We Energies doesn’t wait for its bluff to collapse

As the City of Port Washington makes plans to stabilize the city’s north bluff, We Energies is doing the same work at the south bluff.

Crews have been working to regrade the bluff’s west and north sides along Wisconsin Street and South Beach Road, creating a terraced hillside.

“We experienced some minor erosion and so we’re doing this proactively so it doesn’t get worse,” We Energies senior communications specialist Alison Trouy said.

The work will also help eliminate the potential for damage to South Beach Road, which provides access to one of the city’s two beaches, she noted.

Trouy said the crews are removing the surface turf reinforcement mat that was installed about two decades ago because it had deteriorated and enhancing drainage systems to reduce the potential for bluff failure.

After the surface is graded, she said, the utility will add topsoil where needed, then plant it with a native seed mix.

“We’re choosing to use native plants both because they have a much deeper root system, which will provide greater stability to the bluff, and as part of our statewide efforts to protect pollinators,” Trouy said.

Last year, she noted, the utility received the Asclepias Adder Award from the Rights-of-Way as Habitat Working Group for the third consecutive year in recognition of its efforts to support monarch butterflies.

In another year, she said, the utility will introduce native plants to augment the bluff stabilization program.

Trouy said the project will not affect access to South Beach, noting that work is not being done on the east side of the bluff.

The utility’s work has provided some inspiration for the city’s bluff efforts.

Port officials have given the green light to installing drains on the north bluff, but while nine firms initially expressed interest in the project, none of them submitted a bid.

Officials, who are in the process of rebidding the project, said they would likely speak to the utility about its work on the south bluff in the hope they could entice its contractor to bid on the city project.

The city hopes to get a company under contract for the drain work in May and have the work done this year.

The south bluff has been a focal point in the city since the south beach opened to the public in 2010. The beach is popular, with crowds flocking to the lakefront throughout the summer and filling the small parking lot.

The city has looked at ways to expand the parking lot in recent years but a 2024 effort to increase the number of spaces fell short, with city officials urging the public to park in Coal Dock Park and walk to the beach.