'A dream that can become reality': Master plan for Neenah's Arrowhead Park sets stage for public-private partnerships
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NEENAH — A new master plan for the development of Arrowhead Park was unveiled to high praise Wednesday, setting the stage for public and private development in the years to come.
Drawings and maps in the 34-page plan depict a destination building with a rooftop restaurant overlooking Little Lake Butte des Morts, a dual-sided amphitheater with a recreational lawn, a large community building near the park entrance off Millview Drive, and an "innovation building," which isn't defined.
The plan further shows a celebration lawn, a sculpture garden, and a pedestrian and bicycle overpass near Gateway Plaza that would link the 30-acre park to the downtown Neenah business district.
"I look at this as a dream that can become reality," said Ted Galloway, a member of the Parks and Recreation Commission.
"This is a fabulous plan," Common Council member Kathie Boyette said. "I see this as one of the many destination places that other great cities have, and I hope this comes to fruition in the near future."
The commission and council each unanimously accepted the master plan.
Neenah has been working on the development of Arrowhead Park ever since the land was designated as a public recreational area in 1975. There have been many fits and starts.
"This has been quite a process that we've been trying to make something of for so many years," Mayor Jane Lang told The Post-Crescent. "I think we're closer to that than we've ever been before."
'It's a vision. It's an idea.'
Lang emphasized that the master plan is conceptual and might not represent what actually will be built. The plan contains no cost estimates and no timetable for development.
"It's a vision. It's an idea," she said. "Where it goes is dependent on a variety of factors."
Lang envisions the city will be responsible for grading the park, installing utilities and improving access, with the hope that private investment in the park will follow.
Neenah budgeted $900,000 this year for the development of the park. The total consists of $700,000 from the American Rescue Plan Act and $200,000 in unspent funds from prior years.
The master plan cost $45,000 and was created by RDG Planning & Design, which was asked to capitalize on Neenah's waterfront and improve the park's connection to the downtown district. Arrowhead Park was the subject of at least four previous plans, including one completed in 2017 by the consulting firm Short Elliott Hendrickson of Appleton for $45,525.
Development will require public and private investments
Lang said the city doesn't have the capability to realize the full potential of Arrowhead Park on its own.
Rather, she said Neenah will create a platform on which private investors and community partners can work with the city to achieve something remarkable.
No partnerships have been announced.
"We are optimistic about our partnerships going forward," Lang said. "That's all I'm going to say."
Council member Lee Hillstrom said the city will continue to own the land beneath any new building. "That doesn't mean a private company can't pay for it," he said. "There's a lot of interest. That's a good sign."
Arrowhead's proximity to downtown Neenah is key
The plan calls for a pedestrian bridge over the Canadian National railroad tracks to better link the downtown business district with Arrowhead and the Loop the Lake recreational trail.
Closing that gap has been a challenge in the past due to the railroad or industrial buildings that since have been razed.
"I would like to see an improvement in the connectivity to our downtown so that it doesn't seem like this is a remote space that has nothing to do with the downtown," Lang said.
Plan shows buildings on the east, prairies on the west
The plans depicts the destination building, community building, celebration lawn and sculpture garden on the east side of the park, closest to downtown.
Mike Bell, a landscape architect with RDG Planning & Design, said the destination building could host festivals and celebrations and could include a terrace, restaurant or wedding venue.
The amphitheater and 2-acre recreational lawn are shown in the center of the park. The west end would feature a nature-inspired landscape.
The development would be designed to bring people to the water.
"A lot of people see water, but they don't put their toes in the water, at least weekly or monthly," Bell said, "so this park would provide us that opportunity to get down to that shoreline edge and really enjoy the water, both from a recreational standpoint and just from a mindful, contemplation perspective."
Development is complicated because the park is a capped landfill
The land for Arrowhead Park was deeded to the city in 1951 for a public purpose. It has 2,400 feet of shoreline — more than any other Neenah park — but sat largely idle for decades, hidden behind the city's paper industry. With the demolition of the Glatfelter paper mill in 2008 and the Fox Valley Energy Center in 2016, the park came more into public view.
It's now part of the Loop the Lake trail, and Neenah built a $564,000 pier and kayak launch last year to improve access to Little Lake Butte des Morts.
Development of the property is complicated because the park is a capped landfill containing paper sludge contaminated with PCBs, which are considered a probable human carcinogen. Any development has to work around the confines of the clay cap.
"I have been involved in a lot of projects in this community," Community Development Director Chris Haese said. "I believe this will be the most complicated project that we take on."
Key dates in the development of Arrowhead Park
1950: Bergstrom Paper Co. proposes to the city that a park be developed on land created by filling in the south end of Little Lake Butte des Morts with paper sludge. The proposal is viewed favorably because it would provide the company with a place to dump its waste while giving the public a new waterfront recreational area.
1951: The state deeds 32 acres of lake bottom to Neenah for a public purpose.
1973: Bergstrom hires a landscape architect to develop park plans for the landfill.
1975: Neenah designates the landfill as a public recreational area. Bergstrom and the city agree to share the costs of capping the landfill.
1982: The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources recommends Neenah stop development because the paper sludge in the landfill contains hazardous levels of PCBs. It says additional clay is needed to cover the landfill.
1995: Neenah agrees to lease a section of the park to Minergy Corp. for the construction and operation of a $45 million waste-to-energy plant. The city previously had leased parkland to Glatfelter, which bought the Bergstrom mill in 1979.
1998: Minergy begins operation of the plant. It burns natural gas and paper sludge that otherwise would be landfilled to produce steam for the Glatfelter mill and glass aggregate for the construction industry.
2006: The Glatfelter mill closes. Minergy sells its plant to Thermagen Power Group, which operates it as Fox Valley Energy Center.
2008: Neenah demolishes the Glatfelter mill and pays for the development of a master plan for Arrowhead Park.
2013: Fox Valley Energy Center ceases operations.
2014: Neenah constructs an asphalt trail along the park shoreline.
2016: The city razes Fox Valley Energy Center.
2017: The Neenah Parks and Recreation Commission adopts a new master plan for the park.
2023: The city constructs a pier at the park.
2024: Neenah unveils a new master plan for Arrowhead Park.
Contact Duke Behnke at 920-993-7176 or dbehnke@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DukeBehnke.
This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Neenah seeks to turn Arrowhead Park dream into reality
