Most senior and newest Wausau City Council members out Tuesday | Weekly Wausonian

Wausau news for the week of April 9, 2026

Apr 09, 2026

Tuesday’s election had some surprises, but perhaps none bigger than the ousting of the Wausau City Council President.

Lisa Rasmussen, who served on the city council since 2008, lost to political newcomer Matt Hoenecke 417-387. You can read about new Wausau City Council Member Matt Hoenecke here.

Rasmussen was one of two incumbents to lose Tuesday: By contrast, the newest city council member Aaron Griner lost to Andrew Wiskowski 254-230. Kristin Slonski and Bruce Trueblood also joined the council as challengers, gaining wins in open seats. Griner was appointed to the spot last year to replace Gary Gisselman, who died while in office.

Rasmussen told The Wausonian she was not surprised by the result, citing known and unknown political actors working behind the scenes, and that she’s proud of her service to the city and is looking forward to having time for other things.

Hoenecke told The Wausonian that he was grateful for the trust the residents of District 7 placed in him, and that he didn’t take the responsibility lightly. “I’m ready to work alongside the rest of the council to tackle the issues impacting all of us: our growing debt, ineffective efforts for affordable housing, attracting employers who pay a living wage, and finding a way to stabilize water rates.”

Referendum mix

Wausau residents narrowly approved a referendum that allows them to increase the tax levy by $1.4 million to fund the 12 firefighters the city hired several years ago (as grants covering those costs run out). But Weston voters rejected a similar measure that would have increased the tax levy to fund the village’s portion of paying for new firefighters at SAFER Fire District, which Weston shares with Rib Mountain. Weston Administrator Jami Gebert told The Wausonian that the village board and the SAFER board will now discuss the next steps forward in the wake of the referendum’s failure.

Marathon County Board

Two incumbents on the Marathon County Board were defeated by challengers Tuesday. Sarah Watson (who also serves on city council) defeated Kim Ungerer in District 8 and Bill Conway defeated Tony Sherfinski in District 16. Overall, the county board will see seven new members. Those include Katie Rosenberg, who recently served as Wausau Mayor until 2024. Rosenberg defeated Dane Suleski 733-393 in District 1. In other news, a Marathon County Board member was arrested for the second time since he was appointed.

Wausau School Board

Yauo Yang, a pastor, former educator and Iraq War veteran, garnered the most votes Tuesday in the race for one of four seats on the Wausau School Board. Yang earned 8,231 votes. Lance Trollop, an incumbent on the board for 15 years, garnered 7,709 votes. Incumbents Cory Sillars and Charles Burger also made the cut and will retain their board seats.

See the county’s full election results here.

What else in Wausau?

Wausau leaders will hold a second Cleveland Avenue listening session: After plenty of debate, Wausau’s Economic Development Committee decided to hold a second meeting about the future of the Cleveland Avenue site. Residents at the previous public input session told the city that they wanted to see active outdoor recreation, natural areas, grocery stores, and community/senior centers as the next use at the site via surveys handed out at the meeting. The city will now hold a second meeting in order to further educate the public about the feasibility of the options they favored, potential funding sources and to collect further feedback. The city has decided that no matter what goes there, it won’t be an industrial use.

Ruby’s Pantry closing: Ruby’s Pantry is closing its doors. According to a post on social media, Ruby Pantry’s Minnesota headquarters told New Hope Church that it would no longer be operating any of the pop-up Ruby Pantry locations. Ruby’s Pantry in eight years distributed more than 1.5 million pounds of food to people in Wausau who needed it.

Traffic stop leads to meth seizure: A traffic stop on Monday led to the seizure of nearly two pounds of meth and two arrests, Wausau Police Department officials say. Police arrested Lamont Allen and Sadie Good in connection with the seizure. According to online court records, Allen and Good both face charges of possession of methamphetamines with intent to sell, and Allen also faces charges of possession of drug paraphernalia, carrying a concealed weapon and bail jumping. Their car was stopped after the department’s community resource officers observed unusual behavior, and a police drug dog smelled drugs in the vehicle.

Man facing 10th OWI charge: A Schofield man is facing his 10th charge of drunken driving, according to online court records. Marathon County prosecutors charged Scott Newcomer with his 10th offense or more of operating while intoxicated, along with tampering with an ignition lock and operating while revoked, online court records show. Newcomer is currently being held at the Marathon County Jail on a $20,000 cash bond, court records show.

Around the metro

UWSP campus proposals deadline pushed to May: Marathon County officials pushed the deadline for submitting proposals for new uses for the soon-to-be former UWSP-Wausau campus to April. Marathon County Deputy Administrator Chris Holman told the county’s Extension, Education and Economic Development Committee last week that the new deadline is April 9 to allow proposers more time to review utility data. That means proposals will likely be reviewed in May, with a potential decision on the new uses coming in June. Marathon County is looking for new uses for the facility after UWSP-Wausau announced last year that it would be moving out of the campus and co-locating with Northcentral Technical College.

Weston Farmers Market moves, Rib Mountain starts market: The Weston Farmers Market is moving to Kennedy Park this year, Weston officials say. The market was previously held at the corner of Camp Phillips Road and Schofield Avenue. And Rib Mountain announced it will be holding a market this year for the first time. The Rib Mountain market will be held on Fridays from 8 am-1 pm starting May 1 at the village’s municipal center.

Amazon delivery partner closes: A delivery partner for the local Amazon distribution contractor is closing up shop, putting local delivery drivers out of work, one worker told The Wausonian. Blue Thunder Logistics is closing up shop, putting potentially 100 employees out of work. No WARN notice appears on the state’s website for mass layoffs. WAOW also had the story from other workers. The employee told The Wausonian some people would be hired on by a second company that aids with distribution at the Weston Warehouse.

Business

KimBob Cafe closed: KimBob’s Cafe, run by the entrepreneur behind Kim’s BBQ Sauce, closed its doors in February, according to posts on the business’s Facebook page. The KimBob Cafe operated in the city’s business incubator on the city’s west side. Kim’s BBQ Sauce will still remain for sale.

Freddy’s Hatley Smokehouse opened last month: Freddy’s Mexican Restaurant closed several years ago after decades in business. Now a new restaurant has taken its place. Freddy’s Hatley Smokehouse opened in the Hatley building in late March, transforming the interior in the process. The new smokehouse features BBQ food such as prime rib, baby back ribs and roasted chicken, along with fish fries.

Entertainment

We wrote about Bull Falls Brewing Co. re-opening with new owners and a slightly different name last year. Now the brewery is holding its first Bockfest this Saturday. Plus a comedian who combines magic in his shows to create a fresh experience, a ballet version of Cinderella, a “no fleas” flea market and more this weekend, all in Your Wausome Weekend Guide!

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.

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Sports

Girls lacrosse: The Wausau Wolfpack defeated Notre Dame Academy 10-7 Tuesday. Wausau is now 1-0 in the Bay Valley Conference.

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