Village President Meets With WisDOT: Lake Drive Trees

SHOREWOOD, WI — Village President Ann Mckaig met with Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) Secretary Craig Thompson this week to discuss the 2026 Lake Drive reconstruction project that has left the village in a stir.

The meeting focused on Shorewood's "high level goal" of maintaining the current street width on Lake Drive, according to a newsletter from the village. Many hope to maintain the current configuration of Lake Drive by using the "replace in kind" design option.

WisDOT told the Village of Shorewood that its intentions are to reconstruct the roadway at the current width, the newsletter said. Whether or not the traffic pattern will remain the same, though, is still to be decided, according to the newsletter.

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The redesign plans could impact bike lanes and parking.

Thompson told McKaig during the meeting that the village should check in with the biking community to gauge its opinion, so McKaig has reached out to the Wisconsin Bike Federation, according to the newsletter.

WisDOT will not be attending the August 2 Board of Trustees meeting, according to the newsletter. Further, there will be no question & answer session in August, the newsletter said.

A second public information meeting will be held in October, though, and Village Board of Trustees will submit questions in writing to WisDOT instead, the newsletter said. More alternative designs will be presented at the upcoming public information meetings, according to the newsletter.

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Lake Drive is up for reconstruction in 2026. It's a state-led project, and WisDOT will be finalizing the plans and construction of it. A village newsletter in May said that the project could ultimately widen the roadway, and remove trees as a result.

WisDOT released information for possible reconstruction plans. Among them were plans that would create new amenities along Lake Drive such as bike lanes and different street parking. Those options ultimately could have resulted in a road widening.

Officials from the village, as well as many residents, have made it clear that widening Lake Drive would be the worst option.

Among the options, though, was the "replace in kind" model. This model would not remove trees, and has been the leading option for the village.

Take the village survey on the Lake Drive reconstruction project.

View the WisDOT project page.