LOWER WISCONSIN RIVER - At their February 9 meeting, the Friends of the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway (FLOW) Board of Directors learned that president Timm Zumm and vice president Dave Marshall plan to provide public input at the April 12 meeting of the Wisconsin Natural Resources Board.
Specifically, according to Dave Marshall reached after the meeting, the two will discuss the need to dedicate funds from the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Fund for land acquisitions within the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway.In 2009, members of the FLOW Board testified at a meeting of the NRB and presented the following resolution regarding funding needed to protect and enhance the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway:
Resolution to Restore pre-1994 State Stewardship Level of Funding Needed to Protect and Enhance the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway Resolution # 2
RESOLUTION OF FRIENDS OF THE LOWER WISCONSIN RIVERWAY (FLOW)
WHEREAS, the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway is an unique resource used by the public for recreation and enjoyment of natural beauty; and
WHEREAS, the protection of this important designated Exceptional Resource Water (ERW) is of vital importance for the citizens of Wisconsin; and
WHEREAS, the braided channel oxbows, sloughs and other floodplain lakes are vital for sustaining the ecological diversity and water quality of the Riverway; and
WHEREAS, the floodplain lakes are an essential feature of the State Riverway since they sustain spawning and nursery habitat for river fishes, provide a refuge for aquatic organisms when environmental conditions within the main channel become stressful, such as during floods; and
WHEREAS, we understand that the ecologically vital floodplain lakes currently remain vulnerable to groundwater contamination and polluted runoff and must be protected to sustain the unique features of the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway;
WHEREAS, landowners along the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway had received guarantees from the State of Wisconsin that they would be reimbursed for selling scenic easements under the State Stewardship program but that promise/option has not been honored in recent years;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT _______________________________ support the restoration of the pre-1994 level of State Stewardship funding that will be needed to assist private landowners in their efforts to protect the scenic river bluffs and protect the ecologically vital floodplain lakes. Furthermore, the Department of Natural Resources should expand the Master Planning boundaries and goals that will be needed to protect the diverse floodplain habitats.In particular, one acquisition that has been discussed in recent years is the Wintergreen Resort in Iowa County. At the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway Board’s (LWSRB) November 11, 2021, meeting, LWSRB Executive Director Mark Cupp had reported that he was approached by the Shifflet family about the possibility of the State of Wisconsin acquiring the old Wintergreen Ski Resort and Frank Lloyd Wright style building on the property.
According to Cupp, the Shifflet Family’s asking price for the Wintergreen Resort is $4.25 million for the building and land.
The property includes about a mile of Wisconsin River frontage, as well as timbered hillsides. The one-story masonry building was constructed in 1989, and is about 20,000-square-feet in size, with a partial, unfinished basement that is about 15,000-square-feet in size. The building is located at the top of the hill, and has beautiful views to the north of the Wisconsin River, bluffs, and the Village of Spring Green.
At the FLOW Annual Meeting held in January, Cupp reported that the project to have the State of Wisconsin purchase the property had suffered many setbacks, especially resistance from Wisconsin DNR.
“The Shifflet family, which owns the property, is still holding out hope the deal could be negotiated but can’t hold onto the property indefinitely,” Cupp said. “With recent changes in Natural Resources Board membership and leadership at WDNR, I believe that one more try is worth the time.”
At that meeting, Cupp suggested that advocating for legislators to increase Knowles-Nelson funding in the new biennial state budget would be a possible advocacy topic for FLOW members in 2023.
Knowles-Nelson history
The Lower Wisconsin Riverway was created by a state law in 1989, to protect the 92 miles of river from the last dam at Prairie du Sac to its confluence with the Mississippi River. It is the longest free-flowing river left in the Midwest. The Riverway law was a pioneering effort to protect the river and nearby lands, while involving local citizens in its management.
Companion legislation – Wisconsin Act 31 - established a stewardship fund in the same year. The fund was created for the purpose of acquiring land to expand recreational opportunities and protect environmentally sensitive areas in the state.
These legislative acts represent an era that at this point seems but a distant memory of days when the Wisconsin Legislature was able to act on a bipartisan basis to protect the natural assets of the State of Wisconsin.
As part of the original Knowles-Nelson Law, an earmark was established to target land acquisitions in the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway. This was to be funded by a $2 million per year earmark, and unspent funds were allowed to be rolled over into future years.
According to an information paper from the Wisconsin Legislative Fiscal Bureau (WLFB), in 1993, Act 343 renamed the stewardship program the Warren Knowles-Gaylord Nelson Stewardship Program. The earmark for the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway was removed in 1994, contrary to the initial intent of the fund’s founders.
The stewardship program was reauthorized in 1999 Act 9 (the 1999-2001 biennial budget) as the Warren Knowles-Gaylord Nelson Stewardship 2000 Program. Under that act, the state could contract public debt in an amount not to exceed $460 million. The annual bonding allotment was set at $46 million, from fiscal years 2000-01 to 2009-10.
Under 2001 Act 16, the bonding authorization was increased from $46 million to $60 million annually, beginning in fiscal year 2002-03 and continuing through 2009-10. This increased the total general obligation bonding authority of the reauthorized program to $572 million ($803 million in total bonding was authorized for the 20-year program).
According to WLFB, 2007 Act 20, the 2007-09 biennial budget act, extended the stewardship program for an additional 10 years to fiscal year 2019-20 and increased the annual bonding authority from $60 million to $86 million beginning in 2010-11. This increased the total general obligation bonding authority of the stewardship program by $860 million, to $1,663,000,000.
Under this reauthorization, DNR was required to prioritize several uses for Knowles-Nelson funds, including “acquisition of land that preserves or enhances the state’s water resources, including land along the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway and land abutting wild rivers, wild lakes, and land along the shores of the Great Lakes.”
According to a WLFB information paper from 2019, the current program, as amended by 2015 Wisconsin Act 55, has an annual bonding authority of $33.25 million through 2019-20. Beginning in fiscal year 2011-12, any remaining unobligated bonding authority may not be used in future fiscal years, effectively reducing authorized program bonding below the statutorily enumerated total.
Language in the most recent reauthorization of Knowles-Nelson still stipulates that DNR prioritize acquisitions in the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway.
In other business
In other business, the FLOW Board:
• elected the 2023 FLOW officers: Timm Zumm, president; Dave Marshall, vice president; Patrick Michaels, treasurer; and Sherry Holly, secretary.
• discussed and tabled a decision about expanding the FLOW Executive Committee to include the Secretary
• established a sign-up for FLOW members to volunteer at the upcoming Canoecopia event, to take place at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison on March 10-12. Volunteers who commit to a shift staffing the booth receive a free day pass to the event.
