Wetland mowing angers Elkhorn residents
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A wetland area at the end of Bluestem Court, off E. Sedgemeadow St. in Elkhorn was recently cut down. Residents in the area have expressed concern over mess left behind as well as the loss of habitat.
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A pile of cat tale stems sits at the edge of a wetland near Bluestem Court, off E. Sedgemeadow St. in Elkhorn. Residents in the area have expressed concern over after the area was mowed down recently.
ELKHORN — Some Elkhorn residents are angry at city officials after workers mowed a wetland field next to their properties on the west side of the city.
Area residents are upset because they thought the area was protected by the Department of Natural Resources as a wetland and they wanted to be notified of what they called a drastic change in their neighborhood.
"It's normally wet and filled with water," resident Bonnie Cowans told the Elkhorn City Council Monday night. "It has thousands of birds; it has wildlife that lives in there; it's generally 7 feet or taller.
"The city came through and mowed it down. It chased down deer, foxes; all the birds are gone."
The property is defined by Wisconsin's DNR as a wetland and is located on the west edge of the city between West Sedgemeadow Street and Bluestem Court. And wetlands are protected by DNR officials; it is unlawful to build on or alter the soil without DNR's permission.
Despite upsetting neighbors, a DNR official said there were no laws broken and city officials were within their jurisdictional rights to mow the land.
"The city went out and cut vegetation, and cutting does not require any type of DNR approval," said Pam Schense, a water management specialist in Walworth County.
"It's not a regulated activity. That is actually allowed."
The only issue Schense said needs attention is the city leaving the cut vegetation in the area. She said a DNR warden has notified Elkhorn officials, and they are taking care of cleaning the property.
On Monday evening, a few neighborhood children were building houses for the animals that used to be spotted in the vicinity. One girl said she was working so the animals wouldn't be homeless.
Most of the residents who complained to the city council said wildlife in the area was one of the selling points on their decision to move there.
"We're all very upset that they just came in, mowed it down; nobody knew anything that was happening," Cowens said. "Now we have no birds. All the wildlife that we enjoyed has been chased down."
Resident Jim Taylor said the place now stinks and has mosquitoes, neither of which he had noticed before.
"I guess we don't understand why this action was taken," Taylor said. "We can see no logical reason for that area to be knocked down."
At the city council meeting Monday, Mayor John Giese said his understanding was the move was done to allow natural grasses to come back.
The land is designated as public land and is owned by the city of Elkhorn, according to records at the Walworth County Register of Deeds.
Officials have no legal obligation to notify residents of mowing performed on city-owned property, officials said Monday.
Elkhorn Public Works Director Terry Weter, whose department performed the job, called in sick Tuesday and was unavailable for comment.
Sep 24, 2009 at 12:22 p.m.
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A dry summer??? It rained almost every other day!
Sep 24, 2009 at 12:22 p.m.
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Prairies must be cut or burnt every few years to eradicate broadleaf weeds and brush. Otherwise brush and broadleafs will take over. Wild life needs the grasses to nest in, not broadleafs. The native Indians knew this and would set fire to the prairies every few years.
Sep 24, 2009 at 11:35 a.m.
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This is listed by the state DNR as a mapped wetlands area.
http://dnrmaps.wisconsin.gov/imf/imf.jsp....
Sep 24, 2009 at 11:07 a.m.
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puds, I was being sacastic. Personally I think this is a pretty stupid thing to get all worked up over.
Sep 24, 2009 at 11:02 a.m.
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jstwndrn, it is not a protected wetland. At best, it is development-restricted, which is not the same thing.
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Ideally, this will begin a conversation with the city and residents to find out whether they approve of wetland areas on city-maintained land, and what policies should be pursued to create and maintain them as wetlands. It would be best if the city were to involve a wetlands restoration expert so that they can understand how to preserve this in the correct manner. That way everyone's expectations will be at the same level.
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It's probably simply that the city never saw this as a wetland, just as a detention pond they were giving limited maintenance. That obviously was not what the residents thought.
Sep 24, 2009 at 9:29 a.m.
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JCK, Think about what you said. You mow your lawn and the grass grows back doesn't it? If you cut weeds down and unless you pull out the roots they grow back don't they? Mowing the wet lands will help for new growth to grow. If the grass and other old growth does not get cut down then it will cause the new growth to die off because it can't get the sun light or the good nutrients needed to grow. It will grow back and the wild life will return.
Dub190 you are partially right. It is better to burn the old growth than too mow but it is better to do a burn in the spring than in the fall.
We had a pretty dry summer so whatever water was in the field more than likely has dried up or has diminished enough to get in the field to mow. If it was wet no one would have been able to get in there to cut it without sinking. Besides the DNR often times does a controlled burn in the spring or mow on their own fields to allow for new growth to grow.
Sep 24, 2009 at 8:54 a.m.
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Bummer, the grasses and weeds will never regrow, the animals will never return, life as it is known will never be the same.
Sep 24, 2009 at 7:43 a.m.
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Imagine that. Someone is unhappy...
Sep 23, 2009 at 9:31 p.m.
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It will grow back. The animals will be fine.
Sep 23, 2009 at 8:11 p.m.
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Looks to me somebody at the city of Elkhorn was bored and looking for something to mow. That's the Midwestern way though, "mow it flat, by god", it looks better that way.
Sep 23, 2009 at 7:08 p.m.
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Plus, what's the point of having a "protected wetlands" area if someone can go out and effectively destroy what it is designed to do, and that is provide habitat for wildlife, even if it is just mowing.
Sep 23, 2009 at 7 p.m.
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Yes, from what I have read, you only mow if the weeds are higher than the grass and/or flowers you want to preserve and you set your mower high enough to take only the weeds. That doesn't seem to be the case here. Also, even a burn wouldn't be done at this time of year, as you are leaving the wildlife without habitat and shelter just as winter is around the corner. Ideally you burn in late winter or early spring. Yes, I would be peeved and disappointed in my town officials for what appears to be a less than well-thought-out action. Too bad, but hopefully they will learn from this mistake, if they care enough to, that is.
Sep 23, 2009 at 6:27 p.m.
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"The land is designated as public land and is owned by the city of Elkhorn, according to records at the Walworth County Register of Deeds.
Officials have no legal obligation to notify residents of mowing performed on city-owned property, officials said Monday."
Let me get this straight.....this is public land and therefore is owned by the taxpayers, right? The residents have every right to be angry.
Sep 23, 2009 at 6:13 p.m.
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Burning would be much more exciting, and probably better. I bet the residents wouldn't be so hot if the city just explained to them what was going on in advance. It sounds like the kids are having fun with it.
Sep 23, 2009 at 5:31 p.m.
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Isn't the norm to do a controlled burn if you want the "natural grasses" to come back? I've never heard of mowing down everything and doing a clear cut if you are trying to preserve the land....
This is very sad and I too would be extremely peeved if this happened near my home. Well, I'm upset and I don't even live in Elkhorn.
Sep 23, 2009 at 4:31 p.m.
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From the description I'm guessing it's this empty space in the middle of a block, something that Janesville would formally designate as greenbelt. (Link is to Bing Maps)
http://bit.ly/T9dF7
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Some greenbelt is handled as mowed parkland, other parts are wetlands, and others are even wooded. The DNR restrictions are on development, not city maintenance. But if the residents there would prefer a wetland, the city should listen to them.
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