HomeTop StoriesWisconsin Rapids Common Council considers revised ATV/UTV ordinance after commission nod

Wisconsin Rapids Common Council considers revised ATV/UTV ordinance after commission nod

WISCONSIN RAPIDS – A revised version of an ATV/UTV ordinance that would allow off-road motor vehicles access to most Wisconsin Rapids streets was approved Thursday by the city’s Public Works Commission, about two months after voters approved a similar one on Nov. 5 measure had been rejected. referendum on direct legislation.

The motion to approve included an additional requirement that operators possess a valid driver’s license and that the ordinance language will be re-reviewed by the city attorney and city staff.

The ordinance’s language fits on two pages, compared to the more than six-page ordinance referenced on voters’ ballots in November. The two regulations are largely similar in their references to state laws governing the operation of ATVs and UTVs throughout the state and road safety.

“While I understand the failure to pass a recent referendum, the undeniable economic benefits this ordinance could bring to our community remains a key factor in my position,” District 1 councilman and committee member Ryan Austin said in support of the meeting. of the regulation. District 1 was the only district to vote in favor of the direct legislation ATV/UTV ordinance in November.

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“Wisconsin Rapids is strategically positioned near one of the largest and most extensive ATV/UTV trail networks in the state and by embracing an ordinance that allows these vehicles to legally operate on city streets, we open the door to tremendous economic opportunity,” Austin said.

The ordinance will be reviewed and revised in the coming days and the Common Council will likely discuss it at its next regular meeting on Jan. 21, City Attorney Sue Schill told a Daily Tribune reporter.

How each Wisconsin Rapids county voted on the ATV/UTV referendum

Wisconsin Rapids voters cast 3,924 “yes” votes and 4,895 “no” votes on November 5 to reject a direct legislative referendum that would have created an ordinance allowing ATV/UTVs on most Wisconsin Rapids streets. Here’s how voters in each district of the city cast their ballots.

DISTRICT 1

DISTRICT 2

DISTRICT 3

DISTRICT 4

DISTRICT 5

DISTRICT 6

DISTRICT 7

DISTRICT 8

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Erik Pfantz covers local government and education in central Wisconsin for USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin and values ​​his background as a rural Wisconsinite. Contact him at epfantz@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune: Wisconsin Rapids ATV/UTV ordinance to be reconsidered by Common Council

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