Lake Parkway Extension Takes Another Step

A proposed extension of the Lake Parkway through Oak Creek cleared another hurdle Wednesday when the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission unanimously approved the plans.

SEWRPC voted to add the project to its Year 2035 Regional Transportation Plan. Under preliminary plans, the Lake Parkway would be extended six miles, from Edgerton Avenue (where it ends now) to Highway 100 in Oak Creek.

The biggest hurdle still remains: getting the state to fund the project.

County Supervisor Pat Jursik, who has spearheaded the project, said the extension is worth state funding because of its impact on economic development.

"An extended Lake Parkway will provide the necessary transportation infrastructure to promote economic development in Milwaukee County’s South Shore and around the Port of Milwaukee and General Mitchell International Airport," Jursik said in a statement. "We are part of the increasingly powerful lake corridor mega-region that stretches from Gary, Indiana through Chicago, Illinois to Ozaukee County, Wisconsin.

"I call upon state elected officials to fund this important corridor project."

Jursik chaired a committee that studied an extension and gathered public comments, which showed residents in favor of the project by more than a 2-to-1 margin.

Officials have said any construction could be at least 10 years away from starting.