St. Paul, Minn. – The Minnesota Department of Transportation starts work this summer expanding and improving a 39-mile section of Interstate 94 between Maple Grove and Clearwater that, when completed, will reduce congestion, improve safety, provide a smoother ride and extend the life of the pavement.
In the long term, the project will improve freight access, help spur economic development and address planned growth in the area.
The project is expected to cost $350 million. It is partly paid for using the Corridors for Commerce program, created in 2013 by the legislature to provide additional highway capacity on segments where there are bottlenecks in the system and to improve the movement of freight and reduce barriers to commerce.
Motorists can expect reduced speeds, lane closures and occasional lane closures. Between 45,000 and 117,000 vehicles use the freeway between Maple Grove and Clearwater daily.
Crews will add lanes, resurface freeway and replace bridges between St. Michael and Albertville. They will add lanes, resurface freeway and add safety features between Clearwater and Monticello; and build new pavement between Maple Grove and Rogers and add a lane between Highway 610 and Highway 101. An interchange will be built near Dayton.
The public is invited to learn more about possible noisewall construction and can comment on the environmental assessment at a meeting from 6-8 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 16 at Monticello Community Center, 505 Walnut St. in Monticello.
People can learn more about the work from Monticello to Clearwater at a meeting from 6-8 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 29 at Monticello Community Center, 505 Walnut St. in Monticello. A presentation is planned for 7 p.m.
Those unable to attend the open house may submit written statements or comments regarding the EAW/EA to Claudia Dumont, Project Manager, by email at claudia.dumont@state.mn.us; or by mail to: Claudia Dumont, MnDOT District 3, 3725 12th St N, St. Cloud MN 56303.
Those in the Maple Grove area can learn more about a proposed noisewall and comment on the environmental assessment of the Maple Grove to Rogers work at a meeting from 6-8 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 29, at the Maple Grove Community Center, Emergency Operations Center room No. 10, 12800 Arbor Lakes Parkway.
The public meetings will be in an informal, open house format. The meetings will provide an opportunity for people to learn about the proposed project, make comments and ask questions. MnDOT staff and engineers will be available to answer questions. A court reporter will be available to take verbal comments, and comment cards will be available for people who wish to provide written comments for the public record.
The Environmental Assessment includes the Minnesota Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) form. MnDOT is the project proposer and the Responsible Governmental Unit (RGU).
The Environmental Assessment document is available on the project website at http://www.dot.state.mn.us/i94-mg-clearwater/index.html.
The document also is available for public review and copying during business hours at the following locations:
· MnDOT Metro District Office, 1500 West County Road B2, Roseville, MN 55113
· Maple Grove Library, 8001 Main Street N, Maple Grove, MN 55369
· Maple Grove City Hall, Engineering, 12800 Arbor Lakes Parkway N, Maple Grove, MN 55369
· Dayton City Hall, 12260 S Diamond Lake Road, Dayton, MN 55327
· Rogers Library, 21300 John Milless Drive, Rogers, MN 55374
· Rogers City Hall, 22350 S Diamond Lake Road, Rogers, MN 55374
· Hennepin County Library – Minneapolis Central, Environmental Conservation Library, Government Documents, 2nd Floor, 300 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis, MN 55401
· MnDOT Library, 395 John Ireland Boulevard, St. Paul, MN 55155
Comments can be mailed, before the close of the public comment period Wednesday, Feb. 13, 2019, to Rick Dalton, Environmental Coordinator, at the Minnesota Department of Transportation, 1500 West County Road B2, Roseville, MN 55113 or richard.dalton@state.mn.us.
To request an ASL or foreign language interpreter, call 651-366-4720. To request other reasonable accommodations, call 651-366-4718; the Minnesota Relay service toll-free at 1-800-627-3529 (TTY, Voice or ASCII) or 711, or email your request to adarequest.dot@state.mn.us.
For more information and to sign up for project updates, visit the web page: http://www.dot.state.mn.us/i94-mg-clearwater/index.html
For updated road condition information, call 511 or visit www.511mn.org.