Main Street in the Village of Luxemburg is going to have a new look in 2016.

Thanks to money accrued from its Tax Increment Finance (TIF) districts, the village will be reconstructing its storm water system on County AB (Main Street) from Wisconsin 54 to Ash Street, as well as adding new lighting, sidewalks, benches, colored concrete, wayfinder signs and planters, according to Josh Salentine, village president.

“We created TIF districts in the 1990s and ours have been very successful,” Salentine said.  “We have to close them out by 2017 by state law and 15 years ago the village board looked at different main street enhancements that could be completed with the funds.”

The village has about $2.5 million from the TIF districts to fund the project, he said.

“All the tax money we have collected gets reinvested back into infrastructure,” Salentine said.

The goal is to have the Main Street Enhancement Project completed by the  Kewaunee County Fair in July, he said.

The village had its first meeting with Robert E. Lee and Associates in September to begin the technical drawings and in 2016 will begin bidding out various parts of the project, as well as making decisions on new lighting, signs and other improvements, he said.

If funding allows, the village may try to stretch the project north of Wisconsin 54 to Spartan Way, Salentine said.  The village board is also looking at improvements to the section from Church Road to Robin Lane, he said.

The Kewaunee County Star-News asked Salentine, as well as the mayors of Kewaunee and Algoma to comment on the highlights of 2015 and plans for 2016 for their municipalities:

Josh Salentine

Luxemburg Village President

What has been the most important accomplishment of your village this year?  

Bringing the Main Street Enhancement Project to fruition.

What has been the biggest struggle/challenge for your community this year?  

Getting a handle on sewer rates.  We know that N.E.W. Water in Green Bay, which processes our sewage, is investing $120 million into their facility and it will affect all sewer users.

Looking ahead to 2016, what will be your top two or three priorities for the city?

Making sure that that Main Street Enhancement Project and Fourth Street rebuilds are completed prior to the Kewaunee County Fair, which is held in July.  The Fourth Street rebuild will involve repaving the street and adding or redoing curbs in some places.

What do you think will be your biggest challenge in 2017?  

Crafting the 2017 budget.   We are never certain about how much we will receive in shared state revenues for highway and other projects.

Can you provide a vision of your city in 2020 and how you hope to accomplish that vision?

A bedroom community with significant amenities and natural beauty that is a good place for families, senior citizens and others to live and work.  We also hope to maximize the trailhead of the Ahnapee State Trail that is in our community.

John Blaha

Mayor, City of Kewaunee

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What has been the most important accomplishment of your city this year?

Our most important accomplishment of the year has been obtaining the funding for the seawall. This has been a project I have been involved in dating back to 2007 when I first contacted Klockner KHS Inc. about selling Kewaunee the property along the harbor. At that time KHS was asking $650,000 for the property. It took nearly seven years but I was able to negotiate that price down to $210,000.

What has been the biggest/struggle for your community in 2015?

Our biggest challenge has been the completion of the First Street and Harrison Street projects. These are two streets that have been in dire need of repair for the past 15-plus years. The complete reconstruction of two streets in the same year was a huge undertaking, and we got through it  with very few problems.

Looking ahead to 2016, what will be your top two or three priorities for the city?.

Again, looking ahead to 2016 our biggest priority will be the completion of the seawall project and searching for a developer for the property.

What do you think will be your biggest challenge in 2016?

One of our biggest challenges will be working with a developer on the old KHS property. Once the seawall repairs are completed, there should be a lot of interest in developing the property.

Can you provide a vision of your city for 2020 and how you hope to accomplish that vision?

I think the vision for every small community is to attract new business, and Kewaunee has always worked with anyone interested in investing in our community. The expansion of Luxemburg Bank in Kewaunee only goes to reinforce that argument. But while we work with new businesses, we must also recognize that existing businesses need our help, so a main part of our focus must be to assist them in any way we can to remain in Kewaunee.

With the completion of the seawall project, we will open up a new opportunity never available to Kewaunee before. The vision for that property and our city has always been some type of development that would not only benefit OUR community, but the entire county as a whole, and our councils past and present have worked very hard to help that vision become a reality. This project does not look out to the year 2020, it looks out 50 years and beyond.

Wayne Schmidt 

Mayor, City of Algoma

What was the most important accomplishment of your city this year?

The year 2015 was an exciting one for the city of Algoma.  We took ownership of the pier lighthouse which is an icon of the city. The planning for the new GrandStay hotel still moves forward.  Because of our great volunteer base of people, the Friends of Crescent Beach was formed to help preserve our beautiful lake front.  A few new businesses opened and our industrial base remains strong.

What has been the biggest struggle/challenge for your community in 2015?

We have several challenges.  A major challenge is recruiting men and women to become EMTs (Emergency Medical Technicians). With an aging population, the utilization of our rescue squad remains high.  We struggle with trying to obtain adequate funding to provide the services that our tax payers deserve.  We are always looking for new construction and businesses to help increase our tax base.

Looking ahead to 2016, what will be your top two or three priorities for the city?

Getting the GrandStay hotel built.  Completion of the major renovation project at the Algoma Medical Center for Ministry Health Door County Therapy Clinic expansion.  Selective rebuilding of certain sanitary lines, sidewalk replacement, and continuing to try and upgrade and improve our aging public works fleet. Supporting new and existing community events like America’s Tall Ships regatta in August, Friends of Crescent Beach’s Soar on the Shore and the 30-year anniversary of the Shanty Days celebration.

What do you think will be your biggest challenge in 2016?

Developing a strategy to secure property improvements and maintenance of the Main Street Business District and renewal of older housing and neighborhoods.  Second, continuing to improve the city tax base.

Can you provide a vision of your city for 2020, and how you hope to accomplish that vision?

First, a customer friendly, financially sound, transparent, well-run city government with good public infrastructure, well maintained parks and a world-class beach and marina that is clean and safe, with a family-centered focus, that has tremendous opportunities for good high paying jobs, great schools, new housing, a thriving main street and a modern business park.  Second, a Welcoming City that is a destination for travelers from the lake shore, Northeast Wisconsin, the nation and around the world by expanding an emphasis on brewing and wine making, food and industrial food preparation, retail shopping, biking, fishing, improvements in our state-owned trails and assorted other recreational sporting activities.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press Gazette: Community leaders look toward 2016