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West Bend BID hears holiday events update; facade grant portal opens tomorrow
Summary
Phil of the Downtown Association updated the BID board on holiday and seasonal programming and said the Christkindlmarkt will feature about 20 curated vendors, outdoor stalls and heated tents; he also reported 315 wine‑walk tickets sold toward a 500‑person goal.
Phil, representing the Downtown Association, updated the BID board Nov. 4 on downtown events and seasonal programming, including the Christkindlmarkt, the Autumn Wine Walk, a new Thanksgiving weekend event on 6th Avenue and the Polar Express cocktail fundraiser that donates $2 per drink to the West Bend food pantry.
Phil said the Christkindlmarkt will include about 20 carefully selected vendors, five outdoor stalls currently under construction and heated tents for the majority of vendors. Examples of vendors listed by Phil included a chainsaw wood carver, Polish pastries and traditional Christkindlmarkt items such as Gluhwein. He also described a souvenir cup for hot beverages that will carry event branding.
On the Autumn Wine Walk (Nov. 22), Phil said 315 tickets had been sold as of the previous day and the board’s target is 500 attendees. For Small Business Saturday weekend the downtown association will run a “find the pickle” scavenger activity across up to 20 participating businesses, and the board noted the annual Santa bicycle ride and downtown parade will again occur on Sunday of the weekend.
John reported the facade grant committee met and announced an application window that opens the day after the meeting and closes Dec. 8; the program will also add a second spring application series to give property owners more opportunities to apply. John said staff revised guidelines, increased the maximum grant limit to match recent awards and plans to email property owners and the BID mailing list to notify potential applicants.
Board members discussed decorations and maintenance: staff reported Blingle installed holiday lighting and garland across the riverwalk and replaced some worn ornaments; the BID purchased about 120 new ornaments at a cost of roughly $1,600 and replaced several older wreaths. The board discussed a perceived lean in the plaza tree; staff explained the tree aligns with the plaza grade and is weighted for stability. Staff also discussed the logistics of moving smaller planters from Main Street to 6th Avenue in spring and said parks staff would empty and relocate pots as feasible while watching sidewalk clearance and sun exposure.
The board also discussed a Connected Communities offer for a free facade sketch to one property under the gold level community benefits; staff said the sketch is a design-level drawing (not construction documents) and will seek building owners likely to follow through on improvements before design time is committed. Board members requested assessing applicant financial readiness before awarding the sketch so funds and staff time go to projects that can proceed.
No formal votes were required on event programming or the facade application timeline at the Nov. 4 meeting; staff will proceed with the application launch, outreach, and the holiday event preparations.
