Portage County Courthouse. MWC photo by Mike Leischner
STEVENS POINT, WI (WSAU) — Stevens Point Mayor Mike Wiza called Tuesday’s failed vote on a proposed $180 borrowing plan for a new county administration and law enforcement center the proper outcome while doubling down on the city’s commitment to finding a workable downtown solution for the decade-old discussion.
“Government is always extremely complicated,” said Wiza. “But [I think in this case] it was effectively laying the cards out on the table but not telling you what game you’re playing. They didn’t have a site proposed therefore you can’t have accurate construction costs, utility costs, and infrastructure costs. And since you don’t know what it’s going to look like you don’t know what your operational costs are going to be.”
Wiza says the $180 million price tag may have ended up being sufficient, but the quality of the materials and workmanship may have been lower than expected. He also doubled down on his desire to see the city and county come to an agreement that would allow everything to be constructed near the current city hall, courthouse, and county law enforcement/annex complex in the middle of downtown. A few weeks ago the sides held a meeting to discuss the 14-acre site, and Wiza says he’s willing to talk about it again.
“We’re partners. We have the same goal. I agree 100% that a new facility is needed, but I also believe pretty strongly that the location should be what the county has actually been planning all along, for the better part of a decade, and that is a downtown location,” said Wiza. “This affects us just as much as it does any other county resident. To make something that is functional, efficient, and has a life span of more than a couple of decades is important to us. We need to make sure that it is done correctly.”
Wiza notes that the discussion on a new law enforcement and administration center dates back to his time on the county’s board of supervisors. Those in favor of Tuesday’s proposal said it was time to take action before the cost of the facility jumps again.
Tuesday’s vote was 14-10 in favor of the plan, though 18 votes were required for passage. It’s unclear where the project goes from here, though a county committee will consider a downtown master plan next week which includes a layout for a proposed administration and justice center.
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