Beer in the park | The Weekly Wausonian
Wausau beer gardens, a mayoral veto and more Wausau news for the week of March 6, 2025
City parks this year could see beer gardens operated by the city itself.
The proposal came from the city’s Parks and Recreation Committee this week. The proposal, which would mimic similar programs in Milwaukee and DePere, is a revival of one that came up under former Parks Director Bill Duncanson but never came to pass.
Parks Director Jamie Polley said she and committee member Tom Neal worked on the proposal while gathering info from Milwaukee and DePere. The idea is to have pop-up beer gardens in rotating neighborhood parks. The plan is to start small, but should remain small casual affairs even if the number of them grows, Neal explained.
The committee chose to direct Polley to put together a more concrete proposal after deciding on the option where the city runs the gardens as opposed to outside businesses. State law allows staff to operate beer gardens, but independent businesses would need a Class B Picnic license for each instance - and with rotating vendors and parks, that would be a slew of licenses to approve.
Instead the city would partner with various breweries and/or a distributor to sell their beer through the gardens. Polley flagged Marathon Park and Brockmeyer Park as potential locations.
The new owner of Bull Falls Brewery expressed interest in the idea, Committee Member Lou Larson told the committee, and Polley said Red Eye Brewing was interested in supplying beer too.
Polley said she would have the city attorney draft an ordinance the city would need in order to have its staff serve at the beer gardens.
Subscribers this week got a look at our Hold My Beer feature, breaking down police calls to taverns. We think Wausau is pretty interesting after dark:
And they read about a new under-the-radar partnership between Wausau and Marathon County in providing shelter for the homeless - and adopting a new model to end homelessness:
What else in Wausau?
Police arrest suspect in connection with St. Cloud homicide investigation: Wausau Police arrested a suspect accused in a homicide in St. Cloud, Minn. Kevon Washington is now being held on a $4 million bond in Benton County after appearing in court Monday. Police received a tip to his location at a Wausau hotel and arrested Washington on Feb. 24. Washington is accused of killing 17-year-old Layton Davis, a rapper who moved to Minneapolis to escape a dangerous situation, according to the St. Cloud Times.
City considering apps for RiverLife concession stand: The city’s Parks and Recreation Committee is split on a pair of proposals to replace Briq’s at the city’s flagship park. One would operate a pretty typical concession stand but operating it through October; the other includes future phases that could include kayak and canoe rentals and guided tours, and possible expansion beyond that, but would only be open in the summer months. The committee generally liked the idea of a longer season but also liked the idea of future expansion of services, something city leaders hoped for when the park was created last decade. In a strange move, the names of the proposers were not disclosed.
After previous affordable housing plan fails, Habitat for Humanity offers solution: The city’s Economic Development Committee Tuesday unanimously recommended a proposal from Habitat for Humanity to build a modular house on Jefferson Street in the lot that once housed a community garden. City Community Development Manager Tammy Stratz told the committee Habitat representatives reached out following the rejection of a proposal to build a modular home on a Bridge Street lot that would have cost $350,000. The city will only need to put in $125,000 from Community Development Block Grant funds. Habitat for Humanity’s Executive Director Tiffany Arnold says Habitat is already building another house across the street, so there ought to be two houses there by the end of the year.
Diny vetoes council’s Medicaid resolution: The Wausau City Council last week passed a resolution in support of continued Medicaid funding in the face of potential cuts to the service. On Monday, Mayor Doug Diny vetoed the resolution, saying the city council needed to focus on local issues and not take up its time worrying about state and federal issues. “The underlying premise behind the resolution-that the city council has the right to speak for the citizens of Wausau on all matters-is highly presumptuous and likely unacceptable to most voters,” Diny wrote in his memo about the veto. The veto is likely to be overridden at the next city council, since it passed 10-0 with one abstention and only needs a 2/3 majority or 8 members to override.
March snowfall hits Wausau area: Residents in the Wausau area were urged to take a little more time getting to work on Wednesday as a late-season snowstorm converted much of the standing rainwater into a slushy mix. The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning for Marathon County and much of the Northwoods. NWS-Green Bay called for 4-8 inches for the area.
Around the metro
Lincoln County deputy’s case expands drug knowledge: Lincoln County Deputy Bradley Weeks was honored by the state last week after an unusual case he investigated shed new light on drug detection. Weeks investigated a crash in which the driver was believed to be inhaling nitrous oxide. Though believed that the window of blood detection for nitrous is only five minutes, some further investigation led to a lab in Pennsylvania where it was learned there’s a technique for discovering it over a longer period of time. Weeks was awarded the 2024 DRE Outstanding Performance Award as a result.
Weston apartments catch the eye of inspectors: Weston officials plan to inspect the Aspen Apartments March 17 to ensure that necessary repairs were made. Weston’s building inspector unveiled the rough conditions the apartments were in at the village’s Community, Life and Public Safety Committee, including broken ceilings, water damage and mold. The inspector gave the building owners until March 17 to clean them up.
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Entertainment
Subscribers this week saw our new weekly feature in The Wausonian, The Wausome Weekend roundup, which gives you an early look at top events to attend in the Wausau area. Check out the post, free to everyone here. (And, comments are open to everyone to gather feedback about the new format.)
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
Boys basketball: Wausau West and D.C. Everest both won their games last week to end the regular season tied at 7-5. The Warriors and the Evergreens tied for third in the Valley Conference, behind undefeated Marshfield and second-place SPASH. They’ll get a chance to settle the score when D.C. Everest heads to Wausau West in the first round of playoffs 7 pm Friday.
Girls basketball: D.C. Everest lost a tight overtime game to SPASH 57-54 Friday and Wausau West was eliminated after Hudson defeated them 82-44. That means no Wausau D1 teams remain in the playoffs, as East was eliminated in a play-in game last week. Newman Catholic in D5 was also eliminated.
Boys hockey: Wausau West defeated Eau Claire Memorial 3-1 Friday at the Chippewa Falls Ice Arena to become sectional champions. The Warriors will now take on Notre Dame 2 pm Friday in Middleton in a state semi-final match, putting them one game away from a chance at a state championship.
Girls hockey: The Central Wisconsin Storm has had a barnstorm of a season and is now in the state semi-final. The Storm defeated Hayward in a tight 2-1 overtime win Saturday to earn the state semi-final berth. The Storm will take on Eau Claire North at 7:30 pm today (Thursday) at Bob Suter’s LEGACY20 Arena in Middleton.
A Note about The Wausonian
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