County Outlines Plans To Expand Woodbury Drive

“Every foot counts.”

That’s the motto for a Washington County project that will expand Woodbury Drive from two lanes to four from St. Ambrose Church north to Park Crossing.

But squeezing in those lanes—along with pedestrian and bike paths on both sides of the road—has proved challenging, as the area has a narrow right-of-way.

At last week, Washington County officials held a public meeting about the project, which should provide a roadway that “will manage that traffic 20 to 30 years from now,” County Engineer Wayne Sandberg said.

Residents who live near the project area say they’re concerned about the speed limit and an increase in noise, along with the safety of motorists as well as the bikers and walkers who would use the paths. At least 50 people were on hand for a presentation at the school.

“I’m really hoping in three years—when the project is completed—I won’t be riding bikes with my kids on a path that is literally so close to the road that I can reach out and touch a car as it passes by,” Kelly Schmidt said.

Sandberg said the county has heard those concerns and is looking at ways to make the project more pedestrian-friendly, while also preserving the look and feel of the area and minimizing the impacts to surrounding homeowners.

Both Schmidt and Richard Caughron, another resident who attended the meeting, said they would have liked the county to open up the floor for a question and answer session. Schmidt said she wanted to know if her neighbors had the same concerns she did, and Caughron noted that the county missed out on a good opportunity for public feedback.

There wasn’t much new information presented at the Sept. 8 meeting, Caughron said. (The county held a similar meeting in March.) The only portion of the project that seems open for change is whether the intersections at Bailey and Lake roads will have or , he said.

Caughron also said he would like the county to at least consider building a path on just one side of the road and look into variations of the roundabout designs.

The speed limit for the roadway will be set by the Minnesota Department of Transportation, Sandberg said, and it won’t be finalized until the project is complete. The county’s traffic studies show that there isn’t much speeding along that stretch of road, though that is the perception, he said.

The speed limit there will likely be set at 50 or 55 mph, Sandberg said.

County Commissioner Lisa Weik was at Lake Middle School for the presentation and said she likes the plans, especially considering the difficulties of working in such a narrow right-of-way.

County transportation officials will take residents’ concerns into account as the project moves forward, she said. “Public input has informed every step in the decision-making.”

Weik also noted the county’s motto for the project, but tweaked it a bit: “Really, it’s 'every inch counts.'"

The county expects construction to begin in 2013.

More information on the project, including a project map, can be found on the project website at www.co.washington.mn.us/woodburydrive.