GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – The Green Bay City Council voted Wednesday night to terminate a 15-year service agreement with the Oneida tribe after seven year.
An initial service agreement was put in place back in 1996 for the Oneida Nation to voluntarily compensate the city for services it provides to trust properties, while recognizing the value of services.
For 20 years, the tribe paid Green Bay for expenses that the city is required to provide by law, regardless of whether or not the Oneida Nation offers to pay.
At a press conference Thursday, Oneida Nation Chairwoman Tina Danforth said the tribe entered the agreement voluntarily and has no legal obligation to pay anything to the Green Bay City Council.
She added the value of the agreement is $300,000 annually from the Oneida Nation to the city for services. Danforth explained the Oneida Nation’s contribution would have resulted in $3 million over the 15-year agreement.
“It is very disheartening that the Green Bay Common Council has decided to end this agreement,” said Danforth. “We will continue to work collaboratively in every way to provide the best quality of life possible for our greater community. We believe there are many different ways we can combine efforts without a service agreement.”
At Wednesday night’s council meeting, Green Bay Alderman Tom Sladek said ending the agreement was a good thing for the city.
“It restores the city’s ability to apply and enforce our ordinances over many properties that we can’t right now because the service agreement prevents us from doing that,” Sladek said, according to FOX 11.
