Hello All. It looks like rejecting state and federal funds for transportation projects is unfortunately catching on in Wisconsin: today the Town of Middleton notified WisDOT that they are refusing the Transportation Enhancement funds they were awarded to add wide shoulders to Old Sauk Road.
You may recall that this has been an ongoing issue with the Town's planned reconstruction of Old Sauk. The project is between Timber Lane and Swoboda Road. The Town is planning on widening the road from 22' to 24', but stated that widening to 28' to include wide shoulders/bike lanes was cost prohibitive. There is a Capital Times article from early this year about the issue here: http://host.madison.com/ct/news/local/govt_and_politics/article_b3533244-507e-11df-bb09-001cc4c03286.html Most people assumed the issue was resolved when the Town applied for a $235,880 grant ($294,850 total cost) to add the additional width. The Town was awarded its full grant request even though many people felt that the Town should be carrying out this project on its own without grant money. Well, the Town decided that even after receiving the grant, they are not going to construct the additional road width. According to the Town, they will have to push back the start date from early spring in order to conduct environmental and engineering studies for the project. They also state that because the grant is for a fixed sum, it may not cover all their costs, especially if a delay increases costs (keep in mind, the Town chose how much money to apply for). These concerns are legitimate, but should have been figured out before applying for the money. My *personal* feeling is that the Town never intended to do the project in the first place, expected to have their grant request rejected, but wanted to look good in applying for the money. Then when they didn't get the grant they could say "Well, we tried." However, when the grant was awarded they had to scramble to come up with reasons why they wouldn't be accepting nearly a quarter million dollars in funds. I don't have any action for people to take at this time - it seems the Town is pretty set in their decision. I just wanted to keep people posted on local bike funding and facilities. Fortunately there are plenty of other communities who will be glad to use the funds that the Town is refusing! Kevin -- Kevin Luecke Lead Planner, Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin www.bfw.org 608-251-4456 <http://www.bfw.org/> <http://bikefed.blogspot.com/> <http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#%21/bike.fed.wi?ref=ts> <http://twitter.com/search?q=BikeFed> <http://delicious.com/network/BikeFed>
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