City seeks feedback on how to make busy Bay View street safer
MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Small squares of adhesive notes covered a printed-out diagram of Kinnickinnic Avenue inside the Milwaukee Public Library's Bay View branch Monday night.
Colleen Fessler was among those attaching pieces of feedback at an open house hosted by the Milwaukee Department of Public Works (DPW.) The hour-long session was meant to get a sense of how neighbors want the city to address a mile-long stretch of Kinnickinnic Ave. between S. Fulton St. and E. Holt Ave.
"Being a cyclist on KK is actually extremely dangerous," Fessler said. "Usually, it's the fastest route for me to get home and to go places in Bay View, where I live, but I usually use it the least amount of times because I feel like I'm risking my life just existing on that street as a cyclist."
According to DPW data, 23 people have been hurt in 21 car crashes on the chosen part of Kinnickinnic Ave. since January 2019. Three of those crashes involved pedestrians, and one involved a cyclist.
Two of the crashes left a victim severely injured. Cara Corder is one of those victims, and Tuesday will mark the one-month anniversary of when she was critically hurt by a driver who was drag racing and hit Corder as she left the Wiggle Room on Oct. 26.
Both the driver who hit Corder and the other racing driver fled the scene. Corder worked at The Vanguard restaurant, and her boss there, Chris Schulist, was at Monday's meeting and said Corder was released from the hospital Sunday night. A GoFundMe page for Corder also said Corder was discharged on Sunday.
"I feel like it's a testament to her and her willingness to fight," Schulist said. "Even with a neck brace on and beat up, she's still cracking jokes, she's still funny. So, that gives me hope."
A Milwaukee police spokesperson said in an email Monday no one has been arrested in connection to the crash that hurt Corder. Schulist was visibly frustrated by the lack of progress in the case.
"It's rage inducing," he said. "But I - the day after [the crash], I had no faith that anyone would be caught."
City Engineer Kevin Muhs said the crash is what triggered the DPW's urgency to make changes on Kinnickinnic Ave. He said some of the traffic-calming measures under consideration are already in use across other parts of Milwaukee.
"Looking at some curb extensions or pin-down bump-outs to shorten crossing distances and try to prevent passing on the right," Muhs said. "And then also, probably some speed tables or raised crosswalks."
The soonest new traffic infrastructure will be in place is 2026. Muhs said part of the reason for that is the city needs approval from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to make any changes since Kinnickinnic Ave. is part of State Highway 32.
State Rep. Christine Sinicki (D-Milwaukee) was at Monday's open house and said she knows reckless driving is a problem on the street from first-hand experience.
"I used to own a house right on Kinnickinnic," Sinicki said. "And there were several times where we had, actually, cars up on our lawn."
Sinicki said she submitted a proposal to Gov. Tony Evers for the 2025-26 state budget to include DOT approval for safety improvements on Kinnickinnic, as well as an unspecified amount of state money to help pay for the changes.
Schulist, who also owns the Wiggle Room, said he was skeptical any traffic-calming changes would significantly cut down on reckless driving. He said he wasn't sure whether a truly effective solution exists, before saying in gest, "Break [reckless drivers'] [freaking] legs."
"Let's say, in a perfect world, tomorrow, all this stuff is implemented," Schulist said. "Are they just gonna crash over all that stuff, then crash into buildings this time?"
Following the first round of feedback, there will be additional opportunities for public input. On average, 70,000 vehicles drive that stretch of Kinnickinnic Ave. daily.