“It’s served its purpose, and we definitely have gotten our money’s worth,” is how Fennimore Police Chief Christopher French described the playground equipment, roughly 20 plus years old, at Oakwood Nature Park.
In his report, to the Fennimore City Council meeting held on Monday, Chief stated, “The Fennimore Police Department has received two generous monetary donations in the last twelve months and we would like to find a meaningful and lasting way to use this money to benefit the Fennimore Community. In 2024, we received a $1,000 donation from Pipestone (hog farm) and a $5,400 donation from the Brechler Lendosky Group.”
He went on to state, “The playground in Oakwood has served the community well for many years but needs replacement. The steps are rusty, the slides are worn thin, and the tunnel is held together with zip ties. We believe the donated money would be a good start to help fund the replacement of this equipment.”
“ The use of grant money to purchase radios and EMC’s generous equipment donation to replace squad and body cameras allowed us to be significantly under budget at the end of 2024, and according to our records, we had $4,650 left in our 2024 Capital Projects account and we think it would be safe to use last year’s savings toward the playground project.”
He finished by stating, “We believe replacing the playground at Oakwood would be a meaningful and lasting project for the community. Not only does the playground serve Fennimore families using Oakwood, but it’s also used by people visiting the Fennimore Community.”
When addressing the council French stated that the department’s donation wouldn’t cover the whole cost, but it would be a start.
Director of Public Works Jordan Fritche said he had began looking into the playground equipment’s replacement, and stated he would be looking into other donations/contributions to the project before any funds would have to be allocated towards the project.
Fritche estimated the total cost with the city supplying the labor of installation would roughly be around $27,000, which as he and French both stated would give the park 20-25 years of new playground equipment.
Other business
The council approved the appointment of Electric Superintendent Jordon Dyer the city’s Upper Midwest Municipal Energy Group (UMMEG) alternate, replacing City Clerk Ashley Edge.
Normally, UMMEG meeting are attended by Director of Public Works Fritche.
UMMEG is a joint action agency representing electricity providers in Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota.
The council also approved the annual Memorandum of Understanding between the city and the Wisconsin Elections Commission.
In the memorandum the city agrees for elections to utilize the Badger Book, which is an electronic poll book software.
It is used to check in voters, print tally slips, enter registrations, and record absentee voters, and is specific to Wisconsin election practices and statues.
Lastly, the council approved what City Clerk Edge referred to as a “cleaning up” of the city’s property use agreement for citizens to use city facilities and equipment, examples being renting the gym in the Memorial Building, or ball diamonds at Oakwood Park.
The next city council meeting is scheduled for Monday, March, 17, at 5:30 p.m., in the council chambers of city hall.
