Stretches of Edgcumbe Road, Minnesota Street and Summit, Grand and Pleasant avenues are slated for improvements in the city of Saint Paul’s Five-Year Streets Plan for 2022-26. So are alleys in parts of Summit Hill and traffic control devices at intersections around the Highland Bridge development project in Highland Park.
The Five-Year Streets Plan, which was reviewed on November 10 by the City Council, has been adopted as part of the 2022 city budget.
Among the projects scheduled for 2022 are the reconstruction of Edgcumbe Road between Fairview and Saint Paul avenues ($6.65 million) and improvements to some of the alleys in Summit Hill ($600,000). The city will also participate in the reconstruction of Lexington Parkway between Adrian Street and Shepard Road with $2.5 million in Municipal-State Aid (MSA).
The reconstruction of Prior Avenue between Saint Anthony and University avenues is also slated for next year with $4.5 million in MSA. Other 2022 projects include Wabasha Street between Kellogg Boulevard and Sixth Street ($3.49 million) and a redesign of the intersection of Robert Street and Kellogg Boulevard ($200,000).
Federal dollars will be used in 2022 for work on the Randolph Avenue bridge near Xcel Energy’s power plant ($1.92 million), and for the eastbound Kellogg Boulevard Bridge near RiverCentre ($7 million).
Another big MSA project is the reconstruction of Grand Avenue between Snelling and Fairview avenues ($800,000 for design work in 2023, $6.69 million for construction in 2024 and $300,000 for new traffic signals at Grand-Fairview in 2024).
Summit Avenue between Victoria Street and Lexington Parkway is slated for reconstruction in 2023 ($6.64 million). So is Minnesota Street between Kellogg Boulevard and Sixth Street ($8.86 million). Work on Minnesota Street will continue in 2024 between Sixth and 11th streets ($12.5 million).
One of the largest projects in Highland Park will be traffic control improvements around Highland Bridge in 2024-25 ($600,000 in capital improvement bonds in 2024 and another $2.07 million in 2025).
Pleasant Avenue between Victoria Street and Saint Clair Avenue is slated for improvement in 2025 ($4.28 million).
The Capital City Bikeway is in line for more than $10 million in federal funds and more than $6 million in MSA funds for the design and building of various segments in 2022-26.
Saint Paul Public Works engineer Paul Kurtz cautioned that while the five-year plan is firm for the upcoming budget year, street projects can shift and change in subsequent years. “We know that we have streets that are in pretty rough shape,” he said. “We have streets come out of winter in different shape.”
Mill and overlay projects scheduled for 2022 include Mississippi River Boulevard between Randolph Avenue and Highway 5, and Summit Avenue between Snelling and Lexington Parkway. Concordia Avenue between Snelling and Marion Street, and Saint Anthony Avenue between Snelling and Marion are slated for 2023.
Potential 2024-26 mill and overlay projects include Cliff Street between Smith and Saint Clair avenues, Saint Clair between Cliff and Victoria Street, Vandalia Street and the streets around the state Capitol.
— Jane McClure
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