Local News
Committee approves spending $250k on hope and a prayer
It might be money that gets wasted. La Crosse mayor Tim Kabat agrees that there are no guarantees of success in spending $250 thousand on new plans for the Rose Street project, already underway by the DOT. His caution has hit home with a few city council members. At a council committee on Thursday night, those members voted against the idea. But it passed anyway and will be voted on by the full council next week.
Kabat says the $250 thousand will be used to make some redesigns, those will be submitted to the DOT and then the agency will determine if current plans will be changed. Kabat cautions that, even if the DOT does accept the redesign, any additional costs will be incurred by the city. If it costs less, he jokes, it’s also unlikely the state agency will refund the difference.
There are some changes the city wants that the DOT will consider in a new plan. Among those are moving some lanes over to open up more green space by the Black River. The agency has given a definitive ‘no,’ on the other hand, to several other changes the city has proposed. One of those would be slowing Rose Street to 30 mph.
Kabat believes the city and the DOT have a difference of philosophy about Rose Street. He says the state agency seems to see the four lane as only a quick and effective way to get traffic in and out of La Crosse. He sees Rose as a city street that is also the only entrance off the interstate for La Crosse. A street that is key for development and improvement of the northside.