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Home About Us B2B Club Breaking News Contact Donate Events / Programs Feedback Ideas Incubator Industry Clusters Links / Resources Progess Funds Progress Teams Public Art / Murals Publications		Breaking News April 27, 2004 - Port Edwards Searches for a Plan By Antoinette Rahn, Daily Tribune Staff Building on the close-knit character of the village of Port Edwards and finding its place in the larger south Wood County community are a few of the goals the community should have, said some residents who attended Monday's Community Progress Initiative rally. The crowd of about 20, which included state Rep. Marlin Schneider, D-Wisconsin Rapids, and state Sen. Julie Lassa, D-Stevens Point, gathered at the Alexander Shelter House and heard a message about creating a vision of the people and for the people. The program, the second of seven rallies planned for seven different communities, included presentations by representatives from the Heart of Wisconsin Business & Economic Alliance and the Community Foundation of South Wood County, co-organizers of the initiative. Australian keynote speaker David Beurle, an expert in rural leadership and community development, also gave a presentation. Randy Kraemer, a Port Edwards resident for the past 18 years, was encouraged by what he heard, and the community's interest. "I think this is a good turnout for our small community," Kraemer said. "There was some great information about communities a tenth of our size doing some things to promote themselves. Our strong points are our school system and our great sense of community - it's a great place to raise a family. "The hard part is going to be finding out the vision we want as a community." The first step to developing that vision is to do what the rallies do on a basic level - bring people together and get them talking, Beurle said. "Having a broad agreement about the kind of community you are and want to be is essential to functioning well as a community," he said. In speaking about the current vision for Port Edwards, some forum attendees talked about seeing the community as a long-time paper mill town or a retirement community looking to keep business and develop new commercial opportunities, while others spoke about it being a safe place with good schools and family values. "One thing that sets (us) apart from other places is we are part of a network of communities known as south Wood County and we're a very attractive residential area, close to industry and businesses," said Joe Terry, resident and village administrator. "We may not be the niche, but we're part of it." Some were inspired when Beurle spoke about Hyden and Corrigin, two western Australian communities. Hyden is a wheat and grain farming area where eight families pooled their resources to turn a natural rock formation into the "The Wave Rock Experience" tourism destination. That effort helped create 70 part- and full-time jobs, Beurle said. Corrigin is a tiny place that decided to cash in on its close proximity to Hyden by establishing itself as the world record holder in the "Dog in the Ute" (Dog in a truck) event which draws 2,000 entries and many more crowds annually, he added. There's opportunities for enhancing the village's annual rummage sale to draw more people, said Dave Bruener, a Port Edwards businessman. "I've been thinking about organizing a bicycle show, featuring some older bicycles that people have remodeled, to have during the village-wide rummage sale," said Bruener. "The rummage sale injects a lot of energy and brings people to the community and I think it's those kinds of things that if we sit down and start talking about it, we can think about ways to use it as a stepping stone."
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