Outagamie County sets aside money for new Plamann Park pavilion, diversity coordinator

APPLETON - Money to build a new pavilion at Plamann Park survived the scrutiny of Outagamie County supervisors earlier this week before they unanimously approved the county's 2021 budget.

Funds to hire a diversity, equity and inclusion coordinator also remained in the budget. 

County Executive Tom Nelson reserved $3.3 million to construct a new Plamann Park pavilion with a meeting room for 125 people, but the Finance Committee removed the money from the budget. That led to a 90-minute discussion where, one by one, supervisors lobbied for or against proceeding with the project next year.

Supervisor Dean Culbertson said the existing pavilion dates to 1975. "If any supervisor has been out there as of late, it is in absolutely horrendous condition," he said. "For 2021, we're probably not going to even open it up because it's in dire shape."

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Culbertson said restrictions on large gatherings likely would continue next year, making it an ideal time to replace the pavilion. Interest rates on borrowing also are the lowest in memory, he said.

Supervisor Jason Wegand said the new pavilion would be a great addition to the park. "When this (pandemic) passes, I think you're going to rent that thing out every weekend," he said.

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Supervisor Pete Marcks sought to remove the project from the budget. When the County Board approved a half-percent sales tax one year ago, he said proponents sold the tax to the public as a means to avoid borrowing money for capital projects like the pavilion.

"What do we do one year after that?" he asked. "We go out and bond."

Marcks said what people hate about politicians is "when they're hypocrites."

In the end, the board voted 26-8 to restore the $3.3 million for the project.

The debate over hiring a diversity, equity and inclusion coordinator generated a similar exchange of opinions before the board voted 29-7 to retain $108,000 in salary and benefits for the position.

Supervisor Cindy Fallona said Outagamie County no longer is an isolated community.

"A full-time, dedicated diversity, equity and inclusion coordinator is essential for us to meet the realities of our workforce today and into the future," Fallona said.

The 2021 budget also includes $115,000 in salary and benefits for an epidemiologist. Nelson said having an epidemiologist on staff will help the county better understand the nature of the coronavirus and track hot spots of infection.

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The budget totals $274.8 million, a 2.6% decrease from this year. Nelson initially budgeted $2.2 million to renovate the food service center and expand the union activity and student organization area at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Fox Cities campus in Menasha, but the project was deferred to 2022 at the request of the university.

The tax levy necessary to support the budget is $63.5 million, a 2.1% increase.

The owner of an average home ($186,122 value) will pay $690 in property taxes for county services next year. That's an increase of $6.

Contact Duke Behnke at 920-993-7176 or dbehnke@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DukeBehnke.