City Council Meeting Date: March 1, 2022
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Ben Martig, City Administrator
Title
Consider Resolution of Support for State General Funds for a Corridor Study of Regional Passenger Rail Service Connecting South Central Minnesota and the Twin Cities on Existing Rail Line Through Northfield.
Body
Action Requested:
Staff recommends a motion to approve Resolution of Support for State General Funds for a Corridor Study of Regional Passenger Rail Service Connecting South Central Minnesota and the Twin Cities on Existing Rail Line through Northfield.
Summary Report:
The City Council approved a resolution of support for this legislation in 2021 (see attached staff report and action from 2021). We are recommending approval again this year to demonstrate ongoing support of this action. This is also an opportunity for a refresher on the request and importance of pursuing this project related to Northfield.
Background
In 2015, the City Councils of Northfield and Faribault, the Rice County Board of Commissioner, and over 40 other regional stakeholders (cities, counties, colleges, chambers and Convention and Visitors Bureaus) in support of a request for State designation of a regional passenger rail corridor connecting South Central Minnesota to Saint Paul Union Station and Minneapolis/Target Field Station using existing rail line through Albert Lea, Owatonna, Faribault and Northfield. In 2016, the State granted added the South Central Minnesota (Albert Lea - Twin Cities) Passenger Rail Corridor to the 2010 Minnesota Statewide Rail Plan (See Map 1).
The South Central Minnesota Rail Corridor connects the southern tier of the State (counties south of the 7-County Twin Cities Metro) to a connected statewide network of passenger rail corridors that make use of existing rail line to connect (or re-connect) the most populated regions of Greater Minnesota with the largest urban centers of our State and wider Midwest region.
The Corridor inc...
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