Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Events Permits topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Village approves Ice Age Habitat Restoration fee waiver, greenlights Hometown Celebration and moves to update special-events permit
Summary
The board approved a fee waiver for Ice Age Habitat Restoration volunteers on Jan. 24–25, approved the Hometown Celebration (June 26–29) with music until 11 p.m., and authorized staff to update the special-events permit application language and pursue a code change if needed.
The Village of Hartland board on Jan. 13 approved three items related to public events: a fee waiver for Ice Age Habitat Restoration volunteers for Jan. 24–25, approval of the Hometown Celebration scheduled June 26–29, 2025 with permission for music until 11 p.m. on Thursday, and a motion to move forward with an update to the village’s special-events permit application.
Park Board staff explained the Ice Age Habitat Restoration volunteers will perform maintenance and then have a lunch break before finishing cleanup; the Park Board recommended waiving fees because the activity is maintenance-focused. The village subsequently approved the special-event application and fee waiver without objection.
Trustees also approved the Hometown Celebration dates and associated expenditures for the 2025 event. Staff provided an itemized overview of anticipated costs, noting fireworks budgeted at $19,000, tent rentals, band bookings (including Bridal and Bella Caine mentioned by staff), porta-potty rentals, and other recurring expenses similar to prior years; staff said some line items may rise slightly from last year but did not provide a full final total in the meeting record.
Separately, the Park Board had proposed a clarification to the special-events permit application to distinguish new events from recurring events. Staff explained the change would allow different lead times for truly new events versus established, recurring events and that, if approved by the village board, staff would return with a code amendment to align the municipal code with the updated application language. Trustees voted to move forward with the application update; staff said the code amendment would follow.
During public comment after the approvals, Steve Pence, land restoration specialist with the Ice Age Trail Alliance, thanked the village for recent buckthorn removal at Cottonwood Wayside and offered volunteer support and coordination with nearby land conservancy partners for follow-up invasive-species work.
