Council Oks Klondike Derby at Haumerson’s Pond

By Chris Spangler

Haumerson’s Pond will be the site of a day-long winter scouting jamboree this month.

Meeting in regular session on Tuesday, the Fort Atkinson City Council gave the go-ahead for the Yahara District of the Glacier’s Edge Council of the Boy Scouts of America to hold its Klondike Derby Saturday, Jan. 22, at Haumerson’s Pond and the adjacent Bark River Nature Park.

In a memo to the council, City Clerk-Treasurer Michelle Ebbert noted that about 300 scouts, leaders and families are expected to attend the event. 

Dan Burhans, representing the Boy Scouts, reportedly has secured the use of the nearby watertower lot adjacent to Fort Atkinson Middle School for attendee parking. Volunteers will park in the back portion of the school lot, with a few vehicles closer to the event for supply loading/unloading and errands. 

Overflow parking will use adjacent streets, if available. 

Based on 300 attendees, it is estimated that 60 to 100 vehicles will need parking. 

The scouting group will manage parking signage, and the Public Works and Parks and Recreation departments will confirm the streets and parking lot are clear for the event. barring a major snow emergency. 

According to Burhans, a Klondike Derby is an outdoor event that starts with a klondike sled engineered and built by the scouts. On it they will pull all of the supplies that they might need for being outdoors in January, as well as for six skill competitions through which scouts will rotate.

Those skills might include, for example, first aid, fire building, three-person slingshot launch, knots, cooking, animal track identification, compass work and the like.

After lunch will be a mile-long sled race followed by the awards ceremony.

The scouts typically have held the Klondike Derby at their 177-acre Camp Indian Trails in Janesville. However, Burhans said in his proposal to the council, the Glacier’s Edge Council had to sell it to raise money to help cover its share of a sexual abuse victims fund as part of an ongoing national lawsuit.

In November, Rock County purchased the camp for about $3.4 million.

The council unanimously approved the request as part of its consent agenda. President Chris Scherer was absent from the meeting.

In other business, the council:

• Approved the police department’s request to purchase six LifePak 1000 Automated External Defibrillator (AED) units from Stryker Medical for a total $12,510.

This will be funded through the 2022 levy-supported Capital Improvements Project budget. 

Police Chief Adrian Bump said that the current models are seven years old and no longer match the platforms used by the city’s ambulance service or fire department.

In a memo to the council, Bump noted that the upgrade will help the first police officers arriving on the scene of an emergency deliver lifesaving measures. The AED pads would be compatible with those deployed by the ambulance and rescue units responding, thus saving time. 

“I am looking to get at least seven, hopefully 10, years of service out of them,” Bump said of the AEDs.

Council member Megan Hartwick made a motion to purchase the AEDs. This was seconded by council member Bruce Johnson and unanimously approved.

• Approved an ordinance to amend winter parking hours on Rockwell Avenue. 

The Transportation and Traffic Review Committee recommended the change to provide better access for snowplows and semis. 

There now will be no parking on both sides of Rockwell Avenue from South Main Street to Grove Street from Dec. 1-March 15. 

Previously, winter parking rules prohibited parking on Rockwell Avenue from Janesville Avenue to Grove Street. 

After suspending the rules and waiving the third reading, the council unanimously approved the ordinance. Council member Mason Becker made the motion, which was seconded by Johnson.

• Adopted an ordinance to repeal and recreate the section of the municipal code relating to the Private Well Abandonment and Well Operation Permit Ordinance.

The ordinance addresses private wells once out of compliance, clarifying how to get a well permit and appropriate abandonment procedures.

Water Utility supervisor Tim Hayden had reported that 21 wells need to be tested periodically to ensure that they are providing safe water and are not connected to the municipal water supply. 

The previous ordinance did not give the city authority to address noncompliant private wells in the city. 

The city staff recommended a fee of $100 for a two-year well permit. 

Hartwick made a motion to adopt the ordinance. This was seconded by Johnson and unanimously approved.