LIVING HERE
The question of whether or not the city should be allowed to ask for grant money from the Lake Geneva Tourism Committee was brought up at the public works meeting.
The members of the committee don’t think the city should be in a position to request grant funds. Some members think that the city shouldn’t incur the cost of services benefitting tourists at all. The shuttle service for Winterfest was extremely popular and so busy another shuttle had to be brought in. Over sixteen hundred riders took advantage of the free shuttle program, as parking anywhere in town could not be found. As of now the city pays for the shuttles and some council members feel that the tourism committee or Business Improvement District (BID) should pay for the service since it’s mostly utilized by tourists. They feel that expenses shouldn’t be passed on to the city, since the taxpayer’s money should be used to make improvements for the residents.
One thought was to have the BID apply for a tourism grant to cover the cost of the shuttle service during big events. This will be discussed in more detail at next month’s meeting so that a formal action can be taken and voted upon. The last Business Improvement District (BID) meeting had public comments from a resident of Geneva Towers. It was brought to the attention of the committee that owners of the condos that have boat slips in the lagoon are being assessed BID fees. These are private homes and boats, so the fees do not apply to them. The resident is concerned that it could be happening to others in Geneva Towers as well. The issue has been brought to Dan Draper, the city attorney, and a solution to fixing the problem is in the works. The BID does great work for the city and continues to handle all issues and hurdles graciously and with ease. One has to wonder who thought up charging the tower owners BID fees, and how long the BID got away with it. Hats off to them, although another scandal-driven forensic audit does not need to be brought up (hopefully).
Next Thursday March 17th is St Patrick’s Day.
Spring celebration starts early in Lake Geneva with its first virtul 5k Shamrock Shuffle. So, gather up friends and get ready to walk or run. Registration is open right now. Go to https://runsignup.com/race/WI/LakeGeneva/ or go to The Streets of Lake Geneva Facebook page and scroll down to the shuffle. On the registration page scroll to the bottom, click yes to creating a team, and then continue. Read and agree to the waiver, hit next, and join an existing team or create your own. You can register anytime and run anytime between March 11th and March 19th.
Avant is inviting any shuffler who wants to run together to meet up at Avant Bike and Coffee Shop on Broad Street Lake Geneva on Monday March 14th at 8:30 a.m. Topsy Turvy will be hosting a three day St. Patrick’s Day Celebration starting Thursday March 17th through Saturday March 19th. Get ready for some great Irish fun.
