JEFFERSON — Jefferson County Parks Department officials are waging battles with thieves who are plundering cash-donation boxes at the parks.
“It’s happening at a lot of the parks in Jefferson County,” Augie Tietz, chairman of the Jefferson County Parks Committee, said after a Monday meeting of the Parks Committee, where the matter was addressed.
“People have been prying these boxes open and not only is the cash taken, but the boxes have to be replaced,” Tietz said.
He noted the thefts have been going on for quite some time, but they have increased in frequency to the point the Parks Committee felt it needed to address the matter officially.
“There has always been some of this,” Tietz said. “But recently, there has been a string of these crimes. They are getting more frequent.”
To prevent the thefts and related criminal damage to property, the county is installing cameras near the boxes. Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputies also are stopping in at the parks randomly to check on the boxes.
“Sometimes they get away with quite a bit of money and then other times, not much,” Tietz said, adding the county now is emptying the boxes more frequently. “It’s certainly been a loss for us.”
Also Monday, the committee agreed it will forward an ordinance to the Jefferson County Board of Supervisors related to prohibiting fishing from the two bridges of the Interurban Trail east of Watertown. They are located near the We Energies Concord Generating Station, and between Ixonia and Oconomowoc.
“We, as a committee, passed this and it will go to the county board as a proposed ordinance. Fishing from these bridges could be pretty dangerous,” Tietz said.
He added that bicyclists or pedestrians might become hooked on back-casts, or fishing lines might get hung up in electrical wires overhead. There also is the chance of an angler falling off the bridge and becoming injured or worse.
The county does not have a complete ban on fishing from its bridges. Tietz said the dipping of nets for fish is permitted on the Crawfish River Bridge at Hubbleton, but this is something officials never would want on the Interurban Trail bridges.
The county Parks Committee also is hoping to gain more controls on the use of drones in its parks, but it is far from panic-mode on this issue.
To date, about the only people who have used drones in the parks have been members of local law enforcement, who have put on demonstrations. Tietz said, however, at some point in time, drones will become popular in the parks, which offer wide open spaces by their very nature, and regulations will be needed.
“It isn’t out of control yet,” Tietz said, “but we will have to address this sooner or later. We just want to have some kind of control. There is no timeframe for us to gain this control, really. We’ll just see how it progresses and if necessary we will do something.”
The county panel also agreed Monday it will seek more grant funding to repair damage to the Glacial River Trail near Fort Atkinson, where about 100 feet of the trail is collapsing. In addition, grants will be sought to create a stretch of pavement to allow wheelchair access from the parking lot to a viewing stand over Rose Lake.