OUR PLACE
The changing of the guard.
We are not talking about the disappointing substitution of King Charles for the now dead Queen Elizabeth here. We are writing about one fabulous police chief leaving in retirement for another police chief trained by him that is every bit his equal. To commemorate this awesome event the Geneva Shore Report came up with a bumper/window sticker that reads: “’True Grit!’ The Lake Geneva Police Department. Warm, but born again hard…”
The True Grit part of the expression was taken from the new chief’s last name (Gritzner), quite naturally. The last line was taken from a bit of script from a very popular and most excellent war movie named Full Metal Jacket. The GSR wanted to show a certain measure of support for the incoming chief. It’s not always as easy to take over well run operations as some people may think. That we wish him well cannot be overstated.
Alderperson Fesenmaier took the bull by the horns and basically put a stop to an out-of-control situation.
The South Street Trail project (the TAP Grant funded venture) needed a new plan and Fesenmaier came up with one. The TAP Grant, worth about a million dollars to the city, was applied for back in 2017 and the South Street trail was the project that qualified to get the money. After last week’s city council meeting Mary Jo Fesenmaier spoke out and that whole TAP grant affair has been put on hold. The council voted on the motion to halt any more spending, currently being paid to outside firms for studies, and submit a grant change order to the state.
The motion was all about changing the project to eliminate the properties located on the north side of South Street, and the property located in front of Big Foot State Park along South Street. This would take these areas out from being covered areas under the Tap Grant or current (as submitted) South Street Project completely. Alderperson Fesenmaier made both motions, and both of those motions passed. Now, the work to make things happen, but also include the changes, falls on City Administrator David Nord to get the change orders written.
The details on what work the city would like done with the grant funds needs to be very detailed and within the scope of what the grant has the potential to cover. Grants are a huge help to city projects but come with a lot of hurdles to jump. The Lake Geneva City Council would like Administrator Nord to take Fesenmaier’s direction and focus on the work needed on Wells Street, including the safety of cross walks, sidewalks, and ADA compliance issues. The South Street Trail Project is not completely dead in the water but may take a completely new direction.
Residents of South Street left the meeting pleased that they will (for the time being, anyway) keep their front yards and trees intact. City officials appear relieved to have control back on what was fast becoming an out-of- control project while still being able to get the necessary funds. This all happened primarily to the work and risky effort put forth by gutsy and outspoken Alderperson Mary Jo Fesenmaier.
The Lake Geneva Boat Launch usage and revenue has significantly decreased over the course of this past season.
The Riviera Beach attendance was down, also, along with revenue normally expected. With the revenue down from both areas the Lake Geneva Harbor Master is looking for ways to recover lost revenue, at least on into the future. One suggestion the harbor master put forth was to increase the entrance fees for using the city’s downtown beach. Harbor Master Russell did state for the record that he’s neither for nor against the idea, as he just wanted to give the committee members things to think about if they were concerned about the decreased revenue. The Riviera Beach pass price is currently $8.00 per person. Reacting to Russell’s comments, the committee sent a recommendation to the city council to increase the entrance fee to $10.00 (Fontana charges $12). What will this mean for families with multiple kids (kids five and under will still be free)? Will beach attendance continue to decrease? The Lake Geneva Boat Launch use is another issue.
The problem is not just that the usage is down, but the honor pay system appears to be less effective than having attendants always on duty (go figure!). The Harbor Master feels that the drop box may need to be removed and boaters will need to use the kiosk to pay to launch or risk getting a ticket. The installation of new video camera coverage may also change things. The thoughts of the committee and the harbor master regarding the decreased attendance and usage could fall partially on a cooler than normal summer, the decreased number of visitors in Lake Geneva, and inflation. The Lake Geneva City Council does not meet until next Monday, September 23rd, where these attendance and revenue issues will be addressed.
