Kenosha County outlines 2026 reconstruction of County Truck Highway W in Wilmot, cites drainage work and detours

Kenosha County Highway Commissioner Greg Bolt and RA Smith project manager Caleb Manske told the Salem Lakes Village Board that a reconstruction project on County Truck Highway W through Wilmot is scheduled for construction in 2026 and will prioritize pavement life, safety and stormwater improvements.

Bolt, the county’s highway commissioner, said the project will run from the Illinois state line north into Wilmot and end near County Highway C at the Stage Stop intersection. “It is scheduled for 2026 construction,” Bolt said, noting the county shortened the project limits to focus available funding on significant drainage issues in downtown Wilmot.

Caleb Manske, transportation project manager with RA Smith, described two exceptions to the general pavement rehabilitation: a roughly 2,000-foot segment north of Geneva Supply that will be fully reconstructed to improve a sharp curve and crest that do not meet current standards and a one-block reconstruction in Wilmot (114 to 130) where failing storm sewer components require replacement. “We’re going to cut down that hill to improve sight distance and we’re going to lengthen out that horizontal curve so that it meets the posted speed limit,” Manske said.

County staff said the storm sewer work drove the project’s cost and the need to shorten limits. Bolt said a major storm pipe currently lies on private property under a gas station; the county intends to replace that pipe and relocate storm infrastructure into the county right of way, which increased costs and required reallocating funds.

Construction will be staged and the county intends to keep most of the project open to traffic where possible; reconstruction segments will be detoured. Manske said the primary construction season will likely run April through October and that the one-block downtown reconstruction will require tighter controls and at least one detour for trucks while passenger vehicles may be allowed through at times.

The county and RA Smith showed planned detour routes and said they will try to minimize impacts on businesses, but acknowledged the work will be disruptive. The plan will remove some on-street parking; project staff estimated the combined northbound and southbound right-turn lane changes will reduce parking by about seven spaces in the downtown Wilmot area.

Board members and residents pressed the county to protect business access during events, particularly the Wilmot fair and homecoming. County staff said they can add contract provisions limiting disruption during known events but cautioned that more conditions can increase cost and scheduling complexity. “Every time you tell a contractor that he can’t keep moving and he needs to demobilize and then mobilize his crews back, there’s a cost to that,” Manske said.

County staff said the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) is administering the project and typically requires a public involvement meeting shortly before construction begins; they said WisDOT’s construction engineer usually establishes communications channels for the construction period (email lists, website updates, field engineering notices). Bolt agreed to look into whether a county representative can provide bimonthly updates to the village board during construction.

Bolt and Manske also said some improvements intended in earlier versions of the project—such as a sidewalk or bridge crossing and curb-and-gutter work—were removed from this funding round but could be revisited in a future project.

The presentation included maps, detour diagrams and conceptual geometric changes intended to reduce dangerous lane-bypass movements, add a dedicated left-turn lane and realign turn radii for truck access. The county emphasized efforts to improve pedestrian safety with high-visibility crosswalks, lighting and possible flashing beacons near the dance studio and other downtown businesses.