Menomonie issues request for qualifications on affordable housing development
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
MENOMONIE — The Menomonie City Council is seeking developers with qualifications to build affordable housing on a nearly 42-acre parcel owned by the city south of Andersen Windows and east of Phillips Medisize.
The city has owned the parcel for 30 or 40 years, and it has some wetlands and steep slopes that make it difficult to develop for a factory or a research facility, said David Schofield, director of public works, at the Menomonie City Council’s August 18 meeting.
The 41.74-acre parcel is bounded by Nicholas Drive, Kothlow Avenue and Lookout Road near the Stout Technology Park on the east side of Menomonie.
It is possible the parcel could be used to build affordable, quality and accessible housing, Schofield said.
A certified survey map of the parcel was completed in July of 2023, and a wetland delineation also has been completed, he said.
The question is — how to identify an interested and qualified developer, Schofield said.
The newly-formed Ad-Hoc Housing Committee recommended issuing an affordable housing development request for a statement of qualifications to develop the city-owned land.
Members of the Ad-Hoc Housing Committee are planning to give a report to the city council in January of 2026 prior to disbanding.
Before any development could occur, the city would have to sell the land, and a developer’s agreement would have to be in place, Schofield said.
The request for a statement of qualifications is intended to figure out “who we want to walk through the door with,” he said.
Schofield said the city would want to avoid a situation in which a new house was purchased for $180,000, and then the house is “flipped” for $340,000.
The “affordability” of the houses must be “sustainable,” and the houses should be owner-occupied, he said.
The request for qualifications could come back to the city council for consideration at the October 20 meeting, Schofield said.
Are there certain contractors who will receive the request for qualifications? asked Randy Knaack, mayor of the City of Menomonie.
The notice will be published in the Colfax Messenger, and the request will be sent to developers the city has worked with in the past, Schofield said.
If city council members know of developers that they would like to work with, the request also can be sent to those developers, he said.
The Menomonie City Council unanimously approved moving forward with the request for a statement of qualifications from housing developers.
Cookout
The Menomonie City Council also approved a special event request for the Great Community Cookout in Menomonie on September 11 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.
This has been an annual event for many years, said Becca Schoenborn of Downtown Menomonie.
Sixth Avenue from Broadway to Second Street, and Second Street from Main Street to Sixth Avenue will be closed off for the event, she said.
There will be 10 food trucks this year, and Bill’s Distributing will supply a beer tent, Schoenborn said, noting that local beverage options also will be available.
Non-profits and community organizations will have booths, and many of them will provide activities for kids, she said, adding that a fire truck and a squad car also will be available for youngsters to see up close.
There will be a dunk tank that will allow attendees to dunk all their favorite local celebrities. The UW-Stout Auto Club will sponsor an antique car show, Schoenborn said.
Between 1,000 and 2,000 people generally attend the Great Community Cookout, she said.
Other business
In other business, the Menomonie City Council:
• Approved a budget transfer of $28,000 from the contingency fund for consulting services with Wipfli LLC to improve procedural processes related to internal controls, task responsibility, workflow efficiency, reporting accuracy and the application of Generally Accepted Accounting Principals (GAAP). This will result in a manual of procedures rather than “word of mouth,” and is expected to reduce audit costs, said Eric Atkinson, city manager. The manual also will provide consistency when there is a transition to a new employee, he said.
• Approved a budget transfer of $8,500 from various funds to the aquatics building repair fund for United Leak Detection to find the exact location of a leak in the swimming pool at Wakanda Waterpark so it can be repaired for the 2026 season.
• Approved a temporary Class “B” beer license for Main Street of Menomonie/Downtown Menomonie for the Great Community Cookout on September 11.
• Approved mobile food establishment licenses for K&K Poppin’ Stop out of Plum City and for Big Damn Farms out of Spring Valley.
• Approved a secondhand article license for Town & Country Antiques, 632 Broadway Street South in Menomonie.
