WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) — Marathon County’s goal is to get a little smaller in 2022.
Not in population or landmass.
Administrator Lance Leonhard says to look for the number of county-run and owned buildings to start declining over the next few years, to increase efficiency and decrease the number of roofs that need maintaining. “If we conloldate our footprint it’s much more cost-effective long-term,” said Leonhard.
That play may start as soon as late 2022 when the social services department moves to the Lakeview drive campus where the county health department and North Central Health Care are located. He says that’s a smaller footprint than they have now, but it will allow for better collaboration and an appropriate amount of space for the department given those who are working from home.
“[We’re thinking] how can we be more mindful of our space? and how can we be more mindful of the people who are working remotely? The goal remains to maintain that quality of service while also reduce the cost to the Marathon County taxpayer,” said Leonhard.
He expects there will be other departments that get displaced in the next few years to cut down on the number of buildings owned by the county, especially those on the River Drive campus.
“Long-term, we are pursuing, just like every other business, the hybrid working approach. It delivers higher-quality service for the people of Marathon County at a lower cost, and allows us to maintain our most important asset- our people.”
Leonhard adds that increasing efficiency is something that government should always prioritize. He and the county board have taken a deliberately slow approach towards spending their share of the American Rescue Plan funds, approving just one project with the one-time windfall so far. That was an upgrade to audio and video equipment for the county’s circuit courts to allow inmates housed in other counties to make their appearances via video instead of in-person. That move saves two deputies from making the round-trip to pick up the inmate, book them into the Marathon County Jail for their hearing, then take them back to the county that’s housing them. In turn, that also saves gas and vehicle wear for the county.
As for what the county will spend the rest of the ARPA funds on, Leonhard says stay tuned. That discussion is expected to continue into 2022 with projects that would provide the biggest return on investment going to the front of the line.
Other topics Leonhard discussed with WSAU’s Mike Leischner include:
Start of video- 2022 budget and tax numbers
6:30- ARPA funding
10:30- How did the county survive the December 15th Derecho
15:00- Leonhard’s evaluation of Marathon County going into the new year
17:40- Remote work for county employees
Comments