Mayo Clinic development plan spurs look at potential rapid-transit tweak

Randy Petersen, Post-Bulletin, Rochester, Minn.
·2 min read

Jun. 12—ROCHESTER — Mayo Clinic's potential development plans

could spur a tweak in Rochester's downtown rapid-transit proposal.

A proposed Sixth Avenue Southwest station for the planned bus rapid-transit system along Second Street would sit on the edge of a multiyear infrastructure investment proposal Mayo Clinic unveiled earlier this month.

"(We're) looking at does it make sense to move the station over to the east side (of Sixth Avenue) to accommodate increased ridership and all the future development," Rochester Strategic Initiatives Director Josh Johnsen told the Rochester City Council on Monday.

The

proposed $150 million transit system

, dubbed Link, seeks to provide frequent stops at seven locations along a 2.8-mile route that will connect public and private parking at both ends to eliminate the need for multiple parking structures downtown.

Sixth Avenue would have a platform on each side of Second Street, sitting between similar stops at Second Avenue Southwest and a planned Saint Marys transit station.

While a Sixth Avenue platform proposed near TownePlace Suites, 601 Second St. SW, is expected to have lower ridership than the other platforms, Johnsen said the current plan doesn't include room for expansion.

"There are pretty large constraints between the right-of-way and the hotel there," he said.

The design for the proposed transit project continues, and city officials continue targeting federal funding, which will be combined with state Destination Medical Center funds to pay for the project.

Rochester Transit and Parking Systems Manager Ia Xiong said the design is expected to be 90% complete by October and finalized by February. If federal funding is awarded next year, construction would start with plans to launch the system in early 2026.

Rochester Deputy Administrator Cindy Steinhauser the

potential Mayo Clinic development

is expected to be joined by downtown commercial development spurred by the proposed fare-free transit system.

"There's a tremendous amount of infill development opportunities along the corridor," she said, pointing to potential space that sits within walking distance of the planned stations.

Johnsen said the transit line is also expected to spur new housing and commercial development at both end points, which are the former AMPI and Kmart sites and the current Mayo Clinic west parking lot on Second Street Southwest.