WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) — The Wausau Public Health and Safety Committee has approved a third summer of Dining on the Street for restaurants.
Committee Chair Lisa Rasmussen says the program, which began in the summer of 2020 as a way to help those businesses impacted by COVID-19, has become something that the business community is now asking for. While she stopped short of saying it should be a permanent fixture on the summer calendar, she did say another successful year could make that request hard to ignore.
“Main Street and Wausau Events are both interested in having those events again this season,” Rassmussen told the committee. “If we can conduct these types of activities without a whole lot of difficulty there is likely some interest within the business districts to maybe have some of these provisions be permanent. That’s definitely a future discussion once we know a little more.”
Rasmussen says the 2022 proposal mirrors the previous two, allowing restaurants to set up tables outdoors and allowing them to serve alcohol in those outdoor settings. The group will then collect data at the end of the year regarding the activities.
Previous years have included outdoor dining on Wednesdays and Thursdays along with live music from local artists. Specific plans for this year will be announced at a later time.
