LITTLE GEMS
The Lake Geneva ice is deceptively thin and will only get thinner as the temperature continues to hover around forty or higher.
Como and Delavan Lake have thicker (and therefore safer) ice accumulations. The ice out in mid-lake, according to our fishing guide consultant, runs at about five inches, which is the bare minimum for safety (for humans apart, not with vehicles and/or equipment). A cold spell is expected to hit the area as February wears on, as the winter this year has been unseasonably warm. Lake Geneva ice, right now, until or unless a real cold spell arrives for a many days and night span of time is treacherous.
There have been no fatalities on the lake this year, but this is the perfect time for people to start going through the ice. Rescue takes many minutes to put together and then get to anyone trapped in the water. Even with ice picks, it is near impossible to work your way back onto solid ice from in the water. Human bodies do not perform well when rapidly cooled to below freezing by being submerged in ice water.
Checking the Ice
Irish dancing is always a lot of fun to watch and a great way to celebrate St Patrick’s day.
The McNulty Irish Dancers are very popular and perform and compete at a number of different locations all year long but are really in their element for the traditional entertainment part of the St Patrick’s Day celebration for so many. Lake Geneva is very lucky to have this group perform right here in the city at the Lake Geneva Public Library this year. Save the date for a wonderful performance from the McNulty School of Irish Dance. It will be on Thursday, March 9th, from 6:30 p.m. until 7 p.m.
Jim Conners.
This former mayor sits as the chairman of the police and fire commission in Lake Geneva. He was once the city’s mayor. When he was mayor, he met with the developers all planning to build developments in Lake Geneva and gave them what has effectively become a pass on paying impact fees for their developments.
What are impact fees and why are they important to the city? Impact fees are, or were, collected to pay for things like traffic lights, road access, lighting, beautification of the area to be developed and more. How much was paid regularly during the time before the city sold out to the developers? About a million dollars a year used to come into city coffers. How much is budgeted to come in during 2013? $23,000. That’s right, twenty-three thousand dollars.
Why aren’t the citizens of this city not howling mad, since when the developers don’t pay the impact fees the city has to cover those expenses from the ‘general fund?’ Probably because they haven’t really had a clue about what happened and the result. If you don’t believe this rather stunning information as portrayed by the photo provided in this issue of the GSR (especially in light of the city raising parking rates astronomically to cover a budget shortage that is fake) then go to the city’s front desk during business hours and ask for a copy of the 2023 city budget. They need money in the budget? Returning to impact fees would add at least a million a year, and probably much more.
