Group eyes fund campaign to aid restoration plan; Doyle backs it

By Ed Lowe
Post-Crescent staff writer

TOWN OF MENASHA — The Friends of the Fox will lead a campaign to raise $6.25 million in private money by Labor Day to accelerate the restoration of the Fox River locks system.

The plan, introduced at the group’s annual meeting Thursday before a crowd of governmental leaders including Gov. James Doyle, would make the Fox River navigable from Neenah to Green Bay by 2009 — eight years sooner than originally proposed. The dilapidated 17-lock system has not allowed navigation of the full length of the lower Fox River since 1986.

Doyle, his wife Jessica, Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton and members of Doyle’s Cabinet were in Winnebago and Outagamie counties for a series of appearances Thursday. The governor had declared them “Capital for the Day.”

New Friends of Fox President Bob Stark said the acceleration of the restoration schedule is essential for the success of the fund-raising drive.

“It’s going to be a challenge, no question about that, but by having the plan totally in place so much sooner, it provides people in the community with the ability to reach this funding goal,” Stark said.

“It’s not just about boating. It’s about quality of life. It’s about why we live here. We’re talking about something that will be done in three or four years, so we’ll all get to enjoy it in our lifetime.”

Doyle, presented with the group’s John Forster Visionary Award in recognition of his ability to secure state ownership of the federally developed lock system completed in 1856, heralded the plan as a catalyst for “re-energizing” the Fox Valley, with new revenue from tourism, recreation and waterfront development.

“The prospects for economic renewal are endless,” he said, congratulating the Friends of the Fox and local leaders for setting the new timeline in motion.

“This confirms my belief that there’s no area of the state or the country more able to meet this challenge than the Fox Valley and northeastern Wisconsin.”

The new fund-raising campaign, if successful, would boost private investment in the project to more than $8 million. About $1.8 million in private funds has been raised to date toward an effort expected to cost $28.3 million. The federal government has committed $17.4 million in funding, while the state has provided $2.8 million.

A fully operational locks system, which would include construction of a boatlift at the Rapide Croche lock near Wrightstown. The lock will remain sealed as a barrier to sea lamprey and other invasive species, Stark said.

Bill Raaths, director of the Fox River Authority, said the advanced timeline will fuel enthusiasm among people who had difficulty envisioning the impact of a project scheduled for completion more than a decade into the future.

“We can be moving down that river in 2008 or 2009,” he said. “… It’s within reach.”

The meeting was held at the corporate office of Miron Construction Co., donor of the trestle trail pedestrian lift bridge at the Menasha lock. Miron President Dave Voss said a motor allowing the bridge to open and close will be installed this year.