City holds public meeting about redesigning N. Water Street in downtown Milwaukee
MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- It's one of Milwaukee's most popular entertainment districts, and city leaders want to make it safer.
A plan is in the works to redesign a portion of N. Water Street, and the community has an opportunity Thursday to weigh in on the ideas.
A public meeting starts at 4:30, at Diercks Hall at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, to discuss design alternatives.
Attendees can learn about the project and give feedback.
"We want to make sure we're doing what we can to improve safety and rethink how the corridor is used," said city engineer Kevin Muhs.
A downtown plan from Milwaukee's Department of City Development recommends transforming Water Street for the future.
Milwaukee's Department of Public Works is now focused on the corridor from Kilbourn Ave. to Pleasant St.
"The whole goal is to improve safety, slow down traffic, provide permanent facilities for bicycle infrastructure, and improve transit access," said Alderman Robert Bauman.
The safety aspect is to curb reckless driving, as the street is on the city's high injury network.
"It does see a disproportionate amount of crashes that result in either people dying or life-changing injuries," Muhs said. "There have been three within the past few years on Water Street that resulted in deaths."
Ald. Bauman says redesigning roads is one of the most cost-effective ways to improve safety.
"You do it once, and then the investment is there, and it's a passive restraint. It's a passive hinderance to speeding," he explained.
DPW has three design alternatives for the project.
All three reduce driving lanes to add bus-only lanes. Two add raised protected bike lanes.
"It's a busy bus corridor, we do have MCTS buses coming every four-to-five minutes for most of the day," Muhs said.
The design process is funded through a tax-incremental district. Construction funding is still in the works.
"The engineering will probably take a couple years, so it's a long process, but this is the first step," Bauman said.
Right now, the city wants input from anyone that could be affected.
"I encourage business owners to get involved earlier, rather than later," Bauman said.
"We really want people across the city, who have experience on Water Street, to come tell us what they think," Muhs said.
There is not a timeline for the project yet.
DPW hopes to have the design alternatives narrowed down to one option by the spring.
Thursday's public meeting runs until 6:30 p.m.