Hillmoor Commission Meeting-Rescheduled — Agenda Packet

September 17, 2026 Hillmoor Commission Agenda 1 City of Lake Geneva, 626 Geneva St, Lake Geneva, WI 53147-262.248.3673-www.cityoflakegeneva.gov Hillmoor Commission Agenda Thursday, September 17, 2026 - 6:00 PM Rescheduled from September 10, 2026 Lake Geneva City Hall; Council Chambers Members: Chair: Mayor Todd Krause, Council Liaison: Alderperson Cindy Yager, Consultant: Michael Krajovic Mark Davids, Kenneth Etten, Dan Getzen, Larry Happ, Paula Porubcan, Peggy Schneider, and Lowell Thompson 1. Call to Order 2. Roll Call 3. Comments from the public as allowed by Wis. Stats. §19.84(2), limited to items on this agenda, except for public hearing items. Comments will be limited to 5 minutes 4. Approval of the minutes from August 6, 2026, and August 13, 2026 5. Consultant's Report 6. Discussion/Update on the Geneva Lakes Astrophysics and Steam Project; David Winger, Parks Director 7. Discussion/Recommendation regarding the City forming a Park Foundation; David Winger, Parks Director 8. Discussion/Recommendation regarding the 2027 Operating Budget for Hillmoor 9. Discussion/Recommendation regarding the 5-year 2027-2031 Capital Improvement Budget (CIP) for Hillmoor 10. Adjournment A quorum of the Council may be present; however, no official Council action will be taken. Requests from persons with disabilities who need assistance to participate in this meeting should be made to the City Clerk’s office in advance so that the appropriate accommodations can be made. Page 1 of 5 HILLMOOR COMMISSION MINUTES THURSDAY, August 6, 2026 – 6:00 PM LAKE GENEVA CITY HALL; COUNCIL CHAMBERS (MAIN LEVEL) Members: Mayor Todd Krause, Alderperson Cindy Yager, Mark Davids, Kenneth Etten, Dan Getzen, Larry Happ, Paula Porubcan, Peggy Schneider, and Lowell Thompson. Consultant Michael Krajovic. City staff David Winger- City Parks Director. Call to Order by Mayor Krause at 6:01 pm. Roll Call - Present: Mayor Krause, Alderperson Cindy Yager, Kenneth Etten, Lowell Thompson, Dan Getzen, Paula Porubcan, Peggy Schneider, Larry Happ, and Mark Davids. Consultant Michael Krajovic. (Parks Director David Winger was also in attendance.) Comments from the public as allowed by Wis. Stats. §19.84(2), limited to items on this agenda, except for public hearing items. Comments will be limited to 5 minutes. Peg Esposito gave public comments. (Public comments can be reviewed on the City’s website.) Approve the Minutes of May 14, 2026 – On a motion by Larry Happ and seconded by Paula Porubcan the minutes of May 14, 2026 were unanimously approved. Consultant’s Report – M. Krajovic mentioned it had been almost three months since the last Hillmoor Commission meeting in May due to weather related events that forced the cancellation of the June and July meetings. He reported on the June 23rd ecological restoration program held at the library which featured Tommy Gunn of the American Bird Conservancy who described the importance of restoring the land on Hillmoor to create a thriving, healthy habitat to benefit both animals and humans. Update Regarding Ecological Restoration Plan – Clay Frazer of Native Range Ecological gave a PowerPoint presentation to update the Commission on the current status of the Hillmoor ecological restoration plan. Mr. Frazer reviewed the extensive work needed to map and categorize the different habitat or ecological zones on the property. He mentioned that commercial loggers might be interested in removing the invasive black locust trees at little or no cost to the City. He also recommended that protecting the old, legacy oak forest, located in the forested area of Zone 3 of the property, be a top priority for ecological restoration. Update Regarding Knowles Nelson Grant Implementation – David Winger and M. Krajovic gave a brief update on the status of the grant including next steps for implementation. David W. reported that the final completion date has been moved back to July of 2027 due to various technical issues. The City will contact DNR and request an extension of the grant past its current May 2027 deadline. Discussion/Recommendation Regarding Small Projects for 2026 - M Krajovic gave a brief presentation on three small projects that the City could undertake this year. They included developing a new Hillmoor brochure and improved trail markers to highlight hiking trails on the property; creating a new wooded path behind the Target plaza to move the current trail off private property; and to remove and replace the old cart bridge near Hwy. 50. Larry Happ suggested that the new bridge could be built through collaboration with the Public Works Department and volunteers. Mark Davids mentioned Geo-Caching and volunteered to help upload trail information to the All Trails hiking App. The Commission also suggested that the City look into forming an intern program to help Page 2 of 5 accomplish some of the projects on Hillmoor. Mayor Krause said that no formal recommendation was needed at this time and that the suggestions would be forwarded on to the City. Update Regarding City’s Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (CORP) and Relationship to Hillmoor – David Winger gave a brief presentation on the City Parks’ effort to develop an outdoor recreation plan for the City which will include plans for Hillmoor. Discussion Regarding Hillmoor Budget & Capital Improvement Priorities – M. Krajovic gave a PowerPoint presentation on potential Hillmoor projects contained in the Conceptual Plan for Zone 1 and their previous priority rankings as they relate to the Commission recommending projects for funding consideration in the City’s upcoming Capital and Operating budget process. He explained how the construction of the new paved path will require the relocation of the dog park and other potential project funding priorities. Both the Mayor and Council representative Yager stated that the requests need to be reasonable and limited considering the City’s great many funding needs including those for other City parks. It was emphasized that implementation of the Hillmoor project will occur over many years. Krajovic also described potential projects to be included in the 2027 operating budget such as funding professional services for the development of a conceptual plan for the remaining Hillmoor Zones 2 thru 5, and possible funding for partial implementation of the ecological restoration plan which is expected to be completed at the end of the year. The Commission members were asked to review the information presented and be prepared to make formal funding recommendation at the upcoming August 13th meeting. Adjournment – On a motion by Lowell Thompson and seconded by Mark Davids, the motion to adjourn was unanimously approved. Meeting adjourned at approximately 7:30 pm. Page 3 of 5 HILLMOOR COMMISSION MINUTES THURSDAY, August 13, 2026 – 6:00 PM LAKE GENEVA CITY HALL; COUNCIL CHAMBERS (MAIN LEVEL) Members: Mayor Todd Krause, Alderperson Cindy Yager, Mark Davids, Kenneth Etten, Dan Getzen, Larry Happ, Paula Porubcan, Peggy Schneider, and Lowell Thompson. Consultant Michael Krajovic. David Winger, City Parks Director, was also in attendance. Call to Order by Mayor Krause at 6:00 pm. Roll Call - Present: Mayor Krause, Alderperson Cindy Yager, Kenneth Etten, Lowell Thompson, Dan Getzen, Paula Porubcan, Larry Happ, and Mark Davids. Consultant Michael Krajovic. Peggy Schneider was excused. (Parks Director David Winger was also in attendance.) Comments from the public as allowed by Wis. Stats. §19.84(2), limited to items on this agenda, except for public hearing items. Comments will be limited to 5 minutes. Betty Volquardsen gave public comment. (Public comments can be reviewed on the City’s website.) Approve the Minutes – No minutes were approved at the meeting. Consultant’s Report – M. Krajovic mentioned that he has not had time to work on the next issue of the Hillmoor newsletter but hopes that it will ready within the next two weeks. Presentation/Discussion regarding Geneva Lakes Astrophysics and Steam (GLAS) Project by Friends of Hillmoor (FOH) - Peg Esposito of the FOH presented the GLAS project which involves placing a small, roll top observatory structure to store telescopes and other supportive technical equipment on Hillmoor in the area where the old, paved parking lot for the former golf clubhouse is located in Zone 3. The project would also involve a restroom and canopy roof for supplying solar power and not require other utilities. Commission members expressed support for the project; however, the Commission anticipates beginning planning for Zones 2 thru 5 in 2027 so no permanent recommendation can be made at this time. The Mayor asked David W. to further investigate the issues that would need to be addressed to allow GLAS to have temporary use of this part of the Hillmoor property and to report back to the Commission at the next meeting. Presentation on City Forming a Parks Foundation – David Winger gave a presentation on the City forming a private Park Foundation to help raise future donations to support City park projects including Hillmoor. The board of the foundation is proposed to be made up of residents from the City. Aldermen Yager suggested that representatives from other select City committees and commissions by represented on the board. The Mayor asked David W. to provide additional details at the next Hillmoor meeting. Discussion/Recommendation regarding Hillmoor 2027 Operating Budget and Capital Improvement Budget Priorities for 2027-2031 – M. Krajovic gave a PowerPoint presentation on potential Hillmoor projects to be included in the City’s upcoming budget. He stated that the projects support the Vision and Major Objectives for Hillmoor as established by City Council in 2023 as well as the recent strategic plan for the City which emphasizes livability issues. He presented 2027 Operating Budget items as well as four different scenarios for funding priority capital projects in Zone 1 over the next 5 years. The Commission members generally agreed that completing the south loop main path which is part of the Knowles-Nelson grant project, removing the current dog park, constructing a Page 4 of 5 new dog park, and relocating impacted disc golf holes should be recommended as priority projects. The Commission also agreed to recommend approximately $100,000 per year for 3 years to begin ecological restoration work in Zone 3 to protect the oak forest which has been identified as the initial top ecological restoration project area. Developing a conceptual plan for the remaining zones 2 – 5, creating a river restoration plan for Zone 1, funding ecological restoration project oversight, and funding the Hillmoor coordinator consultant, were other projects recommended for funding. M. Krajovic also suggested other capital projects for funding in the four different scenarios which included constructing the north loop and connector path, constructing the connector path to the dog park, allocating funds for a splash pad, beginning native plantings, constructing 3 river access points, building a large picnic shelter, and a river boardwalk. The idea of setting a financial goal for raising donor funds for certain projects was also discussed. The total costs for all projects proposed in the four scenarios ranged from $1,142,000 to $2,215,000 over the 5 year period between 2027 and 2031. After extensive discussion, the Mayor suggested that the Commission make its final budget determinations and recommendations at the next Hillmoor meeting. M. Krajovic said that he would be reaching out to the Commission members to help them determine their priority projects in preparation for the next meeting. Discussion/Recommendation regarding Future Planning of Hillmoor Zones 2-5 – M. Krajovic talked about the need to begin planning for the remaining zones of the property that would be integrated with the recently completed Zone 1 conceptual plan. He stated that developing a master conceptual plan for the entire Hillmoor property is a primary purpose of the Commission as determined by City Council. One of the budget priorities would be to fund the development of a conceptual plan for Zones 2 – 5. The Commission agreed to begin planning discussions at upcoming meetings. Adjournment – On a motion by Lowell Thompson and seconded by Larry Happ, the motion to adjourn was unanimously approved. Meeting adjourned at approximately 7:59 pm. Page 5 of 5