Road Construction Frustrates Animal Humane Society
Road construction is a sign of progress, and in Golden Valley, crews are hard at work making a number of improvements on Highway 55 to enhance safety, improve accessibility and repair a bridge.
But in doing so, the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) has reduced traffic to one lane in both directions of Highway 55 between Highway 100 and Penn Avenue in north Minneapolis.
“It’s frustrating,” said Brittany Baumann, a public relations strategist with the Animal Humane Society.
Since construction began in July, she says the project has created access issues for the animal shelter.
“So there’s a literal barrier right now between [the] Animal Humane Society and the public on Highway 55,” Baumann said.
The shelter only has one access point on Meadow Lane. That makes it difficult for people trying to get in or out, depending on the time of day.
“If you’re coming from Highway 100 going eastbound to try to get to [the] Animal Humane Society, you actually have to drive all the way into Minneapolis and kind of take a U-turn at Penn Avenue in order to get in here,” Baumann said.
When folks leave the area via Meadow Lane, they can only turn west onto Highway 55.
During rush hour, it creates a backup on Meadow Lane.
“So we know that folks are waiting between 45 minutes to an hour to get out of our parking lot, just to make it up to that intersection right up there,” Baumann said, pointing toward the intersection of Highway 55 and Meadow Lane.
Baumann says since construction began, foot traffic at the Animal Humane Society was down seven percent.
“That’s impacting, we think, our overall adoptions and of course, that hurts our budget as well,” she said.
A MnDOT map showing the Highway 55 road construction project between Golden Valley and Minneapolis.
MnDOT response
The Minnesota Department of Transportation wasn’t available for an interview, but a spokesperson provided this statement:
Construction is to be completed by late October, weather permitting.
We anticipate having two more weekend closures as part of this construction project, which will take place after Labor Day. We appreciate the patience from the public, commuters and residents impacted by the project.
We encourage people to sign up for email construction updates: https://www.dot.state.mn.us/metro/projects/hwy55mpls-goldenvalley/contacts.html
Since construction started, MnDOT has worked to address access and safety concerns, including installing a temporary pedestrian/bike crossing at Theodore Wirth Parkway to ensure access across this very busy bike and pedestrian crossing. We have met with Golden Valley public safety officials to ensure emergency access during weekend closures.
MnDOT understands the disruption that comes from construction and appreciate the public’s patience as we work to maintain and improve our infrastructure.
In the meantime, staff at the Animal Humane Society hope the construction won’t deter people from visiting.
“We appreciate everybody’s patience, and we’re hoping that just because you see those barriers, don’t think we’re closed,” said Baumann. “We are still open, and you can still come out.”
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