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Park City Expands South; Announces Merger with Wood County Employees Credit Union Published on 06/09/2025 under News

Park City Credit Union will be expanding south with a merger with Wood County Employees Credit Union.

According to the announcement, this agreement reflects Park City Credit Union's commitment to serving more members and communities across Wisconsin. Park City currently operates locations in Merrill, Tomahawk, Rhinelander, Minocqua, and now expanding their footprint into Wood and Portage counties.

Val Mindak, President/CEO of Park City Credit Union called the merger a natural fit for both organizations. She says, "We share a deep commitment to our members and the communities we serve. By joining forces, we're not only expanding our reach, but we're also strengthening our ability to deliver exceptional value, personalized service, and innovative financial solutions to even more people."

They anticipate the merger to be seamless for the members of Wood County Employees Credit Union to receive services through Park City Credit Union.

In Other News

Music on the River Returns with Copper Box; WJJQ Community Cookout

Published on 06/11/2025 under News Music on the River returns to the Tomahawk Community with seven consecutive weeks of live music in Veterans Memorial Park. The summer staple kicks off tonight with dinner and a show. The summer concert series is back for year number 18. For those unfamiliar, the bands all perform along the scenic shores of the Wisconsin River where music lovers not only enjoy the performance on land, but also by boat. Over the years, an occasional band member or two have even climbed aboard to play by pontoon. We previewed the line-up earlier this spring. The opening performer is Copper Box. The Fox Valley foursome have become MOTR regulars, now playing the series a half dozen times. There music different genres, with the talented musicians blending a wide-range of instruments. They're also award winning including a Wisconsin Area Music Industry award for Album of the Year with their latest release last year. The opening of Music on the River is also the return of the WJJQ Community Cookout. Our staff will be serving up free brats, hot dogs, chips, and refreshments. Serving gets underway at 4:30 with music to begin at 6pm, all at Memorial Park here in Tomahawk.

Published on 06/11/2025 under News It was a record setting year for tourism, both in the state of Wisconsin and right here in Lincoln County. On Tuesday, the Wisconsin Department of Tourism released the state's 2024 tourism economic impact data. The industry generated a record-breaking $25.8 billion last year. The data was also broken down by county, and Lincoln County set a record for a third consecutive year. The 2024 tourism impact was $113 million, 3.3% growth. In the northern half of the county, Tomahawk Chamber Director Charis Lau was excited to share the numbers. She says, "Our Tomahawk community continues to support our friends and neighbors by putting our local businesses first. The camaraderie, the support, it's how our small town continues to have visitors fall in love with it," Delving a bit further into the numbers, the tourism industry supports nearly 700 part-time and full-time jobs in Lincoln County. It also generated approximately $6.1 million in sales tax revenue. Regarding the state numbers, Wisconsin Tourism Secretary Anne Sayers says, "Last year, Wisconsin tourism brought in more money, welcomed more visits and generated more revenue for state and local governments than any other year. Tourism in all corners fueled this hat-trick of records for an accomplishment the entire state can celebrate," Coming up later this week, we'll take a look at some of the numbers from other Northwoods Counties.

Published on 06/11/2025 under News Ahead of the summer season, the Lincoln County Forestry, Land and Parks Department is completing some work on the Hiawatha Trail system. The Hiawatha serves as a main recreational corridor from the City of Tomahawk to the north. All summer long it will be busy with bikers, runners, and walkers. Before that action picks up, the county will once again be doing some invasive species control on the northern end of the trail. On Thursday morning, crews are scheduled to apply the treatment on the segment between County N and Heafford Road. It will require a 24 hour closure of that area, and they hope to have the trail re-opened by Friday morning. Fortunately, there is an easy detour, as trail users can simply hop onto Heafford Road which runs parallel to the closed segment.

Published on 06/11/2025 under News Last fall, Lincoln County received a state grant to help fund some much needed upgrades for the 911 Center. The County recently received some additional funding from that same program. The grants come from the Wisconsin Department of Military Affairs-Office of Emergency Communications. It's part of a statewide initiative to bring Next Gen 9-1-1 technology to local communities. The goal is to ensure faster response times, greater accuracy, and enhanced emergency response capabilities that residents can rely on. The initial grant awarded to Lincoln County last fall was approximately $417,000. The supplemental grant announced this week added another $18,000. Tyler Verhasselt, is Lincoln County Director of Emergency Management says, "This award is ultimately about making sure our first responders can communicate instantly and effectively, no matter where they are in the county or who they're working with." He explained that the funding will help install updated radio equipment that allows our emergency dispatchers to talk more clearly and reliably with police, fire, EMS, not only in Lincoln County, but neighboring counties as well.

Published on 06/11/2025 under News The Friends of the Tomahawk Public Library are bringing back their summer book sale with the first coming up today. Earlier this week, we were joined by Friends member Nancy Herbison to talk a bit about the group and today's sale. The group was originally founded back in the 1990's to support the library's relocation effort to it's scenic spot along the Wisconsin River. With that task complete, the Friends group new mission is to supplement library programming. This includes sponsoring guest speakers and presenters, children's activities, as well as helping fund improvement projects on the library grounds. Nearly all of their fundraising is done through these book sales, though that's a bit of a misnomer. In addition to books, they also have DVD's and CD's, books on tape, games, and puzzles. The books come from patron donations as well as from the library as they periodically replace their materials. Instead of setting prices for each item, people can name their own via donation. They'll be set up in the library basement Wednesday from 10am to 6pm. If you can't make it today, they've got two more dates scheduled in July and August.

Published on 06/11/2025 under News The Rhinelander community is currently fundraising to build a new playground and splash pad in Hodag Park. That effort received a major boost. The goal for phase one is to install the splash pad this summer. The playground would follow next year. The Kiwanis Club is spearheading the fundraising efforts. This week, they announced the Rhinelander Auto Group contributed $100,000 to the project. Daniel Towne, owner of Rhinelander Auto Group says, "This community has supported us for many years. We're proud to give back in a way that helps create something meaningful for our future generations." The Kiwanis have received an outpouring of donations large and small from individuals, businesses, and even other services organizations in and around the community.

Published on 06/10/2025 under News Multiple people were injured including a child in an Oneida County crash, and the driver is facing an eighth offense OWI charge. According to the Oneida County Sheriff's Office, responders were paged to a two vehicle crash at the intersection of Highway K and Harshaw Road in the Town of Cassian. The call came in at shortly after 4pm. Based on the preliminary investigation, it appears a car was traveling south on Harshaw Road, failed to stop at the stop sign. The car entered the intersection and was struck by a westbound SUV. The operator of the car, a 50 year old woman, was airlifted to an area hospital for treatment. No update on her condition was provided. According to the news release, the woman was arrested on multiple charges including OWI-8th offense, operating after revocation, and failure to install an ignition interlock device. The woman's name was not immediately released. Three other people reported injuries and were transported to area hospitals including a four year old passenger in the car, as well as the driver and passenger of the SUV. The crash remains under investigation.

Published on 06/10/2025 under News People can learn more about the potential buyer of Pine Crest Nursing Home with a pair of town hall meetings today (Tuesday, June 10). As we told you yesterday, the Lincoln County Board will consider a purchase offer of Pine Crest at their next meeting. That potential buyer has been disclosed as Ensign Group. The county provided some background information on the company while announcing the offer. They said Ensign group has been around since 1999 with 300+ health and rehab facilities across 14 states. They also noted that they are typically run independently, with the Merrill group listed as Jack Pines Healthcare LLC. Ensign is scheduled to have representatives on hand for today's meetings to offer a presentation. The first will be held at 3:30 at Merrill City Hall. A second for residents and families of Pine Crest at the facility at 6pm. The Lincoln County Board is expected to take up the purchase agreement at their meeting on Tuesday, June 17.

Published on 06/10/2025 under News Some sure signs of summer in Tomahawk, the Main Street Farmer's Market returns and the Historical Society Museum opens Tuesday. Main Street Farmer's MarketThe Tomahawk Main Street Farmer's Market opener is actually a week later than expected, as some stormy weather forced a postponement. But we were able to catch up with Matt Hau of Pine Grove Pastures who offered up a preview. Farmer's Markets have exploded in popularity in recent years, offering consumers a chance to purchase fresh and locally-sourced food, from the farmer's themselves. While it's still early for crops like tomatoes, squashes and corn, Hau notes early season produce like onions, asparagus, and rhubarb are already being harvested and sold. Some farmers even offer starter plants so you can see how green your thumb truly is. Over the years, they've experimented with their hours. Recently they've settled on a mid-day market from 11am to 3pm. Those will take place Tuesdays throughout the summer on 3rd Street off of Main Street. Tomahawk History MuseumsMeanwhile the Tomahawk Area Historical Society is also set to open their museums for the summer. Their team of volunteers have been busy working on some new displays while updating some of their existing exhibits. Among the new attractions they teased was a new Tomahawk Jaycees display. And not yet on display, they are also working on another exhibit on the relationship between the community and Harley-Davidson. They are actually looking for some help from the public for display pieces. While they have quite a few pictures, they are looking for additional items such as memorabilia or equipment. The museums will be open on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 11:00am - 3:00pm. They're also planning some special evening and weekend opportunities throughout the summer.

Published on 06/10/2025 under News The Northwoods is known for it's lakes and rivers, and two women were recently recognized for their efforts in keeping them clean. It's Invasive Species Action Month in the state of Wisconsin. And the DNR and Wisconsin Invasive Species Council recently recognized professionals and volunteers for their exemplary work. According to the DNR, "(The recipients) used many different approaches in their efforts, but each winner is united in putting in long hours in the ongoing work against the spread of invasive species." Among them is Stephanie Boismenue, the Oneida County AIS Coordinator. They described her passion and enthusiasm as infectious, adding that her skills in education and leadership have greatly benefited the region. They highlighted the efforts of Boismenue and her team in training more than 180 volunteers to monitor water bodies where they made contact with more than 5,000 people at boat landing during outreach efforts. She also reared and released more than 12,000 bio-control beetles to combat purple loose strife. A bit further North, Vilas County Lake Conservation Specialist Cathy Higley was also recognized. Among her highlighted efforts: assisting the more than 100 lake associations in Vilas County and leadership in establishing the Northwoods Businesses for Clean Waters organization. Overall, more than dozen individuals and groups were recognized for their invasive species efforts this past week. The recognition ceremony held at the Wisconsin Cranberry Research Station on June 4. -Photo provided by Wisconsin DNR

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