87th Street Reconstruction - MRMC Campus

PROJECT SUMMARY

Payne and Dolan were contracted by the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center (MRMC) in the fall of 2018 to reconstruct a 1/2-mile section of 87th street in Wauwatosa, WI. This roadway is unlike the typical city street as it cuts directly through the heart of the MRMC campus, which is home to some of Wisconsin’s busiest health care institutions, such as Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin, Froedtert Hospital, and the Medical College of Wisconsin.

The existing two-lane road is already at max capacity with only stop signs at the intersections. This reconstruction will offer four lanes with traffic signals, turn lanes, and bike lanes. The project will also serve as a major utility corridor for the campus, upgrading all water, power, electrical, and storm systems.

Originally, the project was designed to take place in 6 stages, each consisting of additional sub-stages. Our team proposed incorporating a temporary roadway which reduced the project to 2 stages, saving time in the overall project schedule and improving pedestrian safety.

PROJECT CHALLENGES

With over 40,000 employees, patients, and visitors traveling to and from this campus on a daily basis, a creative safety plan was required.

Shortly after the project began, Froedtert employees expressed concerns about their safety when walking through the work zone. We responded by improving signage, adding construction fencing to delineate walking paths, and incorporating P+D flaggers to assist pedestrians in crossing the busy streets.

Since then, P+D flaggers have been providing pedestrians with safe passage and creating community at the same time. Linda Bauer, Barb Yepez, and Melissa Garcia have become the face of the project by living out our Walbec core values.

The utility work required for the project has also presented challenges. The project team has encountered numerous existing utilities that are in conflict with the proposed location of the new utilities. As a result of these challenges, P+D worked with Froedtert, MRMC, and We Energies to create pre-excavation and pre-work utility survey programs. These programs' results have benefited the project, and MRMC is planning on adopting the programs for future construction projects. Lastly, our work at MRMC has resulted in additional contracts. In December of 2018, we were approached by the Medical College of Wisconsin to design and reconstruct their parking lots. By including us in the design and sequencing of the project last winter, we were able to complete in one season what the Medical College had expected to take two seasons. This eliminated a full year of shuttling employees, saving them thousands of dollars.

Working at the MRMC campus has presented unique challenges that have allowed P+D to showcase its construction management expertise.

We are proud of the roadway system we are working to provide to the MRMC campus and know that it will allow everyone who visits on a daily basis to get safely to and from their destination.