City Actions to Minimize Risk of Exposure and Slow the Spread of COVID-19
On March 15, 2020, the City of Wisconsin Rapids has declared a State of Emergency to Combat the spread of COVID-19. Read the statement HERE. Read the proclamation document HERE.

Beginning Monday, April 5, 2021, the City of Wisconsin Rapids will allow normal public access to all departments in City Hall, Centralia Center, Lowell Center, Wisconsin Rapids Community Media, City Fire Stations, City Garage and Wastewater Treatment Plant. We ask that visitors follow health guidelines provided by the Wood County Health Department. Please practice physical distancing, wear a face mask if you are able, clean your hands regularly and stay home if you are sick. You can find the full press release HERE and detailed information by department below: 
airport
  • The airport will continue to operate as usual. 
  • Visit the Airport Page for more information 
assessor's office
attorney's office
building inspection
  • The office is open to the public. 
  • The public is highly encouraged to take photos and videos and email them to the proper inspector to reduce the number of field inspections at this time. Contact the inspectors via the Permits and Inspections website. 
  • All in-home residential inspections will still be required to call in to schedule an inspection. Administrative staff will ask if any resident in the home is susceptible to immune system disorders or situations that may put them in a higher-risk of infection of COVID-19. Such susceptibility may include, but are not limited to: pregnancy, those over 60, those with an existing compromised immune system, those experiencing or those who recently experienced sickness. If so, staff will schedule an inspection at a future date approximately 8-12 weeks from the date of request. Inspection staff retains the ability to adjust those inspections as deemed appropriate by the Director of Community Development or his designee, including denial of entry into a building or home where higher risk of infection may exist. 
  • Those who request an inspection and do not have any resident of the home subject to the limitation above will be added to the inspection schedule per normal operating procedures. Inspection staff retains the ability to adjust these inspections as deemed appropriate by the Director of Community Development or his designee, including denial of entry into a building or home where higher risk of infection may exist. 
  • All exterior residential inspections will still be required to call in to schedule an inspection. Exterior residential inspections will continue per normal operating procedures. Inspection staff retains the ability to adjust these inspections as deemed appropriate by the Director of Community Development or his designee. 
  • All commercial inspections will still be required to call in to schedule an inspection. Commercial inspections will continue per normal operating procedures. Inspection staff retains the ability to adjust these inspections as deemed appropriate by the Director of Community Development or his designee, including denial of entry into a building or home where higher risk of infection may exist. 
  • Those who need to apply for permits are encouraged to do so online at the Permits and Inspections website, however they can also be obtained at the office during normal business hours.  
  • Inspections will continue as normal at this time. Inspections may still be scheduled by calling 715-428-8228.  
centralia center/lowell senior center
  • The Lowell Senior Center is open to the public. 
  • The Centralia Center is open to public walking and general public access. 
city clerk and voting
  • The City Clerk’s office is open to the public.   
  • Regular office hours are Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.    
  • Persons are strongly encouraged to downloaded, print, and mail (if possible) application forms and fees to the Clerk’s Office (Bartenders, Special Events, Alcohol, etc.). To learn more, check out Apply for Licenses. 
  • Visit the City Clerk Page for more information. 
Community development - code enforcement, planning, zoning & economic development
  • The Community Development Department office is open to the public. 
  • Inspections will continue per normal operating procedure. Staff retains the ability to adjust these inspections as deemed appropriate by the Director of Community Development or his designee, including denial of entry into a building or home where higher risk of infection may exist. 
  • Code enforcement operations will continue, and complaints or tips can still be provided through the City’s SeeClickFix software via the App or online here: Code Enforcement. 
  • The public may apply for Community Development Permits at the Permits website, by calling 715-421-8228 or emailing [email protected]. Hard copies can be mailed to City Hall, Attn: Community Development.
  • Visit the Community Development Department website for more information.
finance department
  • The Finance Department is open to the public. 
  • Payments can be made in person, through the mail or online. 
  • Tax and other payments can be deposited in the brown drop-box outside the front of City Hall. Please indicate on the envelope what your payment is for. When paying with cash, you will need the exact amount to make a payment. Any excess will be applied to your next installment payment. All drop-box transactions will be processed the following business day.  
  • If you would like a property tax receipt, please fill out the "Request for Information" form available in the vestibule of City Hall. Please place it into the brown dropbox outside, or give to the City Clerk inside. Your request will be processed the next business day. 
  • Learn more about how and when to pay taxes here: wirapids.org/news-center-documents/tax-reminders-for-the-city-of-wisconsin-rapids.
  • Receipts and Tax information can be printed online at propertytax.co.wood.wi.us.
  • Visit the Finance Department page  for more Information. 
fire department
  • Access to the two fire stations by the public and City personnel is limited to only essential workforce and is closed to the public. 
  • The Department has suspended all Public Education Events, Fire Inspections, Fire Station Tours, and Public Blood Pressure Screenings.   
  • Land Clearing burning permits will be handled over the phone. If you call ahead, we will take your information and have it ready at the front window of Station I, 1511 12th Street South. Please have the check, or correct money available at time of pick up. 
  • The Department will continue to respond to all Fire and Emergency Medical Services calls. 
  • If you have any questions please call the Fire Department at 715-421-6277. 
human resources
mcmillan memorial library
  • The McMillan Memorial Library's website will be updated as changes to open hours or any other public limitations occur. To learn more, visit: mcmillanlibrary.org/mcmillan-open
  • The website also offers a number of electronic resources. To learn more, visit: mcmillanlibrary.org
municipal court
The following are temporary arrangements and may be changed upon further order of the Court:
  • The Municipal Court Office on the first floor of City Hall will remain open. 
  • Initial appearances, trials and other proceedings scheduled in court will proceed as usual, subject to social distancing and mask wearing obligations, but any party may request an adjournment or other accommodations due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Pretrial conferences will be held exclusively via phone. The defendant is responsible for contacting City Prosecutor Tim Gebert at Gebert Law Office, 715-424-1800, at least 24 hours prior to the date and time set for his/her pretrial conference to set up a time for a telephone pretrial conference. 
  • Payments may be made online, by US Mail or at the payment drop box at the Municipal Court Office. 
parks & recreation
  • ​City Parks, including playgrounds, are open. Please note that all park restrooms are open for the season. 
  • The Parks and Recreation office at City Hall is open. 
  • For park shelter reservations and questions, please leave a message at 715-421-8240 or email us at [email protected]. 
  • To get in touch with the Parks and Recreation Department, you may call the office at 715-421-8240 and leave a message OR email at [email protected].
police department
  • The WRPD Records service counter window is open.
  • If you need to pay a parking ticket, you can pay the ticket online or we can take payments at the window.
  • We are back to our regular schedule for fingerprints.
  • Effective August 1st, 2020, our fingerprint fee will be $25.
  • Due to COVID-19, we ask that people coming in for fingerprinting wear a mask and wash their hands prior to coming in.
  • If you need a copy of an accident report, you can call 715-421-6210, or by sending an email to [email protected] and a free copy can be emailed. Copies of Crash Reports can also be picked up at the Records window.
  • If you need a copy of a police report, you can call our Records Department at 715-421-6210 and we can accommodate your request by fax, mail or email. There is a 50 cent per page fee, which must be paid up front. Payment can be made on the City’s website under I WANT TO. Complete the required fields. Select “pay parking ticket” and under payment type, select “report/incident number”. Copies of Incident Reports can also be picked up at the Records window.
  • Please be advised there is an additional fee for online payments, based on the fine amount. 
public works - engineering
  • The Engineering Department is open to the public. 
public works - streets
  • The City Garage is open to the public. 
river cities cab
  • At this time, they are following the same schedule.
  • They will reduce the number of passengers per trip to reduce contact and crowding.
wastewater treatment plant
  • The Wastewater Treatment Plant is open to the public. 
wisconsin rapids community media
  • Staff will continue to post updates on the city’s response to the pandemic on the city’s website, social media, YouTube and on WRCM cable television.  
  • The physical studio and facilities are open to the public. 
  • Government meetings will continue to be covered to the extent possible if those meetings are being held via teleconference.  
  • Programming on WRCM cable television will continue to run as normally scheduled. 
  • Visit the WRCM website for schedules and further information. 
wisconsin rapids waterworks & lighting commission
  • The office is open to the public.
  • The office can be reached by phone: (715) 423-6300 or online https://www.wrwwlc.com/ 
Information is current as of November 10, 2020. ​
Resources
healthcare
  • ​​Aspirus has established a call center for people concerned they might be infected with COVID-19. The dedicated line will be operational and staffed by live operators from 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. weekends. The Call Center number is 1-844-568-0701.
  • Marshfield Clinic Health System has established a COVID-19 Helpline dedicated to providing community members with information and answering questions about the virus. Call the information line at 877-998-0880, open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
business
  • Joint Local Business COVID-19 Briefings provided by the City of Wisconsin Rapids, the Heart of Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce and the Wood County Health Department to share information and resources, and answer questions related to how the pandemic is impacting businesses.
  • Business Resources from the Heart of Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce are available HERE
  • An interactive map of open businesses can be found HERE. If you are a business that would like to be added to the map, follow THIS LINK.
notifications & News
Follow
Follow City of Wisconsin Rapids , Wood County Health Department and Heart of Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce on Facebook.

Call
Call 211 for general COVID-19 information and to be connected with community resources. 

Register
Register for NIXLE alerts online at local.nixle.com/register or by texting your zip code to 888777.

View
View the COVID-19 pages on the Heart of Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce, City of Wisconsin Rapids , Wood County Health Department , Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Centers for Disease Control and World Health Organization websites.  ​​
City DIRECTORY
CONTACT US:
City of Wisconsin Rapids
444 West Grand Ave. 
Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54495
​715-421-8200

CITY HALL HOURS:
monday - thursday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
friday, 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.