Residents Raise Concerns Regarding Werkner Rd. Project

The Washtenaw County Road Commission’s (WCRC) 2026 plans include over a dozen projects in the county aimed toward making the local infrastructure safer and easier to navigate. One of these projects includes the pulverizing and paving of two sections of Werkner Rd. Currently, WCRC has announced the following plans for the project:

Section 1: Sibley Road to 1200 Feet North

• Mill and resurface the asphalt pavement
• Slightly widen the asphalt surface to accommodate the white edge line, while maintaining current 11’ lane widths
• No shoulder or drainage improvements, thereby greatly limiting tree removals

Section 2: 1200 Feet North to M-52

• Pulverize, shape, and compact the existing pavement
• Use this modified material as a base for new asphalt pavement
• Maintain current 11’ lane widths
• Improve shoulders by constructing 2’ paved + 2’ gravel or 2’ paved + curb
• Some tree removals are required; impacts are currently being assessed

Sylvan Township resident Greg Johnson and some of his neighbors are in opposition to the current plan as it’s been proposed due to the potential removal of trees alongside the road.

“To be clear, there is no opposition to repaving this stretch of road. None,” he said.

The concern, he emphasized, lays solely with protecting the trees. While the county has not stated an intent to widen the existing lanes, improvements to the road’s shoulders will require the removal of some trees. Johnson and other Sylvan Township residents organized on Jan. 16 to raise awareness of the project.

“These old growth oak trees (some estimated to be over 200 years old) are pillars of the local ecosystem and help the watershed,” Johnson said in a statement to The Sun Times News. “They shape our neighborhood’s identity and are the soul of the local ecosystem. They simply cannot be replaced.”

Two informational meetings are planned for February by WCRC to clarify questions from the public. A virtual Zoom meeting will be held Feb. 9 at 11 a.m., Meeting ID 879 2332 8754. An in-person meeting will be held Feb. 11 at 6 p.m. at the Chelsea council chambers at 311 S. Main St., Chelsea.