Minnesota briefs: Rock Ridge School trail system proposed with Eveleth connection

St. Louis County Public Works will host an open house Tuesday to gather feedback on a proposed new trail system connecting Eveleth west of Hwy. 53 and the Midway neighborhood to the new Rock Ridge School campus.

The open house is at 5 p.m. at the Athletic Commons on the new school campus, 1403 Progress Parkway in Virginia. The county is studying ways for the trail system to cross Hwy. 53.

Funding has not yet been secured for the trail system. The new school opens this fall.

JANA HOLLINGSWORTH

DULUTH

St. Luke's breaks ground on next phase of hospital expansion project

Work began last week on the second phase of St. Luke's campus expansion project, which includes an 82,000-square-foot vertical addition to Building A on E. 2nd Street, upgrades to the hospital's inpatient units and rebuilding its E. 1st Street parking ramp.

The $14 million parking lot project, which will add more than 300 spaces, is expected to be completed by next spring.

CHRISTA LAWLER

ROCHESTER

Bike lanes will stay on Center Street

A majority of the Rochester City Council doesn't want to move forward with a proposal to remove bike lanes along Center Street in downtown Rochester.

Palmer argued bicycling actually decreased downtown after the bike lanes were installed in 2019, according to a recent report from the Rochester-Olmsted Council of Governments.

"The facts are we need the parking downtown and it's not safe for the bike riders to be riding on these lanes when you have cars parked there or other people in the way," he said. "These are not as safe as people think they are."

In addition, a city bus driver told the council the lanes made it more difficult for buses to stop downtown.

City staff and biking advocates say the report didn't take into account traffic studies conducted after the lanes were put in.

Council members shot down Palmer's proposal — Council President Brooke Carlson called the idea a "significant step backward" — but agreed traffic concerns along Center Street warranted further discussion.