Milwaukee Wins Grant To Rebuild National Avenue

Proposed National Avenue street plan. Image from Department of Public Works/Wisconsin Department of Transportation.

A key artery through Milwaukee’s South Side will now be rebuilt with a new federal grant, freeing up existing funding to rebuild other Milwaukee and Wisconsin streets.

U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin announced Thursday that the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) will receive $25 million to rebuild 2.6 miles of National Avenue from S. 1st Street west to the city limits at S. 39th Street.

The already-designed $39.6 million construction project, which includes a complete street reconstruction with fully separated bike lanes, new sidewalks and a road diet to two lanes, is scheduled to begin construction in 2026.

“Whether you’re taking a bus, driving, biking, or walking, every Wisconsinite deserves to feel safe on our roads,” said Baldwin in a statement. “I was proud to support this project that will make National Avenue safer for Wisconsin families and support businesses up and down this critical corridor on Milwaukee’s South Side.”

Having announced the effort in early 2020, the city and state were already planning to rebuild the street, part of State Highway 59, with a mix of city, state and federal funding. However, the new grant will fully replace the city’s estimated $2.5 million cost and much of the state’s allocation. Both entities will be able to reallocate the funding to other projects.

“I wrote a letter to Transportation Secretary Buttigieg, championing [WisDOT’s] grant application to redesign this corridor and make needed enhancements that advance safety and equity,” said Congresswoman Gwen Moore. “I am so excited to see funds poured into such a culturally and commercially thriving part of Milwaukee’s Near South side area. These much-needed improvements, such as replacing deteriorating pavement, making curb ramps ADA compliant, creating separated bike lanes, improved street lighting, and raised crosswalks, will make this corridor safer for commuters, pedestrians, and bikers. I thank the Biden-Harris administration for supporting this important project, which my constituents will benefit from throughout their everyday lives.”

The grant award comes from the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity, RAISE, program. The annual discretionary grant program, formerly known as TIGER and BUILD, recently saw its funding increased by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

“Here in Wisconsin, we’ve gotten to work fixing the darn roads and ensuring our state’s infrastructure is ready for a 21st-century workforce and economy, but we know our work continues,” said Governor Tony Evers. “Thanks to Sen. Baldwin’s leadership in securing millions of dollars through the federal RAISE program, we are continuing our work to bring better, safer roads, highways, bike lanes, and railways to communities across our state, all while moving forward toward building a more sustainable future for all.”

The RAISE award announcements are usually made in June, but the Biden-Harris administration is working to accelerate several grant awards and contracts in advance of the possibility that incoming President Donald Trump‘s administration could claw the previously-approved funding back.

In December, Milwaukee officials confirmed they were working to protect the city’s recent grand awards. That includes $25 million to rebuild W. Center Street from the Safe Streets and Roads For all program, $14 million for rebuilding W. Villard Avenue in Old North Milwaukee via the RAISE program and a $36 million Reconnecting Communities grant to rebuild 6th Street.

Wisconsin did not receive any funding from last year’s RAISE program. But in addition to the 2023 Villard Avenue grant, WisDOT also received $15 million to advance the rehabilitation of Interstate 41, including adding noise barriers between W. Burleigh Street and W. Silver Spring Drive in northwest Milwaukee County. The City of Kenosha was awarded $5.5 million to design a bike trail extension that includes two bridges.

Milwaukee has twice before won TIGER grants, an earlier iteration of RAISE. It won a $21.5 million TIGER grant in 2010 to rebuild the Juneau Avenue bridge over the Milwaukee River. In 2015, it won a $14.2 million grant to extend the streetcar through The Couture to the lakefront.

The $25 million RAISE grant is the largest grant awarded by the program. A minimum 20% match is required to access the funding.

WisDOT maintains a National Avenue project website with more details on past meetings and the project timeline.

UPDATE: The estimated project cost figure has been updated to reflect a new construction estimate from WisDOT.

Reconstruction Plans

2020 Photo

W. National Ave. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

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