Projects to watch in 2020.

Byline: Brian Johnson

Minnesota is wrapping up a busy year of construction and more of the same is sure to come in 2020. In this year-end roundup, Finance & Commerce takes a look at 10 big projects to keep an eye on in the coming year.

Some of the projects, such as the $1.536 billion Bottineau Light Rail Transit line, are still in the planning stage. Others, such as the $240 million Silver Ramp at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, are in the home stretch of construction.

Projects on the list range in cost from an estimated $102.5 million to just north of $2 billion.

The list, which offers a sampling of building and transportation projects from across the state, includes:

Southwest Light Rail Transit

Size: 14.5-mile route

Location: A corridor between downtown Minneapolis and Eden Prairie

Cost: $2.003 billion

Owner: Metropolitan Council

Description:The Southwest LRT line is the biggest public works project in Minnesota history. It encompasses 16 stations, 29 new bridges, seven bridge modifications, eight tunnels, 15 at-grade crossings, 182,000 feet of track and more than 100 retaining walls. Major construction started in 2019. The line is scheduled to open for service in 2023.

Milestones to watch in 2020: The Metropolitan Council expects to get word of a full funding grant agreement in the first quarter of 2020. That puts the federal government on the hook for 48% of the project cost. In November 2018, theMet Council received a "letter of no prejudice"from the Federal Transit Administration, a milestone that cleared the way for construction.

Metro Blue Line Extension/Bottineau Light Rail Transit

Size: 13-mile route

Cost: $1.536 billion

Location: A route between downtown Minneapolis and Brooklyn Park

Owner: Metropolitan Council

Description:The project includes 11 new stations and construction along a corridor passing through Minneapolis, Golden Valley, Robbinsdale, Crystal and Brooklyn Park. The Met Council estimates it will take 6,500 construction workers to build the line. The estimated construction payroll is $300 million.

Milestones to watch in 2020: Once targeted for a 2020 construction start, the Bottineau project is in limbo because of a delay in executing a corridor-sharing agreement with the BNSF Railway. The project is at the 90% design stage. Hennepin County, a partner in the project, continues to work with communities on planning development around the corridor and other initiatives, county spokesman Kyle Mianulli...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT