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Minocqua Officials Eye Torpy Park Improvements

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A popular Minocqua town park could be seeing changes in appearance and amenities in coming years, as town officials begin to review suggestions for improvement.

Located in downtown Minocqua, Torpy Park hosts several events each year, including craft shows and the town’s signature festival event, Beef-A-Rama. Its playground and beachfront draws thousands of visitors in the summertime. It’s also within strolling distance of downtown gift shops and restaurants.

Tuesday, June 27th, members of the planning commission reviewed suggestions put forth by a UW-Madison graduate student Eric Koberle to improve the appearance and increase its recreational possibilities. Dedicated as a park in 1945, Torpy is less than six acres in size. “This is not a final plan,” said Town Chairman Mark Hartzheim. “What it is, is his conception of what could happen down there. I think for us, it should be a resource for what some of the things are that we could do down there.” Among suggestions by Koberle, who has a bachelor of science degree in landscape architecture, are a kayak launch area, exercise station, walking path, shoreline restoration, ADA accessible pavilion capable of hosting larger events and a garden where people can gather to relax. He did not prepare cost estimates for the improvements. “He did reflect in the overall plan many of the things we asked him to look at,” said commissioner Phil Albert. “I think he did a great job.” Albert noted the sand volleyball court is “highly prized real estate,” implying other uses may take precedence. Sue Heil, who is stepping down from the commission after many years (most recently as chair), praised the plaza idea of Koberle’s.

Commissioner Joe Hegge threw out two ideas for considerations: “We have two nice volleyball courts at 70 West Center (park) that don’t get used very often.” He also wondered if the ice skating rink could be moved to 70 West. “In a small park (Torpy), I don’t know that we have to do everything.” There may be support to remove the tennis courts also, as the tennis courts at the high school are open to the public during non-school hours. Director of Public Works Mark Pertile said the plan commission will have to decide whether to implement all or portions of the final plan, as well as set a timetable and decide while projects are more important. He suggested enlisting the services of North Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission to further develop the suggestions and perhaps a consultant for the final project plans, especially so if they involve engineering.

The commission formed a working group of Heil, Hartzheim and Albert to meet with interested parties to gather their suggestions and hear concerns. They will report back to the full commission with their findings. This is not the first effort to reinvigorate the park. A couple of years ago, the volunteer group Torpy Park Community Consortium came up with their own plan for improvements, including boat docks, a lodge-style pavilion, walking paths and perennial gardens. The local Lions club also wanted to replace the existing pavilion/band shell with a larger one. But because it required removal of a few large pine trees, the proposal did not gain traction with townspeople.

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