2011 Post Prom Committee

Each year, parents of students in the Junior Class at Waunakee High School sponsor a "Post-Prom Party" for all students wishing to attend. Last year, with the generous support of businesses and families, hundreds of students enjoyed food, music, magicians, caricatures, games, refreshments and door prizes.

The Committee is seeking donations to assist in providing a safe and fun alternative to private parties after Prom. The Post-Prom Party will be held at the Village Center immediately following the dance at the High School on Saturday, April 16th.

Donations will help defray the cost of the party, so that all students who wish are able to attend. The prizes given throughout the evening are a huge draw! Prizes are provided through generous donations... cash or merchandise. If you are able to make a cash or merchandise donation, please contact either: Kathy Scheffler wppckscheffler@tds.net or 850-4678 or Jane Braatz jbraatz@ncghotels.com or 575-0717. Cash donations can be made payable to the Post-Prom Committee and mailed to:

The Post-Prom Committee
c/o Jane Braatz
140 Fairbrook Drive
Waunakee, Wisconsin 53597

All donations are desired by Friday, March 18th. Thank you for considering the above mentioned requests and your support is appreciated!

March 2011 Village Newsletter Published

The March 2011 Village Newsletter, Waunakee Horizons, is now on its way to mailboxes throughout the Village. For a sneak peek, here is a link to the on-line version: http://waunakee.govoffice2.com/vertical/Sites/%7BC0332FA7-9C78-4EB3-A5E9-85B92D878106%7D/uploads/%7B291C05C7-BC2A-43CA-A6E0-BC8785E02199%7D.PDF.

Friends of Schumacher Farm Chili Supper

Date:  Saturday, March 19, 2011

Time: 4:30-6:30 p.m.

Place: St. John’s School Cafeteria

           114 East 3rd Street

Cost:  Ticket Price is $5.50 Each

           $4.50 Each with Coupon

Eat Chili! It’s a fun and yummy way to support Schumacher Farm Park. The Friends of Schumacher Farm will hold this second annual event. Get your coupon on the new Schumacher Farm website: http://www.schumacherfarmpark.org/. This event raises money to support the Farm's public events offered in May through November, notably Heritage Fest, Halloween Happenings and Public Days.

Can’t come but want to donate? Go to the website http://www.schumacherfarmpark.org/ and click on donate or call 608-849-4559 for more information.

Tourism / Community Betterment Grant Applications Available

The Village of Waunakee is accepting applications for the tourism grant until March 15, 2011. Interested persons should review the guidelines and application available at the link below. The Tourism/Community Betterment Fund is a grant program established by the Village of Waunakee intended to fund tourism projects (events that will bring visitors to the Village of Waunakee) or betterment projects (events that will improve the quality of life for the residents of the Village). The grant program is administered yearly by the Waunakee Economic Development Commission (WEDC). Any funds not awarded in a particular year will be carried over for consideration in future year award cycles. Examples of previously funded projects includes: -Girls on the Run -Waunakee Wayfinding Signage -WaunaFest Fireworks Interested persons should review the guidelines and application available at the link below.Tourism Grant: Guidelines and Application

Village Seeking Citizen Volunteer for Waunakee Economic Development Commission

The Village of Waunakee is seeking to fill a citizen member vacancy on the Waunakee Economic Development Commission (WEDC). The purpose of the WEDC is to set economic development policy for the Village of Waunakee, and to establish annual goals and objectives for economic development. The WEDC is also responsible for accomplishing the objectives outlined in Waunakee's Strategic Vision Implementation Plan. The WEDC is composed of nine individuals including the Village President, two Village Trustees, one representative from the Waunakee/Westport Chamber of Commerce, one representative from the Waunakee Community School District, and four citizen members appointed by the Village President with approval from the Village Board. Meetings of the WEDC occur regularly on the second Monday of the month at 6:00 pm. Citizens with skills and experience in business, economic development, financing, construction, marketing, planning or related fields are particularly encouraged to apply. For more information and an application form, visit the Village website by clicking here. Any questions may be directed to Village President John Laubmeier at 849-7080 or Village Administrator Todd Schmidt at 850-5227 or tschmidt@vil.waunakee.wi.us.

Waunakee Police Department Email Newsletter

In an effort to keep our residents and business community informed, the Waunakee Police Department provides a email newsletter. The letter contains information regarding crime prevention tips, recent crime trends and scams, news within the department, and other information we believe would make the community better informed.

You can access the Village of Waunakee's Police Department  website at http://www.waunakeepd.org/. If you wish to receive the Police Department email newsletter, at their website, please click on "Department" followed by the "Newsletter" heading to subscribe. You may also request the newsletter by emailing the Waunakee Police Department at newsletter@waunakeepd.org. The Police Department will not share your email address with anyone else, nor will it be posted with the monthly letter.

Snow Hazards - Important Safety Reminders

Please do not let your kids play in the street. This includes sledding. This past Tuesday night a Waunakee snow plow driver had a close call with a child who had been sledding in the street. Visibility was very poor at the time, with high winds and heavy snow. The driver did not see the child until he was alongside the child. The driver was shaken by this close call.

Please refrain from blowing snow into the streets. The police department has provided multiple warnings to residents participating in this activity. 

Reminder to drive below the speed limit on village streets. Snow banks are very high. Visibility is obstructed for most people pulling out from driveways and side streets. Residents are likely to encounter vehicles pulling out in front of them at some point due to the conditions. Traveling below the speed limit will provide for extra time to avoid accidents.

Village Board Preview - Ripp Park Planning

As you may already know, the Village Board regularly meets on the 1st and 3rd Mondays of each month at 7:00 PM. On thing I hope do do with my blog is provide a Village Board meeting preview. More than anything my goal with this is to help keep you connected with what's happening in the Village and specifically what's happening at the Village Board level.

You can view the February 7th Village Board agenda on our website at: http://www.egovlink.com/public_documents300/waunakee/published_documents/Boards%20and%20Committees/Board%20of%20Trustees/2011%20Meeting%20Agendas/VB%202-7-11%20Agenda.pdf. Prior to each Board meeting I plan to pick one item off of the agenda to provide a bit more detail right here on Waunablog.

Today I'll highlight the item titled "Approve Consultant Contract for Ripp Park". In 2011 the Village plans to spend approximately $380,000 on improvements to heavily used Ripp Park. The first step is to devise a detailed engineering plan for these improvements. Click here to view the current park master plan. On February 2nd the Park and Recreation Committee reviewed proposals from 3 engineering fims to assist with this process, and is recommending that the Village board approve a contract with Strand & Associates at a cost not to exceed $14,800.

The Community Services Department staff have already met with neighbors in the Ripp Park area to get feedback on what they'd like to see as part of the project. Other ideas from the public are welcomed. Please contact Community Services Director Sue McDade for more information at 850-5992 or smcdade@vil.waunakee.wi.us.

Hats Off to Our Village Crews

I just got this e-mail from Randy Pickering, President of the Dane County Fire Chief's Association. He does a great job applauding our public works and public safety departments for their work during the recent snowfall event. I applaud Waunakee's crews in the same way! Typically I would expect to hear a complaint or two during a major snowfall event, but thus far I've only heard positive feedback from the community. Well done to everyone involved in keeping our community safe and plowed out.

Dane County Public Safety and Public Service Team:

I cannot let the book close on the last 24-hours without acknowledging the amazing service delivered to the citizens of and visitors to Dane County.  Through the years mother nature and other less creative mortals have thrown some significant challenges our way, and one thing always seems to hold true.  The public safety and public service teams in this County have an outstanding working relationship and just go to work on the challenge without pause.

Like many of us I get countless news and information feeds from across the Country everyday, and see the stories about the trials and tribulations elsewhere when it comes to public safety and public service entities, officials and team members working together .... not here.  But I do think we just take it for granted because it is business as usual.  I would strongly encourage you to stop, look back over some of the amazing efforts of the last 24-hours, and let the enormity of what all of you and your organizations did; big and small, sink in.  You and your organizations should be VERY PROUD of the service delivered to our citizens and visitors.

I sincerely hope you get a better night's sleep tonight than last.  Stay warm, stay safe.

Randy

Randall Pickering
President - Dane County Fire Chiefs Association
Chief - City of Fitchburg Fire Dept

Trash/Recycling Collection Cancelled Feb. 2nd

Due to the expected serious snowfall event, Pellitteri Waste Systems has cancelled trash and recycling collection for the Village of Waunakee for Wednesday, February 2nd. Collection will be bumped back one day - Wednesday to Thursday, Thursday to Friday.

Enjoy digging out :)