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Wausau police ask for $60,000 facility study to plan phased modernization
Summary
Police leaders told the Capital Improvement Program committee July 21 that the 30-year-old police building needs a facility study in 2026 to plan HVAC, space and other repairs; staff suggested $50,000–$75,000 and the committee settled on $60,000 as a scoring placeholder.
The City of Wausau Police Department asked the Capital Improvement Program committee on July 21 to fund a facility utilization study in 2026 to guide a phased modernization of its 1998-era headquarters.
Captain Ben Graham, speaking for the department, said the building was designed for a smaller staff and now “we had 76 full‑time employees [in 1998] and today we’re at 94,” creating space constraints. He said mechanical systems are failing: the HVAC has already failed and replacement costs exceed $1 million; other deferred needs include worn flooring, stained ceiling tiles, torn wall coverings, and deteriorating fitness‑room flooring.
Graham described the CIP request as a planning step, not a construction ask: “This request is not for a flashy new building, it’s just about preserving and maintaining one of the city’s most critical assets,” he told the committee. He recommended beginning planning next year so the city can pursue a responsible, phased approach and consult engineers and designers.
Committee members pressed for cost detail because the scoring sheets require dollar figures. Several council members said they wanted an estimate to score the project. Leo, a city facilities staff member who joined the discussion, suggested using $60,000 for a utilization study as a working figure; committee members agreed to record that amount for scoring.
Alder Rasmussen and Alder Gessman both emphasized fiscal context: large projects already on the horizon include a $20 million fleet facility and other deferred maintenance. Members said the city likely lacks borrowing capacity for major construction in the near term and urged using facilities maintenance funding or phasing work. Chief Barnes said the police department supports planning now so urgent needs are not surprises later and added that the fleet facility is higher priority but that the department wanted future needs on the committee’s radar.
The committee directed staff to add missing line items to the scoring sheets, supply photos the department provided, and treat $60,000 as a placeholder for the requested 2026 utilization study so the item can be scored.
The department also noted that some work (for example, a chiller replacement) was budgeted previously and is underway after a 2025 budget amendment covered a shortfall.
