national

Federal stimulus spending for extending a Twin Cities bike path to the Minnesota Twins' new stadium is being defended Wednesday by the nation's top transportation official as "progress" rather than unnecessary spending amid the accumulating national debt, as two U.S. senators believe.

The Cedar Lake bike trail, which runs from the western suburbs to downtown Minneapolis, is growing thanks to nearly $500,000 in stimulus money from President Obama's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. That funding put the project on a list of wasteful spending released Tuesday by Republican Sens. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma and John McCain of Arizona.

In a co-signed introduction to their list, the senators say the extension of the trail by several blocks to the stadium and other projects "raise questions about how stimulus money has been used so far. ... Congress needs to make hard choices and eliminate things that are a low priority--even if doing so is unpopular--so we can preserve this country for future generations."

Also on the list, the second released on projects funded by the $787 billion stimulus bill, is funding for grants to study whether young women who drink are more likely to have sex, and why young men disdain from using condoms.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood singled out Coburn in a blog retort Wednesday and stuck up for the bike path extension.

"What he really means is that, because he doesn't get bikes, no one else does either," LaHood wrote. "Yes, some of those projects include bike paths, a key ingredient in our livability initiative to allow people to live, work, and get around without a car. We don't call that waste; we call it progress."

The extension's construction is underway and "will be completely finished in time for Opening Day next year," said Dan Kenney, executive director of the Minnesota Ballpark Authority, overseeing the construction of Target Field. Kenney said the extension is part of the plan to allow fans to reach the ballpark in any number of ways, whether on bike, on foot, by rail or in a vehicle.

Kenney joined LaHood in defending the trail extension, adding that building the stadium "is not just about a ballpark ... this is about creating a new urban center."

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482