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I jus trecieved information regarding placing geocaches in our county parks. Starting early summer there will be some paperwork to fill out and sign like the DNR has, and there will also be a $5.00 placement fee per hide, per property. I recieved the info frm the park director @ barkhausen. I don’t want to start anything here, just giving out information.
Ted & Jenni
AKA rush-2112Ya here it goes. All about the all almighty buck…. Just think, some day you’ll tell you children that you can remember when geocaching was free and they will not believe you. Next thing the State will want to add a surcharge tax on each cache placed. Oh and lets not forget about the state sticker that will be needed on each cache container. So where does this all end?? 😥 😥
Yep… no kidding… makes me not want to show off our nice little park areas that we have. It is disturbing to see any government levey a fee to something that should be free to use and do. Is this taxation without representation again? I know i wasen’t invited to the meeting that this was decided. Anyone here remember being invited?
Sorry for the rant, it had to be done 🙄
Ted & Jenni
AKA rush-2112Well, this was fun. 👿
I will NEVER pay to place caches in the parks. I’d either place them on city owned streets or avoid the area altogether. I think the park system and county are missing the fact the cachers are tourists and buy gas and eat food locally. Perhaps the local Chambers of Commerce could be informed about this and convinced that it is not in the county’s best interest to install the fee.
WOW. 🙁Again it sounds like Geocachers area getting singled out. Geez, when will it end?
I wonder if they charge park visitors to use the barbecue pits or the picnic tables. Ohhh wait, maybe they could charge a $5.00 fee to use the bathrooms. That would surely draw the public to their parks.
Just a little sarcastic venting.
I might be able to understand $5.00 per property per cache hider but $5.00 per hide on the same property seems a little over the top. Does that mean that a 4 part multi will cost 20 bucks??
I’m not familiar with the county in question. What I don’t get is how we can place caches for free (for now anyways other then entrance fees or stickers) in State Parks and the County Parks get to make their own rules.
Well I guess maybe it is there way of allowing caching yet still trying to deter it. I suppose it is better then flat out saying no caches at all.
Just my ranting. Good luck with this policy. I really hope that it doesn’t spread across the State.
This is something our brand new, now forming Community Education Committee would address. If you’re from Brown County and want to be involved — sign up!
Bec
@knoffer wrote:
Again it sounds like Geocachers area getting singled out. Geez, when will it end?
I wonder if they charge park visitors to use the barbecue pits or the picnic tables. Ohhh wait, maybe they could charge a $5.00 fee to use the bathrooms. That would surely draw the public to their parks.
@lostby7 wrote:
I think the park system and county are missing the fact the cachers are tourists and buy gas and eat food locally. Perhaps the local Chambers of Commerce could be informed about this and convinced that it is not in the county’s best interest to install the fee.
Exactly. We need to spread the word about places like the Chippewa Valley that are encouraging the placement of caches in order to attract visitors.
I really think that communities whether city or county can benefit from the geo caching. When we geocache we eat at local restaurants and buy gasoline at the local stations…… Thanks for letting me vent, also glad to see that Bec is taking the bull by the horns and willing to run with it.
I just surfed through the Brown County Parks web pages, and so far there is no listing of any policy or fees associated with geocachig. I assume that the site will be updated eventually to reflect any policy changes. What struck me while going through the site was the number of fees charged for various activities at the county parks and trails. It seems that geocachers are not the only ones charged for using county owned and operated parks. With all of the pressures to reduce property taxes, more and more of the costs associated with government operations are being shifted to “user fees”. On the surface, this is a good thing, as long as it is someone else paying for their activities. Next thing you know, the county run library will implement checkout fees. How about county toll roads?
It does make you wonder where all of the money collected by the county in property taxes is going (think jails!).
This whole notificaton process seems to me to be a back door power grab …. It is about who makes decisions about our lives …. It is one set of rules written by one set of people, and “Them’s that writes the rules, rules” … When we talk about notification we are talking about control.
Personally, I prefer freedom. Live, and let live, and all that. Cachin in the FREE world, that kind of thing.
With that said, does anyone have contact info for the folks proposing this. Perhaps they just need to get a little accurate info on the positive aspects of geocaching in their communities.
On a related topic, I know a fellow active in the Disc Golf Association. One of the purposes of their org is to get parks to put in disc golf courses for them. I have to think that the environmental damage of disc golf is much greater than geocaching, judging by the disc golf courses that I have visited geocaching, yet many communities are willing to fork over tax dollars to support that sport and build disc golf courses. Apparently, they have done a better job educating park officials than we have, and that needs to change pronto.
zuma
zumaI’m not getting in a tizzy of this just yet!! But I am keeping an eye on it!!
NOTE to self.. add this to growing list!!
I think I need a secretary… oh wait.. I AM the secretary…ok.. I just need an assisitant for my own personal life LOL!!! I don’t pay well though!! 😀
I’ll be your assistant.
I work cheap.
I am sure we can figure something out!!!!!
I can tipe reel qwik wit one finnagar!!!
Justin
I will try tto get the name of the park director that I got the info from… I was a little to shocked at the fee to remember his name at the time.
Hi!
The head of the Brown Cty Park Dept. is Doug Hartman. I work for the Brown Cty hwy department and have worked with Mr Hartman over the years when he was in charge of Barkhausen Preserve, he is a very down to earth person and should be approachable with our concerns about the required fee issue we have, and he would sure tell us why, or where this is coming from.
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