Home that’s been remodeled at Leonard J. Yahr County Park
The Washington County Board is considering a new entrance fee for the county park system.
Jay Shambeau, Washington County Planning and Parks Administrator, said the entrance fee is only in the discussion phase. He said the fee is being proposed as part of the county’s priority based budgeting. “We need to either stop funding the parks or raise revenue in another manner,” Shambeau said.
Bullet points:
-“The fee would be similar to the state park sticker where you purchase a daily or annual entrance-fee sticker and then put it in your window,” said Shambeau.
-The proposed rate is $5 for daily park admittance or $25 for an annual sticker to get in the parks.
-Waukesha County has already enacted a similar plan. Its fee is $4 a day or $22 for an annual pass. Shambeau said Waukesha County is already in discussions to raise its fee.
–Washington County has 13 county parks with 7 major parks where the fee would make some sense. “Sandy Knoll, Leonard J. Yahr, Ackerman’s Grove have a public beach and this fee would have a summer impact. Homestead Hollow, Heritage Trails and Glacier Hills are day-use parks popular for hiking and weddings.”
-Details on who would monitor the stickers is still being worked out. Parks staff and the Washington County Sheriffs have been mentioned. “We’ve also been discussing a part-time ranger program,” Shambeau said.
-Next year’s county budget is being rolled out Wednesday, Aug. 24. Depending on discussion this could be implemented Jan. 1, 2017.
-The Public Works Committee will be discussing the policy.
-Other options debated with the parks and priority based budgeting include: reducing programs and services, eliminating some of the parks, look at other fee-generating opportunities.
-Washington County already generates revenue with a boat-launch fee. Passes range from $7.58 daily to as high as $75.76 for an annual pass at Ackerman’s Grove.
-How much revenue is brought in would really depend upon how the program is implemented.
-Public policy discussion would focus on whether the fee amount is prohibitive.
-Shelter reservations are a big revenue stream for the park system. Discussions would have to determine whether ever vehicle that attends is part of a wedding or event at the county park would have to pay the fee.
-In Waukesha County the entrance fee to the parks helps off-set the cost of maintaining the parks.
My question is who is going to monitor and collect these fees? Are these going to be volunteers? What hours would be monitored? We did have one time Ranger that lived in the park to monitor. Where are we going to have people there during the open hours 6 a.m. to midnight 6 a.m. to 10 o’clock if so how do they get compensated how do you monitor when they Park is supposedly closed
Hey, Ron I agree with your thoughts. If the cost of collecting these fees significantly diminishes the revenue, then it seems a little pointless.
I’ll wait until the details of the plan are released. Until then, with the budget uncertainty that we are currently looking at, I am taking the viewpoint that all options should be looked at.
Christopher Bossert
County Supervisor
District #3
I read this information today and am horrified. I am completely opposed to a user fee for the county parks. Parks were meant, historically, to be places of respite for the community at no cost, in the city or county. They were meant to be available to all, regardless of income, race, or residency. The imposition of a user fee for the County parks is a way of discriminating, pure and simple, in my opinion. It is a way to keep out “certain” people. In the case of Waukesha and Washington counties, that means keeping out non-county residents who come to county parks from Milwaukee county. This is an example of the rampant racism that exists in the Republican dominated WOW counties. It is an attempt ensure a lack of diversity and to enforce the invisible racist wall of separation that perpetuates the segregation of Milwaukee county residents from Washington, Ozaukee and Waukesha counties.
That Jay Shambeau sees only two alternatives to funding county parks, (“We need to either stop funding the parks or raise revenue in another manner,”) demonstrates a clear lack of critical thinking. His “either/or” approach to the need for increasing revenues to support county parks precludes the possibility of other sources of funding. In my opinion, this proposal is far less about the need for funding, than it is about the undercurrent of racism and the desire to keep Washington County white. I am appalled. User fees for groups, facilities, and shelters is legitimate. Increasing those fees would not be problematic. Preventing anyone from enjoying a park would be.