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Fort Atkinson council adopts conceptual Main Street and Janesville Avenue corridor plans to unlock grant funding
Summary
City council approved conceptual corridor plans for Main Street and Janesville Avenue after consultants presented long-range, phased ideas focused on pedestrian improvements, traffic calming options and grant-readiness; councilors and residents pressed for truck‑route and parking clarifications.
The Fort Atkinson City Council on June 3 adopted conceptual corridor plans for Main Street and Janesville Avenue aimed at laying out phased transportation and streetscape improvements and positioning those projects for grant funding.
The plans, presented by Ben Rohrer of Van der Wall (planning) and Josh Straka of Fran and Associates (traffic engineering), were described as long-term, incremental “toolbox” documents that list location-specific improvements, high-level cost estimates and short-, medium- and long-term implementation phasing. Rohrer said, “This is a transportation alternative grant that was awarded to the city that helped fund our work on this project,” and stressed the plans are intended to make future projects eligible for state and federal grant programs rather than to approve immediate construction.
The council’s adoption matters because several funding sources considered for implementation — including the Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s Transportation Alternatives Program — favor projects based on documented public input and a completed plan. City staff and the consultants emphasized that each discrete improvement would require separate design, engineering and council approval before construction.
The discussion included detailed pushback from a resident who said, “The fire trucks right now can't get on the Main Street safely,” and questioned proposed curb bump-outs and the potential removal of parking on Main Street. Consultants and staff responded that Main Street remains a designated truck route under DOT specifications; larger bump‑out options were screened out at the planning level because they would not accommodate required truck turning radii. Josh Straka said smaller curb extensions shown in the plan are conceptual options that could replace on‑street parking or right‑turn bays at selected intersections but would require intersection‑specific truck turning analyses during final design.
Council and public remarks also covered a proposed roundabout on Janesville Avenue near a QuickTrip site. Straka said single‑lane roundabouts typically have inscribed circle diameters in the 40–60‑foot range and are designed with mountable truck aprons so large vehicles can track through as needed; he added final geometry would be determined in the design stage with truck‑tracking analyses.
Other specific clarifications in the meeting: the town‑square concept included in the plan would conceptually retain 81 parking spaces in that concept but would require redesign and council approval before any changes; cost estimates in the plan are presented in current‑dollar, high‑level figures and do not include an inflation escalator; and the plan intentionally presents a palette of options so the city can prioritize projects as funding becomes available. City staff cited the city’s 2025 CIP for a few minor items (for example, pedestrian beacons) and reiterated there is no implementation timeline or guaranteed funding beyond planning.
After discussion the council moved and seconded adoption of the Main Street concept and the Janesville Avenue corridor plan; both motions were approved by voice vote and the minutes record that the motions carried.
What happens next: staff and consultants said the plans will be used to pursue implementation funding and that any individual project brought forward for construction will return to council with detailed engineering, cost estimates and additional public input.
