Take Back Sheboygan County emerged 5 weeks ago with its inaugural 5-part series on the academic failures of the Sheboygan Area School District (SASD). This week, we begin a new series on the corruption at City Hall in Sheboygan.

Part 1: Corruption at Sheboygan City Hall

WHBL recently reported on the exodus of 28 City of Sheboygan employees over the last 6 months. This rapid and extensive loss of experience and expertise is astounding, leaving a leadership vacuum that will affect you and the entire community. Sheboygan competes with Milwaukee, Green Bay, and Appleton for talent and will be hard-pressed to replace key people, especially with the current environment at City Hall.

Both Administration and the Development Department have been decimated by the firing “without cause” of City Administrator Todd Wolf in January and the resignation in May of Director of Planning & Development Chad Pelishek. Add to it the sudden resignation (just 2 weeks later) of Manager of Planning & Zoning Steve Sokolowski and Assistant to the Administrator Carrie Arenz, and one can see the massive hole at City Hall and an emerging exit pattern. (The loss of these four people eliminates over 51 years of experience.)

Though details of how we got here will be laid out in future editions, there are several key events that put the City of Sheboygan in this alarming position:

• June, 2020 – Wolf hired as City Administrator by Common Council (Mary Lynne Donohue – Council President; Ryan Sorenson – Council Vice President)
• Fall, 2020 – Wolf approached by Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging (DEIB – special interest group) for $70K grant to fund DEIB training and initiatives for City employees
• Winter, 2021 – Wolf denies DEIB $70K request after DEIB refuses to present a standard business plan
• Spring, 2021 – Wolf uses outside contractor for DEIB training of City employees
• July, 2022 – City employee attends neighborhood meeting where unidentified person uses “N” word to describe unwanted neighbors
• August, 2022 – Pelishek addresses racial and diversity issues with City managers. Manager of Senior Services demands Pelishek repeat racial slur used, which he does.
• October 10, 2022 – Sheboygan Press runs front page story accusing Pelishek of being a racist and Wolf’s response as “raising more concerns”
• October 26, 2022 – Sheboygan Press runs front page story saying “People are angry” with Wolf and reports that the Common Council has stripped him of his public relations role with the media and given it to the mayor
• November 9, 2022 – Wolf put on administrative leave and the Common Council to begin a “fair and impartial investigation”
• January 9, 2023 – Wolf fired “without cause” by 8 of 10 Common Council members (Heidemann and Mitchell only “No” votes)

This corruption at City Hall is already impacting you directly!

1. The Development Department has 28 current projects that need to be initiated, negotiated, or completed. The loss of Wolf, Pelishek, and Sokolowski leaves no one with the relationships, experience, or expertise to manage these successfully.
2. The City is negotiating with Aurora to buy the former County Highway Department building. Wolf and Pelishek had the relationship with Aurora. An appraisal was done just before Pelishek left. No one at City Hall has any experience or success to negotiate with Aurora.
3. The City has two business parks, South Pointe and Sheboygan Business Center, that need to attract and work with developers. Loss of industrial development means the loss of jobs and a decreased tax base.
4. Poor management can be corrected with a few good hires. But corrupt management has deep roots. As a result, the City’s reputation around the state and region is at an all-time low and will affect the quality of candidates to replace Wolf, Pelishek, and Sokolowski.
5. The City will lose more key people. Many who work at City Hall fear retribution if they show any support for Wolf or Pelishek. With the mayor in lockstep with 8 Common Council members and the leaders of DEIB, many no longer are willing to share ideas to benefit the City and, instead will remain silent while watching the City move in a direction that will do great damage to its future.
6. As you can see, the corruption at City Hall affects all of us – families, businesses, senior citizens, schools, and non-profits!

This once great city was named by Reader’s Digest as “The Best Place to Raise a Family” in the United States in 1995! The challenges today are even greater. What can you do to restore Sheboygan to greatness?

You are the solution! Be part of a movement to improve your community!

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