Bypass proposal evokes questions

The jurisdictional transfer of a portion of Hwy 35 from Marquette Rd. to the proposed Hwy 18 bypass and the need to provide better protection for pedestrians crossing Marquette Rd. were major issues brought up during the question and answer period Tuesday evening following a Department of Transportation (DOT) presentation on the bypass.

Although not directly related to the bypass project, which will run from LaPointe St. south to Main St. and west to Wisconsin and Iowa, Marquette Rd. is also scheduled for DOT improvements, and the need to protect pedestrians, particularly school children, crossing Marquette Rd. has been discussed for years.

That need was dramatically highlighted at the meeting by the appearance of crossing guard Jackie Friederich, wearing a neck brace and finger splint. Friederich, a guard at the intersection of Marquette Rd. and Wells St., had been struck by a vehicle Monday morning while helping children cross the street. Friederich said she was in pain, but wanted to come to the meeting to address the problem. She said she wears an orange vest and a police officer is usually present, but traffic still doesn’t stop. "If you sat in Hardees for a week and saw what I have to go through, you’d understand," she said. "Would someone help me help these kids?" Friederich requested construction of a pedestrian bypass over Marquette and Wells.

Ian Winger, project supervisor, said the DOT had done traffic studies in response to previous requests for pedestrian crossings on Marquette Rd, but none of the crossings have enough traffic to satisfy state criteria for constructing an overpass. He suggested that if the city could not fund an overpass anther option would be to install pedestrian activated stoplights at the intersection.

The issue of jurisdictional transfer also drew criticism from city council member Kathleen Hein. The original proposal was to leave the Hwy 35 designation on Marquette Rd., construct the bypass as Hwy 18 and transfer jurisdiction for Iowa and Wisconsin Streets between the Hwy 18 bridge and Marquette Rd. back to the city.

However, since those plans were made, the state has developed a policy of eliminating parallel highways. If the entire length of Marquette Rd. remained Hwy 35, the bypass would be considered a parallel project and funding would be delayed for an indeterminate time.

The new proposal is to remove the Hwy 35 designation from Marquette Rd. between LaPointe and Iowa Streets and designate the bypass as Hwy 35. Iowa and Wisconsin Streets between the bridge and Marquette Rd. would also become part of Hwy 35. The portion of Marquette Rd. north of Iowa St. would remain Hwy 35.

Winger pointed out that rerouting Hwy 35 would reduce some of the heavy traffic volume on Marquette Rd., and that the section of Marquette between LaPointe and Webster St. has three times the state crash rate for an urban street. He added that the change would also reduce the city’s cost share by $180,000.

Hein, however, objected to the change, stating that as an engineer, she didn’t think rerouting 35 to Iowa and Wisconsin Streets made sense, and she asked if there could be pedestrian-controlled lights on those streets. Winger said that proposal could be considered.

Mary Antoine commented that it felt as if the city was being blackmailed; if the city doesn’t cooperate, the project gets delayed. Winger said it wasn’t intentional, but that was the reality of the situation.

Changes on the portion of Marquette Rd. between LaPointe and Iowa would be to patch the pavement to the south of Campion Blvd, and to the north of Campion construct ing new, wider 11 to 12 foot traffic lanes. Pedestrian refuge island and auxiliary traffic lanes are proposed at the intersections with Parrish and Mooney Streets. The DOT is also working on reducing the number of access points to that portion of Marquette. This project is scheduled for 2013.

If Iowa and Wisconsin Streets were redesignated as Hwy 35, those streets will be repaired as part of the bypass project in 2011.

The bypass will have only one lane in each direction separated by a grass median, but there will be four lanes at the east end of the bridge, and there will extra width at the side so a disabled vehicle could pull off the highway. The bypass is scheduled to begin in 2010.

The DOT will be responsible for appraising and acquiring property for the bypass project. The city will be responsible for property acquisition along Marquette Rd, but will then be reimbursed by the DOT.

Winger said with all the Rd. improvements scheduled in the next few years, the state is investing approximately $38 million in the city.

High School improvements proceed nicely

Numerous improvements have been completed at Prairie du Chien High School this past summer as part of the referendum that was passed Oct. 30 of 2007. The referendum approved of a total of $1.99 million to be spent on facility improvement projects.

One of the first things that one notices upon entering the high school this fall is the new, shiny floor, which is composed of flaked epoxy.

"We got rid of all known asbestos in the building," said Luke Lucas, the head of maintenance, who noted that all of the 9-inch asbestos floor tile was removed and replaced with the flaked epoxy. "The new floor requires no stripping or waxing and should save us time," said Lucas.

Lucas said that school district personnel studied the floor problem for about a year, and traveled to Belmont, Darlington and Wauzeka-Steuben, where the same type of flooring had been installed. The district was pleased with what they saw. Lucas said that the new flooring is very durable, doesn’t show scuff marks nearly as much as the old floor and can also be patched relatively easily. "This is a good product that has been around for a long time," said Lucas, who noted that the old flooring was more than 40 years old.

New water lines in a loop system (supply and return) were installed as part of an upgrade of the heating system in the school. The ceilings on the first floor in the hallways were dropped about four inches in order to make room for the new water lines. Because the ceilings were dropped, new recessed lighting was added on the first floor in the hallways and the cafeteria so that the lights and the ceiling would remain flush.

Work in the boiler room is underway and the new heating system should be up and running by Oct. 1, said Lucas. Two large, hot water boilers have been removed and will be replaced by four smaller boilers, which are much more efficient.

The old heating system was a steam system that was installed in 1962. The old Kewanee boilers had become outdated and in disrepair. The new heating system will be a hot water system, said Lucas.

The original unit ventilators will still be used as part of the heating system, but all new coils have been installed in the ventilators.

The roof at the high school has also been improved. The old rubber and insulation has been removed and 20,642 square feet of new insulation and rubber has been put in place. The new rubber slopes much more in strategic locations and many more drains have been installed.

"There are no more ponds of water on the roof," said Lucas, who also noted that the insulation is much thicker in some areas. The old rubber roofing was installed in 1983. "The old insulation was so saturated, water was just pouring out of the back of the dump trucks as they hauled it away," said Lucas.

Lucas said that the old insulation was so saturated and heavy that there had been concerns that the water was going to rust through the metal decking on the roof.

Lucas said that seven air handling units on the roof have also been replaced. These units are used for the heating and ventilation of the larger rooms of the school such as the gymnasium, the auditorium, the agriculture-shop area and the band room.

In addition to the high school building itself, the south parking lot was also improved. The lot was expanded from a capacity of 220 units to close to 400 units. Lucas said that the old blacktop was ground up and replaced by new blacktop.

The old maintenance shed, which was in bad shape, has been removed and a new maintenance-storage shed has been built.

Upcoming projects include repairing damage in the boys and girls locker rooms. Lucas said that some damage has occurred due to leaking over the years. Also, the showers are more than 40 years old and there is some drainage problems with the sewer lines, he said.

If there is money left over after repairing the locker rooms and showers, additional storage shed space may built, said Lucas. A tentative plan calls for 40x72-feet of space.

"No money has been spent foolishly throughout this entire process," said Lucas regarding all of the improvements. "Everything was very well researched and we continue to use what is usable." Lucas explained, for instance, that when the ceilings were dropped for the new water lines enough room was left in order to accommodate possible future air conditioning ducts.

"We are always looking ahead," he said. "We may have air conditioning someday."

HSR Associates of La Crosse was the architect for the project and the general contractor was Winona Controls of Caledonia, Minn.

Various Prairie du Chien alumni, current residents and businesses helped with the facility improvement project. Kyle Schauf of HSR Associates was the project architect. Nick Rickleff was a foreman for All Facets Sheet Metal of La Crosse. Ken’s Electric of Prairie du Chien did the electrical work for the back parking lot. Brady Powers of Construction Specialists worked on the project. Prairie Sand and Gravel worked on the back parking lot.