STEVENS POINT – Mayor Mike Wiza gives his weekly update on the Stevens Point community.

The new Fox project

Wiza said that he sees the New Fox project as an “economic catalyst” for the downtown area. The project would see CREATE Portage County revise the facility into a multi-use entrepreneurial space. Point Common Council leaders approved the developer agreement for the Fox on Sept. 16.

“Keeping the facade will help keep the fond memories alive, but making it a functional building is really going to be the future of the Fox going forward,” Wiza said.

While some city leaders noted concerns over funding a non-taxable, non-profit entity, Wiza views the Fox as a way to stimulate growth in the downtown area.

“We may not collect taxes on this to help pay that money back, but the secondary and tertiary values created from that Idea Center are going to live on for generations,” Wiza explained.

Cultural Commons grand opening

The Cultural Commons has been open to the public since the start of September, but a grand opening event will take place before the end of the month, according to Wiza.

“We don’t have an exact date, yet,” Wiza said. “It’s all finished, except for mounting the bell.”

Wiza noted several weeks ago that the city was creating a mounting system for the symbolic bell that represents the city’s sistership with Rostov Veliky, Russia. Wiza stated that the fabrication process is nearing completion, and the gifted bell is being safely housed at a local government facility.

For more info on Stevens Point developments watch the Gazette’s Weekly city update video.