LIVING HERE
The winter comes creeping in coldly while the Starry Stone Wart infestation waits for better weather to return.
Credit the State of Wisconsin’s most awfully run Department of Natural Resources for that failure to act, once again. They cut off any ability by anybody to get the current well marked and discovered infestation off the bottom of Lake Geneva and onto some abandoned stretch of dry land close by. The DNR’s gift to the yet unborn children who will one day take over as the real stewards of the Geneva Lake are going to be handed what is so far an incurable infestation of bottom, and eventually top growth that cannot be either gotten rid of, once it’s far enough along, or lived with. Having the DNR as a steward of anything is proving to be a very losing proposition, at least in the area surrounding Geneva Lake.
Downtown Lake Geneva will once again be adorned with ice sculptures during the 28th annual Winterfest.
This will be the fourth annual Downtown Lake Geneva Ice Sculpture Tour, running from Feb. 2 through Feb. 5, 2023. Winterfest features the National Snow Sculpting Competition, which is held at Riviera Plaza and in Flat Iron Park. VISIT Lake Geneva decided to add the ice sculptures as a companion event to help spread the visitors throughout the downtown area. The Downtown Ice Sculpture event features dozens of professionally carved ice sculptures sponsored by downtown businesses, placed along the sidewalks with each sculpture having its own unique design. Each year, the number of sculptures has grown, with this year expected to have even more than ever.
The sculptures will be installed early Thursday morning, February 2, and remain on display until they melt. Each sculpture is enhanced with LED lighting and signage, recognizing the sponsoring business. Last week the City of Lake Geneva Tourism Commission voted unanimously to approve a $10,800 grant awarded to VISIT Lake Geneva to help them pay the cost to promote the ice sculptures and provide funding to businesses that want to participate in the tour. The sculptures cost about $416 to install, so now Visit Lake Geneva can provide $216 to fifty businesses that are interested in participating, with the businesses paying the rest of the cost. This event has been a huge success, with visitors and locals alike, and with many taking advantage of the photo opportunities while also seeing parts of downtown they might not normally venture off to. It’s a win for all those involved.
