Council waives fees for BMX Gold Cup event as alders debate cost of city services

The Rhinelander Common Council voted last week to waive $170 in city fees for the Hodag BMX Club’s upcoming USA BMX Gold Cup Finals, an event organizers say could draw thousands of visitors and roughly $1.2 million in economic impact to the city over three days in September.

On Aug. 14 the council approved Resolution 2026-85, waiving a $25 special event permit fee and a $145 street closure fee for the event, set for Sept. 11-13 at West Side Park. Robbie Deede, track operator for the Hodag BMX Club, told the council the club had worked toward hosting a race of this caliber for 15 years and was accepted to host the North Central Region Gold Cup finals for USA BMX, the sport’s national sanctioning body.

Deede estimated 800 to 900 competitors would attend, along with roughly 2.5 spectators per competitor, for a total of about 4,400 to 4,500 visitors. He said the club is the smallest market in the country to host an event of this scale and projected roughly $1.2 million in economic impact to the city from hotel stays, restaurants and other spending.

“I anticipate our community continuing to grow and be able to become even better suited in years moving forward,” Deede said, adding he hopes the event returns on a two- to three-year rotation if this year’s race goes well.

Alderman Bob Lueder made the motion to approve the waiver, with council president Carrie Mikalauski seconding.

Split council weighs costs against benefits

Alderman Gerald Anderson questioned the fairness of continuing to waive fees for events that require significant street department work, saying he did not intend the comment “against BMX” but felt the city shouldn’t keep granting waivers under the current, undefined process.

Similarly, alderman Steven Jopek said he appreciated Deede’s effort in appearing before the council to explain the event but said he could not support the waiver. He argued the $170 fee amount is minor compared with the actual cost of city staff overtime for police, fire and street department work tied to large events, and that he had taken the same position on a previous nonprofit fee waiver request.

Alderman Tom Barnett countered that the council should not withhold waivers under an ordinance still in effect simply because a new fee policy is in progress. “We have an existing ordinance. We shouldn’t be worried about the upcoming one until it’s actually here,” he said.

Mikalauski, who said she lives near the BMX track and hears the races most weekends, called the event a major opportunity for the city given the area’s limited lodging capacity for an influx of visitors. Alderman Linnea Newman also voiced support, recalling that her son used the BMX facility as a teenager when few other activities were available in Rhinelander.

Jopek also noted the council had previously debated denying and approving waiver requests inconsistently and said another nonprofit could make a similar community-benefit argument at a smaller scale, raising the question of where the city draws the line.

Alderman Luke Kramer asked whether the event could become an annual or recurring fixture. Deede said that is the club’s goal, ideally welcoming the Gold Cup back to Rhinelander every two to three years.

The vote to waive the fee was 6-2 with Jopek and Anderson casting the dissenting votes.

New fee policy still in the works

The vote comes as the council continues work on a broader special event fee policy meant to replace the current, case-by-case approach to waivers. Barnett and Jopek have led a subcommittee working with city department heads to draft the new policy, which would create two tiers of events — Class One events drawing 500 or more people, requiring earlier submission for approval, and Class Two events for smaller gatherings — along with a higher special event application fee to better offset staff review time.

Jopek has said the goal of the new system is to remove the case-by-case, for-profit-versus-nonprofit debate that has driven waiver decisions in the past, applying the same tiered standard to all event organizers regardless of size.

The council did not take up the fee policy during the Aug. 24 meeting, but it appears on the future agenda items list for the council’s next regular meeting, set for Sept. 14. Mayor Kris Hanus said during the meeting that any resulting ordinance change likely would not take effect until Jan. 1, meaning the council may continue to see individual fee waiver requests, including for BMX events, in the interim.

Other business

In other business, the council also gave second reading approval to Ordinance 2026-9, which creates a new municipal code section addressing retail theft and littering. City attorney Steve Sorenson recommended removing a specific penalty provision from the retail theft section, noting the city’s existing bond schedule already covers penalties for ordinances adopted by reference to state statute; the council amended the ordinance accordingly before approving it unanimously, while retaining a restitution provision to cover cases such as damaged or discarded stolen merchandise.

Aldermen also unanimously approved two resolutions: Resolution 2026-83, accepting a $30,000 bid extension from Foley’s Tree Service for the 2026 street tree purchase and planting program, funded through a state and federal urban forestry grant; and Resolution 2026-84, awarding a $609,420 contract to Musson Bros. Inc. for upgrades to the Chippewa Drive and Oneida Avenue lift stations, contingent on USDA Rural Development approval. City Forester Tom Jerow told the council some previously planted trees have shown stress from this year’s dry conditions but said most should recover, with any needed replacements covered under Foley’s one-year guarantee.

During public comment, several residents raised concerns about a proposed sidewalk and road project on Spruce Street, including questions about driveway space, drainage and how the city notifies affected neighborhoods of upcoming projects. The council also received several communications, including a letter from Spruce Street-area homeowners citing concerns about a driveway, utility pole and monarch butterfly habitat; an update on the city’s ongoing property revaluation, with door-to-door inspections continuing through October; a renewed warning about a phishing scam impersonating city departments to solicit wire payments; and an announcement that the city’s new online utility bill payment portal, Rhinelander Community Connect, launched Aug. 13.