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Fisherona Road project split into phases after design, utility and condemnation hurdles
Summary
Project staff said delays from state review, sewer coordination, utility conflicts and property acquisition forced Fisherona Road into two construction phases; a court ruling cited by staff prevents condemning for multi‑use paths, leading to design changes and removal of a planned bike bypass at a roundabout.
City staff told the commission that the Fisherona Road reconstruction has been delayed by multi‑party coordination and legal constraints and is now split into two phases: an initial 2026 phase and follow‑on work in 2027.
Ross said the Bureau of Structures and coordination with the Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) caused significant design revisions and that public‑utility conflicts and property‑acquisition challenges remain. ‘‘We’ve had a lot of public utility coordination like MG&E and AT&T…they have been throwing up some roadblocks and we’ve been trying to coordinate as best we can,’’ Ross said.
Staff also cited a sequence of court decisions (referred to in the packet as "Sojan Homer versus Egg Harbor") that constrain what the city may condemn: the ruling, as described by staff, allows condemnation for streets (and sidewalk elements treated as part of the street) but not for separate multi‑use paths. That legal limit forced staff to remove several multi‑use path segments from the current contract and split the work into phases. ‘‘Originally most of the path was within the right of way, but because of property acquisition and court guidance we had to remove parts and adjust the design,’’ Ross said.
A planned bike bypass around a proposed roundabout was removed when property acquisition could not be secured; bikers will instead be signed to take the lane through the roundabout and paint and bike symbols will mark the transitions. Ross said staff will bid the removed elements as optional items and urged that if the state law changes to permit condemnation for bike facilities (the Bike Fed is pursuing such changes in the legislature), the city could add those items back in later.
Commissioners asked whether splitting the project might affect other scheduled work in 2027; Ross said it pushed a resurfacing item (Lacy Road between Seinal and Fish Hatchery) from 2027 to 2028 on the resurfacing calendar. Staff said grant funding remains sufficient to cover the top‑line underpass cost but the city will absorb any incremental increases.
Next steps: staff will continue property negotiations, include optional bike elements in bid packages where feasible, and monitor pending state legislation about condemnation for bike facilities; they will return with updated cost estimates when available.
