Parks Committee Meeting — Minutes

Town of Oregon Parks Committee Meeting Minutes Wednesday, April 8th, 2026 6:00 PM Oregon Town Hall 1138 Union Road Oregon, Wisconsin 1) Meeting called to order by Dave Frankson 6:03 2) Roll call: Dave Frankson, Gloria Compton, Eugene Lewis, Diane Packett 3) Approval of prior meetings minutes – Dave moved to approve revisions to October 29 minutes. Gloria seconded, and the motion passed unanimously. 4) Town Park: Update from Asst Park Rep Eugene Lewis a) Proposal for a “Give it a Go” Event. Jason Roberts, coach of the NICAA 608MTB (mountain bike team) presented a proposal to hold an event at Town Park on May 21, 4-7 PM. The event will host student athletes and parents, and will involve coaches helping riders and leading new riders through games to learn bike safety and basic skills. They will start on flat ground, then guide new riders on the trails. There will be liability waivers for participants to sign. May 21 is the preferred date to coincide with the League State Leader visit; in case of rain, the event will be re-scheduled for June. There will be a sign up, but walk ins will be welcome. Any e-bikes need to be at least pedal assist. b) There was discussion of how much of the parking lot to set aside for the event so that other park visitors could still be accommodated. Possible for team to park along the road. Gloria moved that we approve the proposal, Dave seconded, and the motion passed unanimously. c) Eagle Scout Project update from Eugene Lewis and Dave Frankson. There was a work day today, and about half the roof is finished. Eugene suggested striping the first parking space to make an unloading area, moving the trash can nearer to the shelter, maybe adding a grill. There was no decision pending input from park representative Jeff Nelson. There was also discussion of whether to cut out a little more of the slope on the back sides of the shelter and what to line them with – wood, stone, other material. There will be a meeting at the park tomorrow to discuss this and the material for the shelter base. Dave reported that Greg Kosharek said he would wait until the end of the project to submit his expenses for reimbursement. d) Deconstruction of playground equipment for resurfacing and timetable for installation: The Town Crew and Eugene disassembled the equipment and took it to All Color; all is done except for the block steps that were in bad shape and are still being worked on. 5) Social media outreach proposals from Park Rep Diane Packett. Diane presented a preview of a Facebook page for the Oregon Town Parks. The page would be to share news for all the parks/cemeteries such as activity dates, photos, sightings, and project progress reports. The public can comment but not post; they will be invited to message the admin (Diane) with any photos or sightings they want to share. May expand to Instagram. The committee response was favorable they encourage proceeding. 6) Bicentennial Park - Update from Park Rep Diane Packett a) Wood chips for trails. Ryan and Abel have spread the semi-load of mulch on the lower trails. It is uneven in places and will need volunteers to rake it out. b) Report on adaptive Restoration consultant visit. On March 1 Diane met a forester from Adaptive Restoration LLC to walk the park trails and discuss options for improving the park’s habitat, aesthetics, and resilience. He sent a report that Diane shared with the committee. The recommendation is that the southern half of the park, which still has many large oak and hickory trees, or the remnant prairie, be prioritized for any future restoration efforts. 7) Kennedy Park - Update from Park Rep Eugene Lewis a) Status update on new playground. The new grass coming in nicely. Eugene will work with Kaden Zurfluh this summer to put together a plan for inspecting and maintaining the new play equipment. b) Tuggers lease compliance. The Tuggers aren’t fulfilling their part of the lease: filling in the ruts they make and seeding, cleaning up their storage building. A neighbor has complained about them leaving trash and about the appearance of the stored equipment. There was discussion of moving them to another area. Eugene will ask the Town Crew what it would take to move the Tuggers’ telephone pole. c) Equipment stored at TORC. It is still there. Eugene hasn’t had a chance see if he could remove the concrete d) Potential park projects for 2026. Dave suggested that we consult on constructing walking paths around the park and get estimates this year, but we don’t know where the park boundaries are because the stolen stakes haven’t reappeared; therefore that project is postponed until the stakes are returned and in place. e) Alliant Energy burying power lines. Alliant is going to bury a power line that crosses a section of the park f) Update on Town of Rutland contributions in dollars and/or equipment/maintenance. The Town is offering no contribution of funds or maintenance. g) Any other updates. Eugene suggests that certain areas be mowed this year as areas for playing, with other areas to be burned. The committee will schedule a day for us to meet out there to look around. 8) Hillcrest Park - Update from Park Rep Gloria Compton a) Tree damage issue and resolution. The tree with deer damage is still alive. Gloria will go to McKay Nursery and show them pictures and ask them if it will live and how to help it. If necessary will replace it with the same thing. Smaller or bare root. b) Any pea gravel or sand needs. Will get another load of pea gravel probably at the end of May. If the Town Crew has time to get to it, could use more sand for the sandbox, but not urgent. c) Any other updates. Parts of a tree in the back of the park are coming down and it looks like there may be more dead or dying stuff to remove. We might add another tree this year, with location yet to be determined. Sign is looking weathered. Eugene suggested checking the Town Crew’s stash of paints in the shop for something suitable. 9) Ravenoaks Park: Update from Park Rep Eugene Lewis a) Potential park projects for 2026. None mentioned. b) Any other updates. Neighbors are working on cleaning up the old walking trails through the woods and reported some dead trees. They asked about a bench; Eugene fixed up one of the cedar benches, and they would like more for their neighborhood activities. 10) Lake Harriet Cemetery Update - Dave Frankson a) Dane County has assigned the cemetery a street address: 5894 Cty Highway A. b) Any other updates – There has been no contact from Lundgren signs, so will look into other options for creating a sign for the cemetery. 11) Storytown Cemetery Update - Gloria Compton a) Update on Tall Grass contract, 2026 actions – There are 3 maintenance visits to the prairie seeding area scheduled with Tallgrass Restoration. b) Shrub replacement – Ryan will take out the dead shrub at same time as he install the signs (below). c) Any other updates – Gloria obtained 4 “No Mow” signs for the newly planted prairie strip. She would like to do some planting or landscaping at the back of the cemetery, but is not clear on the location of the property boundary. 12) Other Items of Note for Discussion - None 13) Adjournment. – The meeting was adjourned at 8:50. Diane moved, Dave seconded.