Committee adopts stepped user-fee plan, amends Resolution 17-25 to fund ice-arena repairs

The Marathon County Human Resources, Finance and Property Committee on March 12 adopted a substitute amendment to Resolution 17-25 and then approved the amended resolution, directing staff to carry the committee’s funding plan and user-fee changes to the County Board.

The amendment replaces a flat, $80,000 user-fee plan with a stepped fee increase and adjusts the other funding sources in the draft resolution. Committee members voted unanimously to adopt the substitute amendment and then voted unanimously to approve the original resolution as amended.

Why it matters: committee members said the stepped approach reduces immediate taxpayer impact while signaling long-term reliance on user groups for capital participation if the county continues to operate the ice arena.

The committee and staff described a funding package the draft resolution lists at about $690,000 in total needs. The package discussed during the meeting includes: $290,000 carried forward from excess timber-sales revenue from 2024,…