Anita advises municipalities that own electric distribution systems on certain facets of the energy business including construction, asset transfer, and regulatory compliance. Anita also advises municipal electric utilities on service territory issues and wireless and wireline pole attachment agreements.
Anita performs other special counsel work for municipalities, including drafting and negotiating telecommunications-related contracts (e.g., dark fiber license agreements, collocation agreements, tower lease agreements). She also advises municipalities on right-of-way use issues.
Anita has over 37 years of experience representing municipalities and their public utilities and has appeared before the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and the Federal Communications Commission.
Honors & Recognition
- Friend of Public Power Award for a Career of Dedicated Service to Unify and Strengthen Public Power in Wisconsin, Municipal Electric Utilities of Wisconsin, 2021
- Friend of Access Award, Wisconsin Association of PEG Access Channels, 2009
- Meritorious Service Award for Service to Wisconsin’s Public Power Communities, Municipal Electric Utilities of Wisconsin, 2008
See our disclaimer regarding third-party awards.
Presentations, Publications, & Contributions
- Presenter, “Water Tower Agreements: Don’t Let the Cell Phone Carriers Get the Upper Hand,” League of Wisconsin Municipalities Municipal Attorneys Institute, 2022
- Presenter, “The Public Service Commission and Your Municipality,” League of Wisconsin Municipalities Municipal Attorneys Institute, 2015
- Presenter, “Municipal Water Tower Leases: How to Avoid Selling Your Soul to the Cellphone Company,” Wisconsin Water Association Annual Conference, 2014
- Presenter, “Professionalism, Ethics & the Law for Municipal Employees,” Wisconsin Water Association Management Seminar, 2014
- Presenter, “What MEUs Should Know About the Right Serve,” Seminar for Municipal Electric Utilities of Wisconsin, 2012
- Presenter, “Sustainable Communities,” Energy Initiatives Wisconsin League of Municipalities panel presentation, 2008
- Presenter, “Protecting Municipal Concerns in the Wake of Wisconsin’s New Video Franchise Law,” League of Municipalities Attorneys Institute, 2008
- Presenter, “Avoiding Electric Service Territory Disputes,” Seminar conducted for Municipal Electric Utilities of Wisconsin, 2008
- Presenter, “Legal Update: Municipal Video Franchise and Right-of-Way Authority,” Wisconsin Town Lawyers Association, 2008
- Presenter, “Public, Educational, and Governmental Channels: Commercial Programming and Underwriting,” Wisconsin PEG Access Association, 2007
Professional Memberships
- Wisconsin Bar Association
- Public Utilities Section, Past Chair
- Government and Administrative Section
- American Bar Association
- Utility Section
- Energy Bar Association
- Dane County Bar Association
Representative Clients
Anita serves municipalities and municipal electric and telecommunications utilities in Wisconsin and Illinois including:
- City of Watertown
- Village of Plover
- City of Reedsburg
- City of Sun Prairie
- Forest County
- Metropolitan Unified Fiber Network
- Menasha Utilities
- Municipal Electric Utilities of Wisconsin
- City of Racine
- City of Milwaukee
- City of Wisconsin Dells
- SuperiorConnect
Education
- J.D., magna cum laude, University of Wisconsin Law School
- Order of the Coif
- M.A. in English Linguistics, University of Wisconsin - Madison
- B.A. in Spanish and Linguistics, University of Wisconsin - Madison
Anita’s Select Writing & Presentations
Cell Tower Leases: What to Do When You Get “The Letter”
Municipal Law Newsletter | 01.23.25
If your municipality leases water tower space to cellphone carriers or ground space to a tower owner, you have no doubt received some form of “the Letter.” The Letter comes in two basic types: an “Extension Letter” that contains an offer to extend the lease term in exchange for lower rent and more favorable terms for the carrier or a “Buyout Letter” that offers to buy out the municipality’s interest in the lease. Either way, beware.