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Home About Us B2B Club Breaking News Contact Donate Events / Programs Feedback Ideas Incubator Industry Clusters Links / Resources Progess Funds Progress Teams Public Art / Murals Publications		Breaking News April 12, 2005 - Road Work Ahead, But What Next For City Editorial, Daily Tribune A dry wind blew dust clouds across lawns and parking lots Monday as heavy equipment pounded the pavement on West Grand Avenue in Wisconsin Rapids. A sign warned drivers that the road was closed between the intersections of 16th and 25th avenues. For the next seven months, a reconstruction project will create detours, dirt piles, loud noises, business disruptions and more than a few headaches. But some west-side residents see it as a beautiful project, especially as they envision a wider, smoother West Grand with bicycle paths and decorative bricks and street lights. Maybe they also are expecting more commercial growth on the city's west side and more shopping convenience for themselves. If nothing else, they see the $5.5 million project as a show of respect for their side of the Wisconsin River. It's no secret around Wisconsin Rapids that some parts of the city feel neglected, with west-siders among the most frequent to note their discontent. When Walgreen's opened a 24-hour pharmacy last year on South Eighth Street on the east side, for example, many on the west side said, "What about us?" And what about the city's north side, too? In Monday's Daily Tribune, local historian Dave Engel compared "North Rapids" to North Hibbing, Minn. Both, he wrote, are characterized by "Streets to nowhere. Sidewalks to nothing. Steps to vacant lots." Much of Wisconsin Rapids' commercial traffic has shifted to the south end, Engel wrote in his weekly column, "River City Memoirs." And from there, more businesses are migrating to Plover as a regional hub. Is this trend just the way it is, and Rapids should accept it and go with the flow? Or could the West Grand Avenue renovation breathe new life into a big part of the city? Lorraine Schmutzer is a west-sider who hopes for the latter. She noted at a March 23 project informational meeting that the west side "always has been considered the wrong side of the river." Fair or not, city leaders have developed a reputation for paying too much attention to the south and east sides at the expense of all others. This gets back to planning, and to involving a diverse set of citizens - business leaders, laborers, retirees, students, parents - in determining the future of Wisconsin Rapids. The Community Progress Initiative is the private-organization-driven version of this process. And it's working, especially in smaller towns, such as Rome, the village of Port Edwards and Vesper. Before the last dust settles on the West Grand Avenue project in November, city government has an opportunity to conduct its own visioning process with residents. The mayor and Common Council could hold neighborhood listening sessions on the east, west, south and north sides. That process could culminate with a citywide forum on priorities and ideas under consideration. The main idea would be to determine what each part of the city should look like at some point in the future, in five or 10 years. When the heavy equipment is gone, no part of Wisconsin Rapids should feel like it's closed to traffic.
		Copyright © 2005, Community Progress Initiative, South Wood County & Town of Rome