MARATHON – The Town of Marathon broke ground on another major project this week.
The Works and Operations Facility Development Project will see the construction of a new facility that will hold the town's equipment, mechanical shops, and more.
Daryl Skworchinski, Marathon's CAO, clerk, and director of economic development, said the project was a long time coming.
“Our works and operations facility was approved by council earlier this year, an $11 million construction build that started really to modernize works and operations here in Marathon,” he said.
“Our current facility, which is in the process of being demolished, has been a hodgepodge of different buildings going back to the late 1960s and early 70. So, a really important project for a really important department that services the municipality.”
This project is the second large project that the town has broken ground on in as many weeks, and Skworchinski said it points to the growth the community is starting to experience.
“I hate to say it is a bit of a byproduct of tendering during the COVID pandemic days, ideally, we want to take on one project a year, but I think when looking at these two projects, they're so diverse,” he said.
“One is looking at the core operations of the municipality like works and operations, roads, water, sewer and the other is looking at a tourism development project with such a unique piece of landscape like Pebble Beach.”
While the new facility will allow for better storage for town equipment, like the new garbage truck planned to be purchased in 2024, Skworchinski said that the facility will also offer some unique features to benefit the town.
“We're going to be capturing rain and storm water and then reintroducing that into a wash base system so we can wash things like salt, sand, you know, the debris that builds up over the winter,” he said.
“Which we think is going to extend vehicle life another additional five to seven years.”
The project is planned to be complete by June 2024.
