BROWN COUNTY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Brown County says it has a blank slate with the former Eagles Nest Club property it purchased two years ago for a new boat launch and it hopes the public will help with its development.
“It’s water refuge for safety, it’s a water playground for people that have boats and actually don’t have boats and just want to come and enjoy the water on a warm day,” said Bernie Erickson, a former Brown County supervisor, who helped push for the project during his time on the board.
The county hosted a public input session for the project Wednesday evening at the Resch Expo.
“It’s up to the community to decide what our public properties look like and how they want to utilize these public properties,” said Matt Kriese, parks director for the county.
Boaters and neighbors to the site provided ideas and concerns to a consulting firm that will spend the next few months developing a master plan, with a goal of starting construction next year.
“Just want to make sure it’s accessible and safe,” said Mike Bray, who lives about a mile and a half from the property.
Like other neighbors at the meeting, Bray voiced concerns about increased traffic in the area. One idea pitched was banning parking along Nicolet Drive, containing all vehicles in the boat launch parking lot.
“I don’t want a cross planted in my front yard and right now I think the city could do better with signage on pedestrians, bikers, etc,” said Bray.
“This is not going to be packed in all the time,” said Erickson. “You can look at any boat launch. They’re all used periodically, following the fish.”
The launch is expected to relieve some of the activity at the nearest launches, which are the Metro Boat Launch and Bay Shore Park.
The ideas gathered at the input session will help formulate the master plan, which will be the subject of another public input session in a few months.
The county used grants to purchase the property for about $1 million in 2020.
County officials say they have $2.3 million in federal and state money to bring the plans to fruition. They also plan to land additional grant and donor money.
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