FUND: GENERAL |
PUBLIC WORKS |
The goal of the Parks Division is to provide quality areas and facilities for
the leisure activities of our residents and tourists. We strive to maintain,
improve and preserve Racine County's park land in a safe and attractive manner
and at a level of service that is acceptable to a majority of the residents at
the lowest possible cost.
The Racine County Park system consists of over 2,500 acres of diversified
recreational and open spaces. The park areas vary from intensely staffed and
utilized facilities such as the swimming beaches at Quarry Lake and Einer
Fischer Parks and the Ives Grove and Brown's Lake golf courses to the naturally
passive and sensitive areas found at Sanders Park and the John Margis, Jr.
Wildlife Area. The Parks Division operates and maintains a wide variety of
recreational facilities such as beaches, boat launches, campgrounds, nature and
wildlife areas, playgrounds, picnic areas and shelters and athletic fields and
also monitors and oversees activities at the Racine County golf courses.
Reservations and fees for selected facilities are handled by Public Works staff,
as is the accounting for the Parks fund.
Parks operations staff manages, operates and maintains park buildings and
roadways, and performs year-round forestry, grounds and landscaping functions.
Parks operations also include grounds maintenance and repairs, vandalism repair,
nursery maintenance, ice and snow control, mowing and vegetation control,
garbage and litter control, signage and roadway repair. Parks staff operate and
prepare numerous recreational and athletic facilities such as snowmobile trails,
baseball and soccer fields, swimming beaches, picnic shelters, volleyball,
tennis and basketball courts, and restroom facilities. Seasonal employees
perform and assist with many of these efforts.
Parks Planning staff prepare comprehensive, long-range plans to provide overall
guidance for the renovation, repair and development of each park and recreation
area. Plans and designs are prepared to provide optimal use of each park, to
provide residents with a variety of recreational and outdoor experiences, and to
ensure and promote conservation and stewardship objectives for the County Parks
system.
The Parks Division budget contains maintenance and contingency funds for the
Racine Harbor. A portion of the rent from Belle Harbor is used to maintain
Harbor Park while the remainder is placed in an account used to make small
marina or breakwater repairs with the approval of the Public Works Committee.
Proceeds from the Marina license agreement are placed in a non-lapsing
contingency account for possible breakwater repair and any future obligations of
the RMA license agreement.
The 2001 completed objectives include a new restroom/shelter and patio landscape projects at Ives Grove Golf Link; the official opening of the first phase of the Racine Sturtevant Bike Trail; the opening of the Wieczorek Pavilion at Pritchard Park and related road, parking lot, and landscape functions; and ADA upgrades to Cliffside Park, Browns Lake Golf Course and Quarry Lake Park.
