County board approves grant application for Rock Dam boat launch
The Clark County Board of Supervisors has taken a step towards improving the boat launch at Rock Dam Lake. At its Feb. 16 meeting, the board passed Resolution 4-2-23 authorizing the county to apply for grant funding through the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to fund the replacement of the boat launch.
“Whereas the Rock Dam Lake Boat Launch Improvement Project involves removing an existing concrete plank boat ramp and constructing a larger, and better aligned, poured-in-place concrete boat ramp, as well as retrofitting the existing dock and parking lot to work with the proposed ramp, providing accessible vehicle and trailer parking along with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) dock accessibility requirements,” the resolution states.
The entire project is expected to cost $169,538. The Recreational Boating Facilities Grant, if approved, would pay for half, or $84,769, leaving the county to pay the other half. The Clark County Forestry and Parks Department has already budgeted for that amount in this year’s budget.
The grant application has to be submitted in February, and the county hopes to find out in April whether it will receive the grant or not.
If the county is awarded the grant, “construction would start this fall, optimistically… We wanted to keep it away from peak season as much as possible. We’ve been in contact with the lake association and we would let the locals know so they would have the opportunity to pull their boat out beforehand, or know that they would have to leave it in until the project was done,” said County Forestry and Parks Administrator Curtiss Lindner.
If the county does not receive the grant, it could reapply this summer, as grants are issued quarterly.
The current boat ramp is more than 35 years old, and boaters have expressed concerns over the ramp being too steep, as well as it being at an angle to the parking lot, making it more difficult to back a trailer into the water. The resolution also references how high usage and seasonal effects such as winter ice have taken a toll on the current ramp. The hope is that the new boat ramp would last even longer than the existing ramp and, in the long run, reduce maintenance costs for ramp repairs.
“So this has been talked about for eight or nine years but it kept falling by the wayside. So the lake association is looking forward to something happening,” said Lindner.
The Rock Dam Lake Association expressed a willingness to contribute financially to the project, but has not committed to anything yet.
Resolution 4-2-23 passed unanimously. Other business Also at the meeting, the board appointed Tom Bobrofsky to the Aging and Disability Resource Center committee and Ashley Schmitt to the corporation counsel committee. The board also passed Resolution 5-2-23, formally expressing condolences to the family of David Holtzhausen, a former member of the Clark County Board of Supervisors who passed away Feb. 6.
In addition, Sarah Diedrick of the Wisconsin Counties Association presented on “Parliamentary Procedures and Ethics.” The board also heard from Will Bratcher and Jake Brunette, the two candidates running for Clark County Circuit Court Branch 2 judge.
Finally, the board celebrated the birthday of county board chairperson Wayne Hendrickson, whose birthday was the day before, with cake and other refreshments after the meeting. Hendrickson has served on the board for more than 40 years.
