Rec fees a necessary evil

AS IF WE NEED reminding, things come along all the time to remind us that there really is no such thing as a free lunch.

The latest example of that would be the proposal to begin charging a user fee for county-owned recreational facilities, such as boat landings and recreational trails like the Old Plank Road Trail.

As might be expected, the proposal received a lukewarm reception at best at a public meeting last week of the County Board Planning, Resources, Agriculture and Extension Committee. No one ever likes to pay more for anything, whether it’s recreational activities or groceries.

But the fact of the matter is that it costs money to maintain and upgrade recreational facilities, money that is less and less available from local taxpayers — the majority of whom, to be honest, make no use at all of the county-owned recreational facilities.

That’s a fact that has been recognized by the state, the vast majority of counties across the state and most municipalities that own and operate recreational facilities — including several in Sheboygan County. User fees for recreational facilities like boat landings, recreational trails, campgrounds and such are by far the norm outside of Sheboygan County.

Sheboygan County is attempting to make the user fee system as painless as possible, creating a fee system that is both less expensive than the statewide average and that covers more vehicles/bicycles in a user family than is found elsewhere across the state. County officials are to be commended for attempting to minimize as much as possible the impact of the user fees.

Still, it is to be expected that the reception for user fees would be less than enthusiastic. At last week’s meeting, in response to a question from an audience member, an overwhelming majority of the three-dozen or so people in attendance raised their hands to say they were opposed to the fee system as proposed.

The key there, though, was the phrase “as proposed.” Obviously, the plan needs some tweaking and refinement, which is why the committee was soliciting public comment. More telling was the comment, echoed by a number of those in attendance, that while they weren’t entirely happy about the proposed fee system, they could understand why it is being proposed and could support it.

That’s because, as county Planning Director Jim Hulbert pointed out, there is no other way to generate the revenue needed to maintain the county’s outstanding recreational facilities. Private support, from companies, foundations or clubs, is either not available in these difficult economic times or is not sufficient to meet the need.

And it would be a greater shame to lose the county’s excellent outdoor and recreational facilities because of a lack of funds.

At issue: Something or other Bottom line: Do something about it