Neenah-WI

8 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 4, ISSUE 6 Responding to the needs of the greater Neenah community is another agenda item for both the city and its non- profit partner. “One of the things that Future Neenah specializes in is cultural development,” Hanneman relates. “We run the Farmers Market for the community; we run Thursday noon lunch concerts called Out to Lunch; we run Wednesday evening concerts in the park; a very Neenah Christmas; cookie crawls; wine walks; Ultimate Ladies Day. The goal is to introduce the community to something special in their own backyard and also to bring people in from the outside to have that ‘wow’ moment. A lot of people tell us, for example, that the Farmers Market is not just a place where they go to pick up their food or vegetables, but it’s a community gathering place on Saturday mornings. It’s a lot of fun here.” Schmidt says that over the last ten to fifteen years, the city has also invested “a considerable amount of time, energy, and resources expanding its trail and bike network.” The Loop the Little Lake trail system, a regional effort between three municipalities in the area – the Village of Fox Crossing, the City of Menasha, and Neenah – is a three-mile loop along the Little Lake Butte des Morts and Fox River that includes four trestle bridges over the water. “Neenah has four miles of shore land on Little Lake Butte des Morts, the Fox River, and Lake Winnebago,” he shares. “Of those four miles, almost two-and-a-half miles of that is publicly accessible, and much includes trails. So, the pedestrian network that we have here continues to grow and it’s something that our residents and businesses care about. It’s a great amenity that we have in our community.” Other amenities include 367 acres of developed parkland in the City of Neenah, maintained and operated by its Parks and Recreation Department.