Parks and Rec (and some thoughts about the future)

When I ran for office last year, I had no ax to grind, no score to settle, no hash to make, no agenda whatsoever. My sole campaign slogan was “I love this town!” and I meant it (of course, I still do). But now after serving as mayor (would you believe) nearly ten months I'm starting to get ideas.

For starters, folks we need new sidewalks in our downtown area. Plain and simple. There is a law of thermodynamics that simply put says, “Everything falls apart.” Given all the freezing and thawing that we experience in a year, we just have to accept the fact that living above the 45^th Parallel has its consequences. Among them being that just like our streets, our sidewalks deteriorate – some at a faster rate than others – and eventually become hazardous in getting from one place to another, especially if you are visually impaired or use one of those walkers that you can sit down on if the need arises. “Well, if they're so bad, let the property owner replace them,” some might say. But if your profit margin is so thin that the thought of being assessed the cost of labor and materials persuades you to put that project off for another day, nothing gets done or will get done. Or, if you fix the really bad spots you end up with a patchwork of new and old that at the end of the day looks rather tacky and unbecoming.

This is an accident waiting to happen

It makes sense to me that if the sidewalks in the business district are used by everyone than everyone should chip in for them. I'm certainly not suggesting we do them all at the same time. Rather, just like we have a street schedule we should also develop a sidewalk schedule so that every year for however long it takes us we would replace a block's worth until the job was done. Besides, according to Dan (i.e., Public Works Director Dan Knapp), it's cheaper to do it that way, than a square here and a square there. (Fyi: our guys don't really do concrete work anymore so this would be a job we would have to contract out.)

Not in the Dells but in Cameron

Have any of you been to Gus Spiers Park in Cameron lately? It wasn't too long ago that Gus Spiers Park was (in my opinion) a dumpy little play area on Highway W on Cameron's west end. But now it's a beautiful recreational area complete with splash pad. What's a splash pad? Well, think pool but without the depth. Think running through a sprinkler on a hot summer day when you were a kid but now you're running through a maze of them. Since Memorial Day 2015 kiddos can run to their hearts' content through a variety of water jets, fountains and spray for $2/day or a 20-day stamp card for $25 a crack. Such a deal. Out of curiosity City Inspector Joe Atwood talked to someone in the know

Give you any ideas?

up there and the whole project cost the village $140,000 with the village agreeing to shoulder some of the costs while the rest was made up in donations. I have it on good authority that a lot of Chetek parents with toddlers make their way there in the summertime. The price is right and there is no fear of drowning let alone getting a bad case of swimmer's itch. And we may just have some room at Phillips "Beach" Park in the pavilion-area of the park.

This is pickleball

How's your pickleball game? Say what? Yeah, I had to google it, too. Apparently the game has been around since 1965 when Joel Pritchard, a congressman from Washington and a couple of his pals, bored with their golf game came up it the idea. And, at least according to one person who spoke to me about it, it has become quite the rage around here. (Why 'Pickleball'? Well, according to the USA Pickleball Association – yes, that really is a thing – it was named after the Pritchards' cocker spaniel named Pickles who would take off with one of the balls if it came his way. That's their story and they're sticking to it.) Anyway, think table tennis with larger paddles, a

lower net and a wiffle ball (like they use for T-ball) and you're getting close to what the game's about. Did you know that in the summertime, if you're feeling the hankering for a game of Pickleball you can tool on up to Sportsman's Park in Cameron where they have not one but two Pickleball courts? In fact, I'm told that during the wintertime they play Pickleball in the old elementary school gym on certain nights of the week. Who knew? Is there interest for a couple of courts here?

Those are two pickleball courts

And here are the hours those courts are available

If we have something iconic, this is it

I got more. Former mayor John Banks gave me this idea: what if we had a designated trail that started at the dam and followed the Chetek River south as it makes its way to SS? There's already an

unofficial trail there that's been cut by folks, I assume, who like to fish along the river's banks. There used to be an old rickety bridge that has long since collapsed. Wouldn't it be great to have a nice walking trail along the river that made its way all the way to SS and then followed the road back into town? Just last fall

I walked along the river all the way to where the old bridge used to stand and a flock of Canadian geese were quietly floating the river enjoying the late afternoon sun. John suggested setting a raised platform out on the river that might attract an eagle to nest there.

Patsy Vork is a former Chetek educator who thought it would be a great idea to explore other things we might do to attract more birds to our community near and below the dam. (Check out this link she sent to me: Bird City).

The red marks a potential "trail" from the dam back to Water Street

What if we could extend the trail from SS to the "Chetek Welcomes You" sign? Now that trail is 3/4 of mile long

And what about the land south and west of SS? As I understand it,it's privately owned all the way out to the open area by the "Chetek Welcomes You" sign out on Highway I as you come into

town. I have no idea but maybe the land owner or owners would be open to an easement of some sort like the Ice Age Trail Alliance has with property owners in certain sections of the Ice Age Trail (IAT)? Think a few picnic tables in the open area behind the sign and you have the beginning of a potentially scenic walking path nearly three-quarters of a mile long between the sign and the dam. St. Croix Falls is the same size of Chetek and prides itself on being “the city of trails.” Obviously, they're a bit closer to the Cities than we are, and the Chetek River is a far cry from the St Croix, but I've hiked that section of the IAT as well as run on some of their other trails. They figured out how to do it. Why couldn't we?

Now imagine a few picnic tables and a trail head here? And what
about a kayak launch here as well?

These trails are made for more than running

Speaking of trails, as C-WHS' Cross Country's coach I can assure you that the nature area behind the high school/middle school, as beautiful as it is, is significantly underdeveloped. Yes, we have the big loop and a few smaller connecting trails but there is a whole lot of property that simply is not being used. If some kind of real partnership between the school and the city could be developed – like there already exists between the school and the city with Denny Overby Field - imagine in addition to the running/walking trail that is used in the summertime (that is converted to a Cross Country ski trail in the wintertime), that we lay in, say, a snowshoe trail as well as a few other connecting trails. Now think back to the "Chetek Welcomes You" sign. If you look directly north from that spot you can see the edge of the C-WHS/MS' nature trail. Potentially you could have a link between the nature trail and the dam. Now wouldn't that be something?

It's not impossible. The circled area is where the C-W Nature Trail abuts the property where the new\
BP gas station is. From that access point to the dam is approximately 1 mile.

“In your dreams,” doubters smirk. Yes, in my dreams. But dreams and vision is the stuff from where all real change springs. The city already has a long-range comprehensive plan that was just renewed a few months ago. Before we shelve it again for the next ten years we ought to put together a local think-tank of sorts made up of elected officials, business owners, community leaders and parents and see if we might lasso one or more of the some of the “big” ideas in that 100-page document. Chetek's a great town to raise a family in and we have a lot to be thankful for – good schools, low crime, a responsible civic government not to mention the lakes and all that we enjoy with that wonderful natural resource. Why shouldn't we work together to see how we could make our town even better?

Hey, I'd love to hear your ideas. Post them here or message me privately or stop in when you see Big Red (my van) outside of City Hall.