admin

By Karen Yancey

The Washington Island Observer this year is celebrating its 40th year of providing news and information to its readers that is “all about the Island.”

For more than a century, newspapers have provided a way to get information to their readers that is defined as news – timely, close to home, unusual, involving notable people or events and/or impacting the reader. At their best, newspapers provide objective information on issues that is not slanted by the opinions of the writer or newspaper owners. As important, newspapers encourage a dialogue on issues faced by a community.

At the local level, the current board and staff of the Washington Island Observer seeks to provide objective, accurate and high-quality reporting on news and issues that affect the Island. And through the Observer’s Letters to the Editor page, anyone can write to express their views on these issues.

Island at a crossroads

This year, with the pandemic receding, Washington Island residents and property owners are at a crossroads. More people than ever before are visiting the Island – whether as day tourists or as vacationers who come for a week or longer stay on the Island. At the same time, the Island has seen an influx of young families, both families who have moved here from other parts of the country and those who are descendants of some of the Island’s first settlers. They will be the Island’s leaders by 2040 and it is important that we help them realize their vision of a thriving community two decades from now.

As many people have commented this summer, “Washington Island has been discovered.” Vacationers who used to come to the Door County peninsula due to its scenery, recreational opportunities, quaint shops and towns, and peaceful environment are now choosing to escape the crowds on the peninsula by spending some or all of their vacation time on Washington Island. This is putting a strain on our municipal budget and services from garbage collection to beaches but is also helping many local businesses to succeed. We need to find a way to balance these interests.

Global trends like the rapid increase in the world’s population and the impacts of climate change are also affecting the Island. There are simply more people who need a place to vacation. In addition, the heat waves, droughts, and wildfires on the East and West Coasts are causing more people to see the Midwest and the abundance of fresh water on the Great Lakes as an attractive place to vacation and live. In parts of the Midwest, wealthy people from both the East and West Coasts are buying land and homes off the Internet in case they need to escape the threats of climate change. Do we want the Island to become a place of empty homes waiting for climate refugees and how worried should we be about this trend?

All these issues could change the Island in the years ahead. If the Island community simply reacts to them, residents may not like what the Island has become by 2040. Many of those qualities that brought full-time and seasonal residents here – that make the Island a special place – may be lost. Whether current full-time and seasonal residents came here for the beauty of the Island, its maritime history, strong community, business opportunities, love of the arts and music, ecological health and open spaces, family ties or its tranquility, they may find many of these qualities displaced in the years ahead if the Island community does not develop a plan to preserve them now.

Planning for the future

This a plan should be based on a vision for the Island that most residents share – what they hope will be retained and what will be changed on the Island by the year 2040. To encourage people to think and talk about these issues, the Observer board has invited speakers with expertise in a variety of areas to tell us how we can shape the Island’s future and what we can expect in the years ahead if we don’t take an active role in this future.

We have named this exchange of ideas “Island Forum 2040.” This year, we have scheduled three speakers on the future of Island schools, business environment and ecological health. In addition to the Observer, the other sponsors of “Island Forum 2040” are the Trueblood Performing Arts Center and the Washington Island Ferry Line. The TPAC stage for these events will not only include the speaker but also three or four Islanders who are leaders in this field to ask questions of the speaker when he or she is finished with their half-hour presentation. Questions from the audience will also be welcomed. All the presentations begin at 7 p.m. and cost $5.

In 2022, we will have an additional five to seven speakers on everything from the future arts and music culture of the Island, to managing tourism to the future of our churches. We will also ask experts involved with the health of Lake Michigan and from other Great Lakes islands to speak. Hans Lux, town chairman, has agreed to attend all the presentations and notices are being sent to all the town board members as well.

In fall of 2022, we will ask all our panelists, as well as other interested Islanders, to attend a special meeting with an experienced leader in helping not-for-profits, municipalities and corporations develop vision statements and strategic plans. We hope this group can develop a vision statement for the Island in 2040 as well as help us chart a course to make this vision happen.

Our first 2021 speaker is State Representative Joel Kitchens (R-Sturgeon Bay) on Aug. 16, who will direct his remarks to future state funding for rural schools, as well as other state issues that may impact the Island in the years ahead. The panelists will be Michelle Kanipes, Island school principal, Sue Cornell, Island school superintendent of business services, and one or two members of the Island school board.

In addition, Steve Jenkins, executive director of the Door County Economic Development Corp., will speak about developing sustainable Island businesses for the future on Wed., Sept. 8; and the Island’s Jesse Koyen, who is now director of stewardship for the Door County Land Trust, will discuss protecting the ecological health of the Island’s land and lakes on Sept. 23.

So please mark your calendar for these dates and plan to attend. As Margaret Wheatley, the celebrated writer and community builder, notes, “There is no power for change greater than a community discovering what it cares about.”

The Washington Island Observer would like to thank the 35 families who invested in the Observer almost a decade ago and allowed the current board and staff to offer this platform to begin a dialogue on shaping a vision for the Island’s future. Tickets can be purchased at the Observer office prior to the event or at the TPAC office on the night of the event.

By Will Craig

At its Sept. 17 meeting, Door County Tourism Zone Commission member Dave Eliot of Baileys Harbor proposed raising the local room tax from 5.5% to 8%, an increase of 45%. That means, combined with the current state sales tax rate, the tax would increase from 11% to 13.5% of a lodging rate.

According to a recent Washington Island Chamber of Commerce survey of its membership, 95% of Washington Island lodging providers and businesses are not happy with the proposal. Lodging owners fear that the current room tax is high enough and raising the rates will drive visitors to different locations with a lower room tax, according to the Chamber. A major reason for raising the rate is so municipalities can increase revenue. At the September meeting, Eliot said Baileys Harbor “needs more money.”

Each tourism zone member municipality receives 30% of the tax proceeds. For Washington Island in 2019, the town received nearly $28,000, which they split with the Chamber of Commerce. If the increase had been in place in 2019, that would have amounted to just over $40,000.

The numbers for 2020 are not yet available, but, because of COVID-19 restrictions, they are anticipated to be down from 2019. Island businesses are hoping for a recovery in 2021 and say they worry a room tax increase will impede that recovery. The Tourism Zone Commission is composed of Sturgeon Bay and most of the villages and towns in Door County – 14 municipalities in all. The commission has 24 individual members because municipalities with over $300,000 in annual tax collections get two representatives. Linda Elmore from the Washington Island Chamber of Commerce is the Island’s representative. Josh Van Lieshout, city administrator for Sturgeon Bay, is chair of the commission.

September meeting

Dave Eliot, town chair of Baileys Harbor, is the commission member proposing the increase. The town gave him permission to pursue developing a letter of intent that would raise the room tax to 8%. He also said that, with this proposal, the commission would begin charging $250 to lodging providers for the annual permit they need to run their business. He has been contacting other municipalities, pushing them to put the topic on their agendas.

Chair Van Lieshout said he felt things were moving too fast. It has been a long-standing policy that the lodging providers need to drive any increase in room tax rate. Several other commission members supported that view.

Eliot was not deterred. He said, “the Tourism Zone cannot say no to the municipalities. The municipalities created the Tourism Zone.” Van Lieshout conceded that point.

Current status

The current status of the proposal is unknown. The topic was on the October agenda, but no minutes are available and, Van Lieshout said, no letter of intent yet exists. Individual municipalities may be discussing the room tax increase, but the commission has made no decisions.

Sturgeon Bay has looked at the plan. Van Lieshout said the city’s finance committee is concerned about the burden on lodging providers.

Richard Tobey, chair of the Washington Town Board, has no strong feelings about the proposal. He said he dismisses the idea the Island would lose tourism business, at least to other parts of Door County, since the tax rate would be the same countywide. He also said he is happy with Elmore from the Chamber representing the town’s interests on the commission.

A formal letter of intent has yet to be presented to the full commission. An executive committee meeting is scheduled for Nov. 19, with the full commission meeting again on Dec. 17. Meeting agendas are posted on the Tourism Zone’s website and include Zoom addresses for those wishing to attend remotely (www.doorcountytourismzone.com and click on Meetings, then “agendas and minutes.”)

(PHOTO CAPTION)

If a proposal to increase the Door County room tax from 5.5% to 8% succeeds, Gibson’s West Harbor Resort, like all Island lodging facilities, would begin collecting 13.5% of a lodging rate for taxes (5.5% state sales tax plus 8% room tax).

By Steve Kretzmann

The reopening of school was again the main topic for the Washington Island School Board’s monthly “committee of the whole” meeting on August 17 via Zoom.

At their special work meeting on July 31, the board charged Principal and Curriculum Director Michelle Kanipes, Superintendent of Business Services Sue Cornell, and Title 1 Coordinator Margaret Foss with drawing up a detailed plan for starting in-person instruction on Sept. 1, with an alternative distance learning option for families who don’t feel comfortable sending students to school.

Kanipes, Cornell, and Foss used information from the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, the Department of Public Instruction, the Door County Health Department, and the Centers for Disease Control to compile a 22-page guide for reopening to be distributed to school families.

Board members, teachers, and staff had received copies of the plan before the meeting and came ready with questions and suggestions.

Board member Kirsten Purinton had prepared several suggested edits to clarify sections of the plan dealing with in-school health precautions.

Board member Sara Sorensen argued that mask-wearing should be mandatory at all times for all staff and students in the school building. Several teachers echoed that position, and the plan will include that requirement, as well as social distancing and cleaning protocols within the school.

Another topic that generated extensive discussion was whether students who chose to receive virtual instruction at the start of the year would be allowed to change to in-person learning, and conversely, if students starting with in-person could switch to distance learning. A consensus emerged that one switch per student would probably be manageable, but that frequent switching would be impractical for both teachers and students.

The board discussed the question of health checks but did not come to a final decision at the meeting. Administrative Assistant Zuzka Krueger suggested it would be possible to do a fast temperature scan for arriving students every day. Purinton commented that families should be the primary monitors of their students’ health every day.

The logistics of morning school arrivals also came up for discussion. Board members put forth several different proposals for controlling the flow of students into the building to avoid close contact. Possible alternatives included marking waiting lines on the sidewalk, as many stores have done. Students might also be asked to remain in their cars until they can safely enter the school when they drive or are dropped off.

A large obstacle to making informed decisions on many of these issues was that the board did not know how many families and students would opt out of in-person instruction. By necessity, the reopening plan leaves out many details of instruction. Teachers have to prepare for both in-person and virtual instruction, but because no one knows how many students will opt for each alternative, planning is difficult.

At the end of the meeting, the board formally approved the plan with several edits and clarifications that had been submitted by board members. The plan was to be distributed to students’ families, and they will have the choice of which instruction model their students will use.

In other business the board discussed the possibility of installing a building-wide iWave air purification system in the school. The board tabled the question until the buildings and grounds committee could research the effectiveness of the system.

The board also heard a presentation from Bec Kurzynske, a representative of the M3 Employees Benefits Service team, about a long-term disability insurance benefit that could be added to school employees’ compensation packages. The board agreed to look at the plan and make a decision at a future meeting. The plan would cost the district about $2,100 a year.

The next regular school board meeting was scheduled for August 24 at 6 p.m. Zoom links for all public board meeting are posted on the school district’s website.

WASHINGTON ISLAND, WI – The Washington Island Observer newspaper and Washington Island Chamber of Commerce have announced the creation of a new video series designed to regularly communicate Island news and provide insight into how the Island has been coping with the current coronavirus health crisis.

The ISLAND REPORT video series features short Zoom-recorded interviews with local business owners, government figures and island residents. The series’ debut episode offers an in-depth interview with Hoyt Purinton, president of the Washington Island Ferry Line by interviewer Julian Hagen, a local musician and business owner.

Among other revelations, Purinton discussed how the Ferry Line has changed its previous boarding and ferry ride procedures in response to the pandemic, and noted that the company continues to be guided by the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an operating component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The new video series is being produced by Door County Digital, the video production unit of Door Guide Publishing in Sister Bay, the publishers of the Door County Go! Guide and Door County Dining Guide. Bill Youmans is film director on the new series, John Nelson is producer.

“The major challenge in creating this important video communication,” said Nelson, “was the need to film it without setting foot on the Island. We were duly impressed by Zoom’s capabilities, which allowed us to partially record in HD (high definition). The only limitation was the strength of Island broadband, which like the rest of the county, has been diminished by the huge recent increase in quarantined and self-isolating users.” Watch the first episode of ISLAND REPORT: https://youtu.be/VN9F-fUMpig

April 3, 2020

Dear Friend,

Over the last few weeks, I’ve come to two undeniable conclusions. The first is that the Wisconsin tourism industry was one of the first and hardest hit industries as we’ve worked to flatten the curve of COVID-19. The second is that if provided the financial resources, we will lead Wisconsin’s economic comeback.

Proposed State Relief Funds

Today, Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers showed his commitment to our industry by including several provisions in his second package of relief and support legislation. With the Department of Tourism’s return on investment increasing to $8-to-$1, it is clear that tourism promotion is a great investment in Wisconsin’s economic recovery. The provisions include:

1) Regional Destination Marketing Organization Grant Program ($2 Million)

In order to uplift our entire industry, rather than just some parts of each region, this $2 million grant program will incentivize coordinated and collaborative marketing and promotion activities to drive larger scale initiatives and enable regional partnerships. This proposal would model tourism promotion already implemented in other states by incentivizing the creation of regional coalitions to work in unity for greater synergy and awareness building.

2) Co-op marketing grants ($3 Million)

This proposal offsets the loss of room tax for the Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) by temporarily supplementing their buy into current and expanded co-op marketing programs with the Department. The Department of Tourism is a marketing organization and the fastest way we can help our industry recover is to quickly infuse marketing that gets travelers back on the road. After all, heads don’t put themselves in beds.

Governor Evers’ support doesn’t end there. Today’s announcement comes just days after he announced a first piece of legislation, which included additional funding for struggling business and provisions for workers who recently filed for unemployment. The first package included $25 million for the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, a repeal of the one-week waiting period for unemployment insurance, expanding and improving access to telehealth services, among many other proposals.

Today’s proposal shores up the unemployment fund to ensure businesses don’t see an increase in UI taxes as a result of the unusually high claims we are currently experiencing, secures funding for lifting the one-week waiting period for unemployment compensation for struggling workers and proposes $150 million (inclusive of the $25 million in the first package) for WEDC to provide relief to small businesses and workers.

Tourism has traditionally enjoyed strong bipartisan support and I am hoping that we can rely on that support now, more than ever. If you want to share your support for the tourism industry, I encourage you to reach out and discuss this legislation with your state representative and your state senator. It is very important that your elected leaders hear just how this public health emergency has impacted you.

COVID-19 Federal CARES ACT

This week also saw the enactment of a $2 trillion federal relief bill that will have tremendous impact upon the businesses that make up the tourism industry. If you represent a business, here are some helpful resources to help you access these federal funds:

• US Travel Association’s summary and eligibility guide can be found here.
• Small Business Association’s disaster loan assistance program can be found here.
• The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation continues to update their COVID-19 resources here.

I know that there is no single program that can make you whole and there is no one-size fits all approach to helping us get through this. But, together, we will get to the other side of this and we will be stronger than ever.

Forward together,

Sara Meaney
Secretary-designee

Going Garbage & Recycling Inc. has announced changes to their trash pick-up operations due to the unprecedented circumstances related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

While the company’s residential and commercial routes will continue to run on a normal schedule, Going announced that will not be picking up bulk items until further notice. All materials set out for collection must be in a cart with a closed lid.

Going Garbage & Recycling Inc. encourages residents to inquire about curbside trash and recycling services to help limit face to face interactions at dumps and other community settings. They also strongly encourage customers to set up auto-pay to reduce the risk of spreading the virus through mailed-in checks. For more information on these services, please call 920-854-2114 or email office@goinggarbage.com.

“During these unprecedented times, we want you to know we are here for you,” said owner Jeff Johnson. “As a local Door County business for over 55 years, we empathize with neighboring businesses and communities, and will help in any way possible.” Contact Going Garbage with questions at 920-854-2114 or email:  office@goinggarbage.com. Website: www.goinggarbage.com

By Dick Purinton

Modern day marketing sometimes states that Washington Island is the “oldest Icelandic settlement,” or the “largest,” of any in North America.

There is truth to each claim, but such statements must also be clarified. What happened on Washington Island, it appears, was the beginning of an emigration movement, whereby family members and other fellow Icelanders were encouraged through first-hand communications such as letters, to consider North America as their future home.

There was a group of Icelanders who followed a Mormon leader to Spanish Fork, Utah. Initially three in number in 1854, they soon added new pilgrims to their ranks. They were recruited on Vestmannaeyjer (or Westman Island), and gradually, between 1854 and 1914, over 400 fellow Icelanders settled in Spanish Fork. This community certainly qualified as an Icelandic settlement, but as a religious community it seemed to be downplayed as a true emigration movement.

“They were followed to Utah in later years by other converts, but the early Icelandic Mormon’s status as lost sheep probably denied them any chance to inspire a general migration to America,” wrote Washington Island author Conan Eaton in his book “Washington Island 1836-1896.”

So, it is with an asterisk, then, that we must qualify the statement that Washington Island was the first settlement of Icelanders in the U. S, or that they alone began the trend in emigration that eventually encouraged some 20,000 fellow countrymen to follow.

Noting Icelandic emigrant numbers on Washington Island, Eaton wrote that the community here may have numbered between 150 and 200 Icelanders, at most. And of those, some came and found disappointment, then moved on.

This we do know, through copies of letters held in our Island Archives and elsewhere: the generally positive experience of Washington Island’s four young men made an impact in Iceland. Their words of encouragement led directly to a greater emigration movement.

For that we take note, and in 2020 we choose to remember the contribution made by the arrival of those first four young Icelanders.

What drove them to emigrate?

By Conan Eaton’s account, it was William Wickmann, the Danish clerk who worked in the Eyrarbakki trading center, who encouraged his Icelandic friends to come to Milwaukee. Then, from Milwaukee, Wickmann further encouraged them to join him on Washington Island.

Once here, their hard work seemed to pay off, and their future looked better. Letters home encouraged others to follow, and, by 1872, another group numbering 17 were prepared to embark on their journey. This time, Washington Island was their geographic goal, not Milwaukee.

One young woman learned before sailing that she was pregnant and chose to remain in Iceland along with her husband. As a result, only 15—and not 17—made the journey.

During our 2015 family trip to Eyrarbakki, we were met by Audur Hildur Hakkonardottir, one of our hosts. She had created an exhibit in the museum there, the former home of the Danish consul in Eyrarbakki in the latter 1800s. Her exhibit depicted the early emigration to Washington Island, and her research revealed 17 names of Icelanders intending to emigrate in 1872.

But, in fact, only 15 arrived in North America. What happened to the remaining two, she wondered?

On a plane trip with a friend she explained her predicament, wondering who the two missing emigrants might have been. Her travel companion, Holmfridur Arnasdottir, recalled a story she learned as a child, that her great-grandmother decided not to travel to North America when she discovered that she was pregnant. Although Holmfridur could not remember the year this happened, it was apparent that Hildur had an answer, and that a piece of the puzzle had fallen into place.

In a further coincidence, through conversation between the Island’s Sally Schweikert and Principal Flutist of the Chicago Symphony, Stefan Ragnar Hoskulldsson, Sally spoke of Icelandic heritage on Washington Island. Stefan said that one of his forebears had withdrawn her name from the list of emigres, and for the same reason as stated in the above story: she found that she was pregnant and chose not to travel overseas on what would be an arduous journey. Could each story be of the same woman, the same prospective traveler to America? We hope to learn more about this story in the future.

From letters and records referred to by Eaton in his book about Washington Island’s Icelandic settlement, William Wickmann was the man most responsible for arrival of the first four young men.

But it was not a one-time activity. He then continued as the go-between for other Icelanders, helping with travel arrangements for those who followed, for making introductions and easing their cultural assimilation.

It is no wonder that Eyrarbakki Museum director Lydur Palsson stands in awe of William Wickmann, for all he did on behalf of Icelandic immigrants. His role was critical and needs to be remembered, as much as the lives of the four young Icelanders in 1870 who took a leap of faith by following him.

For more information, subscribe to the Observer!