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Dear editor,
“If You Build It, They Will Come” – Field of Dreams (1989)
I can’t help but use that quote from the famous Kevin Costner baseball movie of the 80’s, because it seems to fit perfectly with what Wausau Opportunity Zone (WOZ) and the City of Wausau are hoping for in the area where the once Wausau Center Mall used to stand. They are, let’s face it, hoping to attract “young professionals” willing to work and live in our little old middle-class dominated city. However, as more details come out with plans for this massive project, and the looming price-tag asked from the taxpayers, many people, including me, wonder if this gamble will even work.
Let’s face it, when it comes to “people attracting” projects, the City of Wausau doesn’t have the best track record.
First was the Wausau Center Mall which opened back in 1983. Ah yes, the grand downtown mall that would attract many new businesses and people to the downtown area. The vision of the late Mayor John Kannenberg, who pushed hard to have it landlocked downtown rather than in an open space by Highway 51 near Northcentral Technical College. Something that would stand the test of time. And yes, admittedly at first it worked…. but then it didn’t. Fast forward 38 years later we have a concrete slab where it once stood.
In retrospect, it was a failure. I don’t care what city officials or historians reminisce about what it once was. It… was… a… FAILURE. To call it anything else is ridiculous, and unfortunately cost the City of Wausau millions in lost tax revenue and burnt an even bigger hole in taxpayers’ wallets. Personally, I was very happy to see it go, and to this day I still compare the mall to a quote from one of my favorite TV shows “Top Gear” where they coined the phrase: “500 gallons of hemorrhoid cream would have been more useful, honestly.”
Second, is The Riverfront Development, or what they call “RiverLife.”Now I will admit, it’s nice to see this area redeveloped into what it is today compared to the once blighted, gang-infested area that when I was a youth was told to avoid at all costs after dark less I wanted to be shot or stabbed. We now have a long walk/bike path with beautiful landscaping, a LED light bridge, boat dock, a playground, and a wellness park (to name just a few of the more noticeable things). On top of that we have Wausau on the Water (a fun restaurant I frequent at times with my family), Briq’s Soft Serve, and a huge apartment building for some people to live down there. However, in recent years it feels to me like RiverLife is no longer a focus of the city anymore. It isn’t a priority and feels almost stalled.
This area was supposed to be the crown jewel near the heart of the city, attracting many people not only to enjoy its uniqueness, but to live there as well. A community within itself with many amenities, shops, and restaurants. A lifestyle. Over 10 years later, what you see is all we have with only one recently approved plan of adding yet another apartment complex.
This area was supposed to be bustling at this point. Where are all the nice restaurants and shops this area was supposed to attract? The city obviously would claim those things are in negotiations. That it’s a long-drawn-out process and that don’t worry about it. Funny how we don’t hear about many of those negotiations. No, I think city officials are 1.) not getting enough offers to develop down there due to lack of interest and cost, and 2.) what was and is being offered is either not what they are “envisioning” for that area, or they are just too picky. Maybe in another 10 years it will be completed. Until then, I’m not going to hold my breath for the success of this area.
So, why did I choose these two examples? Well, put simply, they were and are “gambles” to improve existing areas that needed it. And like most gambling, there is not a 100% chance it will be a win for the city. But in the end, it does cost city taxpayers a lot of money. So, goes into the main topic of this whole opinion piece: the Downtown Redevelopment Project.
Let me be clear, I’m not against the project in its entirety. There are many good ideas involved with it (even though they had nothing ready to break ground on when the last brick from the mall was hauled away, and it’s been standing as is for 2 years now). I am a bit concerned about a couple of things.
One is the main purpose we keep hearing which is the need to draw in “young professionals” to live in Wausau. Okay…. but what kind of professionals are we talking about? What jobs in the area will these people be employed with? Are there enough jobs? Can they even make enough money at said local jobs to afford the cost of living in these new places? But the biggest concern I have is what does Wausau have to offer to these “young professionals” that are historically attracted to bigger cities across the Midwest, such as Minneapolis/St.Paul, Milwaukee, Chicago, etc. where there are by far more businesses for these people to work at, and have places to fulfill their social life as well? Heck, can Wausau even compete with Green Bay, Appleton, La Crosse, or Madison? Currently, I would give a resounding no. Can we compete with them even after we complete the downtown project? I’m very skeptical, but also leaning no.
The other big thing is the price tag on all of this. We’re now starting to hear about how much will fall on taxpayers to make this grand idea come to fruition. So far, just to buy and get rid of the mall was about $7-8 million already. Which I guess isn’t too bad. But then comes the next concerning thing: getting developers to build downtown. With most developers, they don’t want to be the ones holding all the financial risk with building there, even though many of them could afford it. So, they ask for public assistance in the form of tax incentives or increment financing. A little “incentive” to build and do business in the city. Well, a good example of this is T. Wall Enterprises. The city approved to give them $10.8 million in public assistance for the Foundry on 3rd building, once again dragging their feet by delaying construction to next year.
The scary part is, the Foundry on 3rd is one building out of many that will need to be built downtown. Is the city going to dish out another $11 million to the next developer? And what about the one after that? Is that going to be $15 million? And what of the curvy bridge, and other work along the kayak course? In the end, the city likely will be dishing out well over $100 million in public assistance to private developers just to build downtown. That is an obscene amount of taxpayer money for a project that may or may not attract the specific new people the city government is hoping for. And what of WOZ, the foundation run by millionaires who are doing all the planning on this? What are they risking? Probably very little.
In the end, I hope I’m wrong about all of this. I want that area to be something we can be proud of as citizens here. And yes, unless you gamble on something you don’t know if the outcome works in your favor. However, for me, this all seems a bit much and has very little reassurance it will work.
Matt Straub, Wausau
