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Wausau council amends TID 8 to allow riverfront acquisition option amid PFAS worries; 6-5
Summary
The council approved an amendment to Tax Increment District No. 8 to make potential riverfront land-acquisition expenses eligible for TID funding; the measure passed amid objections over possible PFAS contamination and cost risks.
The Wausau Common Council on May 13 approved a finance and plan commission resolution to amend the project plan for Tax Increment District No. 8 (amendment 4), passing 6-5 with one abstention. The amendment makes certain redevelopment and land-acquisition expenses eligible to be paid from TID tax increments but does not authorize any immediate purchase.
Council debate centered on whether adding the parcels to the TID plan was premature given possible groundwater contamination and the site's industrial history. "I see this as another scenario where we could get caught up into... burdened the taxpayers be burdened with cleaning up this property," Alder Larson said, warning of potential costs and listing a hypothetical scenario of purchase and cleanup costs.
Finance Director Mary Anne Fayfrick told council the amendment only places items "on the menu" of eligible TID expenditures; it does not commit the city to purchase property or spend funds. "It's not authorizing staff to purchase property," Fayfrick said. She described the normal process as three steps: include eligible expenses in the project plan, include them in the city budget and then get approval for any specific expense.
Several members opposing the amendment cited concerns about PFAS and Superfund-related monitoring. Alderman Killian said the parcel sits next to a Superfund site and the EPA has required PFAS testing of monitoring wells; he said that made the proposed option too risky without additional information. Alderman Gisselman and others pressed for clearer purpose language to explain intended redevelopment uses; proponents, including Alderman Rasmussen, argued that being broad in the plan preserves flexibility and that council would still need separate approvals for purchases and expenditures.
Council members were told additional environmental and appraisal work would continue. Director Fayfrick and other staff said environmental review and negotiations with property owners are ongoing and that any future purchases would still require future council approvals and budget actions. The amendment had previously passed finance, 3-1, and plan commission, 5-1.
The resolution passage provides the city an option to use TID funds for future riverfront redevelopment or acquisition work; it does not itself authorize expenditures or property acquisition.
