SURPRISING STUFF
The Business Improvement District (BID) is hosting a merchant meeting to discuss the Highway 50/Main Street construction.
The meeting will be held on Wednesday, February 12th, from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. at Topsy Turvy Brewery. The BID invites merchants already a part of the BID district along with any interested business owner or community member to be a part of the discussions. The proposed project would improve approximately 2.5 miles of WIS 50 (Main Street) from Forest Street to Grand Geneva Way, over the 2027 and 2028 construction seasons. In addition to replacing the existing pavement, project improvements also include replacing traffic signal equipment at six intersections within project limits. Reconstruction of non-compliant ADA curb ramps. Drainage improvements. Constructing a path between Curtis Street and Edwards Boulevard. WIS 50 will be constructed in segments, and traffic control configuration will be specific to each one. No matter what the operation, access to adjacent businesses and properties will be maintained.
The project is proposing to resurface portions of WIS 50 (Main Street) east of Wells Street along with sidewalk construction, which can be done under flagging operations and a shoulder closure. Improvements at the WIS 120 and Edward Boulevard intersection may require single-lane closures, but efforts will keep it partially open during construction. The project is also proposing to conduct pavement replacement on the portion of WIS 50 (Main Street) west of Wells Street. Maintaining traffic through the downtown core is a priority, and temporary widening efforts to maintain bi-directional traffic are being explored.
At a minimum, a lane of traffic in one direction will always open through this area. From Forest Street to Cook Street, there are only two existing travel lanes and full closure with local traffic will be required is being evaluated. As always, a hot topic will be parking. The idea of a parking structure has been brought up once again and this time with much more enthusiasm.
There is a committee being formed to look into the costs, locations, and details about putting the parking structure downtown. The BID will be introducing an Economic Committee to help with the problems, like parking, that will be associated with the construction. The committee will consist of both BID members and citizens. This is a big project that needs to be addressed sooner rather than later.
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