PRESCOTT – The Prescott City Council approved at its April 27 meeting a concept plan for trail connections from the newly proposed Walnut Circle development to Magee Park.
City Administrator …
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PRESCOTT – The Prescott City Council approved at its April 27 meeting a concept plan for trail connections from the newly proposed Walnut Circle development to Magee Park.
City Administrator Matt Wolf said the council still has to review the final plat, but the preliminary plat, road plans and development agreement have been approved for Walnut Circle.
As part of the development agreement, the city is responsible for constructing a trail connection between the Walnut Circle development and Magee Park.
“To support this effort, the city has entered into a grant agreement with the Friends of Freedom Park/Coulee River Trails for $100,000, with an additional commitment to raise $40,000 to complete the project,” said Wolf.
With the Walnut Circle project approved, Coulee River Trails has developed a concept plan to connect Walnut Circle to Magee Park.
“If the council were to move forward with this concept plan, the goal would then be to reach out to get proposals from Cedar Corporation to actually put together a design that would connect these two,” Wolf said. “None of this is approving the actual plans to be constructed. It’s just approving the trail potential locations as a concept.”
The plan includes the following components:
These segments would be constructed as funding becomes available. The Wisconsin DNR has already approved two bridge locations within the floodway as part of a hydrology study. Coulee River Trails at some point also plans to construct mountain bike trails, including a 0.95-mile northern segment and a 0.9-mile southern segment. According to the meeting packet, development and ongoing maintenance of these trails would be the responsibility of Coulee River Trails in accordance with the existing MOU with the city.
Orrin Road, fire engine
Next, the council discussed the proposed 2026 borrowing for a new fire engine and the Orrin Road projects.
As part of the 2025–2031 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), the city has planned to borrow $1,545,350 in 2026 to fund the Orrin Road mill and overlay project. The CIP also includes borrowing $955,000 in 2027 for the replacement of Fire Engine #2.
According to a city council memo, the Fire Association members from Prescott, Oak Grove, and Clifton held a joint meeting Jan. 14 and agreed to move forward with prepayment of Fire Engine #2 to Reliant Fire Apparatus, Inc., at a total cost of $1,045,414. This prepayment results in total savings of $147,730 for the Association members, of which $83,910.64 is attributed to the City of Prescott. In addition to the base cost of the engine, the Fire Department has identified accessory costs totaling $427,653.12. These costs are separate from the apparatus purchase price, Wolf said.
With both the engine and accessory costs factored in, plus the prepayment discount, Prescott’s portion will be $836,392, which is $118,308 less than the city originally planned to borrow. Oak Grove’s share is $469,430, while Clifton’s is $167,928.
Alderperson Maureen Otwell said the rising costs of fire trucks is tough on smaller communities.
“I read recently that the cost of fire trucks is increasing primarily because each of them is individually designed, which the fire department did tell us when we were at the joint meeting,” Otwell said.
Wolf said it will be a four-year lead time before the city will have the truck added to its fleet.
“To your point, they all require to be ordered before they start building,” Wolf said. “It’s not like other vehicles where you can go on a lot and look at them and buy one and drive it off.”
As for the Orrin Road project, in 2024 the city received a Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) grant from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation for planning pedestrian improvements along U.S. Highway 10; the council approved a concept plan that includes the closure of Orrin Road on the east side of Campbell Street to improve traffic safety at the Campbell Street/Highway 10 intersection. Following approval of the concept plan, the city submitted a TAP grant application for design and construction. If awarded, the grant would cover approximately 80% of eligible project costs, requiring the city to fund the remaining 20%. The total estimated project cost is $5,980,000, resulting in a city share of approximately $1,196,000.
“The TAP grant would fund the pedestrian improvements, including trails or sidewalks; however, the mill and overlay of Orrin Road would remain a City responsibility regardless of whether the grant is awarded,” Wolf said. “The city is not expected to receive notification on the TAP grant until the end of June.”
Between the fire engine and Orrin Road project, the city is planning to borrow a total of $2,382,042, which will be voted on at the June 22 city council meeting. The May meeting will include additional information, including the proposed repayment schedule, estimated interest rates, and projected debt levy impacts.
Appointments
The council approved the following committee appointments: Joe Reis to the Plan Commission and Stewart Pulk to the Fire and EMS Commission.
