T. Wall's mall squall | Wausau News
The Weekly Wausonian for July 28, 2022
Wausau residents this week got their first sort of in-depth look at the first development project for the Wausau Center mall site. Downtown and major business owners applaud the project, but some are concerned since the developer is a company that recently threatened to sue the city.
T. Wall Enterprises, under the holding company The Foundry, is proposing to build a five story, 154-unit apartment building with first-floor commercial and retail space at the intersection of Washington and Third streets. There will be tax incentives, but what those will be has not yet been announced.
Proponents say the market rate housing is needed in the city overall and, especially, in downtown since currently only 3% of residents live within walking distance of downtown. That’s far less than the 15% of residents living in downtown that experts say is optimal for vibrant downtowns.
But some city leaders are scrutinizing the company chosen by mall-owner Wausau Opportunity Zone, a for-profit company formed by two area non-profits and housed under the Greater Wausau Prosperity Partnership. That company, T. Wall Enterprises, only recently threatened to sue the city over its fallout with the flagship Riverlife development.
This week The Wausonian highlighted a summary of the mall development process and how it differs from what developers said early on in the process.
Tuesday’s meeting was information only, but future meetings will be held to discuss the tax incentives requested by T. Wall Enterprises.
What else in Wausau?
Police last week arrested a pair of young men accused of breaking into Fleet Farm overnight, stealing pellet guns and a few other odds and ends. Anthony Jurgeson (17) and Tyrese Marriam (18) will likely face charges of burglary, theft and property damage.
City leaders are working with a new company to operate the city’s bike share program. The company, Tandem, will operate the bikes left behind by Zagster when it went bankrupt. The city had been working on a settlement with the trust that handled Zagster’s unraveling.
Around the metro
Kronenwetter’s administrator has officially taken a job in Altoona. Meanwhile that administrator, Richard Downey, is still technically on leave from the village and the village board rescinded a severance package they’d been considering. Interim administrator Duane Gau, when asked what happens next, said he didn’t know.
Fans of fat biking have reason to rejoice — CWOCC announced that Nine Mile Forest will officially have a trial fat bike season this winter. And, the organization also announced, they’ve been cleared to groom a short fat bike course in Rothschild south of Gaska Park. Check out the CWOCC group page for more details.
Entertainment
Saturday, July 30: It might be hard to believe that it’s already the eighth Paddle Pub Crawl, but here we are! Join hundreds of paddlers starting at Eagle’s Club Landing and heading out to various bars and other stops. The paddle makes its way eventually to Trail’s End, all along Lake Wausau/Wisconsin River. It’s a fun time starting at 11:30 am for the group photo, but be careful out there. See the event page and check the discussion for more details.
Sat.-Sun., July 30-31: That’s right, it’s the biggest celebration of Hmong culture in all of Wisconsin! Hmong folks drive from all over the Midwest to attend, but everyone is welcome at this combination of sports festival with pageants, fireworks, performances and plenty of food vendors to fill your day. It’s a good time, and a great way to support our Southeast Asian neighbors. See the event page for all the details.
Thursday, July 28: Do you like pizza? I sure do, and I’ve been wanting to try Rocky Ridge Orchard’s for some time. So I will likely be there tomorrow night, stuffing my face. Knock Point will be jamming some tunes as you try out their pizza buffet. There’s a fire to sit around, and word is their desserts are pretty darned good too. If you see a guy with thick-framed Ray-Ban Wayfarer glasses/sunglasses, stop over and say hi to The Wausonian’s author. That’s me.
Friday, July 29: The Minks are a band that don’t sound like how you think they’re going to sound — while they appear they’re going to jam similar to GGOOLLDD, they actually sound more like a rockabilly/old school country band. The Minks, led by Nikki Barber, combine 50s rock sense with a jazzed up Patsy Cline sound that ought to have you feet moving in pretty quick order. Come check out this Nashville act at the Lamplights Sessions, Mosinee’s newest music venue. Doors/food (Hanuman Food Truck) at 6 pm, music at 7 pm. More details here.
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
Chase Hug found the outfield fence three separate times, driving in runs in the Wausau Woodchucks’ 13-9 win over the Madison Mallards Tuesday night. The win puts the Chucks at 28-25 on the season and 11-6 on the seasons second half. That’s good enough for second place in the Great Lakes West division. The Chucks take on the Mallards against today (Thursday) at home. See the full schedule here.
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