Marathon County debates purchase of Kronenwetter parcels for new highway facility after public concerns about water and taxes

Marathon County supervisors on Monday discussed a proposal to buy parcels in the Village of Kronenwetter to relocate and expand the county highway facilities, drawing public comments that the village’s water system and taxpayers could be harmed if the sale proceeds without more local review.

The issue matters because the county proposes to spend public money to buy land outside Wausau, relocate a long‑standing highway campus and potentially redevelop the current West Street site, which county staff say could offset some relocation costs.

Sean Domingue, a former member of the Village of Kronenwetter Water Board and the village utility committee, told the board he supported improving county highway facilities but said the county had not shared details with the village before placing “resolution R25‑25” on the agenda. “The assessment they gave did not consider the additional load from a residential development currently going through the approval process in Kronenwetter,” Domingue said. He urged the board to vote against the resolution, saying upgrades to the village system could cost “millions of dollars” and would require a lengthy Public Service Commission review.

Resident Guy Firdelt said the resolution, as written, would benefit Wausau by enabling redevelopment of the existing county highway site while the Village of Kronenwetter would receive no tax revenue from the new county property. “The resolution before the board would create a terrible one‑sided situation, which would greatly benefit the city of Wausau … On the other hand, the village of Kronenwetter would lose…