Latest news with #RecreationandForestryDepartment
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Readers ask: When will the splash pad reopen at Marathon Park in Wausau? What we know.
WAUSAU − Those looking to cool off in spraying waters and fountains will have to wait at least two months before Marathon Park's splash pad returns. Wausau and Marathon County's shared Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department is currently seeking donations to rebuild its 8,000-square-foot splash pad at Marathon Junction located within Marathon Park. The splash pad is the largest in the state, according to builders the department has contacted, Jamie Polley, parks, recreation, and forestry director, told a Wausau Daily Herald reporter. The department has not yet chosen a design or builder for the project. About two-thirds of the summer fun facility's $750,000 design and construction cost has been committed to the project from various sources. Funds committed so far include a $50,000 donation from the B.A. and Esther Greenheck Foundation, a $130,000 Community Development Block Grant and county capital project funds, Polley said. The Marathon Park splash pad was closed in 2023 due to a water pressure issue that could not be identified or resolved, according to a Facebook post made by the department in July 2024. The 20-year-old splash pad was demolished in spring 2025, and the department hopes to have its replacement built in August and give park visitors a few weeks to enjoy it before shutting down for the winter months, Polley said. A grand opening for the facility will be planned for 2026, Polley said. Individuals or organizations interested in making a tax-deductible donation to the project can contact the parks, recreation, and forestry department at 715-261-1550. Local business news: Looking for an intimate event space in Wausau? Flowers and plants bring Infused to life More local news: Wausau mayor vetoes housing project on vacant land the city has owned for over 15 years Erik Pfantz covers local government and education in central Wisconsin for USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin and values his background as a rural Wisconsinite. Contact him at epfantz@ This article originally appeared on Wausau Daily Herald: When will the splash pad reopen at Marathon Park in Wausau?
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Tomorrow's Recreation: Parks, Recreation and Forestry's master plan seeks to set the stage for department's future
Mar. 22—On Monday night, the Austin City Council agreed to move the Austin Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department's Master Plan out of work session to be considered for adoption at the upcoming April 7 meeting. The plan itself has been a long-term project by the department that seeks to define a variety of parameters that will help clarify decision making processes for years to come. Parks and Rec contracted with MSA Professional Services to assist in the project. "They were great because I had questions," said Jason Sehon, who was hired after the bulk of the plan had been formed. "They were able to modify the way we thought was more presentable and a more user-friendly plan that we were able to deliver to the Parks Board and then council for approval." "Their knowledge helped carry this plan through to where we are today," he added. In Monday night's presentation to the board, the plan outlined several purposes the department seeks to achieve with its drafting: —Establish a long-range vision to help ensure that resources are used effectively and based on community benefits; —Priority and budget for comprehensive improvement plans and Capital Improvement Projects; —Gather and generate community support and build trust; —Creates potential for developing private and public partnerships; and —Assist in grant funding opportunities. "It's basically a guideline or a road map to give us a vision for what we want to see in all things parks, recreation and trails for the city," Sehon said. "There's nothing concrete in there. There's no deadline here that says we have to do certain things here. These are all ideas based on current trends in recreation." One of the earliest moves in the process was to conduct a community engagement survey between June and November in 2022 that collected 634 total responses and gained an overall view of demographics and those things under the Parks and Recreation umbrella. It also provided a snapshot into key takeaways including the most popular parks, needed improvements and most common suggestions for new amenities among other takeaways. During the process, certain ares found their way toward the top of the list in terms of project goals when the plan was being organized. One of those more pressing areas is ensuring that parks can be used by everybody. "Accessibility is a big one," Sehon said. "A lot of our restrooms, playgrounds aren't really (ADA) accessible in our park system. To me it's an easy thing." Another area is a more narrowed focus on maintenance of existing amenities in parks or how the parks might function in terms of service to the community. During budget discussions this past year, the Austin City Council discussed from time to time parks and how they might fit into the overall concept of saving money in terms of time spent maintaining parks. While there is no intention of doing away with parks through the master plan, Sehon said that the department and the Parks Board would instead look at how these parks are utilized. "There is nothing in this plan that says we're going to eliminate park X," Sehon said. "We're not eliminating parks. Do we re-consider what park amenities are in a park location? Yeah. Does every park all over town need a playground that costs $150,000?" "The Parks Board has talked about how many ways and other ways to manage parks ... and it's not always a playground," he continued. At the same time, the plan isn't necessarily all encompassing. While some areas fall under the Parks and Rec banner, there are other projects that don't necessarily fit with what the plan aims to achieve. Case in point is the current effort to stem the emerald ash borer infestation. Currently, Parks and Recreation crews are cutting down ash trees in Austin alongside Carr Tree Service, which the city contracted with for the first round of felling. However, Sehon said that kind of effort tends to be separate from what the master plan is hoping to do, falling under a separate plan that was developed in partnership with Jay C. Hormel Nature Center Director Luke Reese and Rainbow Tree Care. "It is somewhat of a different monster," he said, but added. "Tree planting could have a place here." A major advantage to this plan is that it's something that doesn't need to be updated every three or five years. Instead, Sehon envisions the plan can be added to as areas of need become more prevalent. However, anything that is made a part of the plan would require reaching to the public. "If we're going to remove something and not replace it, we need to invite (the public) to be a part of the process because that's what we're here for," Sehon said. "If we're going to make a change that might concern people, we're going to get them to the table and involve people." Sehon believes that with the added flexibility the plan offers, more options become available to Parks and Recreation as time moves on, and that can include adding new recreational opportunities while improving existing areas and maintaining equipment. To that extent, he added that much of what the plan tries to do is already being factored into continuing efforts. "I would argue it already has before it's even been adopted," Sehon said. "Just reading through this has helped me to know our next moves. Just the general knowledge that our staff has just reading through this. It puts every park on our radar again. It opens our eyes for possibilities. We're not limited by what's in here. What's the next big thing?"
Yahoo
15-03-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
City takes steps in stemming EAB presence; more work ahead
Mar. 14—On Thursday morning, along a portion of Seventh Avenue SE, the long arm of a Sennebogen reached up to top of an ash tree, gripped it and with the saw attached at the end shored it off and brought it to ground level. It was one of three ash trees a crew from Carr's Tree Service was cutting down at the particular location and one of many that are coming down in the city's approach to the emerald ash borer infestation. The city contracted with Carr's to take down 325 trees in this first round and so far Jason Sehon, director of Austin's Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department, said they are about halfway through. Still it represents a small portion of the work done so far and the work that lays ahead. "We just had a bid opening last week for an additional 400 trees with the option of extending it to 600 trees if the city and the contractor come to a mutual agreement on a cost," Sehon said. "Hopefully that will put us at 925 trees that will be removed by the end of 2025 per contract." Between the contracted work and work by city crews, around 1,200 trees have been removed from city-owned land. "I do want to give a shout out to our streets crew," Sehon said. "They are great at keeping busy. Not a lot of snow this year so they stepped up and removed a ton of trees along the Cedar River." Just in case March 2020 wasn't bad enough, it was also when the emerald ash borer was officially confirmed in Mower County, becoming the 23rd county in Minnesota to report an infestation, though it was likely EAB was here prior to that. Originally from Asia, the wood-boring beetle is particularly damaging to ash trees as larvae. After eggs are laid in the bark of the tree, the hatched larvae will burrow into the tree beneath the bark, making it difficult to detect. Blonding, where the outer bark is removed by increased woodpecker activity and new sprouts lower down on the trunk are advanced indications a tree is infected. Once the tree gets to a certain point, the tree can become dangerous because of how brittle the branches of the tree become. However, as the city originally looked at the intimidating task of taking down the trees, one of the more prevalent species of trees in the community, it began looking at a treat first option in March of 2024 in an effort to save as many trees as possible. In the spring of 2024, more than 450 trees were treated in Austin, with the hope that property owners might do the same thing. "I do want to remind the community that this comes off the tails of our treat now campaign," Sehon said. Aside from being able to keep the trees up for the benefit of the community, in delaying taking down the trees, it diminishes the burden of the city to cut down so many at once as well as delaying spread of EAB. "It's still worth the investment because it might buy us a couple of years for the removal because it will stop further infestation," Sehon said. "(Some) trees were in a lot worse shape than what we were expecting and we'll see more this year I believe." While crews have been able to move some trees from needing to be cut down to treatable, however, the reverse has also been true with some trees looking like at first they could be treated, but ultimately were found to be beyond help. Crews won't know for sure just how much variation there could be this year yet until leaf-out. At the same time, treatment first comes with its own hurdles. Namely, the effort required. "We planted several trees last year and we'll plant some more this year, but we have to find the resources to water the trees in need," Sehon said. "That's why we're encouraging residents to plant trees, because they have the resources right there to plant, water and care for trees for the first three, four years of their life." To help bolster that effort, Sehon said that Parks and Recreation is gearing up to at some point launch an Adopt a Boulevard Tree Program where in the city will plant a tree on a boulevard, setting them up with the watering bag, and the property owner would agree to water the tree. "That could be one way that we put more trees in boulevards," Sehon said. The city hosted free tree planting workshops in 2024, with plans for even more this year as well as the city's Forestry Team partnering with Austin High School's Go Green Club to help foster that idea of planting more. "The city continues to encourage residents to plant trees as they likely have more readily available resources to water and care for young trees," Sehon said.
