Little Gems
The fabulous ice castle on the beach is coming.
No one, on or off the city council, the plan commission, the street department, the police or fire departments or even the piers and harbors or beautification committee, was quite ready for the ice castle workforce to descend and tear the Lake Geneva beachfront to shreds, lay big pipes under it or add huge piles of new sand to it. At least nobody in the city is much talking about it. Each day goes by and the workers build and add more stuff, from wire fencing, “ice incubator” structures, to pump valves and PVC piping. This is either going to be quite something or the biggest boondoggle downtown folly of all time.
What’s going on? The workers are from Texas, Utah and many local men. The guy running the show is from Utah and one hell of a nice man, and he also seems to know what he’s doing. Every time the new work is reviewed, however, it seems more like anyone wanting to know more is dealing with the guy who runs the magic theater rather than a simple ice castle. This is going to be no simple ice castle, though, that much is known simply from watching the monumental amount of work and material going into it. Is this decanted icicle building made of giant ice blocks going to be what it is billed to be? Or is it going to be something much greater? At this point, the Geneva Shore Report, from having people on site every day, is going to go with the “much greater.”
Building the Ice Castle
Log barricade on Shadow Lane in Town of Linn.
What’s going on at the end of Shadow Lane? A giant log has been laid across about the last three hundred yards of the road. That part of the road, which leads down to what used to be a boat ramp, is now chained off with a giant log, to illustrate its closure. The Town of Linn claims that there is a park at the end (strange, since there’s no park-like space anywhere down along the rather narrow closed off area) is going to be redone and transformed into a real park instead of the grassy overgrown former boat ramp it used to be. There is only one home nearby along the water near the end of that road. The boat ramp was closed because the sand and mud wore away from the bottom of the ramp step leading down into the water…Supposedly. Does that single homeowner, who might stand to gain a great addition onto his property, play a role in any of this? Why did the town use a giant log instead of conventional blocking materials normal to road closures? Something is not right about this little area of Town of Linn, but there are no conclusions to be drawn until next spring (most probably). As Arnold so fatefully spoke in the movie Terminator: “I’ll be back.” And the GSR will be back there in the spring to check it all out.
Road Block
Farmers markets.
The season for farmer’s markets is just about over. Everyone participating has been lucky enough to have so many great outdoor markets in and around the Lake Geneva area, with many wonderful vendors that supply everyone who comes with great homegrown produce and flowers, talented crafters, and so much more. Right here in Lake Geneva on Broad Street, in front of Horticultural Hall, is one of the biggest and best farmers markets, and it’s open every Thursday from 8 a.m. through 1 p.m. Time is running out, however, as there are only two more farmers market dates scheduled for the remainder of the year.
Fleet Farm Opens.
This Saturday, October 20th Mills Fleet Farm is hosting their Grand Opening. The doors will open at 6:45 a.m., and yes Toyland will be open! The traditional grand opening festivities will start Saturday, with the ribbon cutting followed by demos, special appearances, giveaways, and kid’s activities. It is open to the public starting on October 17 at 7:00 a.m. And on October 19th Toyland officially opens at 7:00 a.m. with Melissa & Doug puzzle giveaway.
Fleet Farm Opening
