Connect Communities Program helps guide redevelopment
The Cobblestone Hotel & Suites replaced a pair of dilapidated buildings on Main Street
In 2013, Mosinee had a central business district striving to reach its potential, a freshly minted downtown redevelopment plan, and a membership in WEDC’s then-new Connect Communities Program. Despite the Marathon County community’s best efforts, progress on filling downtown business vacancies and sprucing up the area had been slow and largely unsatisfying. But Jeff Gates, who has served as city administrator since 2000, says the new resources gave Mosinee’s downtown redevelopment efforts a push, providing a road map and the expertise needed to succeed.
Mosinee was one of the original 20 communities to take part in the Connect Communities Program after its founding in 2013.
“Sometimes, it’s better to be lucky than good,” says Gates. “We were lucky that WEDC created the program. We were able to reference the downtown redevelopment plan as part of the application to show our commitment. It’s been a great experience.”
Sharing, learning through Connect Communities
Connect Communities enables selected communities to access webinars, workshops, and roundtables where participants can share ideas and discuss what works—and what doesn’t—in their efforts to keep central business districts vital. Officials also have access to case studies and share their experiences in an online forum.
Jeff Gates, Mosinee city administrator
“We are able to get together with other communities that have the same passion for downtown development and hear ideas we hadn’t thought of,” says Gates, offering an example: “I was at a Connect Communities function and one community had a dining card that promoted all of their local restaurants—a simple idea that we adopted.”
The program also gives officials a chance to check in with WEDC staff. Accessing those resources is especially important in smaller communities that lack a large, specialized staff.
“I don’t have a planner,” says Gates. “I am the planner, and I don’t always have the time to do exhaustive research, so idea-sharing and knowing where to go for help is invaluable.”
Knowledge powers redevelopment
Gates said Mosinee’s participation in Connect Communities helped advance the city’s efforts to reinvigorate its downtown. In 2015, city officials established a Tax Increment Financing District downtown to help fund façade and other improvements. In late 2018, the Mosinee Brewing Co. opened its doors on Fourth Street in a prominent but neglected corner of downtown. The renovation of the former small-town grocery store provided Mosinee with a gleaming new destination for visitors.
“WEDC gave us a Community Development Investment (CDI) Grant for the project and helped give our downtown an anchor,” Gates says.
Another anchor followed in 2023, as a Cobblestone Hotel & Suites opened a 54-room hotel after the city razed a pair of dilapidated buildings on Main Street and obtained another CDI Grant. In between the brewery and hotel, a Mexican restaurant built a new building. Additionally, CreatedAnew Designs, a quilting shop, opened its doors across from the brewery and attracted patrons from a wide region.
Currently, Mosinee is working on a restoration of Square Park in downtown, using a $50,000 Vibrant Spaces Grant from WEDC. The goal is to enliven the area and bring more foot traffic downtown. The renovation will give a former garage new life as a public pavilion and will add overhead lighting, a mural, and new placemaking and wayfinding signage.
“We’ve learned a lot from Connect Communities, and the staff at WEDC are fantastic to work with,” says Gates. “It’s inspirational, especially when you hear the results of other communities and incorporate those ideas to serve your own community’s needs.”
