Future of I-794 is down to 4 choices; public has first chance to see details
MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (DOT) shared new details Thursday about the four design options it is considering for the future of the Lake Interchange portion of I-794.
The options include rebuilding the stretch of elevated freeway as it currently stands. The other alternatives include two versions of rebuilding the freeway on a smaller footprint, and one option would remove the freeway altogether.
People streamed in and out of the downtown Marriott hotel Thursday afternoon as the DOT held a public meeting where representatives stood next to large diagrams of the design options and answered questions.
Project manager David Pittman said there is still plenty of research ahead as the DOT weighs the final alternatives. He said the agency won't announce a preferred option until late 2026 at the earliest.
"There's just so many different things that's going on in this corridor," Pittman said. "It's a very dynamic corridor. You know, not a traditional freeway segment, but there's just so many things going on that it's difficult to quantify it all in one place."
Most of the people attending the meeting appeared to support either full freeway removal or one of the modification options. Members of the group, Rethink 794, are pushing for the removal option. That alternative would demolish the elevated freeway spur and expand Clybourn Street into a six-lane boulevard between Lincoln Memorial Drive and N. 6th St.
Gard Pecor, a member of the group, pointed to a study the group commissioned last fall. It found removing the freeway could generate as much as $475 million in property taxes over a 30-year span because that option would open up 16 acres of development on prime land.
Pecor said the key element would be much-needed housing that isn't luxury apartments.
"We think this opens up a lot of opportunity for market-rate and affordable development, too," Pecor said. "Particularly if the city is allowed to maintain control and really plan the entire area as they see fit."
One option removes the Lake Interchange spur of I-794 and replaces it with an expanded Clybourn St.
Pecor said removing a stretch of elevated would also prove to be the cheapest option for taxpayers in the long run, which would come in handy when the state has to eventually revisit what to do with the nearby Hoan Bridge and Marquette Interchange when they approach the end of their lifespans.
"Elevated infrastructure is very costly and very expensive," Pecor said. "Especially here in Milwaukee, where we have cold winters, a lot of salt that really eats at that concrete."
Opponents of outright freeway removal have pointed to the potential for longer commute times and have also questioned how the Port of Milwaukee would be affected.
Bruce Westling, a Third Ward resident who's also involved in commercial realty, questioned how long it'd take to develop all 16 acres that would open up under the removal option. He also said too many businesses along the freeway's footprint might not survive the extensive construction that'd come with taking down the freeway and building a new boulevard at street level.
"To roll the dice on the health of the Third Ward sub-market over a three to five-year construction period," Westling said. "Leases coming up, things along those lines, people create new habits."
Westling said he preferred one of the two "improvement" alternatives that rebuild the freeway while eliminating some of the on and off ramps and opening up some new real estate.
One of those options leaves only left-hand ramps near N. Milwaukee St. and N. Jefferson St., while the other "improvement" alternative has only right-hand ramps.
"You take those two [extra] ramps away, and then you reconfigure the area to the east," Westling said. "I think, some ways, we can have our cake and eat it too."
The final alternatives also include designs that rebuild the Lake Interchange freeway on a smaller footprint and eliminate some of the ramps
Pecor said traffic coming to and from the south shore wouldn't be severely affected because east-west corridors like Drexel Ave. and Rawson Ave. could take commuters and trucks to I-94 and add only a few minutes to their trip. Jayne Dunnum, a Bay View resident, echoed that message when explaining her support for freeway removal.
"I'm not a commuter, not on a daily basis, but as someone who uses it, yes, I would be willing to add a few minutes to my day," she said. "And I'm sure it's really going to be that much more."
The DOT has not provided cost estimates yet for any of the alternatives; Pittman said those will come in the next few months. He added the DOT plans to hold a public meeting with more information this fall and then another one next spring.
Pittman said once the DOT selects a preferred option, there will be a public hearing on that design. Construction is slated to start in 2027.
"It's a great healthy discussion," Westling said. "A lot of good friends on both sides, so I think we'll figure it out."