Marathon Co. to retain seized property in Wausau
By Kevin O’Brien
Marathon County officials have decided to hang on to a vacant property on the west side of Wausau that has a lower-than-expected market value but is still potentially useful as an overflow parking area for the nearby Marathon Park. The property was seized earlier this year through a foreclosure process targeting multiple tax-delinquent parcels.
At its Dec. 16 meeting, the Human Resources, Finance and Capital Committee reviewed an appraisal of the property at 1105 West St. in Wausau, which is located to the south of Marathon Park in an area that is slated for possible redevelopment in the future. One proposal in the West Side Master Plan adopted by the board calls for building a new ice arena on the nearby intersection with 17th Avenue if the Highway Department relocates.
An appraisal by Meyer Appraisal Service of Weston puts the total estimated value at $20,500, which is $12,000 less than the assessed land value, according to county tax bills.
County clerk Kim Trueblood explained that the parcel is zoned residential, but it is too small to build even a garage on at this point. She said any potential buyer would need to purchase an adjoining lot in order to build anything, and none of neighboring properties are currently for sale.
“If someone were to purchase it, they’ve purchased a vacant lot they can’t do anything with,” she said.
The county is owed $26,151 in back taxes and penalties, which does include the cost of the appraisal, Trueblood noted.
Under the county’s ordinance, parcels seized due to tax delinquencies need to be presented to all of the county’s department heads in case they see any potential value in the county retaining ownership.
In this case, Parks and Recreation director Jamie Polley expressed some possible interest MARATHON PARK REDEVELOPMENT AREA
S 17TH AVE
in using the property for overflow parking if a new ice arena is built down the street at the corner of South 17th Avenue and West. The Highway Department shop at that intersection is slated to be relocated, but if that doesn’t happen in the near future, Polley said the ice arena could be built further to the east on vacant land that used to contain a cold storage building.
At a Nov. 19 HRFC meeting, Polley said the West Side Master Plan approved by the board in 2022 calls for potentially developing the land along West Street into park facilities, including a new ice arena, grass fields and relocated pickleball courts.
“When I look at these parcels, usually none of them pertain to a park or a vision that we have, but this one kind of stuck out because of its adjacency to West Street,” she said. “With that longterm plan, that area could be redeveloped.”
A Supreme Court decision from a case in Hennepin County, Minn., along with a new state law, has made it clear that the county must sell any tax-foreclosed properties for fair market value and pay the original owner any money left over after the tax debt, penalties and fees are covered.
By deciding to retain the property, county administrator Lance Leonhard said the county would normally have to “buy” the property from itself and pay the previous owner what is owed under the new law.
However, in this case, the amount of back taxes and penalties owed to the county exceeds the appraised value, so it’s unclear if the county would actually owe the former owner anything.
Supervisor Gayle Marshall noted that the county board has determined that one of its priorities is to redevelop tax-foreclosed properties and other surplus land into residential developments.
Supervisor Ann Lemmer questioned if anyone had spoken to the city of Wausau about the housing possibility. Trueblood said the city was informed of the property’s availability, but it did not respond.
Polley said she’s not recommending that the county keep the parcel as an “absolute necessity,” but she wanted to bring up her ideas before it was sold.
The property, which is located on the north end of a residential neighborhood, is currently empty except for some tractor-trailers visible on satellite images.
Under state law, Puerner said the county has 270 days to decide what it wants to do with the foreclosed parcel. That countdown started on Sept. 25, when the lot was seized along with several others using a legal procedure called “in rem,” which allows the county to pursue several tax-delinquent properties in a single court filing.
At the HRFC’s meeting previous meeting on Nov. 11, Leonhard told supervisors that the county has seen a significant reduction in the number of tax-delinquent parcels in just the past month. The county has been paid $500,000 in back taxes and $9,000 in special assessments, he noted.
Past-due notices have also been sent to about 1,110 property owners who back taxes, according to Leonhard.
FUTURE PARKING? - The GIS map above shows a parcel at the corner of West Street and 11th Avenue in Wausau that was recently seized by Marathon County due to tax delinquency. Instead of trying to sell the property, county officials have decided to hold onto it in case it could be used as overflow in conjunction with proposed redevelopments near Marathon Park.
