June 8th - 7:00 PM - Public Info Meeting Re: High St. Construction

A special public information meeting regarding the High Street reconstruction / resurfacing project has been scheduled for Tuesday, June 8th beginning at 7:00 PM in the Council Chambers (Shaw Municipal Building, Lower Level). More details on the project were included in an earlier post: http://miltonmatters.blogspot.com/2010/05/update-on-high-st-project.html. Citizens with questions about property access, vehicular access, project timing, and other related issues are encouraged to attend.

Tornado Siren Testing Resumes

Following is text from a recent press release from Rock County Emergency Management:

Tornado warning testing of the outdoor tornado sirens will resume with a test at 12:05 p.m. on Wednesday, June 2, 2010. The TEST SIGNAL will be 1-2 minutes long.

The steady tone of 3-5 minutes will be the take cover signal that a tornado warning has been issued for Rock County and citizens should immediately take shelter and tune to your local broadcasting stations or weather radio for information.

If residents find the siren located in their area is not working, they should call 758-8440. Remember, siren testing will not be conducted if there is inclement weather within the county.

May 18th Council Meeting Commentary

The Common Council will hold their next meeting this Tuesday, May 18th, beginning at 7:30 PM (view full agenda here). One specific item to note would be Agenda Item #4.b. - Emergency Telephone Notification System.

City staff are recommending that the City Council approve an agreement with a company called Global Connect to create an emergency telephone notification system. Some of you may have experienced a system like this which the Milton Area School District uses when they make calls to notify parents that schools are being closed. In the City's case, we would use the system to notify residents of boil water orders, evacuations due to chemical or gas leaks, lost child alerts, etc.

The system is also interactive. For example, often a serious wind or snow storm can bring down quite a few branches around the City. We could make a call using this system to tell residents when crews will be by to collect branches. In addition, we could ask the resident to "press one" if they have branches available for pickup. The City then receives a report listing all of the properties which need branch collection.

You may wonder how the phone numbers would be entered into the system? The City would receive the numbers through Rock County's 9-1-1 system. Those with cell phones will be able to add their cell phones to the calling system by following on-line instructions on the City's website.

You may also wonder what a system like this will cost the City. Actually, it's surprisingly affordable web-based technology. Our first 12 months would cost $1,117, and the following two years would be $1,340/year. From a staff perspective, we believe this is a small price to pay for the potential benefits this system could offer in emergency situations.

As always, the full Council meeting packet can be viewed on the City's website at http://ci.milton.wi.us/document_detail.aspx?document_id=3231.

Helicopter Traffic

Heads up (literally)... During the next few months you may notice low-flying helicopters in the area. The City was notified by American Transmission Company that these helicopters will be performing visual inspections on the high voltage transmission lines.

Update on High St. Project

Many people in the community have asked the City for details on the High St. reconstruction / resurfacing project. While all details are not yet in order, with this post I hope to provide some information. One complication is that this project was bid and is being administered by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation because stimulus funding is involved. So, that limits the amount of information that the City has at its fingertips.

I guarantee you that a public informational meeting on this project will be held prior to the beginning of construction. I'm anticipating a meeting to occur near the tail-end of May or very early June. We are currently working with the State's engineers to try and nail down a date. We also want the construction company involved in the meeting as well, but the lead representative from that company is now recovering from a serious illness. Long story short, we are trying to put all the pieces together and it is not as easy as just setting a date and being done with it. So, thank you for your ongoing patience. Please stay tuned for more information to be provided in the very near future.

Following are the currently known facts regarding the project:

• Project Scope: Running east to west from John Paul Rd. to Janesville St., the High St. project consists of the removal of the existing pavement and base materials, placement of new base and asphalt surface, and spot replacement of curb and gutter. Generally, the new pavements will be reestablished to existing elevations. However, in areas where there are steep cross slopes (such as in front of the High School) the pavement elevations will be changed to lessen the severity of the slopes.


• Start Date: Per the construction contract, work on this project may begin no earlier than June 14th. People may have seen and will be seeing other work happening in the area prior to that date. Alliant Energy has been lowering the gas main in the terraces. The City also has some work to do on some of the utility infrastructure along High St.


• Street Closure: High Street will be closed to through traffic from John Paul Road to Janesville Street. Cross street traffic will be maintained at intersecting side streets. The detour route will be John Paul Road, Madison Avenue, and Janesville Street.


• Driveway Access: Interruptions to driveway access will take place when excavation work is taking place directly in front of individual driveways and when concrete curb and gutter and/or driveway aprons are replaced. Driveway access must always be provided in the evenings, except in cases where a new driveway apron is poured (which is only a few of the properties in the project area). In cases like that the contractor will work with the homeowner regarding the timing of the project and alternative accommodations for parking.


• 4th of July Activities: Between July 1st and July 5th, the contractor is required to maintain packed gravel access to the site at a minimum. Portions of the street may still consist of existing pavement. The traffic control signage will be adjusted to allow traffic into the park for that period of time. No work on the site will take place between July 2nd and July 5th and also September 3rd through September 7th.


• Historic Features: The stone wall fronting the Milton College Historic District will not be modified.


• Further Information: More information will be known once the Wisconsin Department of Transportation and the contractor, Frank Brothers, Inc. provide the City with a schedule and conduct a pre-construction conference. That information should be known around late May and early June.


• Contacts: At the yet-to-be-scheduled public informational meeting citizens will be provided with contact information for the contractor representatives. Local contacts include Howard Robinson, City of Milton Director of Public Works, at 608-868-6914 and Gary Vogel, City Engineer with Baxter & Woodman, Inc., at 262-763-7834.

Wikipedia Article About the Library

Milton Public Library employee Ashlee Kunkel recently wrote a Wikipedia article detailing the history and other information about the Library. If you're interested in learning more about the Library, click on this link to access the page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milton_Public_Library.

May 24th - Bicycle Tour of City Projects

Last year I began a tradition of guiding Spring and Summer bike rides around the City to provide information on various City projects. Here's a link to a blog post that highlighted the very first "Tour de Milton" which was held last September: http://miltonmatters.blogspot.com/2009/09/tour-de-milton-fun-informational.html.

Below are details on the Spring 2010 Tour de Milton.

What: Tour of various municipal projects (both current and future) occurring in Milton. City Administrator Todd Schmidt will guide the tour.

When: Monday, May 24th - Leaving City Hall Parking Lot at 5:00 PM for about a 2-hour ride (although riders may leave the tour early if necessary). In the event of rain or strong threat of rain, the ride will be cancelled and scheduled for a later date.

Details: Milton City Administrator Todd Schmidt invites anyone who has interest in learning about city projects and enjoys bike riding to participate in this event. This bike tour will include stops around the city to highlight and explain some of the major public projects that are or will be occurring in 2010 and beyond. The level of biking experience needed will be minimal. There will be some hills, but the pace will be relatively slow. Those participating should plan to wear light colored clothing and bike helmets. The group will enjoy a Police Department Bike Patrol escort by our very own Chief Jerry Schuetz.

For questions please contact me (Todd) directly at 868-6900 (x4) or tschmidt@ci.milton.wi.us.