Latest news with #KitzieWinters
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
City of Eau Claire plans $48.3 million in capital improvement projects for 2026
EAU CLAIRE—The City of Eau Claire is asking for public feedback on its five-year capital improvement, which contains projects totaling approximately $266 million. 'There will be a public discussion on June 9 and also June 23,' said Eau Claire Finance Director Kitzie Winters. 'The City Council is scheduled to adopt the budget on June 24.' The Capital Improvement Plan, which plans out capital expenditures from 2026-2030, was presented to the council last week. It contains a plan to spend approximately $266 million over the next five years, including $48.3 million in 2026. Nearly a quarter of that would go to the Land, Building, and Equipment Fund. 'The capital improvement plan is exactly what it sounds like,' Winters said. 'It's a plan. We do call it a budget, but it is a plan for our assets or repairs that are over $5,000.' She differentiated it from the annual operating budget which are funds that go toward services and staff. 'The Capital Improvement Plan is for those larger repairs or acquisitions of land or creation of a trail or a park, or repair of a street,' she said. 'We do attempt to secure grants from the federal and state level. We use our tax dollars there that we retain as a city. Then we look toward any general fund usage, but it's half-funded from issuing general obligation debt.' In terms of the city striving to manage its debt, Winters said, 'We have an existing policy to keep that in a respectable limit. We're very conscious of the effect on the debt issuance and how that translates into the tax bills. Our targets are always very close to what we're paying off. We're not attempting to increase the tax bill. We're trying to keep that level.' She said that big things which would have the most impact on taxpayers would be needing to build a new fire station or addressing an issue with a large parking structure. Winters did note that there are plans for either remodel or construct a new fire station in 2027 and that the city council is still discussing the parking structure across from City Hall for 2029. 'It is reaching the end of its useful life to repair,' she said. '[Replacing it] would be over $30 million. It'll cost between $2 million to $3 million for demolition. We're evaluating how much parking will be needed. We're looking at scaling it down to maybe a two-level parking deck. It would cost around $14 million.' To view the full proposed capital improvement plan, visit
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
City looks for funding solutions for aging park facilities
EAU CLAIRE — The City of Eau Claire is looking for funding solutions to upgrade and maintain aging facilities such as Carson Park Stadium and Ballfields, Half Moon Lake Bathhouse, Owen Park Band Shell building and seating, and some park pavilions. 'Municipalities have quite a bit of aging infrastructure,' said Eau Claire Finance Director Kitzie Winters. 'It's not just a problem for Eau Claire. It's actually a nationwide issue. I'd even go so far as saying a nationwide crisis. We're not provided money for the full amount of items that we need to maintain. I have to stretch those dollars very far.' One such project in need of upgrading is Carson Park's baseball stadium. Community Services Director Lane Berg offered reassurances that the facility is still safe to use but in need of more funding for upgrades and maintenance. 'If there are any safety issues, we address them right away,' he said. 'We did have a couple of things at Carson baseball that we found fairly recently that were deemed to be slightly unsafe, so we repaired them right away—some steel columns that had some severe corrosion. We welded steel plates and reinforced those columns.' The bigger projects, though, they want to take on include replacing the dugout, creating a team room behind the dugouts, and adding some stadium seating. '[The ball field] has got some real historical significance and the field is beautiful,' he said. 'It's always maintained in excellent condition. We just need to do some of these things that make it more appealing for people to come out. Upgrades end up resulting in more people. They enjoy the baseball, and then, if the facility is upgraded, it adds to the experience. We hope to be able to attract more people to come in and use the park.' He said that in supporting the facility, it helps support the city as well, as 'we have an agreement with the Eau Claire Express [baseball team]. They do pay for using the field.' Last year, the city applied for a grant to assist with repairs and upgrades to facilities in Carson Park. 'We weren't awarded that grant, but we do have $1.8 million this year earmarked in our Capital Improvement Plan to dedicate to Carson Park,' Winters said. 'We've had some generous donations from Eau Claire Community Foundation, so we're definitely looking at the needs of the facility. Staff will bring a request to council so they can amend the budget to focus on those projects, but there's a few more meetings that need to be had before we can finalize what the next steps are for Carson Park.' Winters said that the city is not looking toward demolishing any of the aging structures in the park.
