WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) — It appears plans for two full-sized artificial surface soccer fields in Wausau’s Airport Park have been scrapped just as quickly as they came to light.
The city Parks and Recreation Committee on Monday voted to approve a letter of support for the nearly $2.5 million project proposed by representatives of the Marathon County United youth soccer club. However early on in the meeting, it became obvious that there were several issues with the proposed location near the downtown airport.
“I think some of the feedback that we got tonight about some of the regulatory issues [about] Airport Park will cause us to rethink whether there are any alternative locations better suited for this kind of thing,” said Club President Sharon Belton. “There is a significant need for extra space somewhere in the community.”
Some of those issues involve ownership of the land the park sits on, which is leased to the city by the airport. Representatives of the airport said that’s on purpose in case the facility needs to expand. Residents of the neighborhood also expressed concern over the amount of traffic and parking that would be needed for weekend events.
Belton and others from MCU noted that some of the issues, including the need for FAA approval for any plans in the park, were not known to them until just minutes before Monday’s meeting. With that in mind, they made it clear that they haven’t fallen in love with the site and will continue to explore options both in and out of the city of Wausau.
“What we are looking for is a large enough space where we can have multiple, full-size artificial turf fields with lights. A place where we can have games when it is dark out, where we can have practices in mid-October [or early April] when we don’t have access to Eastbay.”
The group also emphasized that they would be willing to share the space with other youth soccer groups as well as other field sports such as lacrosse. The plan on making a presentation during Tuesday’s county Parks Commission meeting to secure their support as well.
The letters of support from the city committee are needed to help secure funding for the project from local foundations.
The group hasn’t given a specific timeline for when they would like the facility to be ready but noted they will continue to tweak the plan until they find a suitable location.
