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With the 2022 construction season wrapped up at the Highway Department, we have already been working on projects for the 2023 season. Projects are slated all throughout the county, from the Sawbill Trail to Hovland and up to Grand Portage.
Beginning on the west end of the county and at the end of the Sawbill Trail we will be replacing a deficient metal culvert across Sawbill Creek. This project will utilize Transportation Sales Tax (TST) funds and once complete will be a double barrel concrete box culvert. A temporary bypass will be utilized during construction to avoid road closures.
Next is another deficient metal culvert on the Ball Club Road across Junco Creek. Funding for this project comes from a variety of sources; a DNR State Park Road Account (SPRA) grant that we competed for and won, a National Fish Passage Program (NFPP) grant that we also competed for and won in partnership with Cook County SWCD, and lastly funds directly allocated to the highway department from the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations (CRSSA) Act. There will be a detour during the duration of this project so keep an eye out for more information.
In Grand Marais we have three projects occurring: the reconstruction of 5th Ave W, a salt/sand shed at the highway department, and a heated storage building also at the highway department.
The 5th Ave W reconstruction project has been discussed for several years and it’s one we are excited to deliver. The project extents will be from TH 61 up to the intersection with CSAH 7/5th St and extend through the intersection slightly. Sidewalks will be added on both sides of the road, and we have partnered with both the city of Grand Marais and Cook County SWCD to provide improved stormwater systems. Funding for this project includes an $835,000 grant that we were awarded through the competitive Local Road Improvement Program (LRIP), a $180,000 Lake Superior North Watershed grant, as well as our annual state aid allocation.
Two buildings will be constructed at the highway department main campus: a salt/sand shed and heated storage building. The salt/sand shed is needed because our lease to share the MnDOT facility just east of town is expiring and is not being renewed. This structure will allow us to store our winter salt/sand pile in a way that is both environmentally and budget friendly in that material won’t be lost due to exposure. The heated storage facility comes from more space required to store our equipment. Storing graders and/or plow trucks outside or in cold storage during the winter is not an option as ice build-up and engines and hydraulics warming up would prevent us from being able to quickly respond to snow events in a timely and safe manner over the duration of our long winters. These facilities will be funded partially through our annual state aid allocation and undesignated cash at the highway department.
In Hovland, the replacement of a deficient multi-span timber bridge over the Flute Reed River on CR 69/North Road will take place. Funding for this comes from two sources: federal off-system bridge replacement funds (BROS) and state bridge bonds. The replacement structure will be a single span prestressed concrete beam bridge with timber railings to better match the environment. This project will also utilize a detour during construction and more information will be available in the future.
Our final project scheduled for 2023 is a new timber bridge and road realignment in Grand Portage. Realigning Upper Road through the Grand Portage National Monument will move vehicular traffic off the existing historic stone bridge. Pedestrian paths will replace the current alignment across the historic bridge, allowing for safer access for visitors and locals through the park. Traffic will be rerouted along a new alignment and timber bridge over Grand Portage Creek between Store Road and the existing alignment. This project has been a collaborative effort between the National Park Service (NPS), the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and Cook County. This community led project is one of the many reasons I enjoy working here. Funding for this project will come from our annual State Aid allocation and federal money from NPS.
As of this writing only one project is being delayed an additional year and that is the bridge replacement over Alfred Creek on CR 28. Funding for this project is through the use of state bridge bonds which the legislature unfortunately did not pass. Our hope is that come the 2024 construction season a bonding bill will have passed and this project can be completed.
The projects scheduled for 2023 construction utilize approximately $9 million (of which about $1.6 million is grants) through a variety of funding mechanisms: grants from DNR, state, and federal entities, the local TST fund, and our annual state aid allocation to name a few.
For additional information, please give us a call at the Cook County Highway Department, 218-387-3014. For maps and a list of projects in our 10-year transportation plan, please visit the Highway Department page on the County website at www. co.cook.mn.us.
Take care and see you on the road!
County Connections is a column on timely topics and service information from your Cook County government. Cook County – Supporting Community Through Quality Public Service.
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