Marathon grocery store back on the table
TIF funding will be sought
The Marathon City Village Board last week Wednesday advanced several economic development projects, including construction of a 14,000 square foot grocery store on the 400 Block of Main Street.
Board members discussed the projects in a closed session. Village administrator Andy Kurtz released selective details about the projects on Thursday.
Kurtz said the village board voted to send the grocery store project to the village’s redevelopment authority for consideration and possible Tax Incremental Finance (TIF) funding.
Kurtz said moving the grocery store from village board discussion to the redevelopment authority signalled a new phase in a three and one half year search for a new grocery to replace George’s Marathon Foods, which was purchased and demolished by the village. “Hopefully, we are seeing the culmination of a significant effort by a number of people for this project,” he said. “I am cautiously optimistic at this point.” Kurtz would not identity the grocery store business the village is in conversation with.
He did say, however, the contractor for a new store would not be S.D. Swiderski LLC, Mosinee. That was the contactor selected to build a Gordy’s Market in Marathon City before that deal fell through.
Kurtz said the village is pursuing a larger project that would involve a grocery store, but also other retail shops.
“That plan has not been finalized,” he said.
Members of the Marathon City Redevelopment Board include David Belanger, Mike Telford, Tim Sonnentag, Tony Braun, John Small, Andy Berens and Frank Gassner.
The board voted to instruct Kurtz to work with an unnamed business to go forward with a single family residential development on property owned by Gary Semerau north of STH 29.
Kurtz said the development, initially sized for 16 “workforce housing” single family homes, could be expanded to as many as 40 houses.
The administrator said the developer planned to offer homebuyers a range of floorplans for homes selling in the $190,000 to $230,000 range. The homes will have between two and three bedrooms and two and three car garages.
The board also directed Kurtz to move forward with a plan proposed by S.D. Swiderski LLC to construct a third multi-family housing building in the Marathon Business Park. The new structure, the administrator said, would offer 20 additional units to rent.
Kurtz said the project is currently “very preliminary” and in the early negotiations stage.
The administrator said board members directed Kurtz to continue meeting with Marathon Cheese Corp. about a proposed expansion project, but offered no details about what is on the table for discussion.
“I can’t say right now,” he said.
Kurtz only said the business project could be sizable.
“This would be another significant development opportunity in the village,” he said.
