One year after Dome collapse, school board approves repairs to indoor track, courts

On March 30, 2025 a backup generator at the Hodag Dome failed to activate during an ice storm, causing the multi-use air-supported structure to partially deflate. A symbol of community pride since it opened in February 2021, many residents found the Dome’s absence from the skyline disturbing and waited anxiously for its revival. But there was work to be done. The structure had to be fully deflated to protect the fabric membrane from further tearing and to assess the damage to the equipment inside.
By mid-May, the dome was successfully re-inflated and it reopened to the public in early June, just in time for the graduation ceremony for Rhinelander High School’s Class of 2025.
On March 9, three weeks before the first anniversary of the collapse, the School District of Rhinelander’s operations and strategic planning committee approved a request from school administration to repair the track and courts inside the Dome, as well as the aging outdoor track at Mike Webster Stadium, at a cost of approximately $288,000.
The bulk of the indoor work, caused by the March 2025 ice storm, is to be covered by insurance, district officials noted.
The full package, unanimously approved by the full school board on March 25, consistd of three separate but related projects: resurfacing the outdoor track at Mike Webster Stadium, replacing the indoor track inside the rebuilt Hodag Dome with a higher-grade product, and repairing and recoating the dome’s indoor tennis courts. All three projects are to be handled by Upper Midwest, the contractor selected for the work.

For the indoor track, insurance will cover $256,765 of the replacement cost, the committee was told. The district is also seizing the opportunity to upgrade to a higher-quality product — a G13 track — at a total cost of $288,209, leaving a district contribution of just over $31,000 to be drawn from referendum interest earnings. The new track comes with a 10-year warranty, double the five-year warranty on the track it replaces.
According to district staff, a key difference between the old track and the new one is that the current surface is essentially a spray-applied rubber coating over concrete, meaning that when it wears, it can look like the track is falling apart — when in reality only the top paint layer is degrading. The new G13 track uses a dense, gel-pour construction with color built into the material itself, eliminating the surface-paint wear problem.
“With the track that we have now, if you cut out a section you can take it up to light and see through it — it’s essentially just the top layer,” Pat Kegley, director of buildings and grounds, explained to committee members. “This is more of a smaller granule, and the smaller granules help with the wear.”
The committee also noted the indoor track faces a different wear pattern than the outdoor track, with far more foot traffic from spectators watching events in addition to athletes. The previous indoor track, installed roughly six months before the dome collapse, had already begun showing wear before the structure came down.
For the dome’s indoor tennis courts, insurance will cover patching and recoating at a cost of $47,870, with no out-of-pocket expense to the district.
Separate from the dome work, the committee approved $118,162 to respray and refinish the track at Mike Webster Stadium — a project district officials said is essential to protecting a far larger long-term investment.
The current outdoor track was installed in 2015 and is approaching the end of its first recommended maintenance window. Without a timely respray, officials said moisture can work beneath the surface, causing bubbling, cracking, and eventually the kind of damage that requires a full replacement estimated at more than $1 million.
A respray this year will prevent the district from having to spend a million dollars five to seven years down the road, it was explained. At some point the track will need to be replaced, but a respray will help extend it significantly, the committee was told.
Committee member Mike Roberts, an experienced civil engineer, reinforced the point, explaining that a properly maintained track can withstand two or three recoats before a full replacement is needed — but only if each recoating is done on schedule. Neglecting maintenance, he said, leads to moisture intrusion that damages the asphalt base underneath, requiring far more extensive remediation.
The committee also noted the stakes for the school’s athletic program. Prior to the 2015 installation, the Great Northern Conference had refused to hold track meets in Rhinelander because the facility was in such poor condition — a result of years of deferred maintenance. The district has hosted GNC meets successfully in the years since and is determined to keep that status.
Total district expenditure across all three projects is approximately $147,000, with insurance covering the remainder. Funding is to come from a combination of insurance proceeds and referendum interest earnings, with no impact to the district’s general operating budget.