By Owen Reissmann for Wausau Pilot and Review

Tuesday evening’s Marathon County Board meeting began with a presentation from the Marathon County Historical Society.

Two representatives shared that 16 percent of their budget this year came from funding supplied by the county, which has consistently been a substantial contributor over the years. They also shared some of the things the Historical Society does within the community.

The organization provided 62 free programs or events this year and saw 125 volunteers. The Little Red School House hosted 1,612 fourth-grade students from 38 schools. The Historical Society is also a depository for many official county and city records.

Next, there was a discussion about the ongoing Marathon County readdressing program, a project in the works for about two years.

County board members learned that the physical enactment of the project began three weeks later than planned due to a snow storm. Consequently, about two-thirds of the project was completed this year. Next spring the project will recommence.

The project has so far come in under budget.

Meanwhile, Rib Mountain continues to contest the project in a case that has been taken to the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

Officials are cautioning residents whose addresses have changed not to make a complete switch immediately, as some companies may not be able to verify the new address until the Post Office has officially updated it in their system.

County officials then passed a proposal to provide grant funds to match 20 percent of a state grant for elderly and disabled transportation services.

A proposal also passed to replace a bridge on County Highway Z over the Eau Claire River. The project is slated for completion by the end of next year.

An 80-acre land donation given to the Wausau and Marathon County Park Foundation has now been donated to the county. The land is in the town of Easton and as a condition of the donation must be open for public use. The intention is to sell the lumber from the back half of the land to fund the construction of a parking lot and build trails throughout the property.

A moment of silence was held to honor former county board member, and long-time village clerk in Edgar (and Abbotsford before that), Dennis Weix.