The Glow is back | The Weekly Wausonian
Wausau news for Feb. 29, 2024
There was much hand wringing earlier this month when the organizers of the Taste N Glow Balloon Fest, Nancy and Steve Woller, announced they would no longer be running the festival. That made it sound like it probably wasn’t happening.
It turns out, the rest of the Taste N Glow board had other ideas.
This week, the board announced that it would in fact be hosting the festival in the town of Stettin this year, July 12-13. The board found another parking space to replace the one lost, and they plan to bring balloons and local gourmet food together.
Central Wisconsin residents are likely thrilled to keep the festival, which drew tens of thousands to central Wisconsin and plenty of tourism dollars along with them.
The Wausonian published a lot this week, and several of those stories are embedded in this week’s news items. But this one about a fiasco around funding for the village of Kronenwetter’s fire truck is definitely worth a read if you missed it:
The Kronenwetter case of the missing fire truck payment
Lee Turonie had the most succinct summary for a problem brought forward Wednesday night at a special Kronenwetter Village Board meeting: “This is essentially a paperwork issue,” Turonie told the board. Later on, he clarified: “It is a real problem, to be clear, but we can fix it.”
And, we have a big story coming at 6 am today - keep an eye out for it.
What else in Wausau?
Busy fire department: The Wausau Fire Department had its busiest year on record last year. The department in 2023 responded to 6,951 calls, more than any other year. And 90% of those were emergency medical calls. That comes on the heels of the fire department adding staff in the last couple of years, something that hadn’t happened sine the 1970s.
Pay up, Mr. Beast: The city’s police department coordinated with Mayor Katie Rosenberg and Rep. Katrina Shankland to run a bill through the statehouse that requires people requesting audio or video from police departments to pay for the cost of redactions. That replaced a version that would have required requestors to pay for redactions of all kinds. The AG wouldn’t support it and Evers threatened veto, Shankland says. The legislation is meant to curb the flood of requests from YouTubers who then monetize the content. But YouTubers and open records advocates have concerns. Read our full story about Wausau Police cracking down on YouTubers.
New director ready to steer transit: Metro Ride has a new director to replace the one who recently departed. Transit officials announced Arran Hersey will start March 4. He replaces Matthew Rosenbloom-Jones, who left saying city hall didn’t do enough to support the department. Hursey, who comes from Portland and worked for TriMet there, would be the second director in as many years after long-time director Greg Seubert retired January 2022.
Growth that’s no imagination: The Children’s Imaginarium is seeing numbers far surpassing what they’d hope for, officials say. Co-founder Maggie Gordon says the imaginarium has sold 600 memberships since opening Dec. 6; they’d hoped to sell 350 in the first six months. The imaginarium has had 8,600 visitors since opening, with 28 field trips bringing 700 children. They’ve also served 68 different zip codes, including from Illinois, Minnesota and even California.
Around the metro
Kronenwetter trustee arrested: Kronenwetter Board Member Sean Dumais was arrested Saturday over missed child support payments, according to court records. Dumais faces a jail sentence in Washington County if he doesn’t make good on the payments, court records say. Dumais last week included documents with “fraud” in the title discussing the Kronenwetter fire truck fiasco, though later amended to say he wasn’t accusing anyone of anything. Dumais is on the spring ballot for village board, one of six vying for three seats.
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Business
Downtown became more chocolatey: Wausau’s downtown just got a little more chocolately! (Yep, it’s a word now.) The Chocolate Cafe just opened downtown in the Washington Square building. Gelato should be available by the time you read this or shortly thereafter, and otherwise their pastries and cocoa lattes are ready to go. This cafe was created by the same owners as The Chocolate Shop.
Good for the Community Soul: The founder of Community Soul Yoga is back with a new studio - and it will be located in the same place Community Soul was. Kristen Holmson plans to start classes at the new Shift Yoga Studio on the fourth floor of the Washington Square building on March 5.
Entertainment
Friday, March 1: Illiterate Light looks and sounds a lot like a 90s grunge band. But it’s not just the look - the band’s sound could have easily come out of that era, reminiscent of Screaming Trees. It’s not a band that’s afraid to get loud, and it’s clear these guys are channeling something special. Their self-entitled album did well but 2023’s Sunburned really exploded and has driven them into the limelight. Expect them to blow the roof off of Lamplight Sesssions. 7 pm. $36. Tickets are running low so grab em quick if you want to go. See more at the event page.
Friday, March 1: Billy Bronsted is a young local country singer who has emerged from the pandemic perhaps stronger than when he started. Armed with a new backing behind him and a pair of albums to his name, Bronsted has a powerful voice and is a solid songwriter. It’s not every weekend that he plays in town so be sure to check him out. 9 pm. Keep an eye on the Intermission’s Facebook page for more.
Tues.-Wed.,. March 5-6: My Fair Lady is a musical theater classic. The story of a cockney flower-seller and a linguistics professor who attempts to turn her into a proper lady (but in the process, might just be transformed himself!) goes back to the 1913 George Bernard Shaw’s play Pygmalion. The musical itself is based on the 1938 film adaptation of that play. This version, put on by the Lincoln Center Theater puts on this Grand Theater production, which is “a sumptuous new production of the most perfect musical of all time,” according to Entertainment Weekly. 7:30 pm Saturday and Sunday. Starts at $75. Check out the event page for more information.
Looking for kids/family events? Check out the family-oriented listing from The Wausonian’s partner Wausau Mama, who puts together a weekly listing of children/family activities.
Sports
Girls hockey: The central Wisconsin Storm are WIAA Sectional Champions and headed to state after a blistering overtime win Friday. The Storm entered overtime tied 3-3 with Superior, find a goal in extra time to take the championship.
The Central Wisconsin Storm will take on Sun Prairie West 5 pm today, Thursday, at the Bob Suter’s Capital Ice Arena in Middleton. If the Storm win, they will head to the state final at 2 pm Saturday, which will be livestreamed on WAOW.
Boys basketball: Wausau West heads to Kaukana Friday and D.C. Everest heads to Hudson for the first round of the WIAA playoffs. Wausau East will host Merrill Friday.
Girls basketball: Wausau West lost to SPASH 46-23 Friday, ending the Warriors’ playoff hopes. They were the last Wausau area team alive in the tournament.
Semi-pro hockey: The Wausau Cyclones have clinched the division with a pair of wins last weekend and are headed into the playoffs with home ice advantage. The Cyclones, who went 34-10-0-1 this season, are having one the best seasons since the organization moved to Wausau, originally under the team name RiverWolves. The name was changed recently to the Wausau Cyclones in homage to a team that had played in Wausau in the 80s and early 90s.
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