Hwy. 13 will get face-lift over summer

Thirteen miles of Hwy. 13 from Burnsville to West St. Paul will be repaved this year, giving the key south-metro highway a new surface expected to last 15 to 20 years.

The condition of the bumpy four-lane arterial is rated poor.

"We have had people come into City Council meetings and tell us how bad the pavement is on Hwy. 13," Burnsville City Engineer Ryan Peterson said.

The $11.4 million Hwy. 13 project is part of a larger $398 million state pavement improvement program that will rehab 700 miles of roads.

"It's the biggest pavement restoration program in the history of the department," said Sheila Kauppi, south area engineer for the Minnesota Department of Transportation.

Burnsville, Eagan and Mendota Heights are working with MnDOT to minimize disruption to neighborhoods and businesses along Hwy. 13. Work is scheduled to begin in May and must be completed by Aug. 31. MnDOT plans to offer financial incentives if the contractor can finish it sooner.

The repaving will be done in segments to keep the road open most of the time during construction, Kauppi said, but drivers should expect delays.

Because the work zone stretches for 13 miles, "it's going to be a significant project for all those commuters on 13 next summer," Kauppi said.

The highway carries 36,000 vehicles a day near its intersection with Interstate 35W in Burnsville and 9,500 vehicles a day near West St. Paul on the east end of the project.

The project involves drilling off the top layer of the road and replacing it with new asphalt. The work also will include the installation of handicapped-accessible crossing signals at intersections with crosswalks.

The highway will be widened slightly to add new right-turn lanes at Four Oaks Road and Alexander Road, and a left-turn lane will be built at Lone Oak Road.

In Mendota Heights, MnDOT is planning drainage improvements to redirect water that pools on the shoulder.

Burnsville is looking forward to the new pavement as well as the construction of a new overpass of Hwy. 13 at Hwy. 5, Peterson said. That project is scheduled for 2013.

Eagan City Engineer Russ Matthys said he likes MnDOT's plan to keep segments of construction short.

"If we can break it up into segments and you can throw all the construction activity into a shorter timeframe, it seems to work out best for everyone," Matthys said.

In Mendota Heights, the city plans to coordinate a city street reconstruction on Lamay Lake Road with the Hwy. 13 work to make sure residents can reach their homes at all times, City Engineer John Mazzitello said.

Some residents who drive Hwy. 13 to reach their homes may have to divert to Dodd Road or Delaware Avenue on the east, Mazzitello said. "With proper notice to residents on the north end of town, they can alter their driving routes accordingly."