Referendums at the Ready

future of Confluence hinges on pair of April 1 votes

Tom Giffey |

NOTE: BALLOT BOX NOT SHOWN TO SCALE. Local voters will see two Confluence Project-related referendums on the April 1 election ballot, one in the city and one in the county.
NOTE: BALLOT BOX NOT SHOWN TO SCALE. Local voters will see two Confluence Project-related referendums on the April 1 election ballot, one in the city and one in the county.

After months of discussion, debate, and intrigue, the cloudy picture surrounding proposed referendums related to the Confluence Project finally became clear as January ended. On April 1, Eau Claire-area voters will face two ballot questions pertaining to the development project – one directly related to the Confluence and one motivated by the project but having far-reaching consequences beyond it. The outcome of those referendums will likely decide the fate of the $77.2 million public/private development, which would include a performing arts center, student housing, and commercial space on South Barstow Street.

EAU CLAIRE CITY COUNCIL

Many of them criticized it – some vigorously – but the majority of Eau Claire City Council members nonetheless voted Jan. 28 to put a Confluence-related referendum on the April 1 city ballot. The referendum won’t explicitly deal with the project; instead, it will ask citizens whether or not they should have to give approval any time the city wants to spend $1 million or more on a performing arts building. If it passes, a second referendum would be held on whether or not the city can spend $5 million on the project, an amount the City Council already pledged last October. The delay caused by such a second referendum will mostly likely scuttle the entire project: UW-Eau Claire must decide within a few months to continue to pursue state funding for its share of the Confluence or instead ask for money to build a new on-campus performing arts center.

“We were elected to represent the people. So let’s do our due diligence to represent the people.” – County Board member Sue Miller, arguing against a Confluence Project referendumBefore the final 9-1 vote to go forward with a referendum, council members held a lengthy discussion about the wording and the legality of the proposed referendum, which was initiated via a petition drive led by Confluence critics. Eventually, the majority of council members begrudgingly accepted the fact that they had little recourse other than to allow the initiative to go before voters.

City Councilman Eric Larsen condemned the proposed ordinance as “bad law” and said he would fight to defeat it. He criticized the “proposed ordinance as divisive and fundamentally unfair” because it singles out only arts-related facilities and not other projects – such as those involving sports or recreation – that the city might fund. (To read the full text of both referendums, see Page 13.)

City Councilwoman Catherine Emmanuelle criticized Confluence opponents who have “systematically manufactured the appearances of a divided community.” She expressed confidence that city voters will reject the referendum, which she termed an “oppositional scheme to retroactively undo the (city’s) modest pledge towards the Confluence.” The $5 million pledge toward the roughly $50 million performing arts center would be funded through a tax incremental financing (TIF) district, which would create no increased tax burden for city residents (other than the project’s private developer).

The performing arts center, which would be shared by UW-Eau Claire and community arts groups, is one element of the $77.2 million Confluence Project; the other would be a privately funded building combining student housing and commercial space.

Several council members voted in favor of the referendum for positive reasons, saying citizens deserved to have input on such spending decisions. “I’m going to be happy that this goes to ballot, but I think it’s sad that some people say that they hope it can be defeated in court,” Lewis said, alluding to earlier comments by Emmanuelle that advocated testing the measure’s legality if it passes.

EAU CLAIRE COUNTY BOARD

Meanwhile, a referendum approved on a 21-5 vote of the Eau Claire County Board on Jan. 21 will be more straightforward: It will ask county residents whether or not the county should pledge $3.5 million toward the performing arts center.

While the board initially considered simply making the pledge, board members voted 15-11 to add an amendment requiring a referendum. Board member Joel Mikelson said the issue of putting taxpayer dollars toward the proposed performing arts center warranted citizen input. “I think it’s only fair that the taxpayer gets a kick at the can countywide,” he said before the vote, a sentiment that numerous board members echoed.

A minority of board members disagreed about the referendum, arguing that requiring one amounted to the board passing the buck. “We were elected to represent the people,” said board member Sue Miller. “So let’s do our due diligence to represent the people.”

According to county estimates, the $3.5 million commitment would cost the owner of a $100,000 home an additional $5.92 in property taxes annually for the next decade. That wouldn’t be a “terrible burden” for taxpayers, especially considering Eau Claire County has one of the lowest county tax rates in the state, board member Colleen Bates said.