Small Destination Community Requires Municipal Engineering Services: Vienna, Wisconsin

Building Relationships through Community Development Services

Home to an eclectic mix of shops and niche retailers, the Town of Vienna bills itself as the most “Insta-worthy” exit in Wisconsin. Located a short 20 miles from Wisconsin’s capital city, the Town of Vienna has small-town charm with big aspirations of attracting tourism dollars to their community. Of course, convincing day-trippers and other vacationers to spend money in their town means they need top-notch accommodations, services, and infrastructure to lure them in. As a multi-disciplinary engineering firm, the Snyder & Associates approach to municipal engineering fully complements the needs of this ambitious town in reaching their goals.

Since 2012, Snyder & Associates has filled the role of engineering representative for the Town of Vienna, aiding in the design and implementation of many infrastructure projects of varying complexity. Our team offers a full range of municipal engineering services to help towns, cities, and counties manage their day-to-day and long-term engineering needs. Our firm’s approach to municipal engineering involves assigning each client with a single point of contact, backed by a support staff of over 200 professionals working behind the scenes. This standard provides a level of professionalism that has allowed clients, like the Town of Vienna, to tackle large-scale projects, while at the same time providing the flexibility to manage the town’s everyday engineering needs.

Handling Commonplace Tasks with Professionalism & Enthusiasm

With a large pool of talented professionals on staff, our firm can perform a broad spectrum of tasks, no matter the size. Among the services that Snyder & Associates provides for the Town of Vienna as the engineering representative are:

• Community and infrastructure planning
• Site development reviews and land survey
• Asset Management
• Wastewater analysis
• Construction inspection
• Funding assistance services

Roadway Design Services for Core Engineering Projects

Blind hill along Schumacher Road.

With numerous rural roadways in the incorporated area, road repair projects are a primary focus for our engineering team that regularly works with town leadership. Two recent projects include the reconstruction of extensive segments of Schumacher Road and Cuba Valley Road on the southern edge of the community.

On the Schumacher Road project, our engineering team performed an extensive safety study that included a traffic count and speed study, as well as a sight distance analysis at one, particularly dangerous intersection. The traffic study results showed an average of 1,200 cars traveling on Schumacher Road each day. The completion of these studies also allowed our team to help the town apply for funding from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (DOT).

Using blasting and hammering to remove hard bedrock, a blind hill approaching the Cuba Valley Road intersection will be lowered to meet DOT vision requirements. By making this improvement, the town was able to qualify for Town Road Improvement Discretionary (TRID) program funding that reimbursed 50% of the cost. Another hill by Hauser Road was also adjusted with a vision triangle to ensure stopped motorists can see the oncoming cross traffic. As part of the grant requirement, the road and shoulders were widened and the entire project area will receive new asphalt paving. The project, which is over 3-miles long, is expected to be finished in the spring of 2021.

A similar reconstruction project along Cuba Valley Road was able to utilize the same TRID program to widen the roadway and shoulders, as well as rebuild the drainage ditches. The Snyder & Associates team provided preliminary design services, cost estimates, site survey work, engineering plans and specifications, and created all bidding documents. Both of these projects resulted in roadways that are better able to accommodate heavy industrial farm traffic.

Geographic Information System (GIS) Implementation & Training

Sample GIS plot map.

Asset and infrastructure management is a vital component for communities. For the Town of Vienna, answering questions regarding land use, zoning, and territorial boundary agreements entailed the use of cumbersome manual files or a county website not equipped for such queries. Our team was able to streamline that process by helping the town implement a cloud-based Geographic Information System (GIS).

With GIS, critical information is bundled into one application. Snyder & Associates professionals helped town officials get started with GIS by assisting with data collection and creating a database using ArcGIS Online. Staff learned to operate the GIS data collection equipment, input information into the system, and edit or add more data as necessary. Once collected data was combined with background data supplied by Dane County, the application was launched for use by town employees. Snyder employees worked closely with town staff through the entire process to ensure the application met their needs and they were able to use the program efficiently.

Funding Application Assistance for Hazard Mitigation Grant Program

Snyder & Associates also assisted the Town of Vienna with the grant application process to receive funding from Wisconsin Emergency Management (WEM). The Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) provides funds for the acquisition and demolition of flood-damaged and flood-prone properties and flood-proofing or retrofitting measures. Other fundable projects include the development of mitigation standards to protect structures from disaster damages and small structural control projects, such as detention ponds and stormwater improvements. These funds allowed Snyder & Associates to provide a solution for a low-lying, flood-prone area in Vienna. Our team was able to redirect overflows from this wetland area to reduce flooding on several roadways.

At Snyder & Associates, we provide our clients with services that are proactive, responsive, and cost-effective. We help communities plan responsibly for sustainable growth and we work diligently to nurture strong relationships, appreciate multiple perspectives, and respect the culture of each community we serve. Most important, we know it takes experienced, skilled professionals to gain the trust of our clients. We have earned that trust with many communities like the Town of Vienna.