On Monday night, the Crookston City Council voted to add sidewalks to both the north and south side of Radisson Road as part of the street improvement project currently taking place pending a review of the legal process for whether a public hearing was required. The sidewalks will extend pedestrian access through Hoven Lane Park on the south side of Radisson Road and past the Dairy Queen to the path along University Ave.
Public Works Director Pat Kelly said Crookston City Attorney Corky Reynolds had reviewed the legal process and found a public hearing was not required because they are an extension of the current project that doesn’t change the assessment to property owners. “We talked to our attorneys, and a public hearing isn’t required,” said Kelly. “The city has the full authority to require sidewalks or whatever be installed. This project, it’s not even really a change order, it’s a change to the quantities involved. Being that there will be no change in the assessment to the homeowner since we in the city assess these projects at a flat rate per foot, whether there are sidewalks or not. So, this will not change anybody’s estimated assessment, which will become the final assessment once the project is over this fall.”
Kelly said the additional sidewalks will be paid out of the City’s street improvement fund, which subsidizes street projects allowing the assessment to property owners to remain relatively low. “We have a number of funds, there must be six or seven that we have combined and placed into a street improvement fund,” said Kelly. “It’s a little over $521,000. That’s the mark I try to shoot at for estimated projects for the year. In turn that $500,000 helps subsidize these projects. But so, we’re subsidizing these projects and able to keep the per foot rate at $40 versus the actual cost, which right now is around $200 per foot. So, the system we have here is a good benefit to the property owners.”
Kelly said he believes the sidewalks will be a good addition as the Dairy Queen is a pedestrian destination and will tie the existing sidewalk systems together. “We’ll move forward,” said Kelly. “This is going to be a good change to the project, I believe. I believe sidewalks are important, and this one will tie in that system to allow pedestrians to get to the Dairy Queen on the sidewalk and over to the Frontage Rd to get to Hugo’s on that walking path down there. The Dairy Queen, being a pedestrian type destination, I think it was a good change the council made.”
The subcontractor doing the concrete for the sidewalks is expected to lay the paths next week, and could also finish pouring them by the end of the week.
