OnFocus – At the Economic Development Board (EDB) Meeting at City Hall on Thursday, Justin Casperson of the City of Marshfield Parks and Recreation Department introduced a plan to add a new position to the City of Marshfield.
Nicki Ryner currently is employed by Main Street Marshfield and works as the director of the Wenzel Family Plaza. Ryner plans events and oversees the upkeep of the plaza.
Ryner works closely with multiple entities around the city including the Parks and Recreation Department, Visit Marshfield and Main Street Marshfield. At the meeting Ryner mentioned that she has hats in all of these areas but is only formally paid by Main Street Marshfield.
The proposal brought by Casperson would make Ryner’s position one that would make her an employee of the parks and rec department while also having a hand in the Wenzel Family Plaza and directing events around the city.
The board noted the wealth of parks Marshfield has but there is also a lack of events being held for citizens at these parks. Ryner’s new position would theoretically help with getting events in these parks.
Throughout 2020 and so far this year, events scheduled to be held at Wenzel Family Plaza were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In return, the annual $50,000 contributions from Visit Marshfield and the EDB were halted. In this new plan, Casperson said there would be a plan to have a 40-40-20 split on funding for the position between Main Street Marshfield, Visit Marshfield and Parks and Rec.
The Plaza was built in 2017 and Ryner has been director of the plaza for two years.
Both Adam Fischer and Tom Buttke had positive things to say about the potential move, expressing their interest in the events side of what Ryner can bring to the table.
The motion to bring the proposal before the common council passed unanimously. Ultimately, the council will have the final say on what happens with the position.
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