Wausau City Hall. MWC photo by Mike Leischner
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) — Wausau City Hall will be receiving security upgrades after both the city’s Finance Committee and Council approved a plan to use $68,000 from reserves to cover the cost of a $231,470 proposal to install a secure entrance.
Public Works Director Eric Lindman says the update isn’t about making the building less accessible, but it is a safety measure. “We want to be pro-active. We want to keep it as open as possible, but we also want to keep it as safe as possible for everybody that’s working here.”
Lindman says those who come to City Hall to make a payment or take care of small business will still be able to walk directly up to the clerk’s counter and walk out. But access to the rest of the building, including second and third-floor offices, will be restricted. “There will be a remote call and they’ll be buzzed up to the appropriate place. Just so we know when people come into City Hall where they are going, we’ll be able to direct them better.”
The public will still be able to access Council Chambers for both committee and City Council meetings without being buzzed in. But unlike the current setup, the entirety of the building will not be accessible to those attending meetings. Lindman says that’s another safety feature to prevent people from “hiding out” in the upper or lower levels.
“We have had some people in here overnight sleeping. We want to prevent that,” added Lindman.
The proposal was first discussed in April. At that time former Police Chief Ben Bliven described the wide-open nature of City Hall as an emergency. “We can’t go a day in this country without seeing a shooting in a building,” Bliven told the City Council. “We need to do this. It is an emergency, and it is a priority.”
Mayor Katie Rosenberg noted that she has called the police multiple times after accessing her office on a weekend only to find people walking or sleeping in the lobby.
RELATED: Wausau City Hall Set To Receive Security Upgrades
Tuesday’s votes were 4-1 in Committee and 8-2 in Council. Alders Doug Diny and Tom Kilian both voted against the measure. Work on the upgrades is expected to begin this winter.
NO CHANGE IN COMPENSATION FOR ALDERS, MAYOR
The Finance Committee also followed the Human Resources Committee’s lead in voting down a proposal to give elected officials a 3% raise, but not without some heated discussion and a surprise amendment to decrease alder by the same amount during council discussion.
Alders Lou Larson and Dawn Herbst both spoke in favor of the move, saying no one serves on the council because of the salary but a small increase would be a way to attract others who might be interested in running.
“We give [raises] to everybody but we exclude ourselves year after year. It’s been 16 years since we had any increase, and 3% isn’t going to matter to any one of us either way, but it’s the principle of the fact,” said Larson.
Alder Kilian then offered the amendment to cut pay by 3%, saying he didn’t feel the council was being transparent enough or doing enough to solicit public feedback. He suggested that the pay would then increase when certain benchmarks are hit regarding public input or feedback. “At times, even after robust discussion, this body is still making some of the same follies [as] we just talked about with public participation. I find that unfortunate and rather sad.”
The move left many on the council stunned but did garner a second from Alder Diny. They were on the losing end of an 8-2 vote against the amendment. The motion to increase pay also failed 8-2. Alders Larson and Herbst were the only two voting in favor.
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