On the morning of 4/15/19 while listening to WTIP, I heard an interview with the project manager for the Border-to- Border Touring Route. During the interview, he spoke about how the Border to Border Touring Route would potentially impact roads and impose additional costs on local road authorities for repairing those impacts.
My concern is that the costs for repairing the roads will fall on Cook County. If so, it would increase the burden to our budget and reduce the effectiveness of the sales tax that was passed to help improve and maintain our roads. The projects and maintenance that are important to the residents of Cook County must not be impacted by the additional maintenance requirements that the Border-to-Border Touring Route imposes on our roads.
The project manager also stated that after the route was finalized the DNR would negotiate with the local road authority. When negotiating with Cook County, I hope that you will direct our Highway Department to take a hardline negotiating stance. The additional maintenance burden should not fall on the shoulders of the Cook County residents. Should the county fail to negotiate the burden of additional maintenance to the DNR, then the county board of commissioners should reject the project completely.
Bryan Hansel
Grand Marais
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