Loss of community leaders chosen as top story of 2024

As we prepare to bid farewell to 2024, we once again offer our readers a list of the top local stories of the past 12 months. The selection process is often difficult, but not this year. With deep sadness and utmost respect, we must put the untimely loss of a pair of beloved community leaders at the top of the list. 

Rouman

On June 9, local entrepreneur and philanthropist George Rouman lost his life in a car accident just a few weeks shy of what would have been his 52nd birthday. The scion of a highly respected family responsible for entertaining multiple generations of Hodags, Rouman’s sudden death provoked an outpouring of emotion. Tributes were placed outside the Rouman Cinema and Rouman’s employees at the Fun Factory Sweet Shoppe remembered him with an image depicting their boss behind his gelato cart. “This isn’t goodbye, it’s just an intermission” it read. 

Later, the submission of a petition for a permanent memorial led the City of Rhinelander to rename the plaza across the street from the State Theater in memory of George, his father, Mike, who past away in 2023, and in recognition of the family’s 100 years of contributions to the community.

Bauer

A few shorts months later, the community was devastated again when news broke that assistant fire chief and longtime youth baseball coach Dan Bauer, just 42, had suffered a fatal heart attack on Nov. 2.

Chief Brian Tonnancour remembered Bauer as the heart and soul of the department, someone everyone tried to emulate. 

“Dan was the pillar of our department,” Tonnancour said during the December meeting of the city’s police and fire commission. “He set the standard for us and I used to tell everybody that all the other fire chiefs need a Dan Bauer and I really meant that because Dan was that guy you could trust to get everything done, take care of anything, and I never had to check on him or question anything that he did. He always had the pulse of the shifts. He always knew what we needed to do to make us move forward culturally. He was really proud of this last year, where we’ve come this last year. We turned a huge corner and he was really proud about that...”

KellyBauer was laid to rest on Nov. 14, following a full fire department funeral service that included a procession through the city. Many stood on the sidewalks at the intersection of Brown and Frederick streets, near the fire department building, to salute the fallen assistant chief as the cortege passed by.

Before we move on, we must also mention the passing of longtime city alderman and Oneida County Board member Tom Kelly on Feb. 1.

Kelly, 81, devoted countless hours to his community as a member of several committees, along with his years of service on the city council and county board. While not a particularly loquacious elected official, when Kelly spoke, his colleagues always paid attention. 

Rest easy, gentlemen. You will not be forgotten.

2. School referenda

The second entry on our list recognizes the passage of a technical education referendum in April and a decision this fall by the School District of Rhinelander board of education to place a $20 million operational referendum question on the April 2025 ballot. The $26 million tech ed referendum — to fund renovations and additions to the technical education facilities at James Williams Middle School and Rhinelander High School  — passed with approximately two-thirds of the electorate in favor. On Dec. 16, the school board approved the following question for placement on the April 1, 2025 ballot: “Shall the School District of Rhinelander, Oneida, Lincoln and Langlade Counties, Wisconsin be authorized to exceed the revenue limit specified in Section 121.91, Wisconsin Statutes, by $3,000,000 per year for the 2025-2026 school year and the 2026-2027 school year and by $7,000,000 per year for the 2027-2028 school year and 2028-2029 school year, for non-recurring purposes consisting of ongoing operational expenses?”

3. PFAS lawsuit evolves

Last year, a federal lawsuit filed by a group of Town of Stella property owners alleging that the current and former owners of the Rhinelander paper mill, and the giant 3M corporation, are responsible for the contamination of their drinking wells topped our year-end list.

In October, a second amended complaint was filed referencing contamination of surface water bodies in and near Stella, in addition to the alleged well contamination. Motions to dismiss, filed by the defendants, are pending. Also, before the end of 2025, the court may rule on the question of whether the lawsuit may be certified as a class action. A trial, if one is necessary, is not expected until late 2026.

4. Golf course debate

In this River News file photo, a golfer tees off on the first hole of Northwood Golf Club in Rhinelander. The city-owned course was the topic of considerable discussion in 2024. It will be managed in-house in 2025 after serveral years of being managed by outside agencies.
(File photo)

In 2025, the city-owned Northwood Golf Club will once again be managed in-house under the direction of the city administrator. In late 2024, the Common Council voted to end its relationship with Oliphant Golf Management, the outside firm that has been managing the course. In recent months, members of the community have been sharing their opinions about the course’s future during the council’s public comment sessions. Opinions, and emotions, have run the gamut with some pushing for the course to be sold and others beseeching city officials to protect the unique recreational asset.

5. Messer Street project

A proposed road and infrastructure improvement project in the city’s Hodag Park neighborhood generated plenty of discussion in 2024. Almost immediately after the project was announced, residents of the neighborhood banded together in an effort to reduce the impact on their properties. It worked. Ultimately, the alderpersons approved a compromise plan that will ensure needed upgrades are made while protecting the character of the tight-knit neighborhood. Work is expected to begin in the spring. 

6. The winter that wasn’t

This Jan. 26, 2024 file photo shows a snowmobile trail just outside the city of Rhinelander. An unseasonably warm and dry winter caused a lack of snow that kept local trails closed for most, if not all, of the 2023-24 season. (Photo by Jeremy Mayo/River News)

This list would not be complete without a reference to the most unusual winter of 2024. Mild temperatures and a distinct lack of snow had a major impact on the local tourism economy. As the area was largely without “white gold”  throughout the season, snowmobiling and other snow enthusiasts had to go elsewhere to find recreational opportunities. So far, it appears that 2025 might bring the welcome return of the winter wonderland the Northwoods has long offered and the revenue that goes with it.

7. Shared Ride terminated

In the last quarter of the year, the Rhinelander Common Council voted to terminate the Shared Ride program known as Rhinelander Public Transit. The decision led customers of the transit service to speak out in opposition. As the year comes to end, it appears the private sector, in the form of Rapid Cab and Advanced Medical Transport, is ready to step up to ensure those who depend on the service are not stuck at home. City officials have called the discontinuation of the service an experiment of sorts. If it turns out the private sector cannot handle the extra ridership, the council can vote to resume the program in 2026.

8. Changes in Oneida County Circuit Court

In April, former assistant district attorney Mary Sowinski was elected to the bench, succeeding Judge Michael H. Bloom who retired at the end of July. Sowinski is the first woman elected to the bench in Oneida County. Mary Roth Burns was appointed to fill a judicial vacancy in Branch 1, following the retirement of Judge Patrick O’Melia in 2022, but lost the seat to Judge Mike Schiek, a former district attorney, in the subsequent election. 

9. Officer-involved shooting

In late January, one person was killed in an officer-involved shooting in the Town of Crescent. Officers with the Rhinelander Police Department and Oneida County sheriff’s office were involved in the incident which resulted in the death of 33-year-old Steven Kincaid. Following an outside investigation, Oneida County district attorney Jillian Pfeifer found that the use of lethal force was justified. 

“On the evening of January 20, 2024, in response to law enforcement’s presence, Kincaid fired two shots, at close range, directly at law enforcement, creating an actual, unlawful interference directed at officers thereby allowing officers to use deadly force to protect themselves, fellow officers, and (a) female visitor, who was believed to still be inside the residence,” Pfeifer wrote. “Even after officers retreated out of the residence, Kincaid posed an ongoing, imminent threat of death or greatly bodily harm to the officers, and the female visitor, by continuing to fire multiple gun shots inside the residence while repeatedly refusing to surrender including Kincaid telling officers that Kincaid armed himself with a shotgun and 40 rounds of ammunition. Under the totality of the circumstances, officers actually and reasonably believed that use of lethal force was necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to themselves and the female visitor.”

10. TJ Maxx opens

Residents watched as the RiverWalk Centre slowly transformed over the course of several months in 2024. The mall now features an anchor store — TJ Maxx. The department store, which opened its doors in August, joins Caribou Coffee as the newest additions to the shopping center.

Heather Schaefer may be reached at [email protected].