Crash history could net more state money for highway work

Highway NN from Five Corners in the Town of Cedarburg to the Washington County line could be in line for additional funding to make that stretch of road safer, Ozaukee County officials were told last week.

County Public Works Director and Highway Commissioner Jon Edgren told the Public Works Committee last week that the state Dept. of Transportation has determined that stretch of highway is a likely candidate for a rural road safety grant based on the road’s physical undulations and crash history.

The grant would be for $300,000 to $400,000 and would pay for additional signage, center-line rumble strips and other measures, Edgren said.

The grant would require a 10% match from the county, he said.

Committee members authorized Edgren to apply for the grant.

Last month, county officials were told the DOT has approved installing a traffic signal on Highway NN at its intersection with Highway Y and Pleasant Valley Road, where several serious crashes have occurred in recent years, including one that killed a Cedarburg man last year.

The fatal crash occurred on July 3 when Adam Gertz, 19, of Mequon allegedly ran a stop sign on Highway NN while heading north on Highway Y and struck a car driven by 56-year-old Glenn Lewis of Cedarburg.

Gertz was charged on Dec. 23 with homicide by negligent use of a vehicle, a felony. He is free on a $25,000 signature bond and, according to court documents, serving in the National Guard. He is next due in court on Sept. 10 after a July 9 hearing was adjourned. Gertz has pleaded not guilty.

The traffic signal will cost about $1 million with the county paying about $100,000 and the state the rest, Edgren said, adding that he hopes construction will start in 2022.

Highway NN at that intersection travels northwest from the Five Corners area in Cedarburg while Highway Y, or Granville Road, is north-south. Pleasant Valley Road goes east-west across Highway Y and then crosses Highway NN, creating a triangular property on which a business sits.

Under changes planned with the traffic light installation, Pleasant Valley Road between Highway NN and Highway Y would end and serve only as a driveway for the business.