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Mayor supports dock changes for La Crosse

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High water has kept big riverboats from stopping in La Crosse so far this summer, but they will be coming.

La Crosse’s city hall is looking into ways of fixing the boat dock at Riverside Park to make it more attractive for those visitors.

Those docks are in line for major improvements, as the city’s board of public works Monday approved a contract to finish Phase 2 of a landing area for large cruise ships. 

Under the contract with the Smith Group, the existing dock would be upgraded to allow more paddlewheelers and other commercial boats to visit the riverfront. 

The paddlewheeler companies would like to increase the number of boat stops made in La Crosse during the fall and winter. 

The proposed work also might allow the Viking Cruise line to dock in La Crosse, if that company begins tours of the Mississippi River.

Mayor Tim Kabat said the demand exists for more river cruises through the La Crosse area. He wants the city to take advantage of that traffic.

“There are more cruise companies, and they’re looking at more visits, more boats,” Kabat said. “So we are undertaking this study to see just the feasibility of adding more dockage space.”

The mayor added that the docking area could be extended farther north to the La Crosse River, which might mean moving the dock for the La Crosse Queen to a new location.

Also, it might not be possible to give every cruise boat company its own exclusive docking area on the river.

A native of Prairie du Chien, Brad graduated from UW - La Crosse and has worked in radio news for more than 30 years, mostly in the La Crosse area. He regularly covers local courts and city and county government. Brad produces the features "Yesterday in La Crosse" and "What's Buried on Brad's Desk." He also writes the website "Triviazoids," which finds odd connections between events that happen on a certain date, and he writes and performs with the local comedy group Heart of La Crosse. Brad been featured on several national TV programs because of his memory skills.

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1 Comment

  1. Rick Hamilton

    July 23, 2019 at 9:17 am

    iF IT’S A COMMERCIAL AND BOAT DOCKING FACILITY THE GENERAL WALKING PUBLIC SHOULD NOT ACCESS THE LOWER BRICK AREA OF THE LEVEE. ONLY PAYING CUSTOMERS SHOULD BE ALLOWED UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF EMPLOYEES WHEN OPEN FOR BUSINESS AND NOT ALL THE REST OF THE TIME. PEDESTRIANS SHOULD USE THE SIDEWALK ABOVE THE LOWER LEVY AREA.

    tHERE WOULD BE 2 MORE COLLEGE STUDENTS ALIVE TODAY IF THIS AREA HAD BEEN PROPERLY DESIGNED FROM DAY 1

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