Adam Payne reflects on 24 years as Sheboygan County administrator and shares challenges to come as he takes new role as Wisconsin DNR secretary

Adam Payne’s plans to step down as county administrator have been fast-tracked when Gov. Tony Evers tapped him as the subsequent DNR secretary.

SHEBOYGAN – After 24 years, Tuesday was Adam Payne’s final day as Sheboygan County administrator.

Three months in the past, Payne introduced he would resign from the place in March to hitch the Wisconsin Counties Affiliation. His departure was fast-tracked when Gov. Tony Evers as a substitute appointed Payne to grow to be secretary of the state Division of Pure Assets final week.

The county is already working with an outdoor recruiting agency to rent the subsequent county administrator and won’t rush the method, board chairman Vernon Koch stated. Koch hopes the manager committee may have chosen a high candidate that the total board can vote on by the Feb. 21 board assembly.

Payne basically turned the primary county administrator when he was employed in 1998. Since then, he has created a collaborative course of to develop the annual price range that stands out within the state and has overseen important county accomplishments, corresponding to cleansing up the Sheboygan River, enhancing county roads, holding the road on property taxes, and establishing a wetland mitigation financial institution at Amsterdam Dunes at basically no price to the county, amongst different issues, Koch and different county board members stated.

Payne was an excellent communicator, a workforce participant and an optimist. He all the time regarded for the most effective in folks and all the time regarded for methods to make the county extra environment friendly, stated longtime county board member Invoice Goehring.

“He helped us work as a workforce,” board member Roger Te Stroete stated.

Koch stated he appreciated Payne’s “very nonpartisan take.”

“He didn’t lean one facet of the aisle or the opposite. He had a great relationship with Republican state representatives as a lot as a Democratic governor,” Koch stated. “I feel that these days, that may be a very precious trait to have for any individual like a county administrator.

“Every little thing appears to be checked out by means of a partisan lens proper now and I don’t assume that’s useful for getting issues executed, or advantages everybody,” Koch stated.

Payne echoed that message, saying he’s leaving the county in “good fingers.”

“I’m actually happy with our county board. After I began, I feel there was extra D and R, metropolis and county (division),” stated Payne, who described himself as extra of an Unbiased. “We really work in collaboration as a workforce. … We concentrate on the issue and work collectively to downside resolve.”

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Prime 10 achievements of Sheboygan County since 2000

Payne highlighted an inventory of “collective accomplishments” he’s most pleased with initiating or supporting as county administrator, together with the next:

• Sustaining a robust fiscal monitor file. For greater than a decade, the typical annual share change in Sheboygan County’s property tax levy has been simply 1.29%. Payne has not solely helped coordinate the price range course of, which is among the county administrator’s major duties, however begins the method early and engages the county board all year long, nicely earlier than the ultimate vote in November. That’s distinctive in comparison with most different counties within the state, Koch stated.
• Cleansing up the Sheboygan River and harbor. Sheboygan County was considered one of a handful of key teams to provoke and contribute funding towards clean-up and dredging of the decrease Sheboygan River and harbor, which had been designated a hazardous waste website by the Environmental Safety Company on account of PCB contamination. A number of dredging tasks eliminated roughly 20,000 truckloads of contaminated sediment from the river, with the full price of all tasks reaching round $100 million. Since then, practically 300 new housing models constructed close to the river equate to investments of greater than $60 million for the county.
• Including science, library and engineering amenities at UW-Sheboygan. Sheboygan County contributed thousands and thousands of {dollars} to developing the Brotz Science Constructing, which opened in 2004; the Acuity Expertise Middle, accomplished in 2007; and a brand new engineer facility that opened in 2015.
• Utilizing a 0.5% county gross sales tax to repair roads. The county enacted a 0.5% gross sales tax in 2016 — after most different counties within the state had executed so — and focused the cash for sustaining roads and decreasing borrowing. The county additionally shares among the income with municipalities to help roads and transportation infrastructure, the primary county within the state to take action.
• Combining dispatch and upgrading the emergency radio system. In 2016, the county accomplished an almost $15 million venture to mix dispatch for legislation enforcement, hearth and emergency medical providers, in addition to improve to a brand new digital radio system with higher protection and voice readability.
• Coordinating the COVID-19 pandemic response. Sheboygan County established a panel of county employees, public well being professionals, emergency responders, hospital presidents, college directors and group stakeholders to coordinate a county COVID-19 response. The Division of Public Well being publicized information, offered practically 10,000 vaccinations, coordinated testing and launched a testing website, amongst different issues.
• Establishing a Wetland Mitigation Financial institution and Preservation Space at Amsterdam Dunes. Sheboygan County purchased and can restore Amsterdam Dunes, a 330-acre property within the city of Holland and one of many final undeveloped shorelines between Sheboygan and Chicago, for free of charge to taxpayers. The venture will even profit native companies, which may purchase wetland credit from the Amsterdam Dunes “financial institution” to offset impacts of wetland destruction throughout growth.
• Increasing residential therapy amenities, opioid and psychological well being providers. The county has regularly expanded opioid, substance abuse and psychological well being providers, together with establishing an Opioid Cleansing and Remedy Program in 2017, increasing opioid therapy choices and discharge planning for folks in jail and collaborating with Vista Care, Inc., in 2020 to open three new psychological well being and substance abuse residential therapy amenities in Sheboygan.
• Finishing the State 23 enlargement. The long-awaited enlargement to enhance security was accomplished in Sheboygan County in 2021.
• Sustaining high quality amenities and repair at Rocky Knoll Well being Care Middle. Rocky Knoll has earned consecutive five-star scores from the Facilities for Medicare and Medicaid Providers. The county has regularly invested in facility upgrades on the nursing house (totaling within the thousands and thousands) and different enhancements, corresponding to providing onsite little one care to assist entice and retain employees.

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Challenges forward embody retaining employees and reforming authorities funding, Payne says

The county’s means to recruit and retain employees is considered one of Payne’s high considerations for the years forward, as companies and organizations statewide grapple with employees shortages.

The county has used federal COVID-19 reduction funds to lift wages for CNAs, nurses, dispatchers and correctional officers, however these funds will run out by 2025 or 2026.

One other subject — which matches hand in hand with having the ability to recruit and retain employees — is funding reform for native governments, a “large are of want and significance” for not solely Sheboygan County however native governments throughout the state, Payne stated.

The state continues to mandate essential packages and providers, however has not saved up with the associated fee, he stated.

Since 2009, income limits applied by the state have tied county annual property tax levy will increase to internet new building.

Internet new building has been averaging round 1% in Sheboygan County. That merely isn’t adequate to maintain up with growing prices, Payne stated.

“Personally, I don’t assume all caps are dangerous,” he stated. “We made some selections on this county that we might not have in any other case made with out these caps. For instance, downsizing from three nursing properties to 1. … However at present, I can let you know the caps have grow to be too onerous and aren’t permitting elected officers to be as considerate in regards to the supply of packages and providers and assembly the wants of the group.”

Over the previous 20 years, county departments have already downsized from a complete of 34 departments to 19 and from 1,350 staff to about 850.

Payne is writing a report with different native authorities leaders recommending that the state share extra income with native governments to keep up providers.

100 years in the past, the state returned about 90% of cash collected from taxpayers again to native authorities. Right this moment, the state returns lower than 10%, he stated.

Payne is optimistic state legislators will implement some kind of reform.

Attain Maya Hilty at 920-400-7485 or MHilty@sheboygan.gannett.com.