City officials, residents talk sidewalks and trees in Messer project meeting

Residents of the City of Rhinelander’s Hodag Park neighborhood filled the common council chambers last Wednesday evening to learn more about a proposed $10 million road and utility improvement project that could result in the addition of sidewalks some residents don’t want.

While it could have turned contentious on a number of occasions, as the nearly two-hour session came to a close it appeared attendees and city officials were satisfied that a productive dialogue had taken place.

In fact, as they left the room, a number of the attendees took the time to thank the city officials for holding the meeting.

At the outset, the city officials stressed that the plans for what they call the Messer Street Area Improvement Project — first announced in late June — are preliminary in nature and it will be up to the elected city council members to make final decisions as to its parameters.

“We’re getting feedback from the neighbors, from anyone who lives in the community, anyone who uses these streets, the park, etc.” Mayor Kris Hanus explained.

Mark Barden of Town and Country Engineering, the firm overseeing the project for the city, said he understands that sidewalks and trees have been a “hot topic” for residents since the project was announced.

He noted that he has heard talk about easements and “takings” and wanted to clarify that the work to be done will not require easements because it will take place on the city-owned right-of-way. 

“Just so everybody is aware, there are no easements,” he said. “There is no work on private property. This is all contained within a city-owned property.”

Another point of confusion Barden attempted to clear up was whether the grant money the city has secured to fund the project is dependent on the construction of sidewalks throughout the entire project area. 

Sidewalks do not need to be added to every street in the project area for the city to be eligible for grant funding, he explained. 

“Where the sidewalk has to go in is on the (Hodag) Park side of Rose from Lake Shore to Messer and on Messer on the park side from Rose to Hodag Park Drive,” he explained. “Those are the areas that have to be done for the city to get that grant.”

He then explained that the plan is to widen the roads from 30 to 36 feet which impacts the space available for residents to park vehicles in their driveways.

“As we move the sidewalks closer to the house, there’s a lot of properties that have short driveways,” he noted, adding that some may be able to add a parking pad to help alleviate that issue. 

Barden had more difficult information for the residents of Evergreen Court. Per city ordinance, when a road is reconstructed it should be centered on the right of way. Unfortunately, Evergreen is not centered.

“If you look at the curve on the lake side on Evergreen, that curve is about four feet from the right of way. On the other side, we’re about 23 feet from the right of way,which means it’s off by about 10 feet,” Barden explained, adding that if sidewalks are added to Evergreen the sidewalks would be about 23 feet closer to the houses than the curb is at present.

This announcement prompted a murmur from the crowd and a question as to how this could have happened. 

The city officials stated that they couldn’t guess as to why work was done a certain way several decades ago. They did stress that the purpose of adding sidewalks is for pedestrian safety, something the city council has indicated is a high priority. 

They also reiterated that residents are welcome to contact the council members to express their concerns and ultimately the parameters of the project will be decided by the alderpersons. Three of the council members were present for the meeting, including Leann Felten whose district includes the Hodag Park neighborhood.

As for the tree concerns, Barden explained that the excavation process often results in damaged roots, which weakens the tree.

“If that tree comes down, it’s coming down on your house,” he said. “So we try to take those trees out if we damage the roots.”

Inevitably, road construction projects require the removal of some trees but it was noted that the city does plant new trees in areas where older ones are removed.

As the discussion continued, other ideas were mentioned. For instance, Hanus asked the residents if they would be supportive of making some of the roads around Hodag Park one-way only. 

Some of the attendees raised their hands in approval.

Toward the end of the discussion, the city officials advised that there will be internal conversations in response to the feedback received and a report will be presented to the council. The city may also hold another meeting with property owners in November. The goal is for the plans to be completed by December for council approval. Bidding would take place in January for spring construction. 

The city has secured approximately $7 million of the approximately $10 million needed to fund the project, the officials said.

Heather Schaefer may be reached at [email protected].