Artist rendering of Commonwealth Development's proposed housing unit in Wausau. Image courtesy: City of Wausau
CONLEY COMMENTARY (WSAU) Earlier this year, Wausau announced a development agreement for the 700 Grand Avenue property. Commonwealth Development put in a proposal that the city accepted: a four story apartment building that will help with the city’s affordable housing shortage.
But, the city made a mistake on the paperwork that was given to would-be developers. The city left off an important detail. There is a 72-inch sewer pipe underneath the property. You can’t build on top of it. The pipe needs to be relocated on the city’s dime. It’s a $1.2-million mistake. The city has about $4-million to spend on affordable housing. A pipe that takes up a quarter of the funds available is a lot.
It’s a little more complicated than that. The state DOT proposes widening Grand Avenue in the early 2030s. If the intersection at Grand Avenue and Thomas Street is redesigned, the relocated sewer pipe may be moved again. That’s a lot of money for a new pipe that may only be in-use for a decade.
What to do?
I can think of two possibilities. As unpalatable as it may seem, the city may just have to eat the costs. That said, whoever in City Hall who left the pipe off the maps that were distributed to developers needs to be fired. I don’t say that lightly. Over the course of my career I’ve made mistakes. I prefer to handle oversights with grace and forgiveness. But this is a $1.2-million mistake, in an area – affordable housing – where the city needs to make progress. On this issue, there needs to be accountability. The other option is to offer the developer another piece of property to build on. That’s not as easy as it sounds. The developer has already spent money to design a plan for a specific place: 700 Grand Avenue. Their plans won’t be the same for some other place. And the city should reimburse the developer for those costs.
The bottom line is not pretty. This is an expensive oversight that will waste scarce dollars that could have been spent on much-needed affordable housing. It’s a big mistake.
Chris Conley
Comments