Highway 47 closure near Keshena now expected to last until mid-August

Highway 47 between County Road VV in Keshena and the Langlade County line stays closed to most traffic until mid-August, keeping one of Menominee County’s main travel routes under construction for another month. Local traffic and emergency services are still being allowed through, but drivers should expect delays, gravel stretches in parts of the work zone and, in some areas, no flaggers on site.

The official detour sends drivers onto U.S. 45 and WIS 29 into Langlade County. Jim Peck, the project leader, said local residents have already started finding their own ways around the closure, while out-of-town drivers still try to force their way through because mapping apps have not caught up.

Trevor Kalkofen, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation project manager, said the schedule has slipped enough that the job may need a second crew. Work is moving from south to north as culverts are upgraded and then covered with asphalt. Once the culvert phase on Highway 47 is finished in August, crews are slated to shift to Highway 55 for culvert replacement, patching and guardrail work so those tasks can be completed this year.

The Menominee County work is part of a multi-year package running from 2025 to 2028 on WIS 47 and WIS 55, with road closures during culvert replacements and easement-only real estate because the highways are on reservation land. The project calls for repaving, small culvert replacements, guardrail repairs or replacement, curb and gutter work and new pavement markings.

In January 2025, Sen. Tammy Baldwin announced $25 million in federal funding for Highway 47 and Highway 55 in Menominee County, to resurface nearly 40 miles of road and replace about 102 culverts. The package also includes guardrail upgrades, centerline rumble strips, shoulder widening, a relocated pull-off area on WIS 55 south of Markton and multimodal improvements in Neopit, including lighting, ADA-compliant curb ramps and sidewalk replacements.

WisDOT held a local officials meeting on June 27, 2023 and a public involvement meeting on December 5, 2023 at the College of Menominee Nation in Keshena.