RHINELANDER - Finding a balance between preserving water and using it for recreation can be difficult.

That's what Oneida County is tackling.

Currently, the county limits how many and how large a homeowner's pier can be.
That's based on lakefront footage.

But is that too restrictive?

This issue struck a heated debate in Wednesday open meeting.


Minocqua Resident, Jim Rein, "I’ve lived on lakes a long time. If you’re going to catch bass it’s under a pier not out in the middle of the lake. Piers have a great habitat for fishing."

But Rhinelander resident, Bob Martini, disagrees. "The lake is owned by the public. Every pier restricts that navigation. The size of that pier that’s a number of footage take out of use for each lake," he said.

After listening to everyone’s concerns, the zoning committee voted unanimously to keep the current laws in place.

The Oneida County Zoning Director, Karl Jennrich, said "A lot of people come up here for our lake property. If you want to regulate, regulate at a local level because then it’s in the hands of the local elected officials."

Over the next few weeks the committee will meet again to amend some of their current laws like allowing ladders and flag poles on private piers.

Story By: Jenn Sullivan