The Sawyer County Public Works Committee voted to renew the county's listed ATV and UTV routes for another year after two residents urged caution and tighter oversight.

The motion to keep the current list in place for another year was made by Mr. Newman and seconded by Mr. Van Etten; the committee approved the renewal. The committee also discussed but did not adopt an automatic annual-renewal process, which staff said would require an ordinance change.

The renewal came after public comment from Kathy LaRue of the Sawyer County Snowmobile and ATV Alliance and Linda Zillmer, an Edgewater property owner, who described both benefits and problems from opening routes. LaRue told the committee the routes have "provided a lot of connectivity for people" and reduced demands on law enforcement, and she asked the committee to "please consider renewing for another year." Zillmer said increased route openings after recent town elections had coincided with a rise in reckless driving and sign proliferation in the Birchwood and Edgewater area and asked the committee to consider ways to track and close problematic sections.

Committee members and staff weighed two operational proposals: (1) leave the ordinance and route list as written and renew for a year, or (2) revise the ordinance to make route renewals automatic and simplify the route list (for example, by stating broadly that county roads are open except for specified exclusions, rather than enumerating roughly 82 listed routes). Highway staff told the committee that an automatic renewal and code change were technically possible but not feasible this year because of limited staffing and the need to change the county code.

Members discussed the treatment of routes that pass through tribal lands. Staff said they could "specify the routes that are open and closed within tribal boundaries" during any future ordinance cleanup. No changes were made to how reservation roads are treated during the present renewal.

The committee did not adopt new enforcement measures at the meeting; Zillmer and others urged better tracking and closures when residents report dangerous behavior. Committee members asked staff to bring back proposed ordinance language and a cleanup plan for consideration next year.

The renewal vote extends the status quo while directing staff to consider a more permanent, simplified approach to route listings in the future.