March 12, 2026
By TIM HUNDT
VIROQUA Wis. – Vernon County is officially moving forward with an ambitious plan to dredge Sidie Hollow Lake and construct a new public swimming beach. The Conservation and Education Committee voted unanimously in February to hire an outside professional fundraising firm to secure the estimated three million dollars needed for the massive park renovation.
The decision comes after months of deliberation by county officials who realized that the local government simply did not have the internal manpower to raise millions of dollars on its own.
County Conservationist David Hettenbach presented the single bid received from a request for proposals noting that the chosen firm has extensive experience working with municipalities including campaigns for the city of Eau Claire and Chippewa Falls.
Hettenbach explained that the process will occur in two distinct phases starting with a preliminary analysis to gauge community interest.
“The campaign readiness study would be $35,000 dollars,” said Hettenbach. “Basically they would come do some interviews start building some committees help identify some leaders for this campaign.”
Hettenbach noted that the initial study will take one to three months to complete. If the firm determines that raising three million dollars is a realistic goal within Vernon County they will then launch the actual capital campaign.
Supervisor Nathaniel Slack asked for clarification on the pricing structure for the second phase of the project.
“So the 35k is just the feasibility study,” asked Slack. “And then if they did the actual campaign that is $275,000 to $350,000.”
Hettenbach confirmed that the firm quoted between $275,000 and $315,000 dollars to manage the actual fundraising campaign which would likely take 18 to 24 months. While the figures gave some officials sticker shock during earlier discussions Hettenbach reminded the committee that the cost of the firm is ultimately baked into the fundraising goal.
“If they want $250,000 dollars then instead of trying to raise two million dollars we try to raise two and a quarter million dollars,” said Hettenbach during a previous meeting. “With the amount of money we are going for I think trying to hire a professional is the right route. Marty (park staff) is plenty busy with taking care of the parks all summer that we don’t have the staff to try to keep this local.”
Parks Director Marty Kennedy strongly supported the selected firm noting that their team seemed uniquely qualified to understand the recreational value of Sidie Hollow.
“They were really good,” said Kennedy. “They sound very excited. A lot of their projects kind of tie in line with outdoor recreational use of things. So, I think they have a pretty good crossover and understand the area and do what we were talking about right away.”
Supervisor Dave Eggen admitted he was initially unfamiliar with the concept of hiring outside agencies to raise money but agreed it was the most logical path forward.
“This is so above my pay grade,” said Eggen. “Before you brought this up I didn’t have any concept that you can get people to come in and try and raise three million dollars for you for 35 grand. Kind of a no brainer.”
To pay the upfront $35,000 dollar cost for the feasibility study Hettenbach explained that the department already has $15,000 dollars in Ho Chunk Nation grant funds set aside from a previous year. He plans to ask the county Finance Committee to reallocate another $5,000 dollars in leftover Ho Chunk funds originally allocated for high water warning cameras to cover the remaining balance. Hettenbach said those cameras came in under budget and the savings could be redirected to this project.
The push to revitalize Sidie Hollow has garnered enthusiasm from local officials. During previous meetings Supervisor Mary Henry argued that creating a public beach would be a massive economic driver and quality of life improvement for the entire region.
“There is not a doubt in my mind that we can raise this money at all,” said Henry. “I know it. It will happen. Part of the big draw is going to be we don’t have a swimming beach at all zero entrance. We don’t have it.”
Henry pointed out that the closest zero entrance public beach is 40 miles away. She suggested the county could eventually add inflatable water structures to make the lake a major tourism destination for families.
“You build it they will come,” said Henry. “They will come because we don’t have another area.”
Community Development Director Amy Oliver also shared optimism about the fundraising potential based on past experience. Oliver noted during a January Finance Committee meeting that the county previously applied for a two million dollar state grant for the dredging project in 2022. While the county did not win that specific grant the community response was overwhelming.
“We were short of our match requirement by like $80,000 dollars and I was able to raise it in two weeks,” said Oliver. “I had businesses saying we will give you $10,000. There is a lot of interest in that being dredged and a beach being put back in.”
With the committee approval Hettenbach and Kennedy will now move forward with the agreement to initiate the campaign readiness study this spring.
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