The Great Lakes Chapter of the Institute of Transportation Engineers recognized the City of Prior Lake, Scott County, and Bolton & Menk’s CSAH 21 Downtown Prior Lake Improvement Project with the 2021 Great Lakes District ITE Transportation Achievement Award in the Traffic Engineering category at the GLITE Annual Meeting on August 31, 2021. This regional award recognizes projects for their excellence in the advancement of transportation to meet human needs, by entities concerned with transportation such as governmental agencies, legislative bodies, consulting firms, industry, and other organizations.
The TH 13/CSAH 21 intersection and CSAH 21 corridor in downtown Prior Lake lacked capacity to move traffic safely and efficiently. It has been studied multiple times over the last two decades without identifying a solution supported by all stakeholders.
While a recommended plan was adopted by the board of commissioners in 2005, significant concerns were raised and major conflicts existed between access and mobility, roadway classification, and community needs. Meanwhile, the downtown Prior Lake corridors remained a barrier.
Recognizing this history, Bolton & Menk led an innovative and comprehensive public engagement effort using various outreach formats. Our work included a visioning study, the goals of which were to engage the public, build trust between governing agencies and the public, and develop a solution that could be supported by stakeholders. The visioning study was used to level the playing field, start over, and identify important community values.
After several months of identifying and evaluating concepts and engaging the public, a single vision was recommended and adopted. The TH 13/CSAH 21 project moved through final design and was constructed in 2020.
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