Significant Trail Expansions And More: Common Council Preview

FRANKLIN, WI— The Franklin Common Council will discuss drafting more plans for various ambitious trail expansion projects among other business at its meeting Tuesday, city documents show.

Seven separate trail projects will be looked at during the Common Council meeting. Among them are projects included in the City's 2025 Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (CORP)- The plan lays out a laundry list of desired trail improvements.

That laundry list of trails adds up to what could eventually be a relatively robust system of off-street trails stretching to nearly every corner of Franklin.

One trail making significant headway into the design stage, the 116th Street Trail, will eventually connect Muskego City limits in the southwest to the St. Martin of Tours Church and the Franklin Hike-Bike trail in the north, city documents said.

The trail would run along 116th Street for both bikes and pedestrians and could end close to to the Forest Home Avenue trail. The project is scheduled to be bid this fall and constructed in 2022, city documents said.

A public information meeting for the 116th Street trail project will be held 4:30-6:30 p.m. on July 22 at the gazebo in Market Square Park in Franklin.

One of the more ambitious trails, the Ryan Creek Trail, could eventually connect the trail along 116th Street to the Root River segment of the Oak Leaf Trail, city documents said. The Oak Leaf Trail currently ends at the Franklin Sports Complex just north of Ryan Road.

Funding for some of these trail projects could come from a combination of Franklin's capital improvement budget and Milwaukee County money. Overall, 62 percent of the City's current trail projects are eligible for Park Impact Fee reimbursement, city documents said.

Other trails to be discussed at Tuesday's meeting include: the proposed Forest Home Avenue trail, a trail from Mission Hills Drive to S. Martins Road, a sidewalk from Prairie Grass Way to Loomis Road along State Highway 100 and a short trail at Cascade Creek Park.

Also of note at Tuesday's Franklin Common Council Meeting:

• The Council will discuss proposed code of conduct changes from Monday night's Meeting of the Whole. Proposed code of conduct changes could include a whole new section on ethics that follows Wisconsin Statutes § 19.59.

The Franklin Common Council will meet at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Franklin City Hall located at 9229 West Loomis Road in Franklin. A public comment period will be opened at the start of the meeting. It will also be live-streamed on the City's Youtube channel.

See also:

Resident Input Needed For New Pathway Along West Forest Home

No New Sidewalk Along Martins Road In Franklin For Now