News of UWSP-Wausau leaving the Stewart Avenue Campus dropped like a bombshell last month. But there’s yet another shocker waiting in the wings.
The cost to demo the UWSP-Wausau dorm? Around $1 million.
Marathon County Deputy Administrator Chris Holman said that’s the upper end of the cost range — between $750,000 and $1 million — to tear down the old, unused dorm building. It’s expensive because the staging is very difficult given the dorm’s location.
The building had been in the news since the New Beginnings group wanted to redevelop the building into a refugee center. The county decided to pause on that, opening up the building for proposals.
County leaders could use the building’s maintenance fund to help fund the demo, but that’s only about $171,000, County Administrator Lance Leonhard says. The county could potentially qualify for a redevelopment grant through the Wisconsin Economic Development Council, Leonhard explained, which could cover the costs.
What else in Wausau?
Wausau School District taxpayers will see mill rate decrease: Wausau School District taxpayers will see a significant decrease in mill rate as the school board adopted its 2026 budget Monday. The new mill rate, $6.58 per $1,000 in valuation, is 60 cents less than in 2025. State aid increased $1.2 million, allowing the district to retire more of its debt, district official Josh Viegut told the board.
Wausau school athletes will be paying more soon: The Wausau School Board Monday approved a doubling of the athletic user fee from $50 to $100. The increase comes as the district hasn’t increased the fee since 2001, while costs such as transportation have continued to rise. Three-sport athletes will pay for only two of their three sports, according to information given to the school board. The district will work with students whose families can’t afford the fee.
Foundry on Third is officially open, about 20% leased: The Foundry on Third building, one of Wausau’s biggest and at times contentious projects, officially opened last week. T. Wall Enterprise owner Terrence Wall told WSAU that 20% of the spaces had been pre-leased. Spaces rent from around $1,050 to around $3,000 for the most expensive three-bedroom space.
Wausau area Packers fans miffed as outage intersects with Sunday game: An outage affecting Channel 12 NBC for antennae and TDS subscribers happened to coincide with the Sunday night Green Bay Packers game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The outage was restored around 9:30 pm Sunday night, according to an update from WJFW, just in time to catch the end of the game.
City selections District 5 alder, denies video playing: The Wausau City Council selected a new person to fill the role of District 5 Alderman Gary Gisselman, who died unexpectedly in August. The council voted to select Aaron Griner 6-4 over former city council member James Wadinski. That came after an earlier round eliminated a third candidate, Steven Schmidt. Griner, who was also selected to represent District 5 on the county board last month, works at the Marathon County Historical Society. Before the vote, the city council denied a request by one of the candidates to play a video as he took the podium to make his speech. The identity of the candidate who made the request was not revealed.
11 Scott Street terms approved: City staff will start inking out a final development agreement with 11 Scott Street LLC, owned by Rolly Lokre, for funds to turn 11 Scott Street into apartments after a contentious debate Tuesday. Online real estate records show the company, which is asking the city for $750,000 in a forgivable TIF loan, bought the building in June 2024 for $250,000. Total cost of redeveloping the building, including creating 52 apartments and commercial space, would cost $10.6 million. That came after a joint committee of the Finance and Economic Development committees discussed it in closed session and, according to a memo in the city council packet, directed staff during that closed session to negotiate, with little information for the public to digest. Under the terms, if the residential cost is less than expected, it could reduce the amount needed from the city, city staff says. City leaders disagreed on whether or not it was a good idea.
Around the metro
Arrested board member removed from Kronenwetter committee: A village of Kronenwetter Board member arrested in connection with his dog business last week has been removed from a village committee. The Village Board Monday voted to remove Shawn Dumais from the Administrative Policy Committee. The move came after Dumais and his employee were arrested last week in connection with allegations of animal abuse at his business Central Wisconsin K9. Court records show Dumais is currently on a $10,000 bond. A case has not yet been filed in Marathon County Court.
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Business
Cobblery building is for sale again: The building that once housed HT Cobblery is open on the market again. Developers had planned to build a rooftop restaurant at the site, but now the building is on the market. The Wausonian has more information about the project and will be publishing it soon, with details also on the Wausau Business Show.
Bull Falls Brewing Co opens taproom: The new owners of Bull Falls Brewing Company announced that the taproom is now open. The Wausonian broke news about the new owners of Bull Falls earlier this year, and gave an inside look at the outdoor space that opened at Bull Falls Brewing Co. late last summer. The renovations on the tap room are now complete, its owners say.
Entertainment
It’s another slate of Halloween-themed events, and this time with a more adult theme. Topping them off is a party at the Intermission with the enigmatic bluegrass band The Missing Miles. Check out all those spooky events in more in Your Wausome Weekend Guide!
Sports
Football: D.C. Everest crushed their regular season opponents all fall - but that came to an end Friday as the Evergreens lost to Brookfield East in a tight 19-13 WIAA playoff battle. The Warriors were also eliminated Friday, with Wausau West losing to Arrowhead 56-12. Wausau East in Division 3 was also eliminated, losing to Mount Horeb/Banreveld 31-7.
Volleyball: All Wausau area teams have been eliminated from the WIAA playoffs. D.C. Everest lost to Eau Claire North in four games; Wausau East lost to Chippewa Falls in three games; and Wausau West lost to Eau Claire Memorial in three games. SPASH will play Hudson in the sectional semi-final today (Thursday) for a chance at the Sectional Championship held in Stevens Point Saturday.
Boys Soccer: D.C. Everest beat De Pere 2-1 Saturday to head to the sectional semi-final today (Thursday) against Hortonville in Hortonville. A win there will elevate the Evergreens to the sectional championship in Stevens Point. Hortonville, ranked No. 1 in the tourney, defeated Wausau West in the first round.
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