Shakopee: Move river crossing east

By Shannon Fiecke

Shakopee has sided with Scott County in its preference for the location of a new river crossing.

Last week, the Shakopee City Council voted in favor of building the bridge along one of three possible easterly routes, or a combination of them. The recommendation pits folks east of the river against westerly neighbors — not good news to those who hoped consensus might be reached on one of the six alternative routes.

Chaska has endorsed a western path, which cuts through Carver’s eastern border. Carver hasn’t picked a favorite, and says the state analysis of potential routes is flawed.

Chanhassen opposes easterly options that impact Seminary Fan or Assumption Creek and rated the western and one of the central routes using a point scale as the best alternatives.

Shakopee is supporting the easterly alternatives because it believes they would do the most to relieve congestion on major corridors. For similar reasons, Scott County is supporting the E-1A alternative, or a combination of the easterly options. Of the possible routes, the easterly alignments come closest to Shakopee, and E-1A would connect with Highway 169 at County Road 69 on the town’s western border. The northerly end would intersect at the new Highway 212 on the other side of the Minnesota River.

While all alternatives reduce traffic on other roadways within the regional system, the city said the easterly options relieve Highway 169 and County Road 101 the most.

City staff noted it only took about a decade for the new Highway 169 and Bloomington Ferry Bridge to reach capacity during peak hours. In the same time period, traffic on County Road 101 has grown to the same level it was before the Highway 169 bypass.

Shakopee leaders believe one new bridge isn’t going to be enough — so there’ll have to be another one built further south eventually anyway. “It’s going to be way over capacity before it even gets built,” Shakopee City Councilor Matt Lehman said.

If the western path is chosen, Shakopee Mayor John Schmitt argued that traffic further north will be a disaster. He said people aren’t going to drive that far south to get across the river. It’d be like “going to Jordan to get to Chaska,” he said. City officials point out that Dakota County, with a population of 440,000, has at least six river crossings in an approximately 16-mile stretch.

Meanwhile, Scott County, expected to reach Dakota County’s size by 2040, only has two river crossings in an approximate 14-mile stretch that aren’t prone to flooding — County Road 25 in Belle Plaine and Highway 169.

Besides the impact on traffic, the city also considered how various routes affect the environment, existing housing and future business development. While some people oppose the easterly options because they either go through or skirt the Seminary Fen — a rare wetland — others say an easterly option might actually improve the Seminary Fen because of mitigation efforts. It might force the state to develop a management plan to improve and protect the calcareous fen, they say. Currently, there’s no management plan for the Seminary Fen, which has already been degraded.

Shakopee Community Development Director Michael Leek said farming previously occurred there, and because of private ownership, there’s no guarantee the fen will be protected from destruction, even if the bridge isn’t built.However, Shakopee natural resources director Ryan Hughes still prefers a route that doesn’t impact the fen. But he supports the city’s plan to encourage the state to develop a management plan.

“It’s disappointing that it took discussions to impact the fen to prompt agencies to discuss management initiatives,” he said in a staff memo.

Kate Sedlacek of the Shakopee Environmental Advisory Committee said in a letter that two of the easterly options were less favorable to her because they appear to have the most impact on the Seminary Fen.

Affordable housing

Another major argument against the easterly crossings is they displace the most homes — an estimated 136 to 261, and a good percentage of them are mobile homes.  Because the bridge isn’t scheduled to be built for 30 years, the state would have much time to buy properties as they become available.

But this doesn’t resolve the issue of affordable housing availability. The city expects the Metropolitan Council to take a lead in determining how and where to providing housing for those impacted by an easterly crossing.

Shakopee City Councilor Terry Joos didn’t like the idea of displacing low-income residents. Although he ultimately voted with the rest of the council, he said the human and environmental aspects for him probably weighted higher than the transportation impact.

Mayor John Schmitt pointed out that part of the residential area in question is located in a flood plain and subject to the whims of the river. Lehman said he believes a mobile home park can be created with brand-new homes and so residents would actually be in better shape.

He believes the reasons for opposition to the easterly alignments will become dead issues once it’s shown that mitigation can improve current situations. “If done properly this could be a win-win for everybody involved,” he said.

Land development

If a westerly option is selected, the city believes it could significantly impact land development in western Shakopee and neighboring Jackson Township. The city has an orderly-annexation agreement with the township and considers the County Road 69/Highway 169 an ideal location for future high-quality commercial and industrial development.

If the westerly option were selected in Louisville Township, Shakopee believes it might spur development there before it occurs further north at Highway 169/County Road 69 corridor, which might negatively impact potential development there. 

Leek said the western alignment might produce growth that Louisville Township isn’t ready for. He said the interchange would push up close to the bluff line that runs northeast to southeast from Shakopee to Jordan.

The central and easterly options aren’t expected to significantly impact future development at the Highway 169/County Road 69 interchange.

No perfect solution

One thing everyone seems to agree is there’s no choice for a river crossing that doesn’t negatively impact something. “No matter what alternative they select, it will be subject to litigation,” Leek said. However, Shakopee Councilor Terry Joos is concerned about the prospects of the river crossing should the local governments not agree on the preferred route.

Shakopee Public Works Director Bruce Loney advised the council that while “trying to get consensus is nice,” city leaders have to recommend what’s in the long-term interest of Shakopee.

At first, he said, the western alternative appeared the right choice, but not when the transportation impact is considered 30 years out. The easterly option is the best for the city of Shakopee, he said.