Friends of Lomira Parks to Apply for AARP Grant

Nancy More and Sandy Neuendorf of the Friends of Lomira Parks presented a proposal to apply for an AARP grant to install sidewalks in Sterr Park during the Lomira Village Board meeting on Wednesday, February 26.
“The pitch we are going to make is threefold,” stated Nancy More. “One is that sidewalks in Sterr Park will improve facility access for persons with disabilities. It will add convenience for persons who use strollers, hand trucks, and other small, wheeled transport. And then our ace in the hole is that it will reduce footing hazards for older persons, such as myself, when visiting the park. I am not disabled, but when I walk across the lawn from the south parking area up to the pavilion, it’s an uneven surface, and I can imagine twisting my ankle and taking a spill. Having a sidewalk that doesn’t require going all the way out to the road and all the way up has an appeal.”
The proposed sidewalk would run from the south parking lot along the west side of the pool to the pool house and then to the restrooms and kitchen area.
“The highlights of the grant are these: it’s generous – up to $25,000, no matching funds are required…and another interesting part about this that was very appealing is that AARP has partners that issue grant money as well. There is a place on the application that says, if you check the box, it says that if they decide not to fund our project, it gives them permission to shop our project to some of their partners, which is very appealing,” explained Nancy More. “Furthermore, they have partners who do other grants that might be of interest to us as well.”
The estimated cost of the project, including resodding, is approximately $23,873.

“We do have a few minor additional expenses that would be absorbed under the grant.” Nancy More elaborated, “One is [that] AARP requires us to specify how we will acknowledge them, so we are going to have Westphal make us some signs, and [Deputy Clerk-Treasurer] Ashley [Gualderama] is investigating having the AARP logo even embossed in the concrete in one or two places. We also investigated having some liability insurance because AARP requires us to have liability insurance, and we will probably move forward with that if we get the grant.”
“Is this kind of grant all or nothing, or is there a possibility where they give you a portion of what you ask for?” asked President Don Luedtke.
“They can give us a portion,” answered Neuendorf.
The motion to authorize the Friends of Lomira Parks to plan for future installation of sidewalks in Sterr Park contingent on AARP grant approval was made by Trustee Gary More and passed unanimously.
Board Matters:
• The board discussed repaving the section of South Avenue located near Haak Chiropractic. Repaving that section of South Avenue would cost roughly $19,000. The conversation arose after Dr. Joe Haak offered to contribute $12,000 to the repavement due to the road’s potholes, as he was already planning to repave his parking area. The Streets Committee recommended the board repave at least the potholes. In previous committee meetings, possibilities of abandoning that section of the avenue were discussed; however, concerns over potential legal fees resulted in the committee’s split decision to recommend keeping it public and repaving the potholes. President Luedtke made the motion to repave the entire section of South Avenue near Haak Chiropractic and charge $12,000 of expenses to Dr. Joe Haak via special assessment. The motion passed 5 to 1, with Trustee Eric Kohlmann against. Trustee Rebecca Alf was absent.
• The board considered contracting with the Dodge County YMCA to manage pool operations again in 2025. The pool’s hours of operation for public swim would change from noon to 7:00 p.m. to noon to 5:30 p.m. due to lack of evening use last year. A motion to approve contracting with the Dodge County YMCA was made by Trustee Kohlmann and passed unanimously.
• The board also discussed allowing MSA to continue providing grant application and environmental review services for the South Avenue reconstruction project. The motion to approve MSA’s continuation of services in an amount not to exceed $15,000 was made by Trustee More and passed unanimously.
• Administrator-Clerk-Treasurer Jenna Rhein proposed the board allow her to invest the village police department savings account funds at Bristol Morgan Bank. $297,000 of funds were saved for the old village police department before the village contracted with Dodge County Sheriff’s Office for police services. The funds would be invested in a 36-month CD with a fixed interest rate of 4.5%. If the village were to remove any funds from the CD during the 36-month period, a fee would be charged. President Luedtke suggested reserving roughly $30,000 in savings in case funds outside of the general fund are needed to cover future Dodge County Sheriff’s Office contract expenses. Trustee More made the motion to permit Rhein to invest $268,000 in a CD at Bristol Morgan Bank, which passed unanimously.
• The board discussed authorizing the Public Works Department to complete stormwater management maintenance on infrastructure located in an easement on 925 and 955 Milwaukee Street. The motion to authorize the maintenance was made by Trustee Joey Jewell and passed unanimously.