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Executive committee reviews Chapter 4 draft of Marathon County comprehensive plan with housing data and issues
Summary
County planners presented Chapter 4 (housing) of the comprehensive plan update, highlighting housing inventory, rising renter share, aging stock and affordability challenges; supervisors asked for additional data on senior and congregate housing and aging-in-place trends.
Marathon County planners presented draft Chapter 4 of the county comprehensive plan at the executive committee meeting, reviewing housing inventory, occupancy trends, affordability indicators and draft issues for further study.
The presentation, led by Lori Kimmons of the county Department of Land Conservation, Zoning and Planning and planner Christian Blanger of the North Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (RPC), summarized data and identified draft issues the county may address in the plan update.
Why it matters: Chapter 4 frames housing policy questions that can affect zoning, county-held land use, rehabilitation programs and services for older residents. Committee members raised questions about congregate and assisted-living capacity, aging-in-place trends and how increased multifamily development changes service demands.
Key data and draft findings presented by RPC and county staff: - Total housing units: the draft reports close to 60,000 housing units countywide. - Tenure: roughly 71% of housing units are owner-occupied. - Recent change: single-family housing stock rose modestly (about 2%); renter-occupied units increased about 17%, driven in part by a roughly 37% increase in multifamily units. - Housing age: a substantial portion of the county’s housing stock is aging, which could pose rehabilitation needs. - Median value: RPC cited a 2020 median housing value in Marathon County of $161,000; planners said they will incorporate newer valuation data in the update. - Chart correction: RPC staff noted a labeling error in the affordability figure and said owner-occupied-with-mortgage and renter-occupied labels should be switched; staff committed to correcting the figure.
Committee discussion focused on policy implications and data gaps. Supervisor Robinson asked whether the county tracks congregate or assisted-living beds and asked about aging-in-place patterns; staff said they will pursue additional data sources, including local partners and agencies that track elder care capacity. Planners also noted they are reviewing more recent American Community Survey and ALICE data and will incorporate information from the city of Wausau and a county homelessness task force as available.
Planners outlined draft issues to be addressed in Chapter 4, including housing supply and affordability, rehabilitation of deteriorated structures in rural communities, homelessness and service needs for an aging population, county zoning and possible use of county-owned land near sewer infrastructure to support housing development, and deed restrictions on county-controlled parcels.
Staff indicated the comprehensive plan update will proceed chapter by chapter, with more public outreach and another full draft review later in the year. The county has posted chapter materials and a public comment form on its comprehensive plan website and is accepting emailed comments from supervisors and the public.
What’s next: Staff will update Chapter 4 with corrected figures, incorporate additional data sources where available and return chapters for further review before producing a complete draft for public review later in the year.
