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THEY BETTER COME WITH ALL THEIR HOMEWORK DONE
The Lake Geneva Country Meats pop-up events, set for being open on the last weekend in February and the first two in March, were turned down by the city council. Actually, the city council didn’t turn it down, they kicked the approval on into the second week of March, which would mean that only one of the scheduled events of the three can be held, and that’s if the council approves it at that time. Oh, the events can still be put on, but they were not approved for the serving of alcohol.
These new ‘pop-up’ events are the new big thing these days and touted to be a lot of successful fun. Lake Geneva is joining in with pop-up dinners on Main Street to support local businesses and local charities. Lake Geneva Country Meats started with pop-ups during the WinterFest event this year and utilized an empty storefront to provide some great food options for visitors enduring the cold and wanting some winter fun. The next event was a great pop-up on Valentine’s weekend serving donuts and bacon, partnering with Simple Bakery. The events are not stopping there; Lake Geneva Country Meats is running with the idea and has partnered with three local charities for three different charity dinners.
Lake Geneva Country Meats, along with the Side by Side organization, will also be hosting a benefit dinner on February 27th, the Burger Throw Down on March 6th, and for Team Triumph on March 13th. All the dinners will be held at 6 p.m. at the location that was once Fleming’s on Main Street. So, what is the problem, because there definitely is a problem. Bridgett Leach, the former executive director of the BID, and somebody the GSR just loves is the ‘events coordinator’ brought in by LG Country Meats. Bridgett didn’t show up to the city council meeting to represent LG Country Meats or push for the really extraordinary approval of a liquor license for pop-up events. Yet, without being there, her name was. It turns out that Bridgett is the person who signed as the applicant for the liquor license! Not the non-profit putting on the pop-up events, but the event coordinator for one of the suppliers. Small town and so many relatives are all tied up in city jobs, or jobs related to city approvals, zoning, or whatever.
The spider web of local relationships, in operating small-town city administration, is almost all too consuming and complex to stay upon. Is the city suffering from some of that nepotism here? These pop-up events are a direct result of the effects, and the handling of the effects, of the Coronavirus. People are surging out from indoors, even in frigid weather with tons of snow on the roads and ground. They want to get together, associate, be with one another while drinking and eating. Vaccination is rushing to the rescue before ennui and depression overwhelm the country, but the officials of these small towns, villages, and cities must hold the line and make certain that the rules are followed, and all the homework is done before approvals are granted. The nameless person who was at the city council meeting in place of Bridgett, representing LG Country Meats, stood up and directed his ire at Mary Jo Fesenmaier, one of the city council members, for basically doing her job. Mary Jo, to her credit, did not force a vote to deny the pop-up events or even the granting of a liquor license. She recommended that the issue be revisited when the paperwork could be redone to specification and resubmitted. One wonders whether LG Country Meats and Pop-Up Dinner organization will get the votes they need, given the attitude displayed.
