinko are doing a terrific job,” he said. “I think we’ve done well on that front.”

He said he’s concerned about the long-term effects of Covid-19 on the village.

“Can (the Destination Saukville development) continue?” he said.

“We’ll come out of this differently But we will step through it. We’ll have to do what we can to keep taxes favorable and keep services where they are,” he said.

Adams did not answer emails and phone calls until after press time, but his responses are included in the online edition of this story.

Adams, 53, currently serves on the village’s Community Development and Industrial Review committees.

Even though he has only lived in the village for one year, Adams said he wants to serve on the Village Board because “there is always a need for new voices and a different way to tackle problems. I would like to be that new voice.”

“Community growth” is the most important issue to him, he said, which he said includes things like “sustainability, beautification, infrastructure renewal and growth, outreach, pride, activities, opportunities for both new and existing businesses.”

Adams said his varied employment history, including stints as a TV weather man, U.S. Marine Corps and his current position with United Parcel Service specially prepare him to serve as a village trustee.

Seitz did not respond to phone calls and emails by press time for this story.

Seitz, 53, retired from the U.S. Army after 30 years in the servicer. He  has lived in the village since 2002 and is married with three children. In 2018, he said he wanted to give back to the community.