Wisconsin Builder | City Lights

MAKING SPACE

Minocqua redevelopment faces island confines

Police Department designers deal with space constraints

By Ellen Hickok-Wall
Daily Reporter Staff

Vierbicher Associates Inc., Reedsburg, is the architect of a new Minocqua Police Department designed to fit in with its neighbors on the small island that makes up the town center. The 8,900-square-foot building will be adjacent to the Minocqua Center, where the other municipal offices are located.

The first summer tourists to explore the wonders of Minocqua in northern Wisconsin traveled there in 1886, marking the beginning of what would become a constant flow of vacationers to the area.

Nestled in the center of this tourist-rich region is a small island shaped like a fist that juts into Lake Minocqua and is strung to the mainland by state Highway 51. It is on that small island, which consists of only a few short streets, that the town plans to build a new police building, said Don Gauger, town chairman.

"The site is adjacent to the Minocqua Center, which has the town offices, the library and the Fire Department," Gauger said.

"Effectively, they're creating a civic complex that's concentrated and centralized to help efficiency of staff."

Site options are limited by the borders of the island, he said, but the town plans to take care of any obstacles in the way.

"We purchased an old house that we're going to be tearing down very shortly," Gauger said. "Then we'll move the Minocqua Museum to another lot on the other side of the main drag."

Meg Roback, project manager for project architect Vierbicher Associates Inc., Reedsburg, said the confines of an island have added some challenges for the design staff working on the new police building.

"It adds a little bit of coordination and, fortunately, there's a process to follow when we deal with sites that have existing buildings on them," she said. "It's important to plan ahead and to make sure that when you're looking at the site, you're looking at all of the potential issues up front."

A new home

The $1.5 million, 8,900-square-foot center will house administrative and command staff for the Police Department, space for a dispatch center and squad functions.

"It will also include squad garage and evidence handling and other support facilities associated with the department," Roback said.

The Police Department staff increases in the summer to handle the busy tourist season, and that's when the department faces extra challenges.

"They've had issues with confidentiality," Roback said. "The traffic patterns are really important to keep separate the witnesses and suspects and victims. They've had some challenges with that type of thing."

The building was designed to bridge a gap between a residential neighborhood and the Minocqua Center.

"We're going with a pitched roof to tie in with the neighborhood," Roback said. "And we're going with a brick exterior to tie in with the adjacent Minocqua Center."

The town hasn't yet selected a general contractor for the job, she said, but the bidding process will begin soon.

"We're just finishing up the drawings, and then we'll be going out for bids in August or September," Roback said. "Construction will begin in October, and completion is set for September of 2003."

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