Man proposes highway bridge at Cassville

By Correne Martin

A petition to build a bridge spanning the Mississippi River, from Cassville to Clayton County, Iowa, needs more signatures if it is to attract attention from Wisconsin, Iowa and national legislators. The proposal is one that looks at the future of the shrinking Grant County community and provides a solution for what can be done to bounce back from the blow Cassville sustained when its two electrical power plants closed in late-2015.

Leading the charge, the petition’s creator is Lance Wamsley, who was born and raised in Cassville and whose father was manager of the Alliant Energy plant when its doors closed. Now living in Lancaster, he started the petition Aug. 1. Since then, it has accumulated 1,755 supporters toward a goal of 5,000.

“It’s kind of a wait-and-see game right now. If we can’t get good jobs to return to both of these plants, I know tourism is kind of [the village’s] answer for the moment,” Wamsley pointed out, acknowledging that the community’s iconic toll ferry does wonderful things for Cassville, yet it’s not 24/7 and it’s at the river’s mercy each year. “Cassville is locked into a corner, with no major highways running through it. The school is struggling and many parents—in some families, both parents—are commuting out of town for work. A bridge would open up opportunities.”

That potential includes a number of viable incentives for, not only Cassville, but also the region, on both sides of the river.

According to the petition, “a bridge makes Cassville, and adjacent areas of Grant County, and Clayton and northern Dubuque counties in Iowa, more attractive to employers because a skilled workforce can be drawn from four directions.” Agribusiness and tourism businesses and employers could see a boost because, as Wamsley said, a bridge gives people a reason to drive through Cassville and patronize its businesses, not bypass it because the village happens to be located in a corner of the state.” Wamsley believes a bridge would also allow the area’s beautiful real estate to see increased value and additional development—having stellar rail, water and highway access—thus increasing the tax base in several counties.

Moreover, the forward-thinker and his supporters insist that, as the federal government expects to roll out a national infrastructure plan in the near future, a bridge crossing the river at Cassville would be “a great shovel-ready project to have sitting on the docket.”

“I know it’s hard to get Madison to spend money in rural Wisconsin, but my goal with this petition is to open the eyes of our legislative officials,” Wamsley stated. “They’re stepping down the utility aid for Cassville. Now’s the time to look at a permanent solution for the survival of this community. Right now, the petition is about how we can help Cassville, but a bridge could help so many more people.”

Wamsley contends there’s a highway bridge located every 30 miles on the Upper Mississippi River, between the Twin Cities and Quad Cities—except at Cassville. Currently, a 60-mile gap exists between the bridges in Prairie du Chien and Dubuque. Since Cassville is located halfway between those cities, a bridge there would ease the traffic loads on the existing bridges at the other locations.

His petition continues, “the Mississippi River’s width at Cassville is quite narrow compared to other stretches of the river; that would reduce construction and maintenance costs in this situation. In addition, there is existing road infrastructure on both the Wisconsin and Iowa sides of the river, which would reduce environmental impact from the construction of a bridge. A bridge would put Cassville closer to the Dubuque metropolitan area and its economic vitality. It would also give Cassville residents 10-minute access to Guttenberg, Iowa, and basic services such as a hospital, several clinics and a pharmacy, an auto dealership, a dollar store and a hardware store. Currently, it takes a Cassville resident between 20-30 minutes at minimum to obtain access to those services elsewhere in Wisconsin.

A bridge would also open the door for Grant County residents to find jobs in Dubuque, Delaware and Clayton counties in Iowa that would have commute times of 45 minutes or less. Right now, without a bridge, it takes a Cassville residents nearly one hour to commute to a workplace located at Dubuque’s west end.

Certainly, one of the prospective beneficiaries of the proposed bridge would be Guttenberg. Wamsley said he’s gotten the village of Cassville on board with a letter of support for his petition. He’s also spoken with Guttenberg officials and, though their community isn’t necessarily water-locked, they seemed receptive to the idea. Wamsley admitted he hasn’t had much time to promote his proposal in the Guttenberg area yet either, though he hopes to do so.

In order to reach his goal of 5,000 petition signatures, Wamsley, who works on the road and travels often, aims to establish a committee to help spread the word about the perceived need for a bridge. He wants more details to be shared in Guttenberg and the affected counties and to glean official support from those areas in the form of letters, political engagement and, of course, signatures.

He would also like such a committee to assist him in getting out a paper petition for the proposed bridge. “I want to be sure I’m reaching all portions of the population, especially the older residents who don’t have computer access,” he said.

The Eckstein Library in Cassville has agreed to help supporters wishing to sign the online petition, available at www.change.org (search for Cassville and it will be the only result). Anyone willing to sign it can stop by the library during business hours for staff assistance.

Wamsley said each time the petition reaches a certain milestone of signatures, the offices of six Wisconsin decision makers are notified via email, including Gov. Scott Walker, Sen. Howard Marklein, Rep. Travis Tranel, Cong. Ron Kind and Sens. Tammy Baldwin and Ron Johnson. He also plans to formally reach out to those politicians in hopes that they might be willing to meet with him “and see if this is something they’d be willing to fight for.”

“I understand the return on investment won’t happen right away. But there are many avenues to consider,” he added.

Ultimately, with his efforts, Wamsley is simply trying to be a good citizen and do his part to help Cassville become a thriving village again.

The concept of a Mississippi River bridge connecting Cassville and Guttenberg first arose around 1935, as a dream of longtime Cassville village president and community visionary R.J. “Penny” Eckstein. His tenure on the village board spanned six decades, from the 1920s through the ‘70s.

“He was the reason Cassville became home to two power plants to begin with,” Wamsley said.

According to conversations Wamsley had with village leaders, there might have even been a bridge design. It was told at a community-wide meeting at the high school on Aug. 4, 1966, that the 1935 bridge attempt had passed through the Wisconsin state legislature but failed to receive approval from the governor due to the lack of a tax-free bond at the time.

Another concerted effort was made in the 1960s, but funding became an issue.

“At the time of the ‘60s and ‘70s, Cassville was a very booming community. To see it wither over time is heartbreaking. I had a very nice childhood in Cassville. It had a lot to offer when I was growing up,” he said. “If a bridge gets the conversation going and we’re able to bring some family-sustaining jobs back, I’ll be grateful for that.”