Joint Review Board Meeting on Poth’s General TID Cancelled After Resident Response and Notice Concerns
By Dr. Richard Busalacchi
Franklin’s Joint Review Board meeting related to Tax Incremental District (TID) No. 10 and the proposed Poth’s General (Former Sentry) redevelopment has been cancelled and will be rescheduled, following significant resident response and renewed attention to public notice and transparency.
The meeting had been scheduled for Monday, January 12 at 4:00 p.m. at Franklin City Hall and was intended to review the draft project plan for TID 10.
Resident Response After FCN Graphic
After FCN published a graphic explaining the Joint Review Board meeting and its role in the TID process, residents widely reposted the graphic across multiple Franklin community Facebook groups.
Much of the resident response focused not on the lack of notice for the Joint Review Board meeting, but on opposition to the creation of TID 10 itself, with commenters raising concerns about public financing, project necessity, and long-term tax impacts.
Public Comment Discussion Online
In response, FCN noted that while Wisconsin law does not require public comment at Joint Review Board meetings, residents may ask the Board to suspend its rules to allow comment, though the decision rests entirely with the Board.
FCN also asked Eichmann why the City did not post the Joint Review Board meeting notice on its website until approximately 15 minutes after two residents filed an Open Meetings Law complaint regarding notice. That question did not receive a response.
Timeline of Notice and Complaint
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The Joint Review Board meeting notice was not initially posted on the City’s website, despite Franklin’s long-standing practice of posting Joint Review Board agendas online well in advance.
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A formal Open Meetings Law complaint was submitted Sunday afternoon at approximately 2:30 p.m.
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The City posted the Joint Review Board agenda at approximately 2:45 p.m., just over 24 hours before the scheduled meeting.
The agenda confirmed the meeting would include a review of Joint Review Board responsibilities, discussion of the draft project plan, and scheduling of a future meeting to consider approval of TID 10.
Meeting Cancellation Announced Late Sunday
At approximately 11:00 p.m. Sunday, Alderwoman Eichmann posted the following statement on Facebook:
“The Joint Review Board meeting for tomorrow evening, January 12th has been CANCELLED. This meeting will be rescheduled giving residents more time to adjust their schedules should they wish to attend. The rescheduled meeting will also start at 6pm vs the normal 4pm start time when the Joint Review Board meetings are normally held. Once a new date is determined, notice will be given on our city website, as well as here. Thank you for your understanding.”
As of 8:00 a.m. Monday, the Joint Review Board agenda for January 12 remained posted on the City’s website, despite the cancellation announcement.
As of publication, no public statement had been issued by the Mayor’s office regarding the cancellation.
Why the Joint Review Board Matters
The Joint Review Board is a state-mandated oversight body responsible for reviewing and approving or rejecting the creation of new Tax Incremental Districts. It is composed of representatives from the affected taxing jurisdictions and a public member.
The Board’s role is to independently determine whether a proposed TID:
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Serves a public purpose
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Is financially feasible
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Meets the required “but-for” test
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Does not unreasonably burden other taxing jurisdictions
The Board has the authority to approve or reject the proposed TID.
What Happens Next
According to Alderwoman Eichmann’s statement, the Joint Review Board meeting will be rescheduled, start at 6:00 p.m., and notice will be provided on the City’s website and through social media once a new date is determined.
The rescheduled meeting will represent the next required step before any decision can be made on whether TID 10 moves forward and whether the proposed $15 million in tax incremental financing becomes available for the Poth’s General project.
FCN will continue to monitor updates related to the rescheduled meeting, public notice, and next steps in the TID review process.
Editorial: Transparency Worked — Now Franklin Must Make It the Rule, Not the Exception
What happened over the past 48 hours around the proposed Poth’s General Tax Incremental District (TID 10) offers a clear lesson for Franklin: when residents are informed, they engage — and when they engage, government works better.
After FCN published an explanatory graphic about the Joint Review Board (JRB) meeting, residents shared it widely across community forums. The response was swift and substantive. While some residents raised concerns about how notice of the meeting was handled, the overwhelming reaction focused on a deeper issue: whether creating a new TID is truly necessary or in the community’s best long-term interest.
That level of engagement matters. It is precisely why Wisconsin law requires independent review by a Joint Review Board and why meetings must be open and meaningfully noticed.
Late Sunday evening, the City announced that the JRB meeting scheduled for January 12 was cancelled and will be rescheduled at a more accessible time, with assurances that notice will be provided on the City’s website. That decision deserves recognition. Giving residents more time and a more reasonable meeting hour is the right outcome.
But it also raises an important question: why did it take public pressure to get there?
Transparency Should Be the Starting Point
For more than a decade, Franklin has routinely posted Joint Review Board agendas and materials online. Residents reasonably rely on that practice. When a meeting involving millions of dollars in potential public financing is handled differently — posted late, posted inconsistently, or explained only after questions are raised — confidence in the process erodes, even if minimum legal requirements are eventually met.
Transparency is not just about avoiding violations. It is about building trust before it is tested.
The Role of the Joint Review Board Matters
The Joint Review Board exists to ask hard questions:
Is a TID truly necessary?
Does the project meet the “but-for” test?
Will it benefit the broader community without unduly burdening taxpayers and other taxing jurisdictions?
Those questions deserve public attention, not because residents must agree on the answers, but because the answers shape Franklin’s financial future.
The recent response from the community shows that residents are capable of engaging thoughtfully with complex issues when given the information and opportunity to do so.
A Path Forward
The cancellation and rescheduling of the JRB meeting should not be viewed as a setback for the City or the developer. It should be seen as a reset — an opportunity to proceed with clarity, consistency, and openness.
Going forward, Franklin should commit to:
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Posting Joint Review Board meetings and materials early and consistently
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Treating public awareness as a priority, not a formality
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Recognizing that informed residents are an asset, not an obstacle
When public processes are transparent, debate becomes more constructive, decisions become more durable, and trust in local government grows.
This episode shows that transparency works. The challenge now is ensuring it doesn’t depend on last-minute pressure to appear.
This piece reflects the author’s personal opinion and experiences. All statements are presented as commentary protected under the First Amendment. Readers are encouraged to review public records, filings, and documented evidence referenced throughout this article.
Dr. Richard Busalacchi is the Publisher of Franklin Community News, where he focuses on government transparency, community accountability, and local public policy. He believes a community’s strength depends on open dialogue, honest leadership, and the courage to speak the truth—even when it makes powerful people uncomfortable.
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