Kenosha residents share feedback on community improvements during Avenues of Possibilities event
The Emerging Leaders Academy was bursting with ideas on community projects and improvements as a statewide Avenues of Possibilities Tour hosted a public forum in Kenosha.
Participants in the Wednesday night gathering were presented various city projects and timelines before sharing what they would like to see in the city in terms of parks and recreation, economic development, safety and accessibility, arts and culture, and transportation and connectivity.
Once feedback head been collected, some comments were selected for discussion with City Development Director Tim Casey, City Planning Director Mike Callovi, Kenosha Creative Space Executive Director Francisco Loyola and City Planner Rachel Gasper.
Casey said he most often hears requests for "housing ... housing of all kinds."
"We hear from people who can't find the single family homes they're looking for, and some of those are people who are of the means to afford pretty much any type of house," he said. "We also hear people (are) looking for more rental property."
Casey said he frequently hears requests for additional parks in specific locations and requests for popular retailers or restaurants.
Panelists told attendees to contact their City Council members and attend city meetings to get their voices heard about changes they want to see in Kenosha.
Rita DeMerit, vice president of operations for Newaukee, said the Kenosha event — along with other tour stops conducted in LaCrosse, Waukesha, Eau Claire, Wausau and Green Bay — were designed to help engage people in each community in urban planning, people who "maybe wouldn't usually come to an event like this."
"We wanted to make it really accessible," she said. "We're keeping it a little broad on the topic. So we're covering what people are really interested in, whether it's a bike lane or a pothole or a mural, just kind of as an introduction to getting more civically involved in their communities."
DeMerit said she hoped those who attended learned "about the processes that are in place to solve the issues that they want to address."
"It's actually possible to make an impact in your community, whether it's something small, like you want a playground fixed or you want trash picked up,. You can advocate for yourself in those ways," she said. "(Or) if you want something big, like a road (or) a protected bike lane around reconstruction, you can be shown (how) to actually start that process, who to reach out to in the city, other events you can go to, like city council meetings or public input sessions."
Casey said community engagement sessions are a good way to directly hear from people who have a stake in the community.
"There are lots of different ways to do it, and you should do it a lot of different ways," he said of community engagement. "Some of that is having interactive sessions where people can provide their input directly and help shape some of the plans for the future."
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