It has been a freeway over 50 years in the making.
Since at least 1957, residents and local leaders alike have dreamt of and hoped for a lifeline from the Twin Cities to the southwest metro.
On July 14, new Highway 212 is set to open, providing that crucial link from I-494 in Eden Prairie to Carver. A grand opening celebration for the new highway took place yesterday afternoon.
“It’s a very exciting point to reach,” said Bob Lindall, Southwest Corridor Transportation Coalition President and Chaska City Councilor.
“The completed roadway will link communities while spurring economic development, and will help improve mobility and enhance safety along this growing corridor,” stated Alex Carey, spokesperson for Gov. Tim Pawlenty, in an e-mail.
The new highway should shore up many residents’ commutes from the southwest into the rest of the metro area.
“Based on a travel time comparison we made, we believe the new highway will save commuters at least 15 minutes,” said Scott Risley, Zumbro River Constructors’ 212 project manager.
The July 14 opening will be the third such opening since the $238 million construction project began in earnest in the fall of 2005. The first segment of the nearly 12-mile roadway opened to Dell Road in late 2006. The second leg to Highway 41 in Chaska opened last December.
Such milestone celebrations are important for a project that had become the butt of many jokes and was once referred to as the “forgotten highway.”
Though the project corridor was approved in 1970, funding did not first become available until the late 1990s. That resulted in a small connection between I-494 and Eden Prairie Road (County Road 4).
It wasn’t until 2003, when Gov. Pawlenty committed nearly a quarter of a billion dollars, that the project finally found its wings.
Persistence pays off
Lindall guessed that he has had Highway 212 on the brain since 1975. And for the last 30-plus years, he is one of a handful of people who have worked diligently to see the project come to fruition.
“I’m persistent,” he said. “Being on the (Chaska) City Council, I saw it as part of my duties.”
Lindall wasn’t alone. He credits four key factors in the eventual success of getting the highway built.
“One, the project wouldn’t go away,” he said, highlighting continued efforts to get it funded over the decades.
Lindall also pointed to the advocacy by various cities and counties who had come to a consensus on the need for the project, as well as the resolutions of support that came from Carver County all the way west to the South Dakota border. “It’s been a project of statewide importance,” he said.
But one person earns most of the credit in Lindall’s mind. “Carol Molnau, being the (transportation) commissioner and choosing to fund the project, can’t be underestimated,” he said.
“The Highway 212 project was constructed approximately eight years ahead of schedule thanks to funding proposed and secured by Gov. Pawlenty and Lt. Gov. Molnau during the 2003 legislative session,” agreed Carey.
Lindall also offered sage advice to those hoping to fund and construct similar projects. He suggested working together with affected cities and counties to come to a consensus and show a “breadth of support.”
“You have to be willing to take baby steps to show progress,” he concluded.
Loose ends
The project won’t be entirely complete come July 14. The southern section of Powers Boulevard, from the new highway to Pioneer Trail, won’t open until the end of July, said Charlene Zimmer, with the contracting company Zumbro River Constructors.
The interchange at County Road 147 will also remain closed. It is expected to open in mid-August, on schedule with the original construction timeline.
“We finished a large section of the project early last year,” said Risley. “And will complete the remainder of the project on time and within budget.”
-Mollee Francisco, staff writer