April 15, 2026
VIROQUA Wis. – Traffic in downtown Viroqua may experience temporary disruptions this week as electrical contractors relocate utility poles and pull new wires across major intersections. The electrical work marks the final preparatory steps before the city launches into a heavy season of summer road construction including the second phase of the Center Avenue rebuild and repairs to East South Street.
Contractors from M J Electric working on behalf of Xcel Energy spent Tuesday April 14 working on utility poles along Decker Street between Rock Avenue and Center Avenue. The project required flagging operations and lane shifts on Decker Street along with brief complete traffic stoppages on Main Street lasting about two minutes at a time to safely pull electrical lines across the highway. The city previously noted these stoppages were scheduled outside of peak morning and lunch commute times to minimize local disruptions.
City Engineer Sarah Grainger explained during a recent Public Works Committee meeting that clearing these utility conflicts is a critical hurdle before heavy road excavation can begin.
“The good news is Xcel is down out and moving those poles,” said Grainger. “We are often held up by utilities needing to be moved and then the utility company not showing up.”
With the electrical poles now safely out of the way contractor Badger Environmental is expected to restart the $3.4 million dollar Center Avenue reconstruction project within the coming weeks. While initial estimates pointed to an April restart Grainger recently updated the committee that the heavy equipment will likely roll back into town in May.
A Public Information meeting with be held Wednesday April 29th at 6:00pm in the lower-level community room at City Hall regarding construction on Center Avenue
Work will begin mid-May on the north end of the Center Avenue road construction project. Crews will begin on the block of Center Avenue between Decker and Court and Court Street between Main and Center. The next phase is Center Avenue between Court and Terhune and Jefferson Street between Center and Rusk. More information will be provided as we get closer to construction.
The city says as they work through the project, there will be detours and traffic pattern changes to accommodate construction and traffic flow. One-way streets that will be blocked by construction on Center Avenue will temporarily be two-way streets with angled parking removed to allow for two-way traffic. Once construction begins, we will give updates, at least weekly, and any timely information notice, like traffic pattern changes or planned water shutoffs.
The city is also finalizing its plans for other street repairs this summer outside of the Center Avenue corridor. The Viroqua City Council recently approved construction bids to rebuild a deteriorating section of East South Street. Mathy Construction was awarded the asphalt paving contract while Augelli will handle the concrete curb and driveway approaches.
The East South Street project will be funded largely through non-lapsing funds that the city deliberately carried over from previous budgets to address failing road surfaces. Grainger previously warned the committee that East South Street is in terrible shape and she did not want to lose the opportunity to repair it this summer.
As always, important information about the project is available at the construction webpage on the city website. If you have any questions, wish to set up an appointment to discuss sight specific needs one or one, or want to provide your email to receive these updates, feel free to contact Sarah Grainger at 608-637-2937 or sgrainger@viroqua-wisconsin.com.
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