Is Grinch stealing the Christmas spirit in Bayfield?
Should we change the name of Bayfield to Whoville?
After a session of kvetching on a Bayfield facebook site, Bayfield town officials met on Monday to discuss the town's Christmas decorations and ask for input from local residents.
It's not a deliberate case of "Bah, Humbug!" the Bayfield town manager told the four people in attendance.
The town's Christmas decorations have worn out over the years, Chris La May explained, to the point that a couple of town public works employees got shocked putting up old Christmas lights.
Exacerbating the problem is that the town's electrical outlets downtown either don't work anymore or have been disconnected.
Replacing lights, upgrading the electrical outlets to meet codes, and buying some more decorations will cost about $10,000, La May estimated.
In a time of tight municipal budgets, that's more than the town can afford. In comparison, the fireworks display for Independence Day costs about $6,000, and that cost is a bargain because volunteers coordinate the show and shoot the shells.
"The ball has been dropped," on the Christmas decorations, agreed Mayor Matt Salka. Town staff and trustees focused this year on a town branding program and the downtown summer block parties, which proved to be successful.
Salka pointed out that with Christmas being two weeks away, there isn't much time to try to improve decorations this year.
"We can definitely be ready for next Christmas," Salka said,
The town might set up a separate fund for donations, or even see if businesses or groups would be willing to "adopt a light pole," La May said.
Salka said town board members will need to coordinate the decorations, noting that town staff is spread pretty thin focusing on water, sewer and road issues.
There are holiday banners on light poles, but they're not lit at night.
Volunteers used to set out Christmas trees on Mill Street that were decorated by local businesses and civic groups. The trees fell apart over the years, and the volunteers who had been doing it got tired, and no one stepped up to take over the project.
"Next year will be different," Salka said.
"I appreciate you calling the meeting," said Katie Middleton, one of the meeting attendees.
One location definitely not lacking Christmas spirit this year is Riverside RV Park, just west of the Bayfield stoplight on Highway 160. Light aficianados are welcome to drive or walk through the park to view thousands of Christmas lights. The annual show is a Christmas gift to the community, park owner Mack Coker says.
Merry Christmas!
