By Dave Fidlin
Correspondent
After fielding a series of questions and concerns, top Whitewater staffers at city hall have unveiled a revised capital improvement project through one of the city’s residential areas.
Assistant City Manager Chris McDonell came before the Common Council on July 19 and discussed a revised plan for a series of improvements along portions of Clay and Esterly streets.
The council has agreed to jump-start the project, eyed for 2018, by entering into a $121,000 contract with Strand Associates, a longtime consultant to the city. The company will begin a series of conceptual plans for the project, including engineering details.
McDonell initially brought the proposal before the council in June, but elected officials opted not to act on it at the time because of concerns with the sequence of events, which included utility work next year and subsequently patching the roadway. Actual resurfacing was planned in 2020.
While the city is still is planning a multi-year process for the roadwork, McDonell provided additional perspective at the recent council meeting, including a potential tie-in with a Wisconsin Department of Transportation-initiated project in 2019 along Newcomb and Milwaukee streets.
The city is working with the state DOT on a $1.2 million grant on Clay Street, which presents its own unique specifications and complexities
Once actual work gets underway, McDonell said there could be a potential wrinkle in trying to nail down a specific cost estimate.
“Effective Jan. 1, public works projects bid by municipalities will no longer be subject to state-established wage rates,” McDonell said. “(DOT projects) will be subject to federal wage rates.”
