Newspaper Clipping - Newspaper Clipping Scan - Interstate 494 Bridge will bring growth - 11/16/1982r 1
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to band music, remarks by
Gov. Al Quie and an antique car
parade, the new Interstate 494
bridge opened last week _across
' the Minnesota River between the
bluffs of the Eagan -Mendota
Heights border and Bloomington.
Altogether, the costof the
four -mile, six -lane highway and
• bridge project between Highway
55 in north' central Eagan and
south central Mendota Heights.,
eastward across the river to 34th
Avenue in Bloomington totaled
about $46 million., • ,
Of that amount, $22.7 million
was for the I-494 bridge plus
' $50,000 for cleaning up, accord-
• ing to the state Department of
Transportation.
In addition, paving from \the
east end of the I-494 bridge to
Highway • 55 totaled $7.3,million
while secondary bridges •at 494
and 55 cost $8.8 million. Paving
from the west end of the I-494-
bridge. to 34th Avenue in Bloom-
ington cost $7.2 million. '
The federal government pro
vided 90 percent of the funds and
the state 10 ,percent from gas
taxes.
Nobody was happier about the
opening than John Klein of the
Urban Council on Mobility, a for-
mer Eagan official and real es-
tate man who has promoted
highway- developments across
Dakota County.. • • ,
"This is a big boon for the po-
A tential commercial and industri-
' al expansion of, northern Dakota
County and southern Hennepin
County,", Klein said. "You'll see
an extension of the Bloomington
commercial strip into Dakota
County." •
• At a reception afterward in
the Bloomington Holiday Inn,
Klein said the new'bridge will re -
Klein ' • Blomquist
duce bottlenecked traffic on' the -
nearby Mendota Bridge and iimL
proveetraffic flow along the .in-
terstate hjghway.system. , •
Indeed, Ray' Connelly, of the
Burnsville Chamber of Com-
merce, presented a plaque • to
Klein in recognition of his efforts
on the I-494 bridge project, :the
1981 opening of Interstate 35E
between Interstate 35 in ,Burns-
ville and Cedar Avenue on the
Eagan -Apple Valley border and .
the 1980 opening -of the Cedar.
Avenue Bridge and Freeway be-
tween the Eagan -Burnsville bor-
der and* Bloomington.
Eagan Mayor Bea' Blomquist
said, .`We know we're going to •
benefit from the bridge. We're.
proud of it." •
She recalled that the project
began with hearings in 1956, that
construction started in 1971 but
was delayed a few years due' to
more required environmental
studies. ` -
Mendota Heights Mayor Rob-
ert Lockwood said, "The bridge
i• s going to make it easier for the
industrial areas of Mendota
Heights and Eagan to develop.
This is atriumph for state trans=
portation department officials,
the politicians and" citizens alike
who stayed • the course despite
Please see Bridge / 2S
ste:
IIIContinued fr`omPage 1S
,sidering a 45-acre site in the
South St Paul meat packing
plant, area, a 720-acre Lakeville
site and a 780-acre Burnsville
• site for some waste operations.
•'These are among 29 possible
'{°"'"sites in the metropolitan area
• _ with the board to' winnow that
figure to 10 sites by mid -Decem-
ber. More studies and hearings
will follow with final selections
• during 1983.
The goal is to choose at least
--one site for an incinerator and
several sites .for chemical treat-
"..:nient or transfer and storage fa-
cilities in the metropolitan area.
`::Already; the'board has chosen in-
-='-ciherator sites for- the Duluth
.. ;,and Mankato areas.
According to Hester, a'private
.:;"company could develop an incin-
"aerator with an investment of at_
1'."„least $20 million. Government
permits would be required to al-
low operation. • • I
•='.—o•"About 200,000 tons of hazard-
ous wastes a year are generated
in Minnesota with three -fourths
of that coming from companies
• " in the sev,en-county metropolitan
area," Hester said.
Krech Knutson
"Some companies such as 3M
incinerates its hazardous wastes '
and other companies truck their
wastes to other states but many
just dump wastes down the
• sewers: We have to stop that." • c
Among hazardous wastes are a]
, toxic heavy metals such as chro- ' ti
mium, cadmium and nickel, sol-
vents, oil, grease, paint and. of
PCBs. These are polychlorinat- A
ed biphenyls, contaminated sl
waste oils from electrical equip . c
ment, which accumulate and f ]
may cause cancer although that d,
hasn't been proven. ;.
Hester said some wastes ' may
be recycled, some may be neu-
tralized by chemical processing,
• some may be incinerated and
placed in a landfill.
• Still, residents argued that Da-
Before embarking on a trip to Japan,
student choral members of Apple
'Valley and Rosemount high schnls
get a lesson from international
escorts of Northwest Orient Air-
40 student.
lines. The escorts; from. left, are if th`d stud
Junko Ito, Chikako Stamp and Keiko part ab4
Yamada. Steve Boehlke, on the far flight on
right, the Rosemount High School on Dec. ;
choral conductor, will accompany turn hom
'envoys' to sing
Several Minnesota high school sing-
ers • will be musical "ambassadors" to
Japan next month. •
The 40 boys' and girls, members of
choral groups from Apple Valley and
Rosemount high schools, will fly out of
.Minneapolis -St,, Paul International Air-
port' on Dec: 4 and arrive in Tokyo on
'Dec. 5 for a week of touring and per-
forming.
4 1.
'South
wind
by Mike Barrett
In addition, _the students will sing
"The. Gloria" by Vivaldi and perform
with choral st��a�^tom from frn interns
last week.
most grac
from them
During
dent§ will
Heart, Am
internatior
Christmas
The fre(
cultural se:
® Continv id from Page 1S .
the perversity and foolishness' of
people who threw up obstacles,
real or imagined."
k Richard Braun, the state
transportation department coin-
'missioner, . said, "We expect.
30,000 .vehicles a day over the
bridge' and 63,000 vehicles a day
by the year 2003."
Meanwhile, John Sandahl, . a
state transportation engineer,
said future plans call for cont-
. pleting the'stretcli of I-35E from
I-494 northeast to Highway 110
in Mendota Heights during' 1984.
Furthermore, the span of I-35E
between I-494 southwest across
Eagan to Cedar Avenue on the
Eagan -Apple Valley border may
be completed in 1985, depending.
upon continued federal funding.'
Moreover, Sandahl said plans.
call. for continuing. I494 on a
seven -mile stretch east from
Highway 55, along the Eagan -
Mendota Heights border across
the southeast corner of tiny Sun-
fish Lake, over the northern part
of Schmidt Lake in Inver_Grove
Heights -to Fifth Avenue in South
St. Paul with completion set for,
1985. ' '
But Sunfish Lake officials and
' the Dakota County Environmen-
tal Protective Association op-
pose this proposed I-494' corri-
dor.
, At week's end; Richard Ban-
croft, Sunfish' Lake councilman
and an association member, said,
"We're not against the .comple-
tion of 494 but we, are against
where the transportation depart-
ment wants to put it.
"We feel that putting 'another ,
'ribbon of concrete through Dako-
ta County is asinine. That's a ter-
rible waste of land which is unre-
coverable. Our contention is that
the existing 'Highway 110 corri-
. dor should be widened to accom-
modate 494.'•' (
TWO SECTIONS
Week of October 20. 1986 Vol. 7. No. 43
What peo
by Amy O'Marro
In the last decade Eagan underwent a
transformation. How has that transfor-
mation changed the way people view the
city?
The Chronicle looked at growth in
Eagan by posing a simple and innocent -
sounding question to several Eagan
businessmen and residents: What is
Eagan's personality?
That simple question turned out to be
a complicated question to answer.
One group of businessmen said
separate traits must be studied to
answer the question. Look at the
economic, business, educational,
recreational and governmental traits of
Eagan and its personality will be un-
covered, they said. The Chronicle
agreed.
What is Eagan's economic personali-
ty? Is it a healthy growing community
with a stable, competitive business en-
vironment?
When Eagan changed from a
township to a city in 1974 there were
7,000 people calling Eagan home. In 1980
that number grew and 20,700 residents
were counted.
Eagan wasn't finished. This was just
the beginning.
City officials watched as the number
of building permits multiplied, but they
couldn't determine the population count
until the special census.
That 1985 census counted 30,456 peo-
ple. Eagan left its rural beginnings and
joined the urban cities.
Today, as building permits continue
bombarding City Hall, city officials
think abou
The gateway into Eagan from the In-
terstate 494 looks impressive since
Eagan Woods office (left) and Sperry's
estimate there are more than 35,000 peo-
ple living in Eagan.
These figures show a 500 percent in-
crease in the past decade. The
Metropolitan Council estimates Eagan
will be 'Home Sweet Home' to 37,513
people by the year 1990.
But city officials think the number
will rise even higher, to 41,800 residents.
Small wonder the Metropolitan Council
named Eagan the fastest growing city in
the metropolitan area.
The title as the fastest growing city
was rapidly adopted by city officials,
developers and residents. The title has
Eagan
headquarters have risen over the
horizon.
become one of Eagan's most
characteristic personality traits.
Who is moving to Eagan? The
average `Eaganite' is a 28-year-old
young professional who is married, ac-
cording to the state department of
Economic Development. The senior
citizen makes up the smallest portion of
the population, only 4.3 percent.
Most residents live in Eagan's
southeastern portion where the median
value of a single family house is $84,110.
The median rent is $510.
EAGAN: To Page 8A
11940 12thAve., Burnsville,
. 11.
scene about 1:45 p.m. and had
) minutes. Fire units remained
r guishing smoldering pallets of
cause of the fire is under in -
charged
District 196 has been charged
ninal sexual conduct in the se-
cota County attorney's office.
'aul, will be tried, according to
las not been set.
after an investigation by Apple
ruched an 8-year-old girl on and
ion delayed
vage sludge ash accumulating
rnp it in Lakeville was delayed
delayed until Oct. 29 in Dead-
rost of the Metropolitan Coun-
> set for other proposals on the
vo proposals to be confused."
rment is heard, and he doesn't
l begin to be shipped by rail
To possible landfill sites in the
. One is in the Lakeville -
!rug scene
ed in Dakota County, and co-
Tially among young adults 18
ledecker of the narcotics divi-
of me," said Capt. Len Fox.
la day habit, or $73,000 a year.
the sheriff's office is trying to
by Dorothy Casserly
A victory for the home day
care industry is what Dana
Lawrence calls the Minnesota
Court of Appeals decision last
week to invalidate new rules for
day care centers operated in
homes.
Lawrence, a Burnsville pro-
vider, and organizations
representing about 1,000 family
day care centers in the state fil-
ed the suit against the Minnesota
Human Services Department.
The suit sought only a declara-
tion of illegality, not damages,
said Kelly Rask, Lawrence's at-
torney.
It charged new rules adopted
in 1985 were invalid because pro-
per procedures were not follow-
ed in developing them. The ap-
pellate court's three -person
panel was unanimous in its deci-
sion. On the panel were Chief
Judge Peter Popovich, Justices
Susanne Sedgwick and Roger
Nierengarten.
The decision will be appealed
to the Minnesota Supreme
Court, said Beverly Moran,
supervisor of the family day
care system and child care
centers for the Human Services
Department.
"We will continue using the
new rule pending the Supreme
Court's decision," she said. "It is
more current, it is less subjec-
tive in terms of interpretation.
The old rule was put together
years ago and it needed an up-
date to devise minimum stan-
dards that ensure the health,
safety and well being of
children."
Lawrence disagrees that the
new Rule 2 is better than the old
rule for licensing day care
Photo by Dorothy Casserly
Dana Lawrence, holding herdaughterTera, poses with some of
the other children she cares for in her home. In back is Jacob
Brauer, in the front row from left, Lance and Heidi Lawrence,
Ben Isaacson and Colleen Halls.
fant crisis by reducing the
number of infants that can be
cared for," she said. "They im-
plemented a rule that if one part
doesn't get you, the other part
will.
"They take the word safety
and exceed the meaning of the
term. I want safety too, but
there's an enormous degree of
exaggeration, and what they've
done is make day care unaffor-
dable."
the licensing process.
"If Rule 2 were to be enforced,
it's only a matter of time before
this industry will cease to exist.
Why do they make us out to be
the bad guys? We are the ones
who are giving loving care to the
kids," she said.
Lawrence claims the state is
trying to put children of all ages
in public schools, thus
eliminating day care.
"Providers statewide do not
• SBA
Rapid growth changes residents' perceptions
Sand was dredged from the bottom of
the lake in the Lebanon Hill park to
From Page 1A
Before the boom, Eagan businesses
used 'St. Paul' for their addresses
because people didn't know where
Eagan was, said Bill Esher, executive
director of the Dakota County
Chambers of Commerce.
City Administrator Tom Hedges
agreed. "Whenever I'd buy something
with a check at Southdale, clerks would
always ask me where Eagan, Minnesota
was. I got pretty tired of saying it was
next to Burnsville."
The city no longer sits in the
background. Now more and more
businesses have Eagan, Minnesota, as
their address," Esher said.
Growth spurred commercial develop-
ment. Developers including industrial
developer Bob Worthington of Opus
Corp., commercial developer Vern Col-
on of Federal Land and residential
developer Rodney Hardy of Sienna
Corp. say they knew the tremendous
boom was coming.
And indeed the boom increased the ci-
ty's value. In 1980 the estimated value
was $4.6 million. Today Eagan's value is
$9.2 million.
And what about the business per-
sonality of Eagan'?
Photo by Amy O'Marro
create a beach. The beach provides
natural recreation for many residents.
Offered are a mix of businesses, from
mom and pop operations to Fortune 500
giants.
Large corporations bearing Eagan
addresses include;
• Sperry -Burroughs, 5,037 employees
• Blue Cross Blue Shield, 1,550
employees
• West Publishing, 1,000 employees
• Coca Cola Co., 730 employees
• U.S. Postal Service, 600 employees
• American Fruit and Produce, 290
employees
• Lull Engineering Co., 242 employees
• Comsery Corp., 210 employees
• K.W. McKee Enterprises, 200
employees
• 3M Corp., 157 employees
All those big names help to employ a
lot of people. "There are 16,000 to 17,000
jobs in the community and the capacity
for jobs is much greater," Hedges said.
By the year 1990, expectations are that
24,000 people will be employed in Eagan,
he said.
When businessmen and city officials
are asked what brought this diversified
mix to Eagan there is one repeated
answer — ROADS. Specifically men-
tioned is Interstate 35E which connects
Eagan to downtown St. Paul.
Officials originally thought the
freeway would be complete in the late
'60s. Then they waited for its construc-
tion in the '70s. It finally was con-
structed in the '80s and opened in 1985.
Access is the key
Access may characterize Eagan's
business personality.
Hedges, Esher and Mayor Bea Blom-
quist have all been heard to say "Eagan
is 10 minutes from either Minneapolis or
St. Paul."
All three identify the proximity of the
Minneapolis/St. Paul International Air-
port as another major reason the cor-
porate community is moving to Eagan.
A third reason land is so attractive to
businessmen is access to the Soo Line
Rail Road, Hedges said. The rails run
through the heart of Eagan's industrial
areas.
Eagan has more than 3,000 acres that
has been planned or has become in-
dustrial property. Industry is located in
four areas: Eagandale Center In-
dustrial Park, in the northern portion. It
constitutes 650 acres that is owned and
will be developed by the Opus Corp.
On the western edge is Sibley In-
dustrial Park with 75 acres for industry.
Additional industrial sites include
Gopher -Eagan Industrial Park, 274
acres owned by Gopher Smelting, and
Cedar Industrial Park, 80 acres owned
by J.E. Parranto.
The future looks bright. When large
corporations are seeking a home they
look to Eagan.
Northwest Airlines' headquarters will
move into their new Eagan office in
November. NWA also plans to build a
pilot training center here.
Sperry -Burroughs Corp. recently
finished construction on its semiconduc-
tor headquarters on I-494 and is current-
ly constructing a sales and marketing
facility on its Pilot Knob campus.
United Parcel Service has recently
opened its doors.
More commercial development is in
the future. "We're not a full service city
yet. You can't buy a man's suit in
Eagan, hut we are close," Hedges said.
How has the transformation of Eagan
in the last decade changed the way peo-
ple view the city? 'What is Eagan's per-
sonality?'
Individuals characterize Eagan by its
separate traits.
What's Eagan's educational per-
sonality?
Eagan is served by three school
districts, all recognized for excellence:
• Independent School District
191-Burnsville, Savage, Eagan
• Independent School District
196-Rosemount, Apple Valley, Eagan
• West St. Paul Independent School
District 197.
The city is served by five elementary
schools, with an enrollment of 3,036; five
junior high schools, with 4,872 enrolled;
four senior high schools, with 8,311
enrolled. Trinity Lone Oak is Eagan's
parochial school.
Respondents seemed hard pressed to
identify Eagan's educational personali-
ty.
Many said an Eagan High School is
what is lacking. Desire for a high school
appearedto be strong among residents,
businessmen and city officials.
Opinion
Oh, what a weekend
Sure; we had some of the best weather
we've seen in awhile. But, I'm not talking
about that. I'm talking about probably
the best television sports weekend in the
history of . the planet. Serious sports
television. The kind that threatens mar-
'riages and substantially increases the
amount of garbage that must be brought
to the curb later in the week.
' 'It started Friday night, . Oct. 17, with
the Gopher hockey team playing the
University of Minnesota -Duluth.
"I just want to catch a, period or two," I
told the family. But they knew better.
They knew they were infor a long
weekend.
Not being totally selfish, I relinquished
the TV for Muppet Babies and Pee-Wee's
Playhouse on Saturday morning, but that
was only temporary. Soon to come was
the Gopher -Indiana football game, and I
certainly didn't want to miss 'that
"I just want to see the Gophers, then
Slice
of Life
7A
a couch potato's fantasies
by Dave Jarzyna
•
was•time to bring out the heavy artillery.
I gleaned the black and white portable
from the kitchen and set it on top of the
big family room TV.
"Come on," _ I said. "Both Michigan
and Iowa are undefeated. It'll probably
be the finest college football game on TV
this year. And I sure don't want to miss
the Gophers.'. We're .talking about some
excellent football- here."'
My wife just looked at me, then turned
to the kids. "I think we've lost him," she
said. "
,And she was right. The. rest of the
weekend was a blur.
I remember Alabama and Mike Shula
destroying Tennessee later . that after-
noon. But then it was time to prepare for
' thefall classic — the first game of the '86
World- Series, featuring; two of my
favorite teams, the Red Sox and the
Mets. Sure, I didn't finish the garage, but
the_World Series -is played, just once .a
••
year. ' .
After such'a•strenuous day, I collapsed
es cuisine
ican cuisine lunches will
etween $5 and $10 depen-
n the entree. Reservations
uired and guests must be
t at 11:30,a.m. For: reser-
call'423-8421. .
Rainbow .Room is -the
ant at the AVTI operated
service students. Dakota,
AVTI is at.1300 E. 145th
semount.
breakfast
. also perform at Walt
orld.
are $2 for `students, $3
and $10 for families.
into bed. Rest would be important. Sun-
day would be an even tougher day.
After devouring the sports_ pages in
preparation for such a full day, it was
time for the Sports. Huddle on WCCO
radio. That, of course, is followed by NFL
Gameday on ESPN_which is the. natural,
lead-in to Vikings Today on Channel 4.
Then the big-time action starts. At
11:30 it's NFL Today on CBS..I usually •
use the break between the Vikings -Today
and NFL Today to grab a sandwich and
something to drink, but I was still pretty
worn out from Saturday. Fortunately,
my wife, sensing my need for nourish-
ment, came through with an outstanding
pre -game -meal. She served it under'pro-
test, however.:
"After today, you'll have to be
surgically removed from that couch,"
. she said:
- "I know," I replied. "But it's one of the
.sacrifices I must make in my love, of
. sport."
And then came one of the greatest per-
formances ever by a• Vikings -team in
their humiliation of the Bears. I had to
smile.. I knew if 'I hadn't been. there,
diligently watching • .from my oh -so -
comfortable couch, the result would have
• been drastically different.
District 196
family center
-registration.set
School District 196 Early
• Childhood Family Education'
Center will accept 'registrations
10 •a-.ni: to 2 *p.m.,:•Oct.'..25, for
classes beginning in November.
Registration 'will •be at
Highland Elementary School
cafeteria, Pilot Knob and 140th
Street in Apple Valley. Registra-
tions can also be left during work-.
ing hours at The Family Place,
• 14736 Pennock Ave., and The _
Family Corner, 4590 Scott Trail,
Eagan.
All district families with
childen age birth to kindergarten
are eligible to enroll in ECFE
Sure, I couldhave turned the TV off at
that point. But not with the Chiefs and
Chargers just underway. I had this feel_:
ing it could be a tremendous offensive
show. And I was right. It' was like old-
time AFL football. A game that couldn't
be missed. It was my duty to watch.
"O.K., is that it now?" I was asked'
"Can we'maybe now do something as a
family?"
"Of course, we can," I said. "This is
., something that we can all enjoy together.
Game 2 of the World Series. The dream
match -up, Gooden vs. Clemens. It's the •
,stuff of which legends are made."
- "It's October. You've been watching
baseball for more than six months: Isn't
enough enough?
"You're absolutely right," I replied.
"And that's why I'll turn on the other TV
so we can see one of the greatest rivalries
in the NHL, the North. Stars and the
. Blackhawks - at the same time."
For some odd reason, I ended up wat-
ching Clemens and Gooden and theNorth
Stars by myself..
r guess. some people just can't
recognize. fine television -.Pass" me the
Beer Nuts..
Editor's Note: Dave:{ Jarzyna- and his
family reside in •Burnsville.. .
Cornmende'd students named
Sibley. High School has been
notified by National Merit
Scholarship Corp. -of •Evanston,
I11.,. that -Craig Gustafson,
Robert Klingel, •Rachelle . Lo-
jovich, John McCarty and An--
thony. Schribman have been
Tenor soloist sought
for church opera
- River Hills United Methodist
Church of Burnsville is seeking.a
tenor soloist for its production of •
"Amahl and the Night Visitors."
The opera will be presented at
4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 7, at the
church. Call Doug 'Parker at
454-SA95 nr RPhprra Timminc at
designated commended students'
in the . 1987 National Merit
Scholarship Program. These .
seniors placed in'the-top 50,000 of
more. than 1 million participants .
who'took the `--` '•
Apple -Valley
Baptist presents
film Oct. 25'':
The film, "Who Cares About
Love?' will. be presented at the
Apple Valley Baptish Church, 964
Gardenview Drive, at 6:30 p.m.
Oct. 25.. '
Ground is broken for I-494 bride
3.
BREAKING GROUND for tfie new $28-million bridge are,
from left, Orville Johnson representing Mendota Heights;
Doug Differt, Mn/DOT; Don Priebe, Richfield; John Klein,
Eagan; Bob Sandeen, Dakota County highway engineer;
DISCUSSING THE new 494 bridge are, from left, Doug Dif-
fert, district engineer for the Minnesota Department of
Transportation; John Klein of the Urban Council on Mobili-
ty, and Bob Roses, pre -design engineer for MnIDOT.
John Sandahl, MnIDOT; Gary Orlich, Mn/DOT; Richard E.
Luhrsen, project manager; Doug McArthur, Mn/DOT, and
Roger Larson, federal highway administration. (Photos by
Eugene Clay)
EAGAN--Ground was officially
broken for the I-494 Minnesota
River bridge Thursday morning,
Dec. 11, as city, county and state
officials braved a chilly wind for
the occasion. The $28 million
bridge is a part of the $134
million, 11-mile project.
The 11 miles of six -lane
freeway is the only uncompleted
segment of the I-494/694 Twin
Cities Circumferential Beltline
Route.
According to the Minnesota
Department of Transportation,
the project will be built and open-
ed to traffic in two basic stages:
1.A four -mile section from 24th
Ave. in Bloomington to Hwy. 55
in Eagan and Mendota Heights.
This is scheduled to open in the
THIS LARGE machine is clearing a path for the start of the 1-494 bridge construction.
fall of 1982 with temporary con-
nections.
2. A seven -mile section from
Hwy. 55 to 5th Ave. in South St.
Paul. This will open in the fall of
1984.
Planning for the river bridge
and 11 mile project began in 1956.
Public hearings were held in 1956,
1958, 1963, 1970 and 1977.
Construction was started in
1971 but was halted in 1973
because new legislation required
further environmental studies.
The initial environmental impact
statement was published in July
of 1977, and the final statement
was published and approved dur-
ing 1979.
Now, construction is beginning
again for the four -mile section
from 24th Ave to Hwy. 55. This
will give traffic another river
crossing to help relieve the Men-
dota Bridge congestion,
transportation officials say.
The estimate of traffic volume
crossing the bridge predicts
20,000 vehicles per day during the
opening year, and 63,000 per day
in the year 2003.
The bridge design is actually
two individual bridges separated
by about two feet. Each bridge is
4,500 feet long. One will carry the
westbound traffic, the other the
eastbound.
Each bride will have three 12-
foot driving lanes and two 10-foot
safety shoulders for a total width
of 56 feet between railings. The
eastbound bridge will have, in ad-
dition, an eight -foot wide
pedestrian trail on the upstream
side.
The trail will connect trail
systems in Bloomington with
those in Eagan and in Fort Snell-
ing State Park. A connection will
also be made to the National
Wildlife Refuge on the Bloom-
ington side of the river.
A
PAGE 2B ,
Melby - Linde
' Rita Marie Melby and Richard
Allan Linde were united in mar= •
riage ;Sunday, Oct. 18, 1980. at St.
John's Lutheran .Church, Rose-
mount: Officiating at the'
ceremony was Rev: R: Torrison.
: The bride is the daughter of
Don and Sandy Melby, Apple
Valley, and the groom is the son
of Carl and, Lydia Linde,
Janesville.
Laurene Trondson was maid of
honor. Bridesmaids were Debbie .
Juenke, sister .of the bride, and •
Becky Linde, sisterof the groom..
Flower girl was Kiki• Rux.
Best man was Jerry" .Lau.
Groomsmen were Loren Rux and
Jon Juenke. Ring. bearer •was
Joshua Olson. 'Ushers were Allan
and Eric Melby; brothers of the
bride ;'Jim Witt and Lin Flitter.:
_ Organist was Marlyn Ingelbrit-
son: Dorian Schaller was soloist:
Songs included '"Amazing
Grace," "The Wedding Song"
and "The Lord's Prayer."•
Following the ceremony, a
reception was held at the church..
An open house was held at the
bride's •parents' home until time
to • attend the dance - at Apple
•Rollerway.
The couple is at home in
Lakeville. The bride, is employed
by 'Mode' International: The
groom is an over -the -road truck
driver working for Neisius Truck-
ing.
Thnmryenr,_Qvrii h
tist Church, St. Paul.
Parents of the. bride are Mar-
jorie . Youngman of Elko and •
Lloyd Thompson of St: Paul: The
groom's parents, are Mr. and
Mrs. William.C. Smith of Hensal,
Ontario, Canada. -
The bride was given in mar-
riage by her father.
Maid of honor was Margaret
Leer' of Apple • Valley.
Bridesmaids were Mimi Thomp-
son, sister-in-law of :the bride,
and Kristi Thompson, niece of the
bride:
Best man was Gene Reding,
brother-in-law of , the groom, At-
tica, NY. Groomsmen were John
Adams, Marshall, TX, and Brent
Thompson, nephew of the bride.
Ushers were Steven Thompson,
brother of the bride;' 'and Craig
Salisbury, -stepbrother ' of " the
bride.
The bride's personal attendant
was Jackie Thompson. of'Burn-
Soloist was Douglas Thompson,
brother of the bride, St. Patil.
A reception was cheld in the
church fellowship hall following
the ceremony: Hostesses- were
Dawn and Debbie Gillispie of
Northfield"' and Betty Lou..
Adelmann of, Webster.
The bride is a 1977. Lakeville
High School graduate and the.
groom has resided in Marshall,
TX, for the last four years. The
couple will reside on their ranch.
in Marshall. '
Frandrup - Werner
Maureen C. Frandrupi.and
"Ronald E. Werner were united in
marriage Saturday, Sept. 6, 1980
at St. John's -Catholic Church,
Hastings. Officiating was Rev.
.Charles Jirik. '
The bride is the daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. Donald Frandrup and
the groom is the son of Mr. and
'Mrs. Anthony Werner, all', of,
Hastings. " •
!'Maid of tiorio `'was "Shari
Brockman. Bridesmaids were
Marlys Frandrup, sister -`of the
bride, and Lisa Beskau, Laurinda
Weatherly,•. Dina` Frandrup and
Sharon Bauer, all cousins of the.
bride. Junior bridesmaids- were
Michelle and Milinda Frandrup,
sisters of the bride. 'Plower girl
was Sara Frandrup, Cousin Of the
-bride. Personal attendant was
Beth Werner.' '
and Nick Becker. Ushers were
Bernard Frandrup, brother of the
bride, and Pat Werner, brother of
the groom. Ring bearer was
Brian Werner, nephew of the
groom.
Music was provided by Ann
Kieffer.
A reception anddance'followed
at Columbian Hall, Hatings. •
The. bride is employed by Nor-
thwestern Bank of 'Hastings and
the groom is employed on his
father's farm.
The. couple .is now at home in
Vermillion.
•
Hulscher-Thurmes
Theresa Lynn Hulscher -and
Gene ' Patrick Thurmes were
united • in marriage • at 2 p;m.
Saturday, Nov. 8,- 1980, ' at St:
Michael's Catholic. "Church in
Farmington. Officiating at • the.
double ring ceremony,ywas Rev.
James Stark. • - '
The bride and groom were
escorted to the altar ,by their
parents, Mr. and Mrs.. Joe
Hulscher and - Mr.- and Mrs.
Eugene Thurmes, all -of Farm-
ington: • •
Jessye Alexander of. Farm-
ington was maid of honor. Renee
Thurmes, sister, of the
,bridegroom, • Marcia Johnson,
Kelli Westenberg . and Shelly
Kleinemas were bridesmaids.
'Carrie Thorne was flower girl.
Best man was Gary Thurmes;
.brother. of the bridegroom.
Groomsmen were . Kevin,
Hulscher and , Tim • Hulscher,
brothers of the bride, Dan
Thurmes; brother • of the•
bridegroom, - and Brad Valek.
Ringbearer. was Wesley Vickery.
Ushers were Jeff Hoffman, Brad
Peterson and Mike Graham:_
The bride's personal attendant
was Jackie Thurmes, sister of the
bridegroom.'
• Music was provided by Randy
Rice and Curt Weber of • Farm-
ington 'and Kelly ; Kasprazak of
Maplewood.; Songs included
"Wedding Song," "I• Pledge My
Love," "The Rose," and' "You,
Decorated My.Life."
:, Following;;,, the , ceremony, a
reception and dance were held at
the 4 H; building, `Dakota County
fairgrounds, Farmington.
ENGAGEMENTS
DAKOTA CoUN.i
sville, -to Hong Do, Regina,
Saskatchewan, Canada. He is the
son of Phu and Nhan Do of Viet-
nam. , • "
Johnson is employed' by Home
Insurance, 4510 W. 77th St.,
Edina, and Do is a student in
Canada.
Ii
SANFORD MEMORIAL
HOSPITAL, FARMINGTON •
KRUGER -. Girl born to Steve
and Sue Kruger, !-Farmington,
Dec. 10, 1980, 'at• Sanford
Memorial Hospital..,
HAMMON -.Girl born to Diana
and Roy Hammon, Rosemount,
Dec. 13, 1980 at Sanford -Memorial
Hospital.
RADFORD - Girl born to
Samuel and Laura Radford,
Hampton, Dec. 14, 1980 at San-
ford Memorial Hospital..,
DEUTSCH -.Boy born to Ray-
mond and _Cindy Deutsch,
Lakeville, Dec. 14, 1980 at San-
ford Memorial Hospital. ' . •
ST. FRANCIS HOSPITAL;
SHAKOPEE
THOMAS - Boy -born -to Clayton;.
and Cheryl Thomas,:Lakeville; '
Dec.' 5, •1980 ..at " St_ - Francis
Hospital.., ' , .' .
•
HOSPITAL NEWS ,
SANFORD MEMORIAL
HOSPITAL, FARMINGTON
ADMISSIONS: Dec. 9: L• guise
Mueller; Dec.• 10: Jeffrey Lund-
quist; Dec."11: Henry Giles; Dec.
14: Edmund .McCarthy, John
Barger; Dec. 15: Francis Weber.
DISCHARGES: , Josephine
Gephart, Deborah Kramer :and
baby, Marion • Cook, Louise
Mueller, •expired, Bertha Rudin,
to . Sanford Nursing Home, Jodi
Shingledecker, Debra Kallevig,
Jeffrey Lundquist, Katheleen
Calkins, Sema Ferguson,. Joan
Cherrier and. baby;.. Harvey
•Luedke,,Cleone -Frank,• Sue Ann
Kruger and baby; Lisa Weibel,
John Franzmeier, to, Fridley Nur-
sing Home.. , -
NOTICE: No,pints.of American
Red Cross blood" used this past
week; 143 pints used•to date. ` .
•
La Leche League '
Schedules meeting
APPLE' VALLEY --The Apple
Valley.' La Leche League will
meet Thursday, Dec. 18 at 7:30
p.m. at the home of Kristy
Osciak, 13785 Heywood Ct. Topic
is "the art of breast feeding and
overcoming difficulties. "-
‘The league meets, every third.
Thursday, of each month.and also
:provides 24-hour counseling serf
vice. 'For" directjons to the
meeting or information, call Kit(
Rooney, 452-4233, Deanna.:
England, 432-3781, or Gail Smith,
423-2302.
:4 (S)
St. Pout Dispatch
•
Tues., Mar: 13, 79
Bath investigator needed; Kelly says.
By JIM BROEDE
Staff Writer
Washington Co.
Delay.
Washington County Attorney Robert Kelly said in an inter-
view last week he has had enough of it, especially when it
comes to death investigations.
HE PUT the blame mostly on the county
coroner's office.
"It's inadequately staffed," the attorney
'stated. "It needs a forensic pathologist, a doc-
tortrained in death investigation."'
Kelly said_the latest example of delay oc-
curred in the investigation of•the death March
2 of prisoner Gregory McNeil at the. Minneso-
ta State Prison.
A deputy coroner initially -ruled the death
a suicide.
taut a probe by Warden Frank Wood turned '
"up information six hours later indicating that the prisoner was
:murdered. _
"IF A FORENSIC pathologist had been on the scene," Kelly
said, "we probably would have known immediately that it was
murder. As it turned out, ,there was a delay of six hoursbefore
-the county's felony investigation unit arrived at the prison. In
-a murder case, delays like that don't help.'.' •
The solution.to the problem, Kelly contended, is the scrap-
ping of the county's system of an elected coroner, who hires
out 12 deputies, but no forensic pathologist. •
Kelly
examiner's office, headed by a full-time forensic pathologist,
serving Washington, Dakota and Scott Counties.
•
"We have to do something," Kelly said. "At best, we have a
hit-and-miss death investigation system in Washington
County."
Kelly also told of further delay in locating a pathologist to
perform an autopsy on McNeil's-body. -
"I RECEIVED a phone call from the sheriff's department
at about 3 a.m. March 3 about the `possible murder'. So I tried
to get John Plunkett (a forensic pathologist) for an autopsy
scheduled for 7 a.m." .
But Plunkett refused to come.
"Any way," Kelly continued, "there was delay upon delay.
It wasn't until 3:15 p.m. f almost 24 hours after McNeil's death,
that we lined up someone for the autopsy. I'm told that the
longer you wait, the more difficult it is to determine -the cause
of death. So -that didn't help.
"But I sure wish Plunkett had been. involved in the investi-
gation. He is specially trained in 'death investigation: It's bet-
ter to have him than most other medical doctors, including
our county coroner (Dr. F. M. McCarten). Besides, our coroner' •
spends half of the year out of the state."
At meeting last week, county commmissioners asked why
Pjunkett didn't come.
"HE (PLUNKETT) left a message," Kelly said, "that this
,(death investigation) was a problem that Washington County
hasn't been facing — and that he's through bailing us out.
"He told me that he planned to terminate his services
sooner or later and now was as good a time as any."
It was Plunkett who •submitted the proposal last year for
o-.inar'e nf1ina At{tha times .tha
Washington County Board voted 3 to 2 to -ivied the -plan.
"In light of the experience at the prison,. Kelly.urged the
board last week to reconsider the tri-county plan. •
Instead,,Board Chairman Wes Scheel told of being miffed
over Plunkett's failure to respond to an "emergency situa-
tion."
"I UNDg?RSTOOD," Scheel said, "that Plunkett has been
doing work for us for several years. Where-does.heget off •
picking and choosing when he comes in? -When we need him, ;>
he should come. At least,•he should serve•notice that he's,quit.
ting. He shouldn't quit all of a sudden."
Kelly responded: "Bit he has been coming in-onlyon special
request from our coroner. The past six months; he wasn't -
called in at all. So he wonders, why do. it:this time? We only
look to him when we're in trouble. That's not exactly fair:"
The attorney said it would be "easy to• obtain Plunkett's
services full-time" by going to the tri=countymedical examin-
er'setup. And Plunkett wants to be the medical, examiner.
Scheel said,"But nobody seems very enthused over his:
(Plunkett's) proposition. We wouldn't be getting .alT,that:much : Y
coverage — only two people who are to be appointed coroners
for a'three-county area. That's not really any improvement
over what we have now." •
"I take issue with that statement," Kelly said "There -would
be two full-time investigators who know what they are. doing.
That's a big improvement." • . - -
SCHEEL SAID, "But Ramsey County has -more than _
300,000 people and they haven't got a medical examiner's, off-
ice. They seem to get by %
Kelly: "I -certainly wouldn't point to Ramsey County as a
mnrlal nnaratinn "
Tues., Mar. 13, '79 St. Pail Dispatch
By MIKE.BARRETT •
Staff Writer ,
Eagan's City Council last
week again voted not to appeal a
state ruling denying construction
of an interstate highway bridge
over Blackhawk Lake.
'Their vote came before more
than 200 vocal citizens who
• packed City Hall. Judging from
periodic applause and comments
of the audience during debate,
,of
majority appeared to favor
the bridge route.
COUNCILMAN TED
WACHTER asked his colleagues
to back the Urban Council on
Mobility in its District Court
' appeal. '
That appeal is aimed•at Jo-
seph Alexander, state Depart-
ment of Natural Resources com-
• missioner,..who recently denied a
permit request by the state
transportation department to
build the bridge for Interstate
35E: Instead, he said, I-35E may
be built around the lake's east
side.
•
Eagan
Joining Wachter was Mayor
Leo Murphy. Against appeal
were Councilmen, James Smith,
Mark Parranto and Thomas
Egan.
Many personsattended the . .
meeting as the result of a flurry,
of recent full -page ads in local
newspapers urging people to tell
the -Council to work for the com-
• pletion of I-35E.
Donald Christenson, 3650•Pilot
Knob Road, said he and "various
interested parties" ordered the
ads. As a building contractor,
Christenson said he owns only his
own home in Eagan but he and .
others support the Urban Coun-
cil's appeal.
WACHTER INDICATED if
his motion were successful he
would have offered another that
the city also contribute financial
support to the Urban Council's
court fight.
Several weeks ago, the City
Council voted the same against
bringing its own`court appeal on
Commissioner Alexander's rul-
ing.
Last week's appeal vote fol-
lowed a 4-to-1 vote to end discus-
sion on the controversy.
Despite people standing on
window ledges, playing tape re- -
corders and many calling for .
more debate, only Mayor Mur-
phy•voted to continue. But the
motion was relaxed to allow
John Klein of the Urban Council
to make a parting shot. '
As at previous forums, Klein
debated George Bohlig of the As-
sociated Families, whose efforts
resulted in the DNR ruling
against the bridge.
KLEIN, A real estate broker.
and former Town Board -chair-
• man, said the'I=35E corridor
across the lake had been dis-
cussed with state highway offi-
cials since 1955 and planned
since 1959. •
"Each new homeowner, in-
cluding the Associated Families
who bought approximately 100
acresin•the mid-1960s on the
north shore of the lake, were in-
formed -'of the corridor," Klein '
Said. ' •
Klein read a copy of a letter
from Wayne Winsor of Associat-
ed Families to federal transpor-
tation -officials. The letter •
showed• Winsor once opposed -the •
bridge route and another alter •
-
nate to fill •in the east end of the
lake but.later withdrew his
objections. . • ,
• However,. Klein continued,- As-
sociated Families used the Na-
tional Environmental Protection
Act of • 1969 sand subsequent state
Policies -to renew'bridge objec.
tions. . .
"By pushing the corridor 1,800
feet eastward, Associated Fami-
lies increase their property.val-
ue but lessen their neighbors',". •
Klein said. .
.COMMISSIONER ALEXAN-
DER'S ruling has resulted:in a
design -delay of more than a year
for an eastern corridor and infla-
tionhas added $1.5 to $3 million
.amonth in costs; he said. _ • . .
According to transportation
department data, the 13-mile
I35E, to run from Burnsville
through Eagan to Mendota
Heights, is estimated at $50 mil-
lion: Construction began last
year in Burnsville. -
Department data states that
inflation spurred various high-
way costs about 28 percent from
1974 through 1978 and 20 per-
cent alone in 1978.
If I-35E is not approved•soon,
Klein said, the state may lose
millions in federal project funds.
As before, Klein said the DNR
has classified Blackhawk' as a
class four marsh while Bohlig
maintained it is a lake. And as
usual, each disagreed on how wet -
the shallow Blackhawk has been,
is or maybe.
FOR HIS PART, Bohlig said
he and others in Associated
Families bought their land in
1965, were aware of the bridge
corridor but objected to crossing
the lake.
As environmental laws passed,
his group increased its opposi-
tion to the bridge, he noted.
"Why build a visual intrusi'- .
into this lovely area," asked
Bohlig.
•
He rejected Klein's statement
that Associated Families has•de--
layed I-35E, saying various gov- ••
ernment agencies required years,
to plan the"project.
Bohlig added that government.'-:
experts last year examined the '
issue at•hearings that led to the •
ruling against the bridge. . ".
THE SPOKESMAN for Asso-'
ciated Families remarked it's -
against state law to build across •
bodies of water but-Kleidlater ..• r.
countered that state policy, not .
law, seeks alternatives to cross-- •
ing water when suitable. -
Bohlig said rerouting the
way eastward would have no of-"
fect on nearby -Fish Lake north =
east of Blackhawk. Klein
disagreed.
"We were sustained," Bolilig , :•
summed up. "The City Council
voted not to appeal. Klein thus •
proceeded to, appeal and that is ` • '
his right."
Minneapolis Tribune
Staff Photo by Kent Kobersteen
Officials break ground for 1-494 bridge
Federal, state, county and local officials chipped
away at the frozen earth Thursday during ground-
breaking ceremonies for the Interstate Hwy. 494
bridge over the Minnesota River. It will be part of an
11-mile stretch of six -lane highway that is the only
uncompleted segment of the 1-494/1-694 Twin
Cities bypass route. The 11-mile stretch will be
completed in two parts: A four -mile section from
24th Av. S. in Bloomington to Hwy. 55 in Eagan and
Mendota Heights is scheduled to open in the fall of
1982, and a seven -mile stretch from Hwy. 55 to 5th
Av. in South St. Paul is scheduled to open in the fall
of 1984.
6B ' 1 g� Minneapoli Tr bulvt., S Fri.; Dec. 12, 1980
•
ppeals may fail to save Se Kon
By, -Henry Scott Stokes.
New York Times. Service.
it,
Seoul, South Korea' •
The outlook for condemned dissident'
Kim Dae-jung appears increasingly
uncertain despite renewed appeals . .
for: clemency by the United States
, and Japan, South Korea's two main
allies.
t `
Kim, 56, was'sentenced to death by a'
court-martial Sept. 17. The- sentence
was confirmed • by an army appeals
court. His final appeal is before.the •
South Korean Supreme Court, which
is expected to give its decision soon.
• The sedition charges against Kim
are•seen in the United States as flim-
•
Chun, a former army career• officer
who• rose to the rank'of full general,
directly commands no troops. Great
authority consequently rests with Lt.
Gen. • Roh Tee -woo, the head of the
Defense' Security Command. Also
high in the army. hierarchy is Maj. ,
Gen. Park Sae-jik; head of the Capi-
tal Garrison Command and military
commander of Seoul. '
To influence South Korea; the Unit-
ed States and Japanese governments
have to reach the staff officers, not
just send messages to'their superiors;
according to• diplomats and officials
in Seoul and Tokyo.;But few of the
younger officers have been known
personally to American ,officials, for
more, than a 'few months and the
sy, •but the supreme court generally South Korean officers strongly dis-
is expected to uphold the• death sen- I. like the Japanese.
tence. .
•
,. Park is one of the few key Korean
President Chun Doo-hwan, a 49-year-; officers who speaks fluent English —
old -former general, has the power to none speak Japanese — and the Tan-
spare Kim, a career politician who guage problem dampers communica-
was the opposition candidate for the 1 tion between American • and South
presidency in the close 1971 election. Korean forces. The South Koreans
But interviews suggest that. the new are isolated by other barriers, ,nota-
president shares the real authority-. . bly a rigorous army censorship.
.with a set of tough officers behind •
his, army -backed regime.
•
+Thus the most important decision of
Chun's government so far given
•the; international interest in Kim's
'case — may be influenced heavily
by,`men who do not respond easily•to
outside pressures.! .• \
Ina move that startled the South Ko-
rean government, an unidentified
aide to President-elect Ronald. Rea-
gan said in Washington two weeks
after Reagan's election that •the ex-
ecution of Kim would harm U.S. re-
lations with South Korea.
In addition,.Japan's prime minister,
Z nkn Suzuki. when he feceiy .d the 1;
. One top general) who was inter-
viewed appeared •to believe sincere-
ly that the nine -day armed uprising
in Kwangju city last May, which cost
at least 189 lives and probably many
more, was provoked largely _by
North Korean agents and funds. Ob-
servers at Kwangju, including
Americans; said that the explosion of
violence had, followed brutalities by
paratroops against unarmed, mostly
nonviolent antigovernment demon-
strators and passers-by:
, The root problem appears to be that
South Korea is controlled by men
who have spent the better part, of
their adult lives in the army and lack
eneral education. • They are hard;
into uihn annoar
. ety." .
Their notion of politics is believed to
be based entirely on the later years
of President Park Chung-hee's rule,
when the National Assembly was
dominated by corrupt members and
the Cabinet included many bribe -tak-
ers, .since disgraced in a purge of
more than 800 politicians and opin-
ion leaders: To these men Kim ap-
SUNI
BRUT
11 p3.I
An Excitir
Of Cantonese
EntrE
Adults
$5.95
3655 Hazelto
Behind Byerly's on 71 sj
iota Department of Natural
sources to allow I-35E to cross
ackhawk Lake in Eagan.
Fhe residents, organized as As-
ciated Families, favor a route
ound the lake.
David C. Johnson, a member of
to group, said, "Obviously, we
re strongly opposed to this need-
, ss intrusion on one of the
argest bodies of water in the City
If Eagan. We are most interested
n an expeditious completion of
-35E through Eagan."
The residents have released
the following statement:
SUUL11 JIIVI C VI L11C 1cinC, LIIC puuti L.
has had little opportunity to view
this local, largely unmarred
beauty spot. The lake, with its
numerous marshy areas and
almost totally wooded perimeter.
prAnickggi44 ,p rfect nat14,1111
habi wilfllife, espe&fly
waterfowl and almost all native
birdlife
it
e
of
k
c
s;
For almost two years since the d
public hearing in July of 1976, the n
progress of I-35E in Dakota Coun-
ty has been delayed by large and p
persistent local real estate in-
terests pushing for an obsolete o
design route which crosses it
through the middle of Blackhawk it
Lake in the center of the City of n
Eagan. b
The Minnesota Environmental b
Rights Act of 1971 clearly states t
that a highway shall not cross a i
body of water if a feasible and
prudent alternative exists. Such c
a route, passing east of
Blackhawk Lake, does exist and
is fully described in the draft en-
vironmental impact statement of
1976.
Further, the Department of
Transportation describes it as a
fully equivalent route in terms of
cost and timing. From an
engineering viewpoint, the route
avoiding the lake has the great
advantage of not having a bridge.
Such a large bridge is not only
very costly but creates a perma-
nent safety hazard for the long
months of winter driving in Min-
nesota.
In addition, such bridge decks
inevitably require periodic clos-
ing for repairs. Detours of in-
terstate highways are a major
problem for both the transporta-
tion department and highway
users.
Much effort has been expended
and substantial time lost in the
construction of I-35E, while this
influential group of realtors and
developers wheedled their way
past many federal and some
state agencies in spite of the en-
vironmental laws. It is time that
the people of Dakota County had
I-35E for their use. The route
arnunr1 the lake favored by all
n
Granted, Mineral Springs is not
in the hub of the county, it is
available for county use and it is
more than willing to offer its
services.
Before the county commits
It.4ff for a facility - if it is built or
if it is contracted with some other
place - Mineral Springs should be
rnncilior�a -- - --
f,
f(
h
1•
1
INTERSTATE 35E
After 23 years of planning and coordinating I-35E (8 of which were spent developing
an Environmental Impact Statement), the Minnesota Department of Transportation
(MN/DOT) selected the long-standing I-35E, A-1 Alignment as the preferred corridor.
This alignment crosses a 30 foot narrows of Blackhawk Lake, a Class 4 marsh which
frequently dries out. Over 65 governmental bodies and agencies approved this corridor.
The cities of Eagan, Burnsville, Apple Valley, Lakeville, Mendota Heights, Lilydale,
West St. Paul, So. St. Paul, and the Dakota County Board and their respective plan-
ning commissions passed resolutions of unanimous approval of the selected A-1 Align-
ment. The Metro Council and the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board also
unanimously approved it. Contrary to the preferences of all these bodies, on December
15, 1978, DNR Commissioner Joseph Alexander denied the MN/DOT application for
the bridge permit needed to cross the marsh. Alexander's denial was overturned by
District Judge Jerome Kluck who ordered him to issue the necessary permit. Judge
Kluck's order was reversed by the State Supreme Court. It ordered I-35E to be built along the A-2 Alignment going
around the marsh. This action has added at least 2 years to the completion of I-35E at an additional cost of over $50
million dollars. A-2 will cause far more environmental damage, andit will result in a less safe road. The A-1 Align-
ment would have followed a natural draw for the depressed freeway crossing the narrows of the marsh and with only a
slight curvature of the road. The A-2 Alignment will have two 2°30' reverse curves which meet the maximum interstate
standards, but are not nearly as safe. We will just have to try to live with it. The A-1 route had the final design com-
pleted, was ready for right-of-way acquisition, and would have been completed by 1983. Completion of I-35E with the
A-2 route is now scheduled for 1985. We will continue to work to expedite I-35E with an improved design. Hopefully,
we will be able to make lemonade out of this lemon.
Recent Accident Scene
Congested Mendota Bridge
PRESENT COMPLETION SCHEDULES FOR I-35E
— I-35 W to Cedar Ave. Fall, 1981
— Cedar Ave. to County Road 30 1984
— Lone Oak Road to T.H. 110 1984
— County Road 30 to Lone Oak Road 1985
PRESENT COMPLETION SCHEDULES FOR• I=494
I-494 from 24th Ave. in Bloomington to T.H. 55 in Eagan will be opened to
traffic in the Fall of 1982. Work east of T.H. 55 is scheduled for letting in April
1982. Completion of I-494 east of T.H. 55 is scheduled for Fall 1984.
The above schedules are subject to available funding, court actions, and DNR permits.
INTERSTATE 494
In January of 1978, the U.C.O.M. arranged for 250_ citizens and
business leaders to meet with Governor Perpich, to inform him of the
need for the earliest possible completion of I-35E and I-494.: His con-
cern
prompted the formation of an expediting committee. Monthly
meetings have been held with the MN/DOT and FHA staffs.
U.C.O.M., through this committee, has been able to move up the
completion date for bridging across the Minnesota River. It had been Incomplete 1-494 at Minnesota River
scheduled for 1984, and it is now due for completion in 1982, 2 years sooner. Interstate freeways must be built from
one logical terminus to another. We convinced the Federal and State Highway Departments to classify T.H. 55 as a
temporary logical terminus, thereby resuming construction of the river crossing while the I-494 portion east of T.H. 55
is being resolved. On May 9, 1980, the first contracts were let on I-494 since 1972. We also suggested that consultants
be hired to expedite the engineering work on I-494 and I-35E from Lone Oak Road to T.H. 110. The firm of Howard,
Needles, Tammen, & Bergendoff not only completed-the-work=ahead-of-schedule;but-did-it-at-only-8007r-of'the
estimated cost.
INTERSTATE 35E
After 23 years of planning and coordinating I-35E (8 of which were spent developing
an Environmental Impact Statement), the Minnesota Department of Transportation
(MN/DOT) selected the long-standing I-35E, A-1 Alignment as the preferred corridor.
This alignment crosses a 30 foot narrows of Blackhawk Lake, a Class 4 marsh which
frequently dries out. Over 65 governmental bodies and agencies approved this corridor.
The cities of Eagan, Burnsville, Apple Valley, Lakeville, Mendota Heights, Lilydale,
West St. Paul, So. St. Paul, and the Dakota County Board and their respective plan-
ning commissions passed resolutions of unanimous approval of the selected A-1 Align-
ment. The Metro Council and the Minnesota Environmental. Quality Board also
unanimously approved it. Contrary to the preferences of all these bodies, on December
15, 1978, DNR Commissioner Joseph Alexander denied the MN/DOT application for
the bridge permit needed to cross the marsh. Alexander's denial was overturned by
District Judge Jerome Kluck who ordered him to issue the necessary permit. Judge
Kluck's order was reversed by the State Supreme Court. It ordered I-35E to be built along the A-2 Alignment going
around the marsh. This action has added at least 2 years to the completion of I-35E at an additional cost of over $50
million dollars. A-2 will cause far more environmental damage, and it will result in aless safe road. The A-1 Align-
ment would have followed a natural draw for the depressed freeway crossing the narrows of the marsh and with only a
slight curvature of the road. The A-2 Alignment will have two 2°30' reverse curves which meet the maximum interstate
standards, but are not nearly as safe. We will just have to try to live with it. The A-1 route had the final design com-
pleted, was ready for right-of-way acquisition, and would have been completed by 1983. Completion of I-35E with the
A-2 route is now scheduled for 1985. We will continue to work to expedite I-35E with an improved design. Hopefully,
we will be able to make lemonade out of this lemon.
Recent Accident Scene
INTERSTATE 494
Congested Mendota Bridge
PRESENT COMPLETION SCHEDULES FOR I-35E
— I-35W to Cedar Ave. Fall, 1981
— Cedar Ave. to County Road 30 1984
— Lone Oak Road to T.H. 110 1984
— County Road 30 to Lone Oak Road 1985
PRESENT COMPLETION SCHEDULES FOR 1-494
I-494 from 24th Ave. in Bloomington to T.H. 55 in Eagan will be opened to
traffic in the Fall of 1982. Work east of T.H. 55 is scheduled for letting in April
1982. Completion of I-494 east of T.H. 55 is scheduled for Fall 1984.
The above schedules are subject to available funding, court actions, and DNR permits.
In January of 1978, the U.C.O.M. arranged for 250 citizens and
business leaders to meet with Governor Perpich, to inform him of the
need for the earliest possible completion of I-35E and I-494. His con-
cern prompted the formation of an expediting committee. Monthly
meetings have been held with the MN/DOT and .FHA staffs.
U.C.O.M., through this committee, has been able to move up the
completion date for bridging across the Minnesota River. It had been
scheduled for 1984, and it is now due for completion in 1982, 2 years sooner. Interstate freeways must
one logical terminus to another. We convinced the Federal and State Highway Departments to classify T.H. 55 as a
temporary logical terminus, thereby resuming construction of the river crossing while the I-494 portion east of T.H. 55
is being resolved. On May 9, 1980, the first contracts were let on I-494 since 1972. We also suggested that consultants
be hired to expedite the engineering work on I-494 and I-35E from Lone Oak Road to T.H. 110. The firm of Howard,
Needles, Tammen, & Bergendoff not only completed the work ahead of schedule, but did it at only 80% of the
estimated cost.
Incomplete 1-494 at Minnesota River
be built
from
ir 1