Study recommended for ice arena
With the indoor ice rinks at Marathon Park in Wausau nearing the end of their life expectancy, county officials are looking at hiring an architectural firm to suss out the details of building a new facility.
Members of the Environmental Resources Committee (ERC) voted last week to recommend the use of $12,000 from the county’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) fund to help pay for a study by JLG Architects, which would produce conceptual floor plans, graphic renderings and cost estimates for a new ice arena.
JLG’s proposed study would cost a total of $32,500, with $10,500 coming from the Parks Department budget, $5,000 from Wausau Youth Hockey and possibly $5,000 from the Wausau School District. The committee’s proposal calls for the remaining $12,000 to come from ARPA.
Before the committee voted on the proposal, however, members questioned whether paying for the study would obligate the county to construct what will likely be a multi-million dollar facility in Wausau.
Supervisor Allen Drabek, Edgar, voted against the motion after saying he would prefer not to take any action that will add to the county’s debt load in the future.
Parks director Jamie Polley said a new ice arena at Marathon Park is part of the Westside Master Plan approved by the county board earlier this year. That plan calls for the arena to be built on West Street, either at the current Highway Department headquarters – assuming it moves to a new location – or on a nearby lot formerly occupied by a cold storage building.
“That will be part of the study, to determine whether or not that property is adequately sized for what is ultimately needed,” she said.
JLG’s proposal says the firm will work with local stakeholders, such as the youth hockey league and Wausau schools, to determine space needs and cost projections.
“It’s definitely going to be a publicprivate partnership, but we need to know a number first and what the actual needs are of the community,” Polley said.
Committee chairman Jacob Langenhahn said that paying for a study “gives the impression” that the county is planning to continue investing in ice rink facilities, and he’s personally apprehensive about the county “being in the ice-making business.” He also questioned how many of the constituents in his rural district use the current ice arena.
“I’m sure there’s some that do, but not every single one of them does, so is that fair for all the taxpayers to be paying for that?” he said.
Deputy county administrator Chris Holman said the study “definitely does not commit the county” to building anything, but it will provide useful information about construction costs and attract interest from non-county groups that will be asked to contribute significant funding.
“What a study allows you to do is say ‘Here’s what it could be and here’s what the budget number would look like if it were ever to come to be,’” he said. “And then that allows you to build the fundraising platform and networks.”
Eau Pleine hunting rules
Hunters wanting to harvest whitetail deer from Big Eau Pleine Park would have to take down their tree stands every night and abstain from using trail cameras, according to new rules endorsed by the ERC last week.
The idea for a new archery-only hunt at the park first came before the ERC at its June 27 meeting, but a vote was delayed so the issue of tree stands could be addressed by the Marathon County Park Commission. Based on rules developed by the commission, tree stands would need to be taken down by the end of hunting hours every night, but they could be left in the park during the season as long as they are properly identified.
“Portable tree stands may be left in the woods provided that they have the name, address, and phone number of the owner permanently affixed to the stand in the English language and shall be clearly visible and kept legible at all times,” the ordinance reads. “Portable tree stands without such identifying information shall be subject to immediate removal by county officials.”
The proposed archery season would allow bow hunters to harvest deer in the 1,450-acre park from Nov. 15 through the Sunday closest to Jan. 6. Archers could only hunt from a minimum six-foot elevation and would have to stay at least 100 yards away from any picnic areas, campgrounds, beaches and buildings, and 100 feet away from designated trails or roads.
“I’m OK with it, with the understanding that there will be an adequate amount of signage out there warning people of this change, and there will be public outreach leading up to the hunting season,” Lagenhahn said.
Andy Sims, assistant director of Parks, Recreation and Forestry, said the department plans to do plenty of advanced outreach and will also be asking hunters to provide information about the number of deer they take from the park.
“We will have a voluntary kiosk station for hunters to report that harvest so we can track what we’re doing and where we’re at,” he said.
