City of Rhinelander

The City of Rhinelander and the School District of Rhinelander have an agreement to use existing softball and baseball fields after passage by the city council Monday.

The School District approached the city earlier this year about constructing a new ball field at Pioneer Park, now the site of the Hodag Farmer's Market and the Oneida County Fair. In discussing the issue, the city discovered they had no formal contact in place for the school district to use the ball fields.

Committee chair Sheri Belliveau....

Local governments are putting together their budgets for next year and the city of Rhinelander came up with a pleasant surprise.

Like many municipalities, the city struggled to keep services during the Great Recession when property values were plummeting. Taxes rose because of the loss of revenue.

But this year City Council Finance committee chair Mark Pelletier says something interesting happened. He says the budget went up slightly, but it shouldn't be seen in the city's portion of the tax bills...

Construction in downtown Rhinelander continues to make it’s way through the city. Director of Public Works, Tim Kingman says the downtown Streetscape project has been going well.

“Well we’ve been doing really well, we’ve had a very favorable project where we’re just about completing the north Brown section of roadway up from the Davenport intersection all the way up to Frederick street. Likewise we are getting to completion on Rives street.”

The city of Rhinelander has received final approval for a grant that will begin a new bike trail on the city's south and west side.

City Council member Alex Young says the $135,000 grant will enable construction of a paved, multi-use path along Kemp Street on the city's west side. It will join the already built portion of the Riverwalk trail by the Chamber of Commerce, but will head down Boyce Drive...

Many local governments use a state of Wisconsin-based website for things like meeting notices and general information.

The city of Rhinelander has moved toward their own website that is hoped to be more user-friendly. City Administrator Kristina Aschenbrenner says the new website is designed to provide more flexibility...

The City of Rhinelander has been given preliminary approval for money to help build a bike trail, known at the Chamber of Commerce Trail.

Late September, the city received notice of preliminary funding, pending meeting some other DNR requirements as City Administrator Kristina Aschenbrenner explains...

"....the Stewardship application for the Chamber of Commerce Trail has been tentatively selected. It will include $135,000. A 50-50 grant with work to start in 2016....."

Rhinelander is without a comprehensive recreation plan, but a five-year plan is in the works with a draft likely this fall.

The city has contracted with North Central Wisconsin Regional Planning to put together a plan.
Planner Fred Heider says Rhinelander has a number of recreational elements already in place, including several parks, walking paths, BMX track and a 2003 Pathways Project, which spelled out hiking and biking trails in the city.

Heider says an earlier survey of Rhinelander residents found this breakdown of preferred recreational activities...

The city of Rhinelander’s finance committee has signed off on a plan for building the first part of a nonmotorized trail near the Pelican River.

The committee agreed to put forward about $130,000  if matching grant money comes in.

Council member Alex Young says the a ten-foot wide paved trail would connect hotels along Kemp Street, the Chamber of Commerce, and the new boat landing on Boyce Drive.

Next April, Rhinelander voters will see an advisory referendum  whether the city should petition the legislature to become the next community with a Premier Resort Area Tax.

The question asks whether the city should levy one-half cent on a dollar sales tax on tourist-related  items.

The money raised could only be used to upgrade infrastructure, namely city streets. The city could like to fix Lincoln Street from Oneida to Eisenhower Parkway, Stevens Street, Boyce Drive and Oneida Avenue, totaling some $2 million dollars.

A donation will enable the unused skate park behind the Rhinelander police and fire building to once again open.

Many years ago, a skateboard park was built just off the downtown. The park at Phillip and Alban streets has sat idle for a time. At last night's city council meeting, council member Sherri Belliveau said  a citizen came forward with a donation...

Rhinelander's City Administrator would like the city council to consider a revenue generator used by other communities with lots of tourists: a premier resort tax.

It's a local retail sales tax where the municipality may only use the proceeds  to pay for infrastructure expenses within the municipality. Eagle River has a half of one percent premier resort  tax.

The Oneida county board has signed off on a plan to help the city of Rhinelander dispose of the hazardous Lindey Cleaners property downtown.

The former owners owe about $70,000 in back taxes, but the county was hesitant to foreclose because of the chemicals in the former dry cleaners. The city and county have reached agreement for the county to convey the property to the city, with the city paying 2014 fees.