On April 6, Dane County voters will have a chance to vote YES on an advisory referendum which will add to the existing County parks budget in order to purchase and protect more natural resource areas, parks and trails. The proposed New Conservation Fund would create a $30 million, 10-year program to purchase land for county parks and open space, trails and wildlife areas. Up to 20% of the funds could be used as grants to Dane County cities, villages, towns and nonprofit conservation organizations to protect environmental resources. The New Conservation Fund would augment the existing county budget for parks, bringing the total available in the coming decade for land acquisition, park land management and grants to approximately $40 million.

County Executive Kathleen Falk, who supports the referendum, has suggested that funding for the $30 million would come from either a one-twelfth cent addition to the sales tax or by a bond issue which is estimated to cost the owner of a median valued ($135,000) home between $14-$22 annually, or about $1.16 - $1.83 a month.

Support for the referendum is diverse and non-partisan: those urging a YES vote include the Madison Area Builders Association, the Dane County Natural Heritage Foundation, Realtors Association of South Central Wisconsin, Madison Audubon Society, the Ice Age Trails Group, the Ice Age Park & Trail Foundation, Capital Community Citizens, Urban Open Space Foundation, Lake Waubesa Conservation Association, and Community Shares of Wisconsin, among others. County Board Chair Kevin Kesterston of McFarland sponsored the County Board resolution calling for the referendum. He was joined by 24 other supervisors of all political stripes. A coalition of realtors, builders, conservationists and environmentalists have come together to actively campaign for a YES vote.

"This is an important opportunity to go to the polls and show our overwhelming support for one of the most important things we can do for the environment," said Marsha Cannon, president of the Madison Audubon Society." As we know, parks help protect the environment by preserving ecosystems which, in turn, improve everything from water quality to biodiversity. Adding to the County's financial resources in order to ensure we can purchase more park land and preserve more natural, open space is what this referendum is all about."

She added, "In 1935, Dane County acquired its first park- -Stewart--and in the 64 years since then, we've built a wonderful system of places where families, sportsmen, naturalists, hikers, skiers and outdoorspeople can go to enjoy the beauty that is Dane County. The diversity of people who enjoy our parks, the environmental and conservation benefits of natural areas and the economics of this plan--doing all this for under $2 a month in terms of costs to taxpayers--are the features of this referendum that have earned it such widespread support. Put pretty simply, it's just good public policy."

"The need to, and rationale for, buying and protecting these areas is part of the Dane County Parks and Opens Space 2000 Plan," noted Gary Werner, president of the Ice Age Trail Group and Chair of the Dane County Chapter of the Ice Age Park & Trail Foundation. "Looking ahead to make sure we leave this County as beautiful and as great a place to live for future generations is our responsibility. A strong YES vote on April 6 is critically important to send a powerful message that citizens throughout the County are willing to support good public policy that recognizes the importance of preserving our natural resources."

For more information on how to get involved in supporting the referendum, please call campaign coordinator Margaret McEntire at 249-0062. Contributions to the effort to pass the referendum can be mailed to: Citizens for the Conservation Fund, P.O. Box 3434, Madison, WI 53704-0434.

-provided by Citizens for the Conservation Fund


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