OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Parks, Recreation and Forestry Board Meeting – May 18, 2026

Public Meetings — Monday, May 18, 2026
BodyWaukesha, Wisconsin
SessionPublic Meetings
DateMonday, May 18, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 39:28

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Yeah.

0:03

All right.

0:04

We will call to order Monday, May 18th, City of Waukeshaw Parks, Recreation, and Forestry Board Meeting.

0:13

And we'll call to order with Roll Call.

0:17

Alderman Camacho.

0:19

Here.

0:21

Steve Johnson is absent.

0:23

Sarah Roth.

0:26

John Schmidt.

0:27

Here.

0:28

Alderman Jack Wells.

0:30

Here.

0:31

Erica Yoss is absent.

0:33

Jennifer Walner.

0:34

Here.

0:35

Eric Hummer.

0:36

Here.

0:38

Great.

0:39

We will move on to public comment.

0:42

If there's anyone here for public comment this evening.

0:45

Seeing no public comment, we will move on to the approval of minutes for the board minutes from April 20th, 2026.

0:55

I'll motion to approve.

0:57

Motion by Eric Hummer, second by Sarah Roth.

1:00

Any further discussion?

1:01

Great.

1:02

We'll take that to a vote.

1:03

All in favor say aye.

1:05

Aye.

1:06

Opposed.

1:07

And that passes unanimously.

1:09

Great.

1:10

Moving on to item four.

1:12

We have a presentation in recognition of our nation's great.

1:17

Semi quiz centennial.

1:20

Very good.

1:21

Thanks for that.

1:22

Acknowledgement of the Park Foundation of Waukeshaw for its sponsorship of a commemorative flagpole at Lowell Park.

1:31

Well, the key to pronouncing that is the Quince Park.

1:37

And no, I just give you a hard time on that.

1:40

Yes, actually, I'll in all seriousness.

1:55

And that's uh headquarters ground zero for 4th of July, jamboree events, et cetera.

2:02

And uh and the other thing that happened the line is it's the 250th.

2:08

So long story short, a flagpole was in order.

2:13

And uh not just a little flagpole, but we're looking at a big flagpole.

2:18

And uh so just uh uh a very brief background on how this came together.

2:26

Um we uh looked to partner with uh uh our park foundation of Waukesha, the Park Foundation Waukeshaw, who has helped us out in many other projects over the years, and thought this was uh exceptional opportunity uh for them and for the park system.

2:43

And uh we uh started the search as far as uh how big and where uh at Lowell Park.

2:52

Uh and uh we'll go uh well some of the background with that is uh this to give you idea it's an 80-foot flagpole.

2:59

We don't have a picture, we'll keep you in suspense, I guess, with that.

3:03

So uh imagine uh 80-foot flagpole.

3:06

Uh most flag poles that you see are maybe 30 or 40, maybe some 60, but 80 is getting getting a category in itself.

3:15

And uh it's a black andized pole.

3:18

We'll have uh uh eagle ornament on top uh on a resting on the ball.

3:23

Uh it should look uh extremely nice.

3:26

And uh it's uh internal halard system.

3:30

Uh won't bore bore you with that, but it's the the best system as far as uh uh lesser wear and tear and vanel resistant and uh location was one of the toughest things.

3:43

And um because of the height, we are restricted as far as where it can go.

3:49

Uh there we're within three miles of the airport, so there's a certain zoning uh considerations.

3:56

So we went through the process of getting a permit through Waukeshaw County, and uh that went through well.

4:03

Um a lot of discussion with the airport manager, uh who's very cooperative and helped us out with this whole thing.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Parks and Recreation█████████████████████████████████████████████55%
Procedural██████████████████████27%
Financial Assistance███████████████18%
Summary of Proceedings

Parks, Recreation and Forestry Board Meeting – May 18, 2026

The Parks, Recreation and Forestry Board of the City of Waukesha met on Monday, May 18, 2026 at 5:30 PM in Council Chambers. Six members were present (Rico Camacho, Sarah Roth, John Schmitz, Jack Wells, Jennifer Wallner, Eric Huemmer) and two were absent (Steve Johnson, Erica Yoss). The board approved minutes, recognized the Park Foundation for a flagpole sponsorship, revised the Financial Assistance Program, and elected officers for the upcoming year.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of Minutes (April 20, 2026): Minutes were approved unanimously by a vote of 6-0 with two absent.

Discussion Items

  • Presentation – Commemorative Flagpole at Lowell Park (America 250): Director Ron Grall presented a recognition of the Park Foundation of Waukesha for sponsoring an 80‑foot black anodized flagpole with an eagle ornament at Lowell Park, in celebration of the nation’s semiquincentennial (250th anniversary). The flagpole will support a 20x30 foot flag, be lit, and is scheduled for installation by June 5, 2026. An official dedication ceremony is planned for July 3, 2026, during the Fourth of July fireworks. The board approved the acknowledgment unanimously.
  • Departmental Financial Assistance Program Revisions: Mark Schramm presented proposed revisions to the financial assistance policy. The key change: applicants with a pending application must pay the full registration fee to secure a spot; if approved, they will receive a refund for the approved amount. Previously, a 35% deposit was allowed, which led to uncollected fees when assistance was denied or partial. The program is self‑supporting (no tax levy) and provides 40% or 65% subsidies. In the 2024‑2025 school year, it assisted 445 families with $74,000–$96,000, primarily for before/after school programs. The board approved the revisions unanimously.

Annual Election of Board Officers

The board elected new officers for the coming year:

  • President: Jennifer Wallner (nominated by Ald. Camacho, elected unanimously)
  • Vice President: Rico Camacho (nominated by Sarah Roth, elected unanimously)
  • Secretary: Eric Huemmer (nominated by Jennifer Wallner, elected unanimously)

Director and Staff Reports

  • Parks & Recreation System Master Plan: Over 582 survey responses received (goal of 500–700). Pop‑up engagements held at library, Cool School Run, and Senior Bingo. A board workshop is planned.
  • Prairie Park Project: Bids awarded; includes two tennis and eight pickleball courts, re‑fenced ball fields, and new lighting.
  • Pool Preparations: Opening day June 6; hiring nearly complete (only a few lifeguards needed).
  • Special Events: Pro Health cancer walk at Frame Park (May 2, 800 participants). Remember Our Fallen ceremony scheduled for August 19, 2026 at Schutze Recreation Center.
  • Youth Sports: 48 youth baseball/softball teams (capacity), 115 adult softball teams, 10 kickball teams, 75 youth soccer teams.
  • After School Care: Hawthorne grant transferred to Lowell for next school year providing free after‑school care.
  • 4K Partnership: Contract renewed with Waukesha School District for 4K services at Schutze Recreation Center (15+ years).
  • Administrative: 285 rentals, 535 pool memberships sold, 5,291 program enrollments in past month.

Key Outcomes

  • Minutes approved (unanimous, 6-0).
  • Flagpole sponsorship acknowledgment approved (unanimous, 6-0).
  • Financial Assistance Program revisions approved (unanimous, 6-0).
  • Officers elected: President – Jennifer Wallner, Vice President – Rico Camacho, Secretary – Eric Huemmer (all unanimous, 6-0).

The meeting adjourned.

Meeting Transcript

Yeah. All right. We will call to order Monday, May 18th, City of Waukeshaw Parks, Recreation, and Forestry Board Meeting. And we'll call to order with Roll Call. Alderman Camacho. Here. Steve Johnson is absent. Sarah Roth. John Schmidt. Here. Alderman Jack Wells. Here. Erica Yoss is absent. Jennifer Walner. Here. Eric Hummer. Here. Great. We will move on to public comment. If there's anyone here for public comment this evening. Seeing no public comment, we will move on to the approval of minutes for the board minutes from April 20th, 2026. I'll motion to approve. Motion by Eric Hummer, second by Sarah Roth. Any further discussion? Great. We'll take that to a vote. All in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed. And that passes unanimously. Great. Moving on to item four. We have a presentation in recognition of our nation's great. Semi quiz centennial. Very good. Thanks for that. Acknowledgement of the Park Foundation of Waukeshaw for its sponsorship of a commemorative flagpole at Lowell Park. Well, the key to pronouncing that is the Quince Park. And no, I just give you a hard time on that. Yes, actually, I'll in all seriousness. And that's uh headquarters ground zero for 4th of July, jamboree events, et cetera. And uh and the other thing that happened the line is it's the 250th. So long story short, a flagpole was in order. And uh not just a little flagpole, but we're looking at a big flagpole. And uh so just uh uh a very brief background on how this came together. Um we uh looked to partner with uh uh our park foundation of Waukesha, the Park Foundation Waukeshaw, who has helped us out in many other projects over the years, and thought this was uh exceptional opportunity uh for them and for the park system. And uh we uh started the search as far as uh how big and where uh at Lowell Park. Uh and uh we'll go uh well some of the background with that is uh this to give you idea it's an 80-foot flagpole. We don't have a picture, we'll keep you in suspense, I guess, with that. So uh imagine uh 80-foot flagpole.

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