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Residents of the town of Onalaska will have the opportunity to comment on the Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s proposals for major changes to parts of Hwy. 35 within the town. The public hearing about proposed improvements will be at 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 23, at the town of Onalaska town hall.
WisDOT is proposing to close the northern section of Sunset Vista Road that parallels Hwy. 35 from Poplar Street northward to Mason Drive. Another part of the Hwy. 35 improvements includes converting the Riders Club Road and Hwy. 35 intersection into a roundabout or a signalized intersection.
In addition, a local resident has asked WisDOT to consider closing the southern end of Sunset Vista off from Hwy. 35 and turning it into a cul de sac.
According to Dennis Parsley, project designer for WisDOT, the intent of the proposed closing of the north access point of Sunset Vista at Hwy. 35 is to increase safety along Hwy. 35 by decreasing as many access points as possible. He said a study of traffic crashes reveals most are rear-end collisions caused by people driving while looking for streets at which they want to turn.
“The northern section is one access point,” Parsley said. “It’s getting busy at Mason Drive. If we can reduce one intersection by Mason, it would help.” He said there were no residents or businesses along that stretch of road, but it is developable land. The plan is to remove the asphalt and convert it to natural land.
Parsley said the result of improvements would relocate access to the Great River Road Trail to just north of Shep’s Taxidermy.
The improvements have been on the WisDOT planning schedules for quite some time, according to Parsley, and were supposed to have been completed by this summer.
Traffic counts in 2o02 showed 11,050 cars on Hwy. 35 in both directions, and 12,000 were projected for 2008. No counts have been done on Sunset Vista Road, Parsley said.
The costs of the proposed projects would be paid by WisDOT. The project for the northern end of Sunset Vista has been the subject of budget constraints and changes in priorities. It is now scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2014. The public hearing is a required step in the process.
What has not been on the WisDOT agenda is a request by a local resident to close the southern end of Sunset Vista and convert that end to a cul de sac. “It’s feasible,” Parsley said. “We have enough right of way.”
WisDOT originally had planned to realign the southern Sunset Vista Road intersection with Kramer on the other side of the road.
Closing that would give Sunset Vista Road users only one access point, and residents on the southern end of Sunset Vista would have to travel north on Sunset Vista to Poplar in order to go south to Onalaska or La Crosse. Comments from the public and town leaders about that proposal will give the WisDOT direction.
WisDOT also needs to hear from town leaders about the impact of the changes on fire, first responders and police services, as well as water and sewer access. According to town Chairman David Paudler, the topic is on the agenda for the upcoming fire board meeting.
AT A GLANCEWHAT: Public hearing
WHEN: 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 23
WHERE: Onalaska Town Hall, W7052 Second St., Onalaska
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