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Residents urge investigation after village self-reports pond disturbance to DNR
Summary
Public commenters at a Village of Salem Lakes meeting pressed the board for an internal review after work near the pond by Village Hall disturbed a Zone C1 Lowland Resource Conservancy area; the village has self‑reported the disturbance to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and DNR staff have visited the site.
Public comments at a Village of Salem Lakes board meeting focused on land disturbance around the pond adjacent to Village Hall that the village has self‑reported to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, residents and the village president said.
Village President Rita Buecher told residents the village reported the incident to the DNR and that DNR staff have visited the site multiple times. She said the pond property is designated Zone C1 Lowland Resource Conservancy and that the village will issue another statement after the agency provides findings.
Residents who spoke said trees were cut, landscaping fabric dug up, and soil and fill had been moved into the pond area. Kim Roper, a former park board member who said she attended the meeting where the land was donated, said the donor wanted the area kept natural and described the disturbance as “not a minor thing.” Roper asked the board to carry out an internal investigation in parallel with the DNR inquiry. “This is a real thing that happened and it should be taken seriously,” she said.
Several commenters described the site history and questioned how work proceeded in a C1 wetland without a formal permit. Johan Elam, who identified himself as a resident and as someone who helped research ownership records, said concerned residents discovered the wetlands had been given to the town by Wilson Runyard and alleged a proposed land swap might give public wetland frontage to a private property owner; Elam called that potential swap “a breach of the public trust.” Elam said he was told a pier running through Salem property had been approved by a handshake but that no documentation was produced.
Other speakers, including Dean Hintzman, said they had toured the site with village staff and a wetland delineator and described the village’s choice to self‑report as the recommended procedural step. Hintzman said some of the removed vegetation consisted of invasive species and dead plants, which he said can be removed without a permit, but he acknowledged that dirt had entered the water and that the work “was not done right.”
President Buecher asked commenters to keep remarks respectful and noted the village will await DNR findings before deciding any formal actions. No new ordinance or enforcement action was taken at the meeting; village officials said they will provide another public statement after the DNR completes its inquiry.
Ending: Residents asked for transparent, documented follow‑up, and multiple speakers urged the board to clarify how village property was managed, whether any internal approvals or permits were issued, and what steps the village will take to restore the site if the DNR finds violations.
