Wausau Pilot & Review
District 3 Alder Tom Kilian will hold public listening sessions to seek continued community input and participation on future remediation and redevelopment efforts on contaminated property on the city’s west side.
The property at 1300 Cleveland Ave. is a residentially-zoned, roughly 7-acre property in Kilian’s district that lies in the midst of a densely populated neighborhood. The parcel is currently an open Environmental Repair Program sight under the oversight of the Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources and has undergone multiple rounds of environmental testing.
“Government has received a robust amount of community feedback to date indicating the public’s desire for rigorous remediation and an appropriate, non-industrial end use for the property,” Kilian said. “In upcoming months, I will be holding multiple public listening sessions to gather specific objectives and ideas from the community on both of these fronts.”
Wausau Public Works Director Eric Lindman told Wausau Pilot & Review last week that the city has not yet applied for an Environmental Protection Agency Cleanup grant for the site. He said he is not ready to apply because the city would need to “have some idea what to propose for redevelopment” on the site first.
To date, there has been substantial feedback from residents and environmental advocates pushing to ensure the parcel is cleaned up to residential standards, which requires a more stringent process. Residents have repeatedly urged city officials to remediate the property and keep industrial land use out of the mix.
“Citizen-driven government relies on the participation of our citizens and cannot exist without it,” Kilian said.
Dates and venues for the public listening sessions will be released in the near future. Kilian said sessions will involve English, Hmong and Spanish language to ensure all residents have access to crucial information.
