Marathon Park water trouble | The Weekly Wausonian
Marathon Park water trouble | The Weekly Wausonian
Wausau area news for Aug. 18, 2022
It’s a rather unusual situation — a mix of new regulations and a winterization process means there is a chance there would be no water in Marathon Park in time for the fair. That is, unless officials act quickly.
According to Parks Director Jamie Polley, new regulations around water systems means that monitoring wells need to be above ground — right now the systems are underground. Because the west part of the park is winterized — water is shut off in the winter and pipes drained — those systems are no longer up to code, the city’s public works department told the parks department.
The department received a bid from Becher-Hoppe to design the new system and the county’s HR, Property and Finance Committee approved $74,000 (added to the department’s $21,000) to pay them for it. To rebuild the system to get it up to code would cost somewhere between $600,000 to $1.2 million, Polley says.
The county needs to act quickly so that work can begin in the spring as soon as the ground thaws; otherwise, there is a danger it wouldn’t be finished in time for the fair in August next year. That would mean no water, which means no fair.
What else in Wausau news?
City officials say the cleanup of industrial contaminants at Riverside Park should happen this year yet. The first steps of the cleanup were approved recently, and that means cleanup should happen this fall. Residents have for years been sounding the alarm about toxic chemicals in the park left over from when the land was used for industry (as well as current nearby industrial uses).
Two projects aimed at adding affordable housing to the city got preliminary approvals. One provides $600,000 of pandemic relief dollars to purchasing and renovating homes that can be turned around and sold to people qualifying for low-income housing. The other is offering $500,000 to go toward providing more affordable units in the city.
The city held a public hearing on a regional housing study the North Central Regional Planning Commission is working on. The housing study will look at a number of factors relating to housing in the Wausau metropolitan area so that leaders have a clear picture of what the area has and what it needs.
Around the metro
School leaders in Mosinee are receiving backlash after teachers and residents at a recent meeting called out the district for its work environment. One teacher, Lisa Kennedy, said she had initially planned to retire from the district one day but left out of disgust for the district’s treatment. The district had 13 resignations from the previous school year, more than Tomahawk, Medford and Rhinelander, but fewer than Antigo which had 17 resignations.
D.C. Everest School District broke ground this week on a new administration building. The building is on the corner of Alderson Street and Jelinek Avenue, near where the current building is. The building is getting old and structurally unsound, district leaders say.
This week in data
This week The Wausonian launched a new feature for paid subscribers: The quarterly Wausau Area dashboard. It’s meant to give an indication of how the area is doing over time. One of the metrics from that dashboard, revealed this interesting fact: Median house prices in July were the highest ever on record in Marathon County.
Entertainment
Fri-Sat, Aug 19-20: It’s one of those classic Wausau events that’s been around forever and every year, people love it! Check out a bevy of blues acts Friday and Saturday at Bull Falls Blues Fest on Fern Island. Not to mention local food vendors, beer vendors and, if you’re an out-of-towner, shuttles from eight area hotels. Here are the acts: Friday: 5 pm: Madtown Mannish Boys: 7 pm: Mark Cameron; 9 pm: Gabe Stillman; Saturday: 1 pm: Avery Grouws Band; 3 pm: Ally Venable; 5 pm: Robert Jon & The Wreck; 7 pm: Curtis Salgado; 9 pm: Tommy Castro & Painkillers feat. Deanna Bogart. Find out all the details on the event page.
Thursday, August 18: If you’re a frequent guest at Concerts on the Square, then you probably know Johnny and the MoTones. Featuring local jazz legend John Altenburgh and Airkraft guitarist Mitch Viegut among a slough of other talented musicians, the group knows how to lay down a jam. This Thursday they will lay down said jam at Tiki Beach Bar and Grill, which is Wisconsin’s version of a spring break party. If Friday is too late to start your weekend, then check out Tiki’s event page for more details.
Sat-Sun, August 20-21: Think you’re pretty good at pickleball? Well, you can try your hand at the Slam-o-Rama this Saturday and Sunday at Marathon Park. Choose your skill level amongst three options of pickleball prowess and take to the courts against some friendly (I assume!) competition. The event page says there will be plenty of camaraderie and good times. More details there.
Looking for kids/family events? Check out the full listing from The Wausonian’s partner Wausau Mama, who puts together a weekly listing of children/family activities.
Sports
The Wausau Woodchucks managed to win nine of their last 11 games of the regular season but ended their post-season run against the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters this week. The Chucks lost the first game of the three-game elimination series to the Rafters 6-3 Sunday. The Chucks came roaring back to take game two from Rapids 11-1 on Monday but lost Tuesday’s game 9-1. The Chucks finished 38-33 on the season after a comeback second half to the season.
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