Residents get look at Highway 22 project plans
May 26—Residents shared their thoughts and concerns Wednesday on the planned overhaul of Highway 22 between Mankato and St. Peter, from safety improvements to bike trails to business impacts.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation, or MnDOT, collected feedback on the $32 million project during an open house at Mankato Regional Airport.
It marked the start of open houses related to the 2024 construction plans, with additional events set for June 7 in Kasota, June 28 in St. Peter, and farther out open houses tentatively planned for 2023 and 2024.
Engagement with landowners along the route since MnDOT conducted a corridor study in 2018 found most people seem agreeable to the designs, said Forrest Hasty, project manager with MnDOT. Most of the inquiries he heard Wednesday had to do with access points during construction.
"Most people just want to know how they're going to be able to access the cities, the communities, their businesses, their homes," he said. "They want to know the detours and the phasing."
Details on construction phases will get finalized closer to the construction start date, as bids still need to get awarded and contractors need to lay out their project timelines.
MnDOT's plans call for a two-year project between south of County Road 57 in Mankato to south of the Minnesota River Bridge in St. Peter. New passing and turn lanes throughout, intersection realignments and roundabouts are included in the plans.
Project benefits, according to MnDOT, range from crash reductions to improved traffic flow to smoother pavement. As the corridor stands, Highway 22's intersections with Augusta Drive, County Road 21 and County Road 57 all have above average crash rates.
Roundabouts are slated for the County Road 21 intersection in Kasota and Augusta Drive intersection in Mankato. County Road 57's intersection will get a continuous T design.
Josh Nelson lives in a home and owns a business, Nelson Imports, just off Highway 22. He attended the open house, saying he witnesses crashes fairly regularly at the Highway 22 and County Road 45 intersection.
"I've seen and witnessed so many accidents there with my own eyes," he said. "Cars blow through here and end up in our yard."
Reconstructing the highway will be good, he added, but he and other homeowners do have concerns. The project would cut off access from Highway 22 to his business and a rental property he bought last year, he said, while bike trail plans may encroach on his property.
Nearby homeowners who live on Rabbit Road noted they have traffic concerns because cars would use the roadway instead of Highway 22 during construction. A similar issue occurred during previous Highway 22 construction.
An unpaved bicycle and snowmobile trail is factored into MnDOT's construction plans.
The trail would be a safer route for bicyclists from Mankato to St. Peter, said Richard Keir, a past board member of Greater Mankato Bike and Walk Advocates. He jokingly referred to himself as a "survivor" of bicycling along Highway 22 and Highway 169 between the two cities.
While he considers his risk tolerance for bicycling while cars zoom by high, he said others would feel more comfortable using a trail.
"I think it would help," he said of the trail plan. " ... It would be a route that isn't right next to traffic."
The Kasota Community Center at 200 N. Webster St. will host the June 7 open house from 4-6 p.m. The St. Peter Community Center at 600 S. Fifth St.will then have the June 28 open house from 4:30-7 p.m.
For more information on the project, go to www.dot.state.mn.us.
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