What: OTN Spring Conference
Where: Riveredge Nature Preserve - the barn
When: 5:30 pm
Featured Speakers:
Port Washington Mayor Tom Mlada and Port Washington Tourism Director, Kathy Tank presenting on the proposed NOAA Maritime Sanctuary along Ozaukee, Sheboygan and Manitowoc County and Jill Hapner and Jerold Berg on GrassWorks Inc.
(GrassWorks is a grassroots membership organization that provides leadership and education to farmers and consumers for the advancement of managed grass-based agriculture to benefit present and future generations. As a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, GrassWorks links farmers with the resources they need to be successful graziers.)
Plenty of networking time and food as always
Note: as always, you are welcome to bring a beverage of choice to share. If you would like to add to the dinner, that would be great. Please let us know what you might bring so we can plan the rest of the food.
Email your rsvp to Marjie at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Who was in attendance:
We had a full house with membership from:
Ozaukee County Planning and Parks, Land and Water Management, UW Extension, and County Board.
Wellspring, Riveredge, OWLT, Pheasants Forever, Wisconsin Wetlands, DNR, Ulao Creek Partnership, Village of Thiensville, Town of Grafton, Western Great Lakes Bird and Bat, Wisconsin Humane-Ozaukee, Cedarburg Bog, Treasures of Oz, Land Conservation Partnership of Ozaukee County, Renew Port, Milwaukee Riverkeeper, The Conservation Fund, Eco-Resources, Stantec, Sweet Water Trust, Tall Pines Conservancy, and SANC.
Talks and topics were interesting and enlightening...so apologies for the brevity of the notes. We would have needed one good court reporter to keep up with the flow and details of the presentations. This is a very good reason to attend these events, rather than rely on the notes..LOL. Some more details will be coming, so watch this space.
What is this about Ozaukee County being a "Bird City" and why are so many Ozaukee municipalities following suit?
The city of Mequon, the Town of Grafton, the City of Port Washington and our neighboring Village of Newburg have all become part of Bird City Wisconsin in the past four years.
Maybe it is because they understand that the more species of birds an area has, the higher the property values will be. An area that has many bird species needs to have a diverse collection of trees, shrubs and other growing things. Prospective home buyers as well as birds love that diversity of plants and a 2011 study in Lubbock Texas indicated that homes with more than one species of less-than-common birds in the area sold, on average, for about $32,000.00 more than comparable homes without.
Perhaps Bird Cities understand that birds are the indicators of a healthy environment and they are willing to take extra steps to improve the ecological health of their community. The birds are daily reminders that a community has a healthy eco-system, something that more and more people are seeking. The Bird City WI website sums it up well. " Like the proverbial canaries in a coal mine, birds serve as indicators of the ecological health of our planet. Because of their rapid metabolism and wide geographic distribution, birds provide early warning to us of changes in the environment and potentially harmful biological conditions. Robust, diverse bird populations reflect the underlying health of the ecosystem in which they – and we – live. Since we share our planet with all other species, what happens to birds can happen to us."