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We're happy to see a work group has been formed to revitalize Barron County parks. If you've been around the facilities lately, you've likely noticed the rough shape they're in-rotting docks and picnic tables, inadequate signage, sometimes unkempt buildings and the occasional junk pile.
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If you haven't made the trek to a park, it might be because they're hard to find. Having accidently stumbled on Southworth Memorial once last year (I was lost-a fairly regular occurrence), I think it's safe to say I'd have a hard time getting back there. The signs were small and nondescript, and directionally challenged types (like me) need a lot of guidance.
I wasn't the only one who noticed oversights. When the state of the county parks came up in a meeting at The Alert last Wednesday, everybody had a story. One sign was totally covered in duct tape (almost a full roll of duct tape), one staffer commented. The park was full of garbage, another said. They've been largely neglected, a third agreed.
Anyone who attended the May meeting of the Barron County Board of Supervisors couldn't help but notice the contrast between our parks and those in neighboring counties. Administrator Duane Hebert's pictures were worth a thousand words, and none in our favor. However beautiful their surroundings, our parks just aren't welcoming.
Supervisor Walt Organ, head of the newly formed work group, wants to amass a list of committee members' priorities before they take action. A campground owner, Organ's first thought is to get all the county's resort, campground and business owners together to better "sell" Barron County to tourists. His second notion: to market the importance of the parks to the board of supervisors, whose votes will eventually be required when funding needs arise.
Finally, Organ wants to bring Barron County communities into the effort. He'd like to form clean-up groups, talk to area youth organizations and get locals more invested in the land that belongs to everyone. Then, in addition to creating long-term plans for park maintenance and upgrades, committee members hope to see the four properties cleaned up in time for the 2010 tourist season.
For Barron County residents, it's a timely investment. As the agricultural life drifts into the realm of memory, fewer children grow up in the bucolic environment their elders enjoyed. If not for family camping excursions and Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, 4-H and similarly focused programs, many kids wouldn't even learn about basic survival skills. It sounds silly, but knowing the difference between edible and poisonous berries, for example, could be enough to keep children from inadvertently harming themselves.
Besides, enjoying the great outdoors is what living in Northern Wisconsin is all about. No one comes here to get rich, to be in the thick of things or to "make it," as New Yorkers say. We live more by the maxims of Henry David Thoreau: "That man is the richest whose pleasures are the cheapest."
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©The Chetek Alert 2010
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