By Kellen Olshefski
Editor
The City of Elkhorn’s Municipal Services and Utilities Committee continued review of the City’s 2015 capital improvement plan with its new city engineer Monday night.
Paul Vanhenkelum of Kapur and Associates officially took over Jan. 1 as the new city engineer.
Vanhenkelum said Monday night about 90 percent of road problems in this area of Wisconsin are problems with the road base, which often leads to alligator cracking. He said what happens with freezes and thaws over the years, clay in the sub-base works its way up through the gravel and once soil material becomes 10 percent clay, it begins to act like clay, becoming expansive in colder temperatures.
“It expands, it contracts and then you don’t have nearly the quality of base you had before,” he said.
The most concerning of the streets discussed Monday night was Hazel Ridge Road.
Vanhenkelum said the reason it’s likely so deteriorated is because of drainage issues due to the fact the road is flat and lacks curb and gutter and a storm sewer.
With the road being redone, Vanhenkelum said with the addition of curb and gutter, the sidewalk would have to be right next to the curb, noting foot traffic would be closer to the roadway.
With the road being redone, he said he’s concerned vehicles would be traveling faster along the road, potentially putting pedestrians in a risky situation.
Vanhenkelum said if he had his choice, he would try to get a multi-use trail running from the apartments to West Side Elementary, routing pedestrians away from the road.
“If there’s a lot of pedestrian traffic, I just don’t like putting them on a high-speed road right next to the curb,” he said.
