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HILLMOOR, EVER ON OUR MIND

What’s going on at the Hillmoor Property? 
The city purchased the land with the overwhelming support of the people from all parts and walks of life. Memories of the good times and dreams from the past were shared at several public meetings. With all the ideas and opinions, the city created an ad hoc committee to organize the thoughts and come up with some kind of plan for moving forward after the purchase was finalized. The committee met several times  presentations focusing on specific dreams for the property have been presented at each, but with no real resolution, except for some walking trails and adding a patch for a tiny goat herd.

The Lake Geneva YMCA was the first organization to present a somewhat detailed potential plan for the Hillmoor land. The YMCA has already purchased land just outside of the city a few years back but has always wanted to house the facility on the Hillmoor property. The plan would include a new and improved building with plenty of outdoor space for activities and green space for walking, hiking, cross-country skiing, and so many beautiful nature scenes.

Lake Geneva’s Judge Sibbing shared his thoughts on Hillmoor on many different occasions and most recently presented his thoughts on returning Hillmoor to its former glory as a golf course. He brought this idea to the table before the property was even purchased and continues to support this plan and, no doubt, believes it could offer the city some much needed revenue.

Sean Kelly presented his vision of three large structures with parking under those buildings. The idea would be to make the property as self-sustaining as possible.  The roofs of the three buildings would be specially constructed to allow for the growth of trees and foliage atop them. One of the buildings would include a swimming pool and offer parking for over seven hundred cars. Another building could be an education center which could offer after school programs and a plethora of events including weddings and parties, which would generate more revenue to the city. The idea includes boardwalks and paths strewn about the property, all of this making it a destination and a cash cow for the city.

Of course, there have been other plans presented and approved by most of the public about having public access to the property and creating some kind of park with trails, paths, bridges, boardwalks, with lots of untouched nature to enjoy. That plan for part of the property is the only one that has had any action taken, with a grant application submitted by the GLEA for state approval, and acceptance of the money by the city. This is not a done deal, however, and the process is moving along.

That plan, if funded and implemented, would take years to complete. With all these big ideas on the table all costing big money, there’s a lot to consider.  So far nothing’s been done. When will the public have access to the property? When will the goats come to graze? The public is starting to question the large expensive purchase of Hillmoor. The city claims to need revenue and has responded by increasing the parking rate and looking for more ways to bring in funds.  How long can this Hillmoor property remain sitting vacant, waiting for the city to spend more money to restore it, with the hopes of it creating some kind of income, or simply paying the money to continue to administrate the overgrown mess it is today.

Mary Jo Fesenmaier, city alderperson of note, called the insurance company herself to see when people might gain access to the property.  The insurance company has no problem with opening the land up for public use, as long as one open well is capped. That capping process is underway, so some progress can be expected very soon.