More than 20,000 addresses will change later this year when Marathon County eliminates its 10 existing address grids and implements a single Uniform Addressing System across 40-plus participating municipalities (mostly unincorporated towns, plus the Villages of Elderon and Stratford). The goal of the new Uniform Addressing System is to help Marathon County emergency services provide the right service to the right place at the right time.

The Marathon County Conservation, Planning, & Zoning Department is committed to helping businesses through this change. The department has created a dedicated Uniform Addressing website containing project updates, maps, checklists, frequently asked questions and a downloadable Quick Reference Guide with helpful tips and tools for businesses affected by this project.

Businesses may be affected by this change either by having their own address change or by having many of their clients’/customers’ addresses change. Later this year, a cross-reference table will be available online that matches former addresses to their corresponding new Uniform Addresses. With the use of this downloadable spreadsheet, businesses should be able to easily update any address changes in their databases.

“The Wausau Region Chamber of Commerce will offer a question-and-answer program open to businesses impacted by this project. This hour-long events, to be held at the Chamber’s office in downtown Wausau on Thursday, Feb. 1, at 6 p.m., is open both to Chamber members and to non-members in Marathon County.” said Dave Eckmann, President/CEO of the Wausau Region Chamber of Commerce. “Business owners in the 21 municipalities not participating in the project may also wish to attend as their customers and clients may have addresses that will need to get updated. For more information or to register, visit WausauChamber.com.”

Businesses will not be charged for county-issued replacement address signs. In response to concerns from local municipalities regarding the financial implications of the proposed Uniform Addressing System, the Marathon County Board voted to pay $1.2 million to cover the cost of the Uniform Addressing project.

Those with questions can also call the Marathon County Public Library–Wausau Headquarters Reference Desk at 715-261-7230 or visit any of the nine library locations in the county for one-to-one assistance or a free paper copy of the Quick Reference Guide.

As of January 10, 2018, the 41 municipalities participating in this Marathon County Uniform Addressing project include: Bergen, Berlin, Bern, Bevent, Brighton, Cassel, Cleveland, Day, Easton, Eau Pleine, Elderon (town), Elderon (village), Emmet, Frankfort, Franzen, Green Valley, Guenther, Halsey, Hamburg, Harrison, Hewitt, Holton, Hull, Johnson, Knowlton, Marathon, McMillan, Mosinee (town), Norrie, Plover, Reid, Rib Falls, Rietbrock, Ringle, Spencer (town), Stettin, Stratford (village) Texas, Wausau (town), Weston (town), Wien.

As of January 10, 2018, the 21 municipalities NOT participating in this Marathon County Uniform Addressing project include: Abbotsford, Athens, Birnamwood, Brokaw, Colby, Dorchester, Edgar, Fenwood, Hatley, Kronenwetter, Maine, Marathon City, Marshfield, Mosinee (city), Rib Mountain*, Rothschild, Schofield, Spencer, Unity, Wausau (city), Weston (village).