Savage, Prior Lake aim for compromise on road fix

The clock is ticking loudly for two south metro cities attempting to fix the dangerous road that runs between them.

At stake is a stretch of Hwy. 13, which divides Prior Lake and Savage. The Prior Lake City Council has consistently favored one of two possible fixes, and the Savage City Council the other.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation has agreed to kick in $2.1 million for the project. But officials made it clear earlier this month that they would pull back the funds if an agreement isn't reached.

In light of that, the cities have come up with a possible compromise:

Prior Lake can have its preferred fix, but will also have to foot most of the bill. Originally, the two cities had agreed to split the project cost in half.

The two cities were to vote this week on the compromise, but the decision making process was not complete when this edition went to press.

Years of discussion about the project recently came down to two possible solutions: A $6.5 million signal at 150th Street or a $5.65 million signal at nearby Zinran Avenue.

On Sept. 2, the Savage City Council voted to put a signal at Zinran. Six days later, Prior Lake voted to put one at 150th.

"We're disappointed," Savage Mayor Janet Williams said of the Prior Lake vote. "We respect the opinion of our neighbors, but we are disappointed it's come down to this because we feel we've been studying the whole corridor, and safety is the issue."

Prior Lake council members favor signalizing 150th Street because they see it as the best solution in the long term. Hedberg said spending millions to signalize Zinran, which his city considers the inferior option, wouldn't be worth it — even if it meant losing the $2.1 million.

But Williams said losing the money could mean losing the project.

"If we lost the $2 million, I would suspect that nothing would happen now," she said.

They've favored signalizing Zinran in part because it's the less expensive of the two options. Additionally, signalizing 150th would displace multiple homes and affect a church on the Savage side of Hwy. 13.

Unlike the homes, the city can't acquire the church property through eminent domain. City leaders have expressed concern about what it might cost them to encroach on that property — and how that, in turn, might affect the project's timeline.

"As much as my council doesn't really like to relocate two property owners, that does happen," said Savage City Administrator Barry Stock. "But the uncertainty with the church is a difficult one."

Compromising on a solution doesn't make that uncertainty go away, but it could make the expensive project easier for Savage to swallow.

"I think the key message is, we don't consider the final chapter written," Prior Lake Mayor Ken Hedberg said.