West Bend BID board approves removal of overhead cables, hears downtown master plan presentation and event updates

The Business Improvement District (BID) board in West Bend on June 4 voted to have the Department of Public Works remove four overhead decorative/utility cables spanning downtown buildings at no cost to the BID and heard a presentation on the downtown master plan adopted earlier this year.

The votes were the most immediate decisions at the meeting, but board members also approved the minutes of the May 7 meeting and the updated financial report, moved to reconstitute the facade-grant committee with new members, and formed a strategic-plan committee to set multi-year priorities for downtown. The board also received operational updates about new street planters arriving in phases and a report on a recent downtown block party produced by The Bend performing-arts venue.

The downtown master plan and streetscape presentation led by City Planner John Fellows was the main substantive briefing. Fellows said the city had not done a deep downtown plan since 1999 and noted the master plan and a companion streetscape plan were adopted by the city earlier in March. "The plan looked at the downtown area basically from Regner Park down to Chestnut Street in the south," Fellows said, summarizing the study area and noting two main deliverables: the master plan and a streetscape plan. He told the board the plan’s recommendations are organized into an urban-design framework, circulation and parking, development and redevelopment, and placemaking and activation strategies intended for near-term (one to three years) and longer-term implementation.

Fellows described engagement results that informed the plan: 672 survey responses, frequent visitor patterns ranging from daily to a few times a month, and commonly cited downtown assets such as restaurants, walkability and the riverfront. He said respondents identified parking, unsafe sidewalks, vacant storefronts and a lack of public restrooms as common dislikes. "There was a desire to have a kid-friendly space," Fellows said, noting that such spaces can range from designed plazas to play equipment and that implementation often requires public-private partnership or easement arrangements.

Board members pressed on implementation questions that will require follow-up. One board member asked whether the plan’s suggested changes to State Highway 33 — described in the plan as a potential gateway treatment with a divided median, added greenery and improved sidewalks — would require state involvement. Fellows replied that Highway 33 is a state road and changes would require coordination with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation and possibly state or federal funding programs; timing and approval would vary.

The board took formal action on the overhead cables after staff presented two contractor quotes: a $6,000 inspection and a roughly $10,000 design/repair or replacement option. Department of Public Works representative Doug told the board, "The DPW would commit to removing them at no cost," and a motion to remove all four cables at no cost to the BID passed with board assent.

The board also approved committee membership changes for the BID facade grant committee. The chair of that item proposed replacing Jim Reinke with John Fellows, adding BID board members Jane Peplinski and Tracy Serwat, and adding community member Kevin Steiner, among other existing members. The board voted to approve the revised membership roster; the facade-grant review will meet in late June or early July to consider current applications.

Separately, the board voted to create a BID strategic-plan committee to develop a three- to five-year plan and named Larry Porter to chair it. Porter said the aim is to move from reactive spending to a strategic approach that gets measurable returns on the BID’s discretionary budget and suggested recruiting two to three board members and two to three community stakeholders to serve on the committee.

Operational updates: staff reported the first shipment of decorative planters had arrived by flatbed and that installations will happen in phases (the speaker said 18 of roughly 90 pots would begin arriving). The pots include approximately ten 72-inch tree pots and various rectangular and square planters; irrigation tanks that sit inside the pots are still awaited before planting dates can be scheduled.

The Bend performing-arts venue gave a report on its first downtown block party, which drew attendees from the region and included live bands and a DJ. Bill (last name not specified), executive director of The Bend, said the event cost about $15,000, with bands costing about $5,000 and stage, sound and lighting about $10,000. "It was so worth it," he said, and The Bend plans another block-party event on Sept. 5 and a series of other concerts through the summer, including a July 16 show with Pam Tillis.

The board moved to adjourn following any remaining agenda items.