9-8-2025 Minutes

1 MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE PARKS, RECREATION & FORESTRY BOARD August 4, 2025 The meeting of the Park, Recreation & Forestry Board of the Village of Slinger was called to order by Chairman Bergum at 116 Parkway Drive , Slinger, WI 53086 at 6:00 PM on Monday, August 4 , 2025 in accordance with the notice of minutes emailed to the members on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. 1. Roll Call & Notice of Meeting: Present Absent Bob Stuettgen x Jeff Behrend x Jennie Stonehouse x Becky Wojtak x Dawn Smith x (Excused) Jake Bergum x Scott Kusta x _____________________________ 6 1 Also Present: Margaret Wilber, Village Administrator, Dean Otte, Trustee It was noted that the open meeting law had been complied with in connection with the meeting , including the notice of the meeting being sent to all who requested it and posting in three public locations. 2. Approval or Correction of Minutes: 6/2/25 Motion Stuettgen/Wojtak to approve the minutes from 6/2/25. Passed. 3. Public Comments - None 4. Unfinished Business A. Forestry Report Director Dobson read the following forestry report prepared by Supervisor Feller. The Village tree inventory has been completed by Wachtel Tree Science & Service, we are just making some final additions within the G.I.S. system. We also passed with flyin g colors the tree planting field inspection performed by the DNR for our Urban Forestry Grant. Staff is continuing to water the Village and park trees that were planted this spring on a weekly basis. Later this month we will be going throughout the villa ge to trim suckers and ground growth on and around Village trees. Finally, Josh Feller was picked to attend/participate in the Wisconsin Community Tree Management Institute. He will attend 3-two day sessions throughout the year to gain knowledge and ski lls for resourceful solutions in the management of municipal trees and green spaces throughout the community. A majority of the cost will be covered by our 2025 Urban Forestry grant. B. Recreation Report Director Dobson read the following recreation report prepared by Supervisor Van Maanen. The 2025 Fall Activity guide is now live. We have had a fantastic summer so far. Our Breuer Family Fun Day had a great turnout for its first year, and we are excited to see how it continues to grow. We have also seen strong participation in several new programs. Art camp was a huge success and our new Pom and Dance camp has generated a lot of excitement. We already doubled enrollment for this week’s session, and th e fall session is already filling up quickly, even though registration just opened. Our first round of Kids Cooking Classes wrapped up last week. Held in the break room near the VCR, the program taught kids how to prepare meals and stay safe in the kitch en. Looking ahead, we are excited to launch a new community bike event in September, in partnership with the Slinger Police Department and Slinger Community Library. August 4, 2025 2 C. Fireman’s Park open space discussion Motion Stuettgen/Wojtak to amend agenda and move Fireman’s Park open space discussion to the end of the meeting. Approved. 5. New Business A. 2026 Preliminary budget discussion (possible capital projects) Dobson informed the Board that he does not have projected budget numbers at this time for 2026. Dobson said he will email the proposed budget to Board members for discussion before our September meeting. Some discussion took place regarding possible futu re capital projects including, Rotary park pavilion expansion, shed at Breuer Park, basketball courts at Breuer Park and a natural playground at Fireman’s Park. Dobson said he would bring this back up for discussion at our September meeting. B. Park and Open Space Plan Dobson informed the Board that he currently has a bid from Vandewalle & Associates to update our five year park and open space plan. Dobson said the total cost is $20,500.00, however there are some additional options to discuss at the Septe mber meeting including a Community Park site design plan and an online community survey. Dobson said he will bring this back to our September budget meeting. C. 2025 Fall Activity Guide Dobson informed the Board that the 2025 Fall Activity Guide was live o nline and already filling with registrations. Dobson said he is very happy with the results of four seasonal guides rather than two. D. Bird City USA Update Dobson said that we are working toward becoming a Bird City USA member. Some discussion took place regarding Bird City USA. E. Donation for bike rack Dobson informed the Board of a $500 donation for a bike rack at Breuer Park. Dobson said that the bike rack was donated in memory of Steve Downs, by the Breuer Family. Dobson expressed his thanks to the family for their donation and generosity. 4C. Fireman’s Park open space discussion Some discussion took place regarding a possible walking pack from the parking lot at Fireman’s Park to the top of the hill. Some options were discussed. Board members decided to not add a walking trail at this time, but to continue to monitor the situation as we continue to plan the future of this park. Other Discussion Next Meeting Date Monday, September 8, 2025 7. Adjourn Motion Stonehouse/Kusta to adjourn at 6:58 pm. Passed __________________________________________ Submitted By Tony Dobson, Parks, Recreation & Forestry Director