DOTs hold bridge open houses

The Wisconsin and Minnesota Departments of Transportation will host two public information meetings in November to update the public on the St. Croix River crossing project.

The Wisconsin open house is from 5-7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 4, at Houlton Elementary School, 70 County E.

A Stillwater open house is scheduled from 5-7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 5, at Stillwater Area High School, 5701 Stillwater Blvd. N.

DOT and consultant staff will be on hand to address questions and discuss the project’s status. Comment cards will also be provided for attendees to submit written statements. No formal presentations will be given.

Next steps for the project include the development of the bridge design and construction criteria used for the basis of the 2013 bridge construction contract. To accomplish this, the project team will perform technical studies to analyze the bridge depicted in the Visual Quality Manual, examining the constructability of the structure and developing detailed construction cost estimates. Results of these studies will be shared at the open houses.

The meeting sites are handicapped accessible. Hearing impaired individuals may request accommodations by calling MnDOT at (651) 582-1176 or WisDOT (TDD) at 7-1-1.

Project information is available from Amber Blanchard, MnDOT, (651) 366-4529; Todd Clarkowski, MnDOT, (651) 234-7714; and Paul Conlin, WisDOT, (715) 833-5364; or online at www.dot.state.mn.us/metro/projects/stcroix.

Tags: st. croix river crossing project, communities, bridge, houlton, stillwater, joseph