Blanchardville Wisconsin

06/10/2026

E-mail update for the STH 78 street and utility improvements project.

Items of Note

**Traffic coming to downtown from the north and south will be accommodated. Commercial vehicles (trucks, deliveries, etc.) will be flagged through on STH 78. Personal vehicles may be asked to use a local detour route (these will be provided by the flagging staff and will be slightly different each day) to improve safety for the workers.**

Work Completed This Week
-Fine grading of the gravel base is complete

Work Anticipated Next Week
-Paving operations are expected to begin Monday, weather permitting. Depending on the work location, vehicle traffic may be routed to local detours.
-Gravel shouldering is expected the week of June 22.

05/28/2026

🚧E-Mail Update for the STH 78 Street & Utility Improvements Project🚧

📌 Items of Note

🚧 Concrete Curing Time:
All concrete requires time to strengthen, or cure, before it can be used. Vehicle traffic areas require 7 days of curing time before they can be reopened for use.

⭐ Important Paving Update
A short amount of paving will be done to allow for materials testing. The full paving operation is then expected to begin June 8, weather permitting.

🚦 Downtown Traffic Access:
Traffic coming into downtown from both the north and south will be accommodated.

Commercial vehicles — including trucks and deliveries — will be flagged through on STH 78.
Personal vehicles may be asked to use a local detour route to improve safety for workers. These routes will be provided by flagging staff and may be slightly different each day depending on construction activity.

✅ Work Completed This Week
Concrete sidewalk was poured along almost the entire project area.
Sanitary sewer work on the north side of the Village was completed.
Pavement grinding, also known as milling, was completed north of the bridge.

🏗️ Work Anticipated Next Week
Concrete crews will be on-site Tuesday to finish the remaining concrete work.
Pavement grinding will continue south of downtown. Traffic will be flagged around the operation while this work is completed.
A road-building crew will continue placing road base course on Main Street and Mill Street.

05/28/2026

It’s that time again for a little fun!

05/26/2026

https://blanchardvillewi.gov/job-openings/

05/22/2026

05/22/2026

🚧📢 PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE VILLAGE OF BLANCHARDVILLE 📢🚧

Well folks… we survived Phase 1. 😅

The Village side of the road construction projects is mostly wrapped up, and now the Wisconsin DOT has officially descended upon us like a traveling road construction circus with cones, barricades, orange signs, and a very different philosophy on “local convenience.”

This week has already taught us one important lesson:

👉 The DOT does things… the DOT way.

Unfortunately, “Hey, can locals just sneak through this back road quick?” is not really part of their operational model. Official detours must follow official state highway routes, which means some of the “recommended” routes out of town may feel like you accidentally started a cross-country road trip. 🚗💨

So here’s our friendly advice to the community:
🗺️ Become one with your maps app.
🗺️ Learn your side roads.
🗺️ Memorize alternate exits out of town.
🗺️ Accept that your normal route may disappear with little warning and an excavator parked in the middle of it.
🗺️ Understand that every day may become a new game of: “How do we get there from here?”

One thing we were very fortunate to have during the Village portion of the project was LOCAL contractors and our Village engineer, who genuinely tried to work with and accommodate residents, businesses, and local traffic whenever possible.

The DOT contractors?
They are not local.
They are here to complete the project efficiently and according to DOT procedures — not necessarily to make it easy to get to Monroe, Mt. Horeb, Dodgeville, Verona, or your cousin’s house in under 45 minutes. 😬

We know there will likely be hiccups… and probably some very large hiccups… as construction moves further into town. We appreciate everyone’s patience as we navigate the next phase together.

At this point, the unofficial village slogan may simply be:
“Good luck and choose your exit wisely.” 🤷‍♀️🚧

Stay patient, stay alert, and maybe keep snacks in the car.

05/21/2026

🚧 TRAFFIC UPDATE – HWY 78 CLOSURE / DETOUR INFORMATION 🚧

It appears that the Wisconsin DOT has now fully shut down STH 78 from Moscow Road to Lower Highway H, which is creating some inconveniences for residents and travelers heading toward the Mt. Horeb and Verona areas.

Travelers leaving Blanchardville may want to utilize the alternate blue-marked routes shown on the attached map to help avoid delays and confusion.

📍 Per the Wisconsin DOT:

“The official detour route would be State Highway 78 south to Argyle, use State Highway 81 to Monroe, take State Highway 69 north out of Monroe to New Glarus and proceed north to Verona.”

Please allow extra travel time, follow posted signage, and use caution in all construction and detour areas.

Thank you for your patience as these roadway projects continue.