Delays Possible on Roundabout Construction
By Jacob Mathias
Construction of a new roundabout at the intersection of Hwy. 54 and Maple Dr. in the Village of Plover could see a delay due to a few missing key elements.
At Wednesday’s Village Board meeting, Administrator Dan Mahoney told the board one holdup was an as-of-yet unsigned contract for electricity from between state’s Department of Transportation, which oversees the project, and Wisconsin Public Service.
Why the contracts have not been signed is not known at this time.
“Until that gets signed, it probably will delay them about two weeks from getting in there then to start doing electrical hookups,” said Mahoney. “It will be a push to get it done by the first week of September, which was the target for open.”
Mahoney also said despite being ordered on time, the lights themselves are late due to what he called a “manufacturing issue”.
The actual construction of the road portion of the roundabout is expected to be complete on August 12. Orville Damrau, 2nd Ward Trustee, asked if the roundabout could be opened without the lighting installed.
“They said they won’t do it without it being lit,” said Village President Tom Davies. “Which is probably a good idea at night.”
The construction of the roundabout began three weeks behind when it started and has since gotten ahead of schedule until now.
The $2 million roundabout broke ground in May. Village leaders worked with the Dept. of Transportation on the new feature after public outcry following a series of serious accidents at the intersection.
No representative from WisDOT was available for comment at this time.