February 25, 2015 at 4:08 p.m.
City panel votes to modify Heal Creek proposal
City panel votes to modify Heal Creek proposal
The city and town are seeking to use the property to create a year-round trails facility using a series of new and old trails.
According to the original proposal, the town would pay $10,000 and the city would give the county a parcel of land. The city would acquire four parcels on the western side of Heal Creek, while the town would acquire two parcels on the eastern edge of the creek.
City Administrator Blaine Oborn told the committee his recommendation is to offer the county $60,000 in lieu of the parcel of land.
"The property was acquired for the sewer treatment plant and we ended up doing that closer to town," he explained.
"There's about 100 feet that has right-of-way issues, and I think we've also talked about if this deal does go through, that the sewer is going to want the general fund or the capital fund to pay for it, so I think we can eliminate both problems - eliminate the complexity of having these right-of-way issues that probably aren't going to be cleared up in the next two months and doing the things we'll have to do if we liquidate it, which we'll probably end up having to do."
Instead of dealing with those issues, Oborn said it would simplify matters to offer $60,000 in lieu of the property.
"I think it will simplify our application and simplify the need to have to reconcile with the sewer fund in the future if this deal goes through, that I would recommend $60,000 in lieu of (the property)," he said.
"If they still want this property, I guess we can do it, so I would recommend that we submit a modified proposal to the county that they have the option of taking cash of $60,000 in lieu of the trade."
Oborn said the money would come from the city's debt service fund.
"It has $78,722 left in it," he said.
"The $60,000 would come out of there before the street projects probably get to it."
Committee member Alex Young spoke in support of Oborn's recommendation.
"At the end of the day we knew there was going to have to be some cash coming out of the general fund anyway because the 40 (acres) we we're talking about is owned by the water and sewer fund and we've debated how we're going to pay the water and sewer fund back for that 40 should this happen," he said.
"At some point, the city was going to shell dollars out of the general fund to do this anyway. Why not just make it as simple as possible? If we're serious about this, I think we're going to have some dollars committed to it at some point, one way or the other."
Committee chairperson Sherrie Belliveau agreed.
"I think that, if we offer $60,000 in lieu of the property, that's a very small price to pay for what we can gain," she said.
Young said the gains for the area would be substantial.
"The evaluation done by the tourism marketing committee, I think it was done by (executive director) Dana (DeMet) of the chamber, was that the impact of this in terms of tourist spending would be $1.25 million a year, which is $62,500 a year in sales tax revenue for the county should this go the way that Dana's anticipating," he said.
"The benefit to the city comes in terms of tourism traffic and so on, so I think that now that all the cards are on the table and everybody sees the benefit of this, spending a couple dollars is a worthy cause."
"If we're going to try to make the city a better place, if we're going to try to attract employees, (this is something we have to do). "I've had some conversations with some folks lately who have brought up the difficulty in recruiting some professional people, employees, coming to the city - and we're talking big-dollar jobs, people in the health care field and that type of thing - and one of the things they look for is these types of amenities," he added.
"This is a small price to pay for the benefit that we're going to get for the city long-term."
The only other committee member present, Tom Gleason, said he was initially opposed to attaching a cash offer to the proposal, but is now willing to support the recommendation.
"I can see the long-term impact and that it's a positive impact and is something the community wants," he said.
Mayor Dick Johns was the only person to speak out against the proposed modification.
"I'm more concerned about the money being spent in regards to it," he said. "I don't think we should be blowing any more money towards it. That's where I'm coming from."
After a motion was made to modify the proposal, the three committee members voted unanimously to approve the cash offer. It will be discussed by the Finance, Wage and Salary Committee at its next meeting before coming before the City Council.
The city has time to discuss the issue as the Oneida County Land Records Committee will not be discussing the proposals until April. Young, who is also a county board supervisor, said he has proposed the county board hold a special evening meeting to discuss the issue. That meeting is tentatively scheduled for May 19.
The county currently has three offers on the table. The city/town proposal excludes two parcels in the Heal Creek property, but those are two parcels the Hodag Sports Club has expressed interest in through one of its two proposals. It would purchase the two parcels for $82,123 and use them as a buffer for its shooting range.
The club has also submitted a cash offer to buy the entire property for $281,123.
The club would seek to maintain the property under Wisconsin's Managed Forest Law, which means the club would obtain a tax break by giving the public access to the land for certain recreational activities.
Marcus Nesemann may be reached at [email protected].
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