195-acre Town of Lyons parcel has trails, canoe launch
By Vicky Wedig
Staff writer
Walworth County will officially open its fourth park – the White River Park in the Town of Lyons – July 10.
The county bought the 195-acre farm from Duane Clark in March for $1.19 million.
The county paid half the cost of the property, and the other half came from a state stewardship fund, said Kevin Brunner, the county’s director of central services. The park is on Sheridan Springs Road about five miles northeast of Lake Geneva and has acreage on both sides of the White River – about 10,000 lineal feet of frontage, Brunner said.
He said about 70 percent of the property is uplands and about 30 percent is wooded lowland areas along the White River. About 60 to 65 percent of the land is farmed, and the county will continue to rent out the space as farmland.
The property has three buildings – a historic barn that will be restored, a house in good condition that will be rented out and a dilapidated shed that will be torn down.
The park will feature trails, a canoe and kayak launch, picnic tables and restrooms.
“It’s pretty basic right now,” Brunner said. “The barn will not be open to the public yet.”
Hiking, hunting, fishing and trapping by permit will be allowed in the county park, and the county might partner with Clear Water Outdoor in Lake Geneva in the future to rent kayaks at the park, Brunner said.
The county has contracted with the Geneva Lake Conservancy to lend its expertise, and help the county make plans for the park, preserve its natural resources and conduct some programs there, Brunner said.
Brunner said the Geneva Lake Conservancy and Kettle Moraine Land Trust, both of which were instrumental in the acquisition of the park, approached the county about helping with the new property. The county formalized an agreement for the Geneva Lake Conservancy to work on the White River Park and for the Kettle Moraine Land Trust to work on the county’s two other large parks – Price Park in the Town of Lafayette and Natureland Park in the Town of Richmond.
The county’s first – and smallest – park is Veteran’s Park on the square in Elkhorn that dates back to the 1830.
The conservancy has also agreed to help develop a “friends” group to raise funds for and provide education about the park, Brunner said. He said the conservancy does not plan to create or operate the friends group itself but will offer its expertise to members of the community willing to take the lead on a group.
The function of the group would be to raise funds, have work days to help maintain and improve the park and help with park planning, Brunner said.
Donations are needed for capital improvements in the park, Brunner said. He said the county spent a significant amount of money to acquire the park and will budget for some capital improvements, but the park has a “wish list” of improvements that the county can’t readily afford.
“It’s a county park, so the county will maintain and do some capital improvements,” Brunner said. “It’s just that all of the things we’d like to do cost a lot of money.” Restoring the barn, for example, is a big-ticket item, Brunner said, with a $170,000 price tag. The county also would like to build a bridge over the White River at a cost of $70,000.
“Public dollars only go so far, and if we really want to truly utilize this property to its fullest, we need help from the private sector,” Brunner said.
The county is publishing two brochures about its parks to draw tourists to them.
