Group to involve UW-Extension agent, parks users

BY KEVIN BONESKE

REPORTER/PHOTOGRAPHER

A task force is being put together in Rhinelander for “public engagement” of the city parks master plan.

Rhinelander’s Parks, Buildings and Grounds Committee heard Monday from University of Wisconsin-Extension community resource development agent Myles Alexander, who will be working with the task force that will have from five to seven stakeholders involved with using the city’s parks.

“It will be a working group that they will help plan and implement the (public) events,” he said.

Alexander said the task force would “revisit” the city’s outdoor recreation plan and “take it the next step.”

“We want to be able to determine what the desired character of each existing park would be and the potential uses suitable for that,” he said. “And to come up with a development strategy, the funding that would be recommended to you (the Parks Committee), and part of that would be priority order of work to be done.”

Alexander said he is also looking at getting a discussion website going that would be separate from the task force’s work.

The list of parks stakeholders that will be contacted for possible involvement in the task force includes representatives of the School District of Rhinelander, Forward Rhinelander, water ski show, dog park, Little League, girls softball, Oneida County Fair, Hodag Farmers’ Market, RASTA and BMX.

According to a sample letter Parks Committee chairperson Sherrie Belliveau distributed at Monday’s meeting for sending to those stakeholders, the task force would begin its work in January and have its “public engagement” in February through April with analysis and evaluation work possibly continuing in May.

Parks Committee members also agreed to have a committee member on the task force with Alex Young volunteering to be the committee’s representative.