Wausau News: The PFAS crisis rages on

The Weekly Wausonian for Feb. 17, 2022

Feb 17, 2022

Debate over what exactly to do about the city’s PFAS situation continues, with no clear answers in sight.

City leaders announced last week that all six of the city’s wells tested for PFAS levels higher than the proposed standard of 20 parts per trillion, but less than the current EPA standard of 70 ppt.

Wausau Water Works met this week and took action, though most of that “action” was to gather more information. Meanwhile, some city council members are in agreement with residents that more needs to be done immediately to address the high levels of this carcinogenic set of substances.

Find out everything you need to know, what city leaders are doing about it and what you should do in our Wausau PFAS guide. All PFAS content will join all election content in remaining free on the site.

The Wausonian

Wausau PFAS: What you need to know

Last week you read in The Wausonian about how Wausau discovered it had levels of PFAS (Polyfluoroalkyl Substances) higher than levels recommended by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and Department of Health Services. Tuesday morning — six days after Mayor Katie Rosenberg called for emergency sessions of the Wausau Water Works Commission and…

3 years ago · B.C. Kowalski

What else in Wausau news?

City leaders are working on a paid internship program as an answer to the city’s employment issues. The program could allow for part time interns working 10-15 hours per week $10-20 per hour, depending on the job, says city HR Director Toni Vanderboom. The city council would still need to approve the program.

Carol Lukens and John Kroll will advance to the spring election in a race to represent Wausau District 1, the southeast side neighborhood. Doug Diny and Jesse Kearns will complete in April for Wausau District 4 city council member.

Deb Ryan, the subject of an ethics investigation, has requested records from Mary Thao to the city over her resignation from the ethics board. Thao cited “inconsistencies, dishonesty and lack of transparency” in her resignation, and Ryan in her request said she needed to know if Thao’s complaints were substantive before the ethics board completes its investigation. In short, Ryan is accused of making baseless accusations against county board member William Harris.

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Around the metro

Legislation that could help fund a pilot program to address farm runoff in the Fenwood Creek watershed has been sent to committee. The legislation, which has the support of Republican Assemblyman Pat Snyder, would fund $650,000 in a program that would pay farmers not to pollute the water via farm runoff.

Six candidates in the village of Kronenwetter will face off for three village board seats in April. Danielle Bergman, Ken Charneski, Jason Holmes, Jordyn Wadle-Leff, Tami Bloch and Timothy Shaw will face off in April. It’s the first time the village has had a primary race for village board.

A report that a bomb had exploded at D.C. Everest High School Wednesday turned out to be a hoax, Everest Metro officials say. A male caller dialed 911 Wednesday morning to report a bomb had exploded at the high school. Everest Metro’s school resources officer was on the scene and police were able to verify that no explosion had occurred. Everest Metro is still investigating the incident.

Business

D. Anthony’s, a new framing business, is set to open next month in the space formerly occupied by Ginny’s Antiques on Third Street. The framing business is owned by David Hummer, a nationally known painter and founder of the Wausau Museum of Contemporary Arts.
Garden House Pancakes, which will occupy the former Perkins restaurant space, is now hiring for staff, indicating that the business should open soon. The restaurant will serve breakfast and other family-style restaurant fare. Perkins closed early in 2019 and the building has remained closed since.

Entertainment

Saturday, Feb. 19-Sunday, Feb. 20: Wausonians just can’t get enough balloons — even in winter! Willow Springs has put together quite the weekend of activities here with its Vintage Snowmobile Show, combined with sled dog racing and a balloon glow. Basically, there’s a vintage snowmobile show going on Saturday until 1 pm, where there will be a one-pull contest, with a ride to follow at 2 pm. Sled dog racing will go on all day Saturday and most of the day Sunday. AND, there are balloon flights at 9 am and 3 pm, tethered balloon rides during the day and a balloon glow in the evening around 5:30 pm. Frankly, there’s too much to put in this post so check out the Facebook event (click on the image for the whole poster of events).

Friday, Feb. 18: Ever want to try tubing? Why not join Mayor Katie on the slopes as she hosts one of her Moving with the Mayor events, this time at Sylvan Hill. Fly down the hill and enjoy a half-off discount on night tubing. Check out the Facebook page for more info. (Also, speaking of discounts, Nine Mile Forest Recreation Area skiing and snowshoeing is free this weekend.)

Saturday, Feb. 19: If you’ve ever seen musician Bradley Sperger play, you know he’s something special. The man is essentially a one-man band, and through the use of live-looping creates the full band experience on stage, all by himself in real time. Sperger is going a different route for this show at Campus Pub though. He’s bringing the acoustic guitar to the north side mainstay. Sperger’s bluesy indie rock is a joy either way, and his albums are worth checking out. Or see him on the pod:

Sports

Wausau West girls basketball remains a dominant force in the Valley as the season comes to a close. The Warriors routed SPASH 68-38 Friday to remain undefeated, 11-0 in the Valley Conference. West heads to Rapids Friday for its last game of the season. The Warriors have accomplished this feat remarkably with no individual stat leaders in the conference. The top statistical leader is Kelly Kray with 10 rebounds per game, the second-best in the conference.

D.C. Everest boys basketball continues to lead area schools in the Valley conference. The Evergreens beat Merrill 70-56 Tuesday to maintain their third-place standing (8-3) in the Valley. Everest takes on East on Thursday (Feb. 28) in the last game of the conference season. An Everest win and SPASH loss would mean the Evergreens could tie for second place in the conference final standings.

Wausau West hockey will take on Valley rival SPASH today (Thursday) in the second round of the WIAA playoffs. West beat Merrill 12-0 to advance to the next round, and SPASH beat Baron Co-op 9-0 to set up the face-off with the Warriors. The Warriors have had a strong season but split their two games with SPASH, winning in overtime in the first and losing the second. D.C. Everest lost its first-round game to Wisconsin Rapids 7-5 Tuesday.

The Central Wisconsin Storm will enjoy a first-round bye in the WIAA playoffs after a strong regular season. They’ll take on the winner of Thursday’s game between Marshfield and Northland Pines. The Central Wisconsin Storm won its last game of the season 5-1 against the Lakeshore Lighting Saturday to put their season record at 20-3.

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