From Spring to Fall 2025, Resilient Future Consulting served as a sub-consultant to DMP Development Analytics to deliver an independent regional economic impact study focused on proposed alternatives for Milwaukee’s I-794 Lake Interchange corridor. Commissioned by Commercial Association of REALTORS Wisconsin (CARW), with support from the National Association of REALTORS, the study was designed to bring a business and regional economy lens into a public conversation that has often focused primarily on the immediate footprint of the corridor.

WisDOT’s ongoing Lake Interchange Study has explored a range of design directions, including rebuilding in kind, modifying and improving the existing freeway design, and full removal in favor of at grade streets. Because I-794 functions as a key regional connector, CARW engaged the study team to assess what changes in travel time and travel reliability could mean for economic activity across the broader Milwaukee region, not only for redevelopment potential within the corridor itself.

The study evaluated potential impacts across three categories of economic activity: freight and logistics, commuters and workforce access, and tourism and visitors. For each category, the team developed multiple scenarios, including impacts to shippers and manufacturers, first mile and last mile delivery activity, Port Milwaukee access, regional labor market access, and long day trip visitation patterns.

The study revealed that even modest travel delays associated with a full removal alternative could have significant economic consequences over time, and highlighted that redesign alternatives can preserve regional connectivity while creating opportunities to improve safety and support targeted redevelopment. Moving forward, the study has helped inform an active regional discussion as WisDOT advances the Lake Interchange Study through additional public engagement in 2026 and environmental review in 2027.

As part of the study team, Resilient Future Consulting supported the effort in the following roles:

• Senior Transportation Planner: Served as the project team’s transportation planning lead, supporting the development and review of transportation assumptions and scenario framing across freight, workforce commuting, and visitor travel considerations.

• Freight and Regional Connectivity Advisor: Contributed transportation and freight focused perspective to ensure the analysis captured the corridor’s role as a regional connector, including access patterns relevant to goods movement and major employment and activity centers.

Report: Rebuild, Redesign, Remove: An Economic Analysis of Changes to I 794 (CARW, DMP Development Analytics).

Media coverage: Finance and Commerce, “Removing I 794 could cost Milwaukee $560M annually, study finds.”