Foundation looks to place signs recognizing late Packer backer
By Dave Fidlin
Correspondent
Signs paying homage to an influential Union Grove Packer backer could soon be installed at multiple entry points into the village.
Representatives of the GoFrankGo Foundation, an organization established to keep the memory of the late Frank Lamping alive, recently reached out to Union Grove Village President Steve Wicklund and shared plans of installing the signs.
Lamping, who was all things green and gold, was inducted as the 19th member into the Green Bay Packers FAN Hall of Fame in 2017. Lamping died in 2020 after losing a battle to cancer.
In addition to his diehard support of the Packers, Lamping became known in Union Grove — and well beyond — for his robust community service efforts and a spirit of giving with passion. Those hallmarks have been at the forefront of the GoFrankGo Foundation.
In a discussion at a Village Board meeting Jan. 10, Wicklund said he had been in contact with Dave Moyer, a board member of the GoFrankGo Foundation, about the possibility of installing the signs at specific entry points into the village.
“I don’t think we, as a board, would have a problem approving something like this,” Wicklund said, prefacing his statement with a desire to first bring the matter to all of trustees for consensus.
Wicklund compared the proposed signs to similar messaging in Burlington, where Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo grew up.
From a technical standpoint, neither Wicklund nor Village Administrator Mike Hawes said they anticipated actual involvement in the sign installs.
Hawes, however, said he would be willing to discuss the matter with officials in the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, which could need to sign off the installs on state highways running through the community.
“I have a good rapport with the guy who approves these things from DOT, so it won’t be an issue,” Hawes said. “We just need to give them the information.”
Wicklund said the sign installs are linked to a forthcoming event in recognition of Lamping. Further details are forthcoming.
New life for former Burger King property?
The Village Board on Jan. 10 also heard a report from Hawes on a potential future life for the long-dormant Burger King property at 1141 15th Ave.
Hawes used the administrator’s report of the board agenda to discuss a potential new use for the site with a pre-application meeting taking place with the new owner of the property as 2022 gets underway.
While a number of details still need to be fleshed out, Hawes said the proposal for the site includes a food truck concept and a potential for a beer garden type of event.
The proposal remains in the information-gathering phase. A number of steps need to occur before the plans are set in stone, including the issuance of any applicable permits and approvals from the Plan Commission and Village Board.
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