The City of Oconomowoc, the Village of Oconomowoc Lake, and the Village of Lac La Belle have agreed to put a hold on the litigation filed challenging the municipalities’ Intergovernmental Agreement. In a press release, City of Oconomowoc Mayor Robert P. Magnus and Village of Oconomowoc President Michael J. Bickler Sr. announced their intentions to resolve the dispute.
On January 1, 2025 the Town of Oconomowoc merged into the Village of Lac La Belle. At that time, the former chairman of the Town of Oconomowoc Robert Hultquist took on a new role as the President of the Village of Lac La Belle. According the Hultquist, the merger was done for legal reasons. For many locals, one of the primary benefits of the agreement was a consolidation of resources. Both the Town of Oconomowoc ‘s Police Department and Town Hall were renamed in order to reflect this change. Citizens hoped that this might lead to reliable funding and intuitive allocation of assets. Additionally, locals could see the changes reflected on their tax forms.
The merger was also intended to help secure municipality borders. However, when the City of Oconomowoc and Oconomowoc Lake filed litigation against the Village of Lac La Belle on January 2, their primary claimed to be over border demarkation. Halquist previously commented that he believed the City was looking to “annex an area of the Town of Oconomowoc”. This meant that a discrepancy over a small portion of the border led to a lawsuit being filed to stop the Village’s formation. Erik Mullett, Village of Lac La Belle Trustee, said in a post on his Facebook that “This does not stop the hard work and negotiations needed by the new Village and the City to work together. I wanted to get right back into discussions with them to find win-win solutions for both of our communities.”
The lawsuit being placed on hold is a sign of hope. According to the press release announcing the hold, each of the parties will seek a resolution that is beneficial for everyone involved. The discussions will most directly tackle controversies about the “Shifting of boundaries, sharing of utility services, contributions towards costs of the City boat launch reconstruction and development concerns.”
