CONLEY COMMENTARY (WSAU) That didn’t take long. Four months into his term as Wausau mayor, Doug Diny is facing pushback from the big-spenders on the city council.
The mayor knows that city property owners are facing a big tax increase in next year’s budget. He’s already says he’ll propose a zero-based bare-bones budget for 2025. Here’s what taxpayers should be worried about: the mayor has proposed two cost-savings measures so far. Both have faced pushback from the City Council.
First, the mayor vetoed a $100,000 consultant to help market undeveloped but contaminated land to developers. The mayor says there are other, shovel-ready properties in the city. Council members said the money was already budgeted… the mayor’s veto was upheld by a single vote.
Mayor Diny also proposed a $500,000 savings by merging the city’s Parks Department into the Department of Public Works. That involves getting out of a long standing agreement with Marathon County. The city’s Parks & Rec committee lambasted the idea. Their complaints: we’ve always done it this way, and we weren’t included in the discussion early enough.
And the mayor has also proposed a $2-million payment in lieu of taxes that would lower water rates by about 10%. That’s been tabled by the City Council for more study.
So I have a challenge to each and every member of the Wausau City Council. What are your proposals to spare the city’s property owners from a huge tax increase? Or do taxpayers in Wausau just have to grin and bear it? The problem right now is that the city council still has lots of big spenders – leftovers from Katie Rosenberg’s time in office. During her term the city’s debt quadrupled. Well, the COVID cash and record state revenue sharing days are over. That one-time money has dried up.
The Mayor has put forth his ideas. If they’re unacceptable, where are your alternatives? If your city council member has no cost-saving ideas of their own, pick someone else in the next election.
Chris Conley
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