HomeMy WebLinkAboutForestry & Parks Committee - Minutes - 8/11/2025
BAYFIELD COUNTY FORESTRY AND PARKS DEPARTMENT
COMMITTEE MEETING
August 11, 2025
County Board Room
Members Present: Fred Strand; Steve Sandstrom; Larry Fickbohm; Charly Ray; Jeff Olsen
Staff in Attendance: Jason Bodine, Administrator; Deanna Regan, Office Manager
1. Call to Order of Forestry and Parks Committee Meeting.
This meeting was called to order at 6:00 PM.
2. Public Comment: None. Public comment closed at 6:00 PM.
3. Approval of the July 14th Meeting Minutes.
MOTION: (Fickbohm, Sandstrom) Approve minutes and place on file. All: Yes. Carried.
4. 2026 Budget. The revenue budget is just over $4.4 million, about 4% higher than the 2025 budget. The
expense budget is about $2.54 million, which is roughly 6% higher than this year. The net levy
contribution is nearly $1.861 million, almost $10k higher than this year and an increase of nearly 0.5%.
MOTION: (Ray, Olsen) Forward proposed budget to executive committee. All: Yes. Carried.
5. 2026 Campground Rates. In most cases, use rates haven’t increased since 2021. Seasonal rates are
typically addressed every other year. Bodine recommends keeping daily boat launch and daily mooring
rates the same, as well as the refundable cleaning deposit, but modestly raising other fees.
MOTION: (Ray, Fickbohm) Approve proposed campground rates. All: Yes. Carried.
6. Future Land Acquisition Project. The remaining Cobb 40 will be purchased in 2026. Once
completed, about $900k will remain in the NL land acquisition account. Two projects are still pending:
1) the Whittlesey Creek acquisition with Landmark. It’s anticipated they will formally request $28k to
assist with that 160 acre acquisition; and 2) Picard/Siskiwit River. Coastal recently submitted our
$94,628 grant request for final review and signature. Deadline for closing is Oct 31. Another extension
may not be possible. If we can close by the deadline, the cost to the county would be around $140k and
the balance in the NL account would be around $775k. A needed discussion would be whether this
property continues to be a high priority. Other potential new land acquisition opportunities are being
reviewed as well as revisiting a few from the last round of outreach. New opportunities exist, especially
considering parcels that are 400 acres and larger outside of the blocking. Reaching out to TNC, TPL
and Landmark to explore other options or opportunities and hope to meet with them soon. Bodine will
come up with a list for the next meeting.
7. Monthly Reports.
a) Forestry. Received a Fish and Wildlife Service grant for continued work on the barrens, roughly
$96k, which will be used on roller chopping and road development.
a. 2025 Budget. Stumpage returns in July were nearly $355k, average for the month. Total
returns are nearly $2.31 million. If we produce near the monthly averages for the rest of the
year, total stumpage returns should end up between $3.7-$3.8 million, which exceeds the
budget, but still over $1.0 million less than 2024. Expenses are still on target.
b. Carbon Project. We will be hosting a tour of the property in early September for a
prospective European buyer. If selected, it would be a substantial sale. A few other sales of
various sizes are also in play. If one or all of these pan out, it would be a significant source
of revenue, which could kickstart many of the initiatives outlined in the FCOR.
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August 11, 2025 Meeting Minutes
Page 2 of 3
c. Barrens Tours. Mike has been actively promoting the importance of barrens, recently touring
the property with Reps. Stroud and Green, as well as Sen. Quinn’s office. Roller chopping is
currently underway, with two machines in action. The goal is to treat roughly 400 acres this
year, between Bass Lake and Barnes. Much of this work is grant funded.
d. Certification Audit. The annual audit of the county forest program is happening this week in
Lincoln, Langlade, Clark, and Taylor counties. In 2026, the auditors will be in Bayfield
County, as well as Douglas, Iron and Ashland, which means three of the top four largest
programs will be audited next year. The DNR does an excellent job preparing programs for
the audit. Looking forward to showcasing the good work occurring across the property, as
well as the talented professionals we are fortunate to have on the team.
e. Sustainable Forestry Grants. Funds for this annual DNR grant were increased significantly
to $500k/annum, something that WCFA lobbied strongly for in the next state budget. There
are two rounds of applications, one in August and another in December. A county can have
two open grants at any one time. We currently have one open grant ($15k for the bridge
over the Ounce) and are considering a few projects. One could involve addressing the
anticipated costs associated with the CFI project, however, there are many unknowns with
that project, including potential costs. Bodine will wait until the next cycle before applying.
f. Land Acquisition Projects. Highlights of current land acquisition projects below:
i. Knowles-Nelson Stewardship. Most of the properties involved in the Stewardship
projects were purchased last month. The remaining 40 will be purchased in 2026.
ii. Whittlesey Creek. Landmark continues to work on this project. Anticipating a formal
request soon for $28k to help complete the purchase, which would be presented
during the September meeting.
iii. Siskiwit River. Coastal recently informed us that the grant application was included in
their current funding request to NOAA. Hopefully a contract will be ready to sign well
before the Oct 31 deadline. If delayed, the current landowner may not agree to
another extension. If it does come through in time, the total out of pocket cost on this
roughly 125 acre parcel would be around $140k.
g. WCFA Board Member Update. Nothing new right now. Board meeting coming up this week.
b) Parks and Recreation. Below is a summary from Sara on the various parks and rec projects
currently in motion.
a. A new kiosk with a map of the campground is being installed and constructed at the
entrance of Twin Bear Campground.
b. The RFP for Concept Planning and Design (for Big Rock, Topside Lake and Fire Hill)
was released on July 21 and closes on August 15. Five consultants have expressed
interest; four have scheduled site visits, and one has scheduled an online meeting. The
tours went well. Each site visit sparked good conversations about their potential.
c. Delta Campground received slight damage from the heavy rains in July; this was one of
the first projects Nick tackled.
d. The North End Ski Club has finished work on the North End Cross Country Ski Trails; a
site visit is scheduled for August 11 with Sara and Ron.
e. CAMBA has been working on rehabilitating some mountain bike trails at Mt Ashwabay
and in Cable: Tsuga Daddy, Ojibwa, and Dirt Candy. Phase 1 will be done by early Oct.
f. Lindley, Nick, and numerous volunteers have been working on setting up the Siskiwit
Falls native plant garden project. Fieldstone harvested from a nearby timber sale is
being used to outline the garden and walking paths; mulch donated by Brit's Tree Care
of Washburn will be used around the plants purchased from Wildflower Woods of
Washburn; and native sandstone has been used as a decorative centerpiece and bench.
Volunteers from Wild Ones, Bayfield Area Trails (BATs), Corny Trails Club, the Town of
Bell, and Siskowit Galloway Farms have helped make this possible. Planting of the
garden will happen on August 16 by local Master Gardeners.
g. BATs and staff have been working on the Jerry Jolly Overlook Trail reconstruction. Work
will take place August 18-20. We are working to create wooden framed steps to be
inserted by volunteers and department staff along a hillside to create a more sustainable
access/trail. The trail is also detoured up a lower-grade incline.
Bayfield County Forestry & Parks Committee
August 11, 2025 Meeting Minutes
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h. Sara sent a list of potential projects to the USFWS Headwaters to Coast team for 2026
funding consideration. These projects will be “pitched” to the selection committee on
August 19. A synopsis of the proposed projects is below:
i. Jerry Jolly Trail and Pikes Creek Restoration: stabilization and restoration of Pikes
Creek along the Jerry Jolly Trail to continue public access to this conservation
property. Numerous 100-year storm events have caused a meander of Pikes Creek
to erode, narrowing the established walking/skiing trail and destroying a small
boardwalk/bridge. This section of the trail is now too narrow to groom for cross-
country skiing. Future high-water events could continue to erode the bank and trail.
The “new” bridge is only meant for foot traffic and to continue year-round public
access; a more substantial bridge must be installed for a groomer to access the site.
Forestry and Parks staff met with Land Conservation staff on August 6 at the site to
review what could be done to stabilize the streambanks, attempting to keep the river
in its current corridor and restore the shoreline and project a wetland.
ii. Big Rock Campground Redevelopment Planning and Implementation: The proposed
project will assist in engaging community members in the planning process for public
access to the Sioux River via a fish viewing platform and/or angler trails at Big Rock
Park/Campground. The project would also create sustainable trails to the river and
improve drainage/sedimentation from the parking lot, campground, and road into the
Sioux. This would also include redevelopment of the day use area(s) and
campground. This project would be rolled into the current RFP work.
i. Sara has been following up on the proposed updated recreation user agreements with
the Birkie, CAMBA, and BATs.
j. LCORP is a continued work in progress. Five towns have sent back responses to an
initial question about outdoor recreation opportunities and want/needs in their town.
k. Pigeon Lake. Conversations with BCPL and private developer continue to happen. It is
expected that a new appraisal will be commissioned before an offer is made/accepted.
l. Maxwell Property (Northland College). Landmark Conservancy has been working with
Northland College to get an appraisal of the property for a grant that Landmark applied
for, to assist in the acquisition of the land.
m. The County was notified by the USFS that the Wildcat dual-use trail and Drummond
Town access project has been approved. We’ll be working with the USFS on that.
n. The County was awarded Snowmobile and ATV DNR maintenance funding for 2025-26.
o. Working with various clubs on the maintenance of the ATV/UTV trails, including the
recently inherited trails on federal land.
p. Yurts. To try to increase the occupancy at the Cable Yurt, we worked with Tourism to
enroll in a Travel Wisconsin promotion which went “live” on July 25 and runs until the
end of October. Staff set up a key code to use during checkout to get 15% off their stay.
Lindley has been working on basic maintenance of the yurts: repairing mouse holes,
patching window screens, and replacing benches. Andrew and Lindley updated the
shelving units in the yurts to allow for better floor cleaning and storage. The prep for fall
and winter has started with the delivery of firewood to all three yurts.
q. No new events to report.
Committee acknowledges that reports are received and placed on file.
8. Committee Members Discussion. None.
9. Joseph LeBouton, DNR Representative, Comments: None.
The next Forestry and Parks Committee meeting has been scheduled for Monday, September 8th, at 6:00
PM in the County Board Room.
Meeting adjourned at 7:35 PM.
Submitted by,
Deanna Regan