Public works committee approves two sidewalk deferments amid questions about when missing links will be installed

Kenosha’s Public Works Committee approved two sidewalk actions June 9, 2025, granting a residential sidewalk deferment for a property in the former Town of Somers area and a sidewalk exception for Schutz Container Systems’ planned industrial expansion at 4241 70th Avenue.

Committee members and speakers said the decisions reflected existing sidewalk gaps in the area and the city’s development timeline, but some members questioned whether repeated deferrals will delay completion of sidewalk networks.

The first request, from Kevin and Sutton Highslow, asked for a deferment on a recently built home in a neighborhood with few existing sidewalks. Staff noted the area contains “very limited sidewalks existing” and estimated “approximately 6 properties in this area that are still in the town of Somers.” Resident Susan Peslow, who said she lives at 4704? Avenue, told the committee: “it’s a new house, but in [the] old area, there is no sidewalk.” She said she had installed a short section of concrete on her property and hoped a future city budget would allow connection to a full sidewalk.

A committee member who opposed the deferment on principle said construction is the logical time to install sidewalks and warned that repeated deferrals could defer network completion indefinitely; the member’s remarks were part of committee discussion and were not presented as a formal directive. Staff said a deferment is still a deferral under the ordinance and that sidewalks may be ordered and installed later. The committee approved the applicant’s request.

The second request came from Schutz Container Systems Incorporated for a sidewalk exception at 4241 70th Avenue as the company plans to build a facility and extend the existing industrial park. Staff referenced the ordinance (noted in the meeting as “section 5005c”) and said the site’s size—greater than 20 acres and in an industrial area—fits criteria for an exception. A committee member clarified that an approved “exception” is terminology within the ordinance and that sidewalks can still be ordered later; staff confirmed that, if ordered, sidewalks could be installed at a future date. No citizen speakers opposed the Schutz Container request. The committee approved the exception.

The approvals were taken by voice vote during the meeting; the transcript records the motions and that the motions passed but does not contain a complete roll-call tally for each vote.

The discussion highlighted tension between making sidewalks a routine part of new construction and allowing targeted deferments when existing networks are incomplete. Committee members asked staff to be mindful of when deferments are used so that missing links are not postponed indefinitely.