City of St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin

Gateway to the St. Croix Valley

Government

As St. Croix Falls continues to grow, there will be additional pressure put on the current community wide-services and facilities. A steadily rising standard of living and continuting population growth, create new demands for cities such as St. Croix Falls. Local officials must provide and finance these facilities and services in the most practical manner possible.

This section discusses several essential facilities and services in St. Croix Falls. Included are fire protection, ambulance service, police protection, library services and educational facilities.

City Administration

The City Hall is located at 710 Highway 35 South. The municipal offices housed at City Hall include the offices of the Mayor, City Clerk and Treasurer. The building is also home to the police department, tourism center and the city council chambers.

The building was built in 1993, and has approximately 4,000 square feet of floor space. There are currently no plans for expansion.

The Public Works Building is located at 210 South Madison Street. The City may require expansion of this facility within the next 10 years.

Police Protection

The city of St. Croix Falls employs one full-time Chief of Police, three full-time deputies and five other part time officers. At present the department is equipped with three squad cars. The police department is located in the City Hall Building. For non-emergency calls the police department can be reached at 715-483-9298. In the event of an emergency the police department can be reached at "911". The offices are adequate at this time.

Fire Protection

The St. Croix Falls Fire Hall is currently located at 135 South Washington Street. The Department staff consists of a chief, an assistant chief, a captain, an engineer, a safety/training officer, a fire inspector and 20 volunteer firemen. The St. Croix Falls Fire Department serves the city of S. Croix Falls as well as the Townships of Eureka and St. Croix.

The vehicles and equipment used by the unit make the St. Croix Falls fire Department well equipped to deal with any emergency. Currently the Department has two engine or pumper trucks, two tanker trucks, two wild land fire/grass rig trucks, and one ladder truck as well as a rescue boat, snowmobile and disaster trailer.

One problem the Fire Department is facing, is that they have begun to outgrow their building. With recent acquisitions of new vehicles, and increasing growth within the community, the Fire Department has found itself short on space.

Ambulance Service

The St. Croix Falls Ambulance service operates out of the St. Croix Regional Medical Center. The Ambulance Service has 16 EMT-DA trained volunteers. The staff is paid on a per run basis, with the exception of a full time manager. The Department has two type 3 ambulances. Service is provided 24-hours a day and all emergency calls are dispatched through the Polk County Sheriff's Department.

the St. Croix Falls Ambulance Service is funded through the St. Croix Regional Medical Center, municipal taxes and its fees charged for services provided.

The following is a list of common task and training performed by both the fire Department and the Medical Response Teams:

  • Fire fighting - structural
  • Fire fighting - forest
  • Emergency medical (E.M.T. First Response)
  • High level rescue
  • Extraction
  • Haz/Mat
  • Confined space rescue
  • Search and rescue Summer/Winter
  • Boat operations - search and rescue
  • Medavac landing zone operations
  • Weapons of mass destruction (N.B.C.)

Library Services

The St. Croix Falls Public Library is currently located at 210 N Washington Street.

The library will be moving into its new location at 202 Washington Street in the Summer of 2009.

www.stcroixfallslibrary.org

MORE library system

The St. Croix Falls Library is open Monday through Friday 10 a.m.to 7 p.m.

Saturdays 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

715-483-1777

scflibrary@ifls.lib.wi.us

Post Office

The St. Croix Falls Post Office is located at 113 South Washington Street. The Post Office currently serves approximately 2,200 households. The facility is 2,400 square feet, which includes lobby space and a mailroom sorting area. Currently the Post Office has no plans for expansion. However, the need for additional space has been identified, and will need to be addressed to accommodate the increased demands of a growing population.

Educational Services

Public School

The St. Croix Falls School District encompasses the city of St. Croix Falls, the Villages of Dresser and Cushing, as well as portions of the townships of St. Croix, Osceola, Garfield, Balsam Lake, Eureka, Laketown and Sterling. The funds to run the school district come from state aid, local taxes, and other sources.

The St. Croix Falls School District is presently operating four schools. Three of the schools are located within the city limits of St. Croix Falls, consisting of the High School, Middle School, and one Elementary School. A second Elementary School is located in the Village of Dresser. The system is divided by kindergarten to 3rd grade, Intermediate (4th through 6th grades), Middle School (7th and 8th grades) and a High School (9th through 12th grades). The total enrollment for all four schools is approximately 1,100 students.

Within the school district, there is one Superintendent; three principals, one for the Elementary, Middle and High Schools; and a five member school board. The school board meets on a monthly basis.

The School district is planning on going to referendum in 2003. The referendum will include the addition of an auditorium to the High School and the building of a new Elementary School. Future expansion is expected to take place on current school grounds.

Parochial Schools

There is one parochial school located in St. Croix Falls. The Valley Christian School is located on Highway 35, south of St. Croix Falls. Valley Christian School currently provides kindergarten through grade 12 educational services, and has an enrollment of 105 students. Valley Christian School also offers preschool services during the school year.

Cemetery

There is one cemetery in St Croix Falls. The cemetery is located on Maple Drive on the east side of the city. The cemetery is managed by the Cemetery Association, which is made up of a six-member board. The cemetery is funded through the City fo St. Croix Falls, Township of St. Croix, and the sale of lots.

Child Care Facilities

The City of St. Croix Falls currently has nine active child care providers. The nine providers are composed of both daycare centers and home providers. At present the combined capacity of children is 147.

Health Services

St. Croix Regional Medical Center is located in Sr. Croix Falls at 204 South Adams Street. The facility currently has 92 licensed beds and approximately 89,000 total square feet, however, the medical center is currently in the middle of a 7.5 million dollar remodeling project, which will increase the square footage, another 44,000 square feet. The new addition will double the number of patient exam rooms in the Clinic, increase the size of the Emergency laboratory, and diagnostic imaging (X-ray) departments, and enhance the pre- and post-operative areas of surgery.

The Medical Center has approximately 400 full time employees, including 30 physicians and mid-level providers. The hospital has a 24-hour emergency center with physicians on-site at all times.

Nursing Home

St. Croix Falls has one nursing home facility for its residents in need of care. St. Croix Valley Good Sam is a private, not-for-profit facility, located at 750 Louisiana East. Good Sam is licensed for 95 residents in the nursing home and also has eight independent living apartments attached on the west end of the facility. The Good Sam serves the general public.

Power Plants / Transmission Lines

There is one hydro plant located in St. Croix Falls, on the St. Croix River. The plant is owned and operated by Xcel Energy Inc. (Xcel). The plant was constructed between 1905 and 1906. According to Xcel, the St. Croix Falls Hydro Plant is its 2nd highest producer of electricity among the Xcel's-Wisconsin's 19 hydro plants. The plant utilizes eight hydro turbines, and has the capability of producing up to 117,363 kilowatts of power annually.

The St. Croix Falls substation provides power to St. Croix Falls and Taylors Falls, MN, with a source of electrical energy via the same transmission line. However, the hydro facility alone cannot reliably serve the local demand for electricity and significant production capacity would be wasted if the plant were dedicated only to serving local electricity demand.

Transmission lines in the area are owned and maintained by Xcel. St. Croix Falls currently has a sufficient supply of electricity entering into the community. However, there have recently been proposals to extend more tranmission lines through St. Croix Falls, which has been met with local opposition. The purpose of additional power lines would be to deliver electricity to northeastern Wisconsin. The proposal would extend the power lines from the hydro plant, up Louisiana Street, and out to the east through the industrial park. To maintain the scenic beauty of the River Valley and appease opponents of the project, Xcel Energy plans on burying all of the lines that will extend through the city.

Recycling Facilities

The Polk County Recycling Center is the facility that serves the City of St. Croix Falls. The facility is located at 1302 208th Street, St. Croix Falls. The 16,000 square foot facility has been open for approximately ten years. The recycling center is operated by Polk county, and has four full time employees and five part time adult handicapped employees. Local residents can either drop off recyclables directly or use a local recycling hauler. There are currently no plans to expand the facility.