Snelling Ave North Improvements

Project Overview

This project is to address the street and utility improvements identified as a result of deteriorating street pavement conditions, and potential deterioration of water main, sanitary sewer and drainage infrastructure along Snelling Avenue North from MN-51 to County Rd E and Cummings Lane. The primary elements to this project are:

1. Pavement reconditioning of Snelling Avenue N. extending from Highway 51 to County Road E.
2. Construction of a new 10-foot wide asphalt trail on the West side of Snelling Avenue North.
3. Installation of curb and gutter and narrowing of the drive lanes.
4. Replacement of water main, sanitary sewer, and storm sewer based on a condition assessment.

Project Status to Date

September 22: The site has grass growing in many locations and the contractor has swept the site. Bituminous curb was installed on Thursday last week to help address the issue of erosion at Cummings Lane. Remaining restoration and topsoil in that area will follow behind installation of the new curb in the coming days.  

August 31: Signage, road striping, topsoil, and soil stabilization have been installed. Erosion was identified on Cummings Lane; the project team is considering the use of curbing reconfiguration alleviate the issue. Seeding will take place at the end of August. 

August 11: The site has had its topsoil and soil stabilization installed and the contractor has swept the site. Seeding will take place when the seeding dates start up again at the end of August. Final wear for the bituminous was installed earlier this week. Striping and signage installation will be in the near future. 

August 1 - August 5:  Paving of the final lift on the street is scheduled to be completed on Tuesday 8/2. Local access will be maintained during paving operations, but please drive slowly, take turns, and expect delays. The road will remain closed to thru traffic. Work will take place later in the week in preparation for the installation of signs and striping.

Traffic Safety: Please be aware of construction crews and their equipment. If crews are temporarily blocking off certain portions of the street while they are working, give them the proper space and time to see you, so they can safely guide you through the construction areas. Please reach out to Brian Schmit (612-368-1228) or Brad Fisher (612-759-7240) with Bolton & Menk or Lucas Miller (763-229-7535) with the City of Arden Hills if you have any questions about the project.

Last week of July:  Crews began boulevard restorations throughout the project area. Residential areas were sprayed with a temporary hydromulch to stabilize soils. Crews will return in a few weeks to complete final seeding/restoration in these residential areas when weather is more conducive to growth.

July 27: With the first phase of pavement on the street and the trail paving completed, the contractor has begun restoring grade and stabilizing green areas. Once the restoration work is completed, the final paving of the street will be done and followed with striping and signage installation. Substantial completion is anticipated for mid-August.

July 7: During the week of July 5, street crews were on-site grading the trail and driveways tie-in’s in preparation of paving. There is a tentative plan to pave the trail and asphalt driveway tie-ins on Monday July 11. Asphalt driveway tie-in work will be minimally-intrusive for residents, but for the best end product please avoid driving on them for a couple of hours after installation and avoid turning movements on the new pavement when possible. For the rest of that week, once the trail and driveways are paved, crews will be onsite to reinstall mailboxes to their permanent locations. Be on the lookout for notices on the temporary mailboxes for the exact dates they will be moved. Crews will also raise manhole castings within the street to final grades later in the week.

June 30: During the week of 6/27 – 7/1, the streets were final-graded for paving and miscellaneous concrete work was completed on Wednesday. The base layer of asphalt pavement was installed throughout the project area on Thursday. Crews began initial work to prep for grading the trail and backfilling behind curbs. The temporary one-way was removed towards the end of the week, but please remember that this is still a construction site – drive slowly, take construction workers' directions to navigate around construction areas, and keep everyone safe!

NO WORK ON MONDAY 7/4 – HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY! From 7/5-7/8, Crews will final grade the trail for paving throughout the week and will continue backfilling behind curbs. Crews will also raise manhole castings to final grades. Paving of the trail is tentatively planned for late in the week, along with paving asphalt driveway tie-ins. Asphalt driveway tie-in work will be minimally intrusive for residents, but for the best end product, please avoid driving on them for a couple of hours after installation and avoid turning movements on the new pavement, when possible.

June 23: Past Week (6/20 – 6/24)
At the beginning of this week, street crews began grading the reclaim material, in preparation for the base course of asphalt on Snelling Ave N and Cummings Ln. Crews will be back on-site by the end of the week, to continue the grading. On Tuesday, driveways on Snelling Ave N were temporarily ramped in and re-opened with gravel. Driveways will remain open throughout the remainder of the project. During the middle of the week, concrete crews completed all curb installation, and finished the majority of the concrete sidewalk. The intersection of Arden Pl and Snelling Ave N will be re-opened by the end of the day today, and the detour directing traffic to Arden Pl and the Lindey’s Park drop off area through Forest Ln will be taken down. 

Upcoming Week (6/27 – 7/1)
Street crews will continue to grade the reclaim material and fine tune the road throughout the start of the week. On Tuesday, concrete crews are planning to finish all concrete sidewalk work. The base course of asphalt on Snelling Ave N and the adjacent side streets that were reclaimed, is tentatively scheduled to be paved on Wednesday, June 29^th. Snelling Ave N will be transitioned back to a two-way street, for both north and southbound traffic, by the end of the week once the base course paving is completed.

Please be aware of construction crews and their equipment. If crews are temporarily blocking off certain portions of the street while they are working, give them the proper space and time to see you, so they can safely guide you through the construction areas. Please reach out to Brian Schmit (612-368-1228) or Brad Fisher (612-759-7240) with Bolton & Menk or Lucas Miller (763-229-7535) with the City of Arden Hills if you have any questions about the project.

June 16: Due to heavy rains on Monday, June 13, concrete crews did not begin curb work until the day after. On Tuesday the 14th, the crews worked on pouring the mainline curb along Snelling Ave N throughout the project. by Friday, June 17, all concrete driveways are scheduled to be finished. Ribbon and cones will be placed to block off access to concrete driveways, to give the concrete time to meet its full strength. Also on Friday, the concrete valley gutter that reaches across Arden Place where it meets Snelling Ave N will be installed. To ensure proper cure time of the concrete, the entrance to Arden Place off Snelling Ave will be closed. During this time, access to Arden Place and the adjacent Lindey’s Park drop off area will only be available through Forest Lane to the south. Signage will be installed to direct traffic through this area when the closure occurs. Once curing is complete, the intersection will be re-opened and temporarily ramped in until paving occurs. 

By Tuesday, June 21, crews will be on-site re-opening driveways on Snelling Ave N. Once the driveways are ramped in, residents will be allowed to re-enter their driveways and drive over the curb. For the remainder of the week street crews will grading the reclaim material and fine-tuning the road in preparation of paving. The detour will remain in place during grading and paving as Snelling Ave N will become a single lane one-way northbound road.

Traffic Safety: Please be aware of construction crews and their equipment. If crews are temporarily blocking off certain portions of the street while they are working, give them the proper space and time to see you, so they can safely guide you through the construction areas. Please reach out to Brian Schmit (612-368-1228) or Brad Fisher (612-759-7240) with Bolton & Menk or Lucas Miller (763-229-7535) with the City of Arden Hills if you have any questions about the project.

June 13, 2022: CONCRETE WORK DELAYED DUE TO RAIN - Due to heavy rains this morning, the concrete work originally scheduled for today at 7:00 am has been delayed to 7:00 am tomorrow, Tuesday June 14th. If you received a notice on Friday regarding driveway closures due to concrete work on Snelling Ave N, you will still be able to access your driveway today. Although, make sure all vehicles planning to be used throughout this next week are out of the driveway and parked on side streets by 7:00 am tomorrow morning. Thank you for working with us during this process.

June 9, 2022: Throughout the week of June 6-10, street crews graded Snelling Ave N in preparation of concrete curb and driveways. The temporary mailboxes were set up on the south side of Snelling Ave N, by the end of the day Tuesday. On Thursday of this week, the signage for the detour transitioning Snelling Ave N into a one lane, one way northbound road, was placed. Southbound Hwy 51 will now need to be used to access Snelling Ave N during this change. Access to Snelling Ave N from County Rd E will be closed for the remainder of the detour. The detour is expected to be up for the entirety of the curb and driveway work, which is scheduled to be completed in 1.5 weeks, weather dependent. 

Concrete crews are scheduled to begin setting up stringline for their curb machine this Friday. With the stringline being placed, access to driveways on Snelling Ave N may be limited during working hours, but crews will take the stringline down by the end of the day to guarantee access by the end of the day and for the weekend.

Looking ahead at the week of June 13, curb installation will begin on Monday due to equipment issues and resulting slightly delays. Residents along Snelling Ave N with driveways effected by the concrete work will receive another notice delivered to their front door the next coming days that will provide more detailed information on parking and scheduling of the proposed concrete curb and driveway work. Parking during this period will be allowed on adjacent side streets and in the none-drive lane on Snelling Ave N when work is not occurring. 

By early to mid-next week, as apart of the concrete work, a concrete valley gutter across Arden Pl where it meets Snelling Ave N, will be installed. To ensure proper cure time of the concrete, the entrance to Arden Pl off Snelling Ave will be closed for 6-7 days. During this time, access to Arden Pl and the adjacent Lindey’s Park drop off area will only be available through Forest Ln to the south. Signage will be installed to direct traffic through this area when the closure occurs. 

Curb and driveway concrete work is tentatively planned to be completed by the end of the week. Ribbon and cones will be placed to block off access to concrete driveways, for approximately a week, for concrete to properly cure and meet its full strength. After that week, crews will remove ribbon accordingly, and ramp back in the driveways temporarily until driveway paving occurs. 

June 2, 2022: Throughout the beginning of the week of May 31, removal crews finished removing curb from adjacent side streets off Snelling Ave N. Street crews on Thursday reconstructed a portion of Bussard Ct, removing the existing road and material, and replacing it with new aggregate. By the end of the week, crews began and will continue grading Snelling Ave N in preparation of concrete work.

Beginning the week of June 6, street crews will continue to grade Snelling Ave N and finish any miscellaneous removals. On Tuesday, June 7, notified residents along Snelling Ave N will have their mailboxes protected and temporary mailboxes installed on the south side of the project. Please be on the lookout for a notice that will provide more details on the temporary mailboxes. By the middle of the week, the detour for Snelling Ave N, as shown in the monthly newsletter, will be put in place in preparation for concrete work tentatively scheduled for later in the week (likely June 8-10, approximately). Residents along Snelling Ave N with driveways effected by the concrete work will receive another notice delivered to their front door with information on parking and scheduling of the proposed concrete curb and driveway work. Access the Updated Project Map (PDF) or see below: 

May 18, 2022: By Tuesday, May 17, utility crews finished storm sewer installation on the project. They also completed testing on the new watermain and removed the temporary water lines. By the end of the week, removal crews are expected to begin taking out curb and prepping the street for reclamation. 

Early next week (5/23 – 5/27), street crews are scheduled to begin the reclamation process on Snelling Avenue North. Reclamation includes the grinding up of the existing asphalt street and the gravel below it, to create a base for the new asphalt to be paved. Following reclamation, later in the week, the crews will begin grading the new street and trail. Access to driveways and side streets off of Snelling Avenue North. will remain open during reclamation and grading. 

May 26, 2022: At the beginning of the week of May 23, removal crews started taking out curb and prepping the street for reclamation. The reclamation process of Snelling Ave N was completed throughout the middle of the week. Road crews followed behind the reclaim machine, grading and rolling the grinded up asphalt and gravel, making the surface drivable. Towards the end of the week, crews will begin removing driveways to the project limits. Once removed, the driveways will be ramped back in temporarily with gravel by the end of each day, to maintain access to homes.

Throughout the majority of the week of May 31, street crews will work on grading the reclaim material in preparation for the new street and trail. They are tentatively scheduled to complete the grading by the end of the week, to make sure the street is ready for concrete curb and driveway work, planned for the following week. A formal detour for the project area is expected to be installed at some point next week, to alleviate traffic during increased construction activity. Be on the lookout for a newsletter regarding additional traffic impacts due to concrete work.

Street crews are tentatively scheduled to begin grading Snelling Ave N this Saturday, May 28^th. The road will remain open throughout the work, and there should not be any major disruption of traffic while the work is done.

May 12, 2022: On Monday, May 9, the trenchless installation of the watermain along Snelling Avenue North was completed and the installation pits from Bussard Court to Lametti Lane were filled. After, utility crews completed the remainder of the open cut watermain and began testing of the new pipe. Once testing is complete and the new watermain accepted, the temporary water lines will be removed. On May 11-13th, crews worked on installing the new storm sewer.

By midweek next week (May 18), the storm sewer installation is scheduled to be completed. After, road crews are tentatively scheduled to begin removals of existing curb along Snelling Avenue North in preparation for street work. 

ROAD CLOSURE ALERT: Due to expected storm sewer installation, be on the lookout for closures of Snelling Ave N. throughout the project site next week. The closures will only occur during working hours, and will be re-opened by the end of the day. Access to side streets and driveways off Snelling Ave N will still be maintained during working hours, via either north or south entrances to Snelling Ave N.

Traffic Safety: Please be aware of construction crews and their equipment. If crews are temporarily blocking off certain portions of the street while they are working, give them the proper space and time to see you, so they can safely guide you through the construction areas

May 6, 2022: At the beginning of the week of May 2, the contractor began setting up temporary water lines between Lametti Circle and Bussard Court, as well as along Cummings Lane. By mid-week, utility crews began making connections with the existing watermain and preparing pits for trenchless watermain installation along Snelling Avenue North. Crews will finish the week with storm sewer installation along the street edges of Snelling Avenue North.

On Monday May 9th, a trenchless installation of the watermain along Snelling Avenue North will begin. It is scheduled to finish by mid-week. Utility crews will continue watermain and storm sewer work  throughout the week in multiple locations on the site. Please be aware of the installation pits along Snelling Avenue North from Bussard Court to Lametti Lane, as they will remain open until watermain work is complete. 

ROAD CLOSURE ALERT:  Due to expected watermain and storm sewer installation, be on the lookout for closures of Snelling Ave N. throughout the project site next week. The closures will only occur during working hours, and will be re-opened by the end of the day. Access to side streets and driveways off Snelling Ave N will still be maintained during working hours, via either north or south entrances to Snelling Ave N.

Contact Brian Schmit (612-368-1228) or Brad Fisher (612-759-7240) with Bolton & Menk or Lucas Miller (763-229-7535) with the City of Arden Hills if you have any questions about the project.

May 3, 2022: ROAD CLOSURE ALERT: Due to expected watermain installation, be on the look out for closures of Snelling Avenue North between Lametti Lane and Cummings Lane throughout the later portions of this week. The closures will only occur during working hours and will be reopened by the end of the day. Access to side streets and driveways off Snelling Avenue North will still be maintained during working hours, via either north or south entrances to Snelling Avenue North.

April 28, 2022:  The contractor, T.A. Schifksy & Sons, and their utility subcontractor, Northdale Construction, plan to begin utility work the week of May 2nd and expect to wrap up the project around early July. This schedule is subject to change based on weather, contractor’s schedule, or other unforeseen conditions. More information can be found in the first Project Newsletter Update (PDF). The following is a high-level overview of the project schedule that provides a good overview of the construction sequencing:

Weeks of May 2 and May 9:

• Temporary water will be installed and tested to maintain water to properties during watermain work.
• A couple water shutdowns will be necessary to make initial connections to the existing watermain. Affected properties will be notified prior to the shutdowns. Please look for notices at your front door.
• The contractor will begin work on the watermain replacement. This work is primarily located on Snelling Avenue between Bussard Court and Lametti Lane and a little work at the entrance to Cummings Lane.
• The beginning of work will be minimally intrusive, but traffic control signage will be installed, likely by mid-week, shutting down the roadway to through traffic. Access will still be maintained to all properties at this time, but a detour will be in place for through traffic.
• A portion of the watermain work includes a process called pipe bursting where the entire pipe will need to be assembled above ground before being installed. There may be temporary access restrictions to certain properties while this work is occurring. Properties will be notified, if necessary.
• Xcel Energy will also begin their own project to upgrade gas mains within the project area.

Mid May:

• Tree removals will occur.
• Storm sewer will be installed.
• Removals of existing infrastructure will take place.
• The roadways will be reclaimed. This is the process of grinding up the existing pavement with the underlying aggregate and creates a gravel-like surface.
• The roadway and new trail will begin to be graded.
• Access may have to occur from one way or another once this work begins.

April 11, 2022: A preconstruction meeting with Public Works staff, T. A. Schifsky and Bolten & Menk is scheduled for the last week in April with plans to start construction in May. More details to come after that meeting.

March 14, 2022: The City Council declared the costs to be assessed and ordered the Assessment Hearing scheduled for April 11, 2022. The Hearing will be held in the Council Chambers at City Hall. Once the assessment rate is approved, the construction contract will be awarded to T.A. Schifsky & Sons. Construction is scheduled for 2022, with additional details forthcoming. A detailed schedule will be sent to the affected residents after the preconstruction meeting with the contractor.

February 2022: The City has 100% design plans for proposed improvements to Snelling Avenue North scheduled for construction in the year 2022. Following approval from Council, the project will go out to bid on February 15^th, 2022 with the bid opening on March 9^th 2022.

An environmental site assessment was conducted along the project corridor. Soil and groundwater samples were collected at 14 locations in April 2020 to identify potential contaminants under the roadway where water, sanitary sewer and storm sewer utility replacement may be necessary. The environmental assessment was completed in June 2020. Additional project design, cost estimating, and public informational efforts resumed in July 2020. A draft feasibility study report for the project is provided below.

A field survey of the project area and schematic design of the roadway and intersection improvements were completed in 2018. An initial public informational meeting was held on October 19, 2019 to share project information and gain public input for the project.