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County committee denies request to rent vacant 326 River Drive to outreach group
Summary
The Marathon County Human Resources, Finance & Property Committee voted to deny a request by the Marathon County Community Outreach Task Force to rent an unused county building at 326 River Drive for meals and services to unhoused residents.
The Marathon County Human Resources, Finance & Property Committee voted unanimously to deny a request from the Marathon County Community Outreach Task Force to rent the vacant county building at 326 River Drive for weekday meal service and distribution of clothing and hygiene items.
Administrator Lance Leonard told the committee he was approached after a homeless task-force meeting with a letter from the outreach group asking to rent 326 River Drive between about 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays, offering to pay $1 plus any utilities. Leonard said the building is currently vacant but utilities are being maintained while the county transitions departments and contemplates divestment or redevelopment of the River Drive campus.
Committee members raised procedural and policy concerns. Chair (referred to in the transcript as the Chair) and others said the board previously directed a request-for-proposal (RFP) process for River Drive divestment and that a lease could encumber future options for the campus. Vice Chair Marshall moved to deny the rental request; the motion was seconded and then carried unanimously. Legal counsel explained standard insurance limits the county would require in a lease (typically $1,000,000 per occurrence and $5,000,000 aggregate) and noted the county would need to allocate risk and indemnification terms in any lease document.
Several supervisors asked whether denying the letter would block the outreach group from participating in a future RFP; administrators said denial of this specific request would not preclude the group from responding to a later RFP. Supervisor Lemmer asked that a formal request or presentation from the task force be provided in the future so the committee could consider how such a use fits into broader facility planning.
The motion carried unanimously; no lease was authorized and staff were instructed to follow the board's prior guidance on RFPs and divestment processes.
Ending: Committee members asked staff to ensure any future proposals for River Drive are reviewed in the context of the county’s divestment/RFP timeline and to bring formal proposals through the appropriate process rather than deciding rental requests administratively.
