The Germantown Village Board approved a motion July 19 to apply for the federal Surface Transport Program (STP)  to pay for the improvements to Donges Bay Road from Division Road to Hwy. 145 at two lanes.

The motion followed objections raised by 22 residents to a request to apply for a possible two lane road with a  center turn lane.  The objections from the residents and discussion by the board lasted an hour and 45 minutes.

Residents objected to the loss of land and the additional traffic that would be created with an expanded road.

"The road is natural. We like it that way, keep it that way," resident Robert Campbell told the board.

Sandy LaPorte told the board that "the character of the neighborhood would change greatly if it was widened to three lanes."

Village Engineer Brionne Bischke explained that the application was a "placeholder" and not a firm commitment of what the project would become.

"This is not a final plan," he said, later adding that the project could be downsized.

If the village application for STP funds was approved, a design engineer would be hired and traffic analysis would occur to determine the actual traffic on the road. Also, federal funding would pay for 80 percent of the total cost of the project.

The suggestion of a center turn lane was made in response to concerns raised by a few residents in the area, Bischke said. That was later confirmed by Trustee Terri Kaminski, who said she received emails from residents concerned about being rear-ended while trying to turn into their residences.

The motion to keep the request at the current two lanes was made by Trustee Art Zabel.