The Winamac Park Board’s advisory council may soon transition into a “Friends of the Parks” group. The suggestion was made by the advisory council itself, after members felt they were duplicating many of the park board’s efforts. “There’s been a couple of instances where we’re supposed to come up with some ideas, but then we read in the paper that, well, the board’s did it, and they had the public meeting or whatever, and we didn’t know about it,” advisory council member Dave Zarht told the park board last week. “That seems like a waste of effort. If we’ve come up with something that’s on the wish list or some idea we think and say, ‘Hey, we’ve got the money. We’ve got the people that can do it. We need your permission to go ahead with it,’ and you say yes or know, or say ‘That’s not in the plan,’ or whatever.”
Zahrt said the group would continue to serve the same basic function of fund-raising and coordinating volunteers. But by being less structured, members feel they could encourage more people to get involved. The advisory council is made up of nine members appointed by the park board, but a Friends group could open up its membership to the general public.
Park board member Jon Chapman felt the change would be positive, and offered some suggestions for how a Friends group may operate. “My understanding would be, whenever the group wants to form a Friends group, you’re going to incorporate, a simple process,” he explained. “And as you have people come forward or the group with ideas for us, likewise, at least at the state park level, the park manager comes to us and says, ‘Hey, here’s a few things we’d like to do. We don’t have funding for it. Does your group have anybody who would be in interest in helping us?’ Some may say yea; some may say nay. So it flows back and forth, and we have to communicate.” He added that more people and businesses may be willing to donate their labor to a Friends group, rather than the town itself.
The next step will be for the park board to officially disband its advisory council, allowing it to restructure as a Friends group. Town Attorney Justin Schramm agreed to draft the necessary resolution for the park board to consider at a future meeting.
