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Wausau council approves city bike-rack request form after debate over concrete costs
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Summary
The Wausau Common Council approved a joint resolution to adopt a bike-rack request form, 10-1, after members debated whether the city should absorb concrete installation costs for racks where local assessments sometimes require residents to pay for concrete repairs.
The Wausau Common Council voted 10-1 on April 28 to approve a joint resolution from the Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee and the Infrastructure & Facilities Committee adopting a standard bike-rack request form.
Mayor Doug Denny introduced the item and the council heard concerns from Alder Trueblood, who asked why property owners who pay assessments for street repairs would not be charged for the concrete associated with bike-rack installations. Trueblood said it “seems ironic” to charge residents for concrete repairs while offering free concrete for rack installations.
Alder Watson and other supporters responded that the program applies only where concrete already exists and that the racks themselves are low-cost and locally fabricated. Alder Martins said the racks are fabricated by NTC students and finished by a local vendor and described the measure as “a fabulous deal to encourage cycling and alternate means of transportation.”
A motion to approve the bike-rack form was moved by Alder Watson and seconded by Alder Neal; the clerk recorded the vote as 10 in favor and 1 opposed. The measure will allow residents and businesses to request racks using a consistent process and positions the city to install racks at low cost when sites already have suitable concrete.
The council took up other business after the vote.
