OUR PLACE
The lack of Impact fees and the obvious need for them was proven once again this weekend.
Saturday night at approximately 8:02 p.m., the Lake Geneva Fire Department was called out for a structure fire on North Street. The two-story residence had smoke coming from the second floor and eaves. Thankfully, the residence was safely evacuated, and no injuries resulted from the fire, but unfortunately, five residents were displaced. The scene required bringing additional equipment and personnel. Several neighboring departments quickly responded to the need for assistance. This included the need for station coverage which Hebron Fire Department (the biggest little fire department in Wisconsin) was happy to offer.
Without coverage from another department, what would happen if another call came in and what would response time look like then? This brings up the need for updated impact fees that would help cover the cost of a much-needed additional dire department structure in Lake Geneva. This need, along with others, has been discussed at several different city meetings formally and informally. Impact fees are fees imposed by local government on new or proposed development projects to pay for all or a portion of the costs of providing public services to the new developments.
It’s no secret that Lake Geneva has had its fair share of new developments, and more are coming in the near future with projects already in the works. Impact fees in Lake Geneva are well below what is needed. Recently the city council finally got the ball rolling and Ruekert-Mieke Inc. was approved to get the work done. This won’t be a quick job as information needs to be gathered, researched, and numbers need to be crunched. Better late than never. Impact fees appear to be coming back to Lake Geneva and that’s a good thing in every way.
April 23, 2022
