The Town of Beloit will mediate a dispute with the City of Beloit, after the city offered to participate in the process.  The dispute concerns a boundary agreement, which the two sides had been negotiating for some time before giving up.  Now, negotiations will begin again with the assistance of a third party.

Despite the agreement, the town’s administrator said he does not want to pause the incorporation process.  The city had requested this occur.  According to Ian Haas, "The town is not slowing down incorporation, but we would love to use a mediator for negotiations. ”

On January 23, the city sent a letter to the town with a request to file a joint request with the court to postpone action on the incorporation petition. 

City officials have declined to comment, but did point out the city has not yet been formally notified of the town’s decision.  According to the city manager, Beloit had been interested in revisiting shared services.  She also pointed out that the petition included a map with defined boundaries, which she said “stymie any negotiating process” since the boundaries cannot be changed later.

She also believes that a third party mediator will help both parties determine if an agreement is even possible.  So far, the discussions on their own have lasted about a year and a half, and have been described as “strained” by those involved.