Northfield Transportation Advisory Committee Meeting Date: October 21, 2026
To: Members of the Northfield Transportation Advisory Committee
From: David Bennett, Public Works Director/City Engineer
Title
Consider recommendation to the Mayor and City Council formation of a stakeholder committee for MnDOT upcoming 2032 Trunk Highway (TH) 3 Bridge Replacement over the Cannon River, 2033 TH-3 Bridge Replacement over the Railroad, 2034 TH-19 Bridge Replacement over the Cannon River.
Body
Action Requested:
The Northfield Transportation Advisory Committee recommends to the Mayor and City Council the formation of a stakeholder committee for MnDOT upcoming 2032 Trunk Highway (TH) 3 Bridge Replacement over the Cannon River, 2033 TH-3 Bridge Replacement over the Railroad, 2034 TH-19 Bridge Replacement over the Cannon River.
Summary Report:
MnDOT has three upcoming bridge projects, and at the July 2025 NTAC meeting MnDOT presented on the two TH-3 bridge replacements and the City has more recently learned about the 2034 TH-19 Bridge Replacement over the Cannon River (Second St. Bridge). MnDOT is currently in the preliminary design/scoping layout phases for all three bridge replacement projects.
It is critical that these bridge replacement projects meet our local and regional transportation needs. Bridges only get replaced 50-75 years, so it is important that these replacements not only address motor vehicles, but other transportation choices. These bridge replacement projects cannot be done in a vacuum. They need to look holistically along the corridor, the land-use context, how it connects, and what the future corridor could look like.
With NTAC’s recommendation to City Council, Council passed resolution 2026-022 requesting MnDOT provide safety solution for walking and biking at grade and below the upcoming bridge projects on TH-3. It is important for the community to be connected to help shape these upcoming bridge replacement projects. Understanding this, a stakeholder committee is requested to be formed to ensure the community’s interests are well represented through the project development process.
Under City Code, the Mayor appoints and Council confirms committee membership. Staff will work in coordination with the Mayor on related detail preparation for the City Council following NTAC recommendation.
Below is a draft of list participants in the stakeholder committee:
|
Northfield School District |
Carleton College |
|
Northfield Area Fire & Rescue |
St. Olaf College |
|
Northfield Police |
Chamber of Commerce |
|
Northfield Hospital & Clinics |
NTAC Members |
|
City Council Reps |
Post Consumer Brands |
|
Rice County Board |
Taylor Trucking |
|
Mar Valdecantos |
|
City Plans & Policies Relevance:
This work is supported by the City’s 2045 Comprehensive Plan, Transportation Plan, and Strategic Plan
In the 2045 Comprehensive Plan:
• Highway 3 is good for driving through Northfield quickly or driving from downtown to Target, but reaching a store, school or office requires getting off the highway. It is unpleasant to walk along, unsafe to cross on foot and unhealthy to live next to.
• Completing a safe, connected system for biking, walking and rolling
• Northfield fosters human connections in our increasingly diverse community through well-designed neighborhoods, gathering places, and business districts that are inclusive for all, independent of age, economic status, mobility, gender, or racial and ethnic background.
• Northfield works to provide a full complement of mobility options so all Northfield residents and visitors can get where they want and how they want.
• Northfield emphasizes equity to address disparities and to ensure equitable access to jobs, housing, education, essential services, retail, mobility options, and open space for all.
• Advocate with MnDOT to redesign Highway 3 from Fremouw Road to Jefferson Parkway for safe, pleasant travel along and across the highway prioritizing slower speeds, local access, safe intersections, and connections to the Mill Towns State Trail, Transit Hub, and the riverfront.
• Design for safe access, when making transportation decisions, focus on the land use context and building streets which promote safe, low stress travel.
In the 2025-2028 Strategic Plan
• Improve pedestrian safety
• Create a pedestrian walking and biking crossing improvement plan for TH-3
Alternative Options:
Staff recommend formation of a stakeholder committee.
Financial Impacts:
NA
Tentative Timelines:
NA