Onalaska rep. Steve Doyle says $100 million road spending plans for Foxconn another unwelcome surprise

It turns out, that $3 billion in incentives for Foxconn to build a massive manufacturing facility in Wisconsin was just a start.

In just the past few days, there has been news about a $140 million substation to meet the facility’s electric needs through a rate hike from the American Transmission Company. On top of that, the DOT announced $100 million plans to be spent on roads around the site in Racine County.

“Didn’t expect these surprises,” Onalaska state rep Steve Doyle said. “I’m hoping there aren’t anymore.

“The way things are going, it just seems like the bill keeps going up and up and up. I’m waiting for those jobs to be created because we’re spending a lot of money and I’m hoping we’re going to get something for it.”

Doyle has no doubt that the road money getting spent on Foxconn means that much less available to be spent in out-state places like La Crosse.

“We’re a long ways from what we need to do a decent job on our roads and to find out that there may be even less is very discouraging,” Doyle said. “We do expect that that ($100 million to Racine County) is going to come from all over the state, including western Wisconsin.”

Doyle said it’s like insult added to injury.