Spring City Chronicle

The first post was about a old guy who shot a cross-dressing insurance man to death and it’s been hopefully uphill from there. Business is good, despite the fact that I’m not selling anything but an old man’s opinion. Last August, for the entire month, I had 3087 visitors who looked at 4715 pages. As of today, halfway through this August, I’ve had 4000 visitors who have viewed 5224 pages. Yesterday was a now typical weekday with 333 visitors, a third of them returning visitors and 461 page views. This represents a 100% increase in visitors and page views and an increase in returning visitors of a third over last year. I suspect that with a Presidential election coming, readership will continue to grow. That’s not too bad for a blog which is mostly concerned with what happens in a couple of zip codes.

Thank you to you, all my readers. This is fun. Let’s go to work.

• The Freeman polled Waukesha aldermen on the Northwest League Proposal for Frame Park. I heard once that there was a formula that members of congress use to gauge public opinion. If you get “X” number of calls for or against an issue, that translates to “Y” number of voters. Alderman Payne ought to get his hands on that formula:

“I’ve gotten about 15 calls from all over the city,” Alderman Eric Payne said. “Everyone who has called has been against it. I haven’t gotten one call in support.”

…

Despite the number of negative calls he has received, Payne said he will vote in support of the plan.

• The Freeman says that 100 people showed up for last night’s Friends of Frame Park-sponsored walk. That’s pretty good for a last-minute thing. Passing by Frame last night, the park was very busy, even without the walkers. I think there may have been many citizens who just went to the park to show their support, without wanting to be part of anything organized. The Journal Sentinel did not cover the event.
• How come Moreland Blvd. was closed from North St. to White Rock last evening? I’ll bet it had something to with those dang trains again.
• Here’s an article of the sushi place downtown. Tell them about Bob before they open.
• The Waukesha BID is still working to get 90% of businesses occupied by 2011. We could use a shoe store or a surplus store.
• Sound Off has opinions both pro and con about the Northwoods proposal. I would support a city-wide referendum on the November ballot because I’m not really sure what the results would be.
• The Freeman editorial board speaks out on the Northwoods League proposal:

There will be a play at the plate Tuesday when the Waukesha Common Council votes on a controversial proposal to allow an amateur baseball team to make Frame Park its home.

The plan, touted by Mayor Larry Nelson as a “perfect public-private partnership,” will allow the Northwoods League to play 34 home games during the June through mid-August season. The team would be made up of college players.

Chad Bauer, co-owner of the Green Bay Bullfrogs, would be an owner of the Waukesha team. Bauer says the footprint of the existing Frame Park diamond would not change. He said he would invest more than $1 million in upgrades. The new stadium would initially have seating for 1,700. In the future, the stadium seating could be expanded to 3,500, but that would require council approval.

In addition to increased seating, the new Frame Park stadium would include a pavilion, ticket booth, concessions, bathrooms and a children’s play area.

Bauer wants a decision by September so renovations can get on track and be completed by the next baseball season.

Frame Park is treasured by this community and the prospect of allowing a commercial enterprise to run an operation like this in the park is horrifying to many. In fact, a group of citizens has formed to fight the proposal.

But proponents of baseball in Frame Park point out that the plan could save the city money and in a tight budget year, that could be very helpful. The city estimates the plan could make or save Waukesha $155,000 next year alone. The city says savings and revenue could top $401,000 over 10 years. The mayor deserves credit for seeking outside-the-box ways to save taxpayers money.

However, even if the plan for Frame Park does offer the prospect of saving money, that can’t be the only factor taken into consideration.

There is significant doubt about whether people would attend these games. Yes, the league has teams that seem to be thriving in other cities around the state. But that doesn’t mean it will work here. As you’ve noticed, there is a lot to do around here in the summer. Many of us are having a hard enough time getting to all the events we already have in southeastern Wisconsin. Will there be time to get to see baseball at Frame Park, too?

Concerns have also been raised about parking, noise and even fly balls bonking people on the head. But the larger question is very simple: Does the community want to allow its treasured Frame Park to be used in this way by a private enterprise? We say absolutely not.

It’s one thing to hold an annual festival in the park, but it is something else entirely to allow a business to set up shop in this manner.

We think the mayor has good intentions in trying to bring the baseball league to Frame Park. The mayor thinks the new baseball facility will enhance the park. He also sees the baseball team as one piece of an overall vision for Waukesha that includes several other developments around town such as the Clarke Hotel project.

But even though the plan has some promising aspects, it poses too much of a threat to the park’s character.

The park is seen as a jewel – elegant and classy. Many local citizens have put their heart and soul into making Frame Park the beautiful place it is. Let’s not mess with it.

Ultimately, Frame Park belongs to our community. City leaders need to listen to community members and carry out the wishes of their constituents. That is their job. On Tuesday the council needs to go to bat for the citizens of Waukesha.

– Freeman editorial board