‘Fix at Six’ Group Wants I-94 Expansion Delayed For Civil Rights Report

Interstate 94 freeway at N. 16th St. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

A coalition of opponents wants to pump the brakes on a $1.7 billion expansion of Interstate 94 through Milwaukee.

The Coalition For More Responsible Transportation doesn’t want the project, endorsed by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) earlier this month, to continue until a federal civil rights review is completed.

At a press conference Wednesday opponents reiterated their position that the expansion would benefit white, suburban commuters at the expense of the majority-minority residents, many of whom don’t own vehicles, that live near the 3.5-mile freeway corridor.

The coalition has rallied behind the ‘Fix at Six’ moniker, which calls for rebuilding the roadway with safety improvements, but not expanding the freeway to eight lanes.

Pastor Joseph Jackson, Jr. of Friendship Baptist Church and vice president of Milwaukee Inner-city Congregations Allied for Hope (MICAH) led the event.

“The civil rights complaint has not yet been addressed,” said Jackson. “What’s the hurry?”

Attorney Dennis Grzezinski is representing the complainants. Grzezinski previously successfully represented MICAH in challenging the Zoo Interchange project.

“It’s not rocket science that the folks who are going to benefit are those who are wealthier, probably whiter, rush-hour commuters during rush-hour times,” said the attorney. He said the harms, including noise and air pollution with resulting health issues, would fall on those who live near the highway and those residents are disproportionately ethnic and racial minorities. “One of the last things this city needs is more square miles of pavement.”

The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) previously estimated the project would cost $1.2 billion in 2021, but new estimates peg that cost at $1.47 billion in 2023 dollars and $1.74 billion when considering the year each expense would occur.

Construction, under the current schedule, is to begin in 2025 and be completed by 2031.

The plan calls for expanding the roadway to a minimum of four lanes in each direction between N. 16th and N. 70th streets.

The project was initially shelved in 2017 for a lack of funding, but Governor Tony Evers resurrected the idea in 2020 and attempted to fast-track federal re-approval of a 2016 plan. In April 2021, state officials agreed to conduct a supplemental study to examine other options or traffic pattern changes. That supplementary process officially concluded on March 8 with the FHWA’s “record of decision” in favor of the expansion plan.

The coalition hasn’t ruled out a lawsuit. It already filed the civil rights complaint in January 2023 for perceived deficinies in the plan.

“The coalition is currently reviewing the thousands of pages in the Final [environmental impact study], its appendices, and its supporting documents to determine whether and to what extent the state and federal transportation agencies have corrected those deficiencies,” said the attorney in a statement.

Much of the construction cost would be covered by the federal government.

According to the WisDOT study, the six-lane option would cost only between 3% to 6% less. The actual ‘Fix at Six’ plan authored by transportation planner Mark Stout was not the exact proposal the state evaluated.

Redesigning the central Stadium Interchange as a diverging diamond interchange is expected to save up to $90 million versus a previous “hybrid” design. But the supplemental study found that an additional five acres of land are needed from the American Family Field property. The project would need to work with the Southeast Wisconsin Professional Baseball Park District to replace an estimated 600 parking spaces.

The project as a whole would require the state to acquire 54 acres of land, including displacing a handful of businesses in the Menomonee Valley.

WisDOT has backed the project because of the condition of the roadway, which was originally built in the 1960s, and the need for safety improvements, including the removal of left-hand entrances or exits.

The press conference was held near the Zablocki Drive Bridge over the freeway. Additional speakers included master naturalist Ann T. Bowe, Black Leaders Organized for Communities political director Kyle Johnson, 350.org facilitator Julie Enslow and Healthy Climate Wisconsin member Rene Settle-Robinson.

Civil rights complaints about freeway expansion have also been filed in Texas over highway expansions in Houston and Austin. The Houston complaint led to the pausing of the $9 billion project and, ultimately, changes to the project. The Austin complaint was filed in January.