Once New Ordinance Approved, All Neillsville Streets Will Be Open to ATVs
Wednesday, May 29th, 2019 -- 11:33 AM
-All of Neillsville’s city streets will eventually open to ATV use…for now.After a lengthy discussion yesterday evening, the Neillsville City Council approved rescinding a portion of their ATV/Snowmobile ordinance that established designated routes throughout the city. The discussion to open up all of the city’s streets to ATV use began after the state, and then county, changed the law regarding ATV use on highways. All of Clark County’s trunk highways are now open to ATV use. The discussion began at the previous meeting on May 14th. There were many people present at that meeting, and at yesterday’s meeting, in support of the change. Many feel it will clear up confusion many ATV riders face when they come to the city and it will make things fair to everybody, as everyone can now get from their homes to a designated trail if they are ATV riders. They also feel it will be a big boon to many businesses in Neillsville as ATV’s can now get to them.
However, there were those against opening up all streets to ATV use as well. Those individuals feel that there will be traffic issues and noise issues. They also worry about the age of riders as you can be as young as 12 and operate an ATV, but you do need to be supervised by an adult. There were also concerns expressed regarding traffic around the school and if the posted speed limits for ATV’s were still valid after the ordinance is rescinded. They felt the ordinance should be left as is, but they did state if a route needed to be extended a block or two to reach a certain business, they felt that was okay.
Most on the council has said they had overwhelming support to open up the city’s streets to ATV use. Some members met with those in favor of doing so to hear their support, but also tell them some of their concerns. In the end, the council decided to approve rescinding their previous ordinance on designated routes for ATV’s. The rule change does not go into effect until the change has been made in the city ordinance, which will likely be done at the first meeting in June. The council will revisit the issue during their first meeting in September. If there have been no major issues or complaints, the council will consider leaving the city streets open permanently. But, if issues do arise, they will then put the original ordinance back in place. Signs will be posted at the edge of the city and the posted speed limit signs for ATV’s still apply. Also, ATV riders must still abide by all state rules and regulations when it comes to ATV use.
Put simply, for now, ATV riders must still use the designated routes in the city until a new ordinance is drafted and approved by the council. The soonest this could occur would be the June 11th City Council Meeting. After that occurs, the ATV situation will be observed and revisited during the September 10th City Council Meeting. If everything has gone okay, the change could remain or it could be rescinded if there are issues occurring in the city.
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