MnSPE Project Awards: Two Projects of the Year
Engineering excellence takes many forms, and this year two of our projects have been recognized for standing out among the best in the state. The Minnesota Society of Professional Engineers (MnSPE) has honored the CSAH 70 Gull River Crossing and I-694 Watermain Crossing projects with Project of the Year awards in the Public Welfare and Public Health categories, respectively. This recognition reflects the strength of our teams, the value of collaboration, and the lasting impact these projects make for the communities they serve. These projects received their awards at MnSPE’s Annual Meeting on Friday, May 1, 2026.
CSAH 70 Gull River Crossing, Cass County, Minnesota
For more than a century, the connection between County Road 105 and County Highway 70 relied on a narrow, one‑lane bridge over the Gull River Dam within a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recreation area. This constrained crossing posed ongoing safety concerns for drivers, pedestrians, and emergency responders, while also intersecting environmentally sensitive lands and culturally significant sites.
Cass County advanced a new vision for this critical route that balanced safety, mobility, and stewardship. Bolton & Menk provided planning, design, and environmental leadership to develop a new roadway alignment that improves traffic flow and pedestrian access while minimizing impacts to wetlands, floodplains, wildlife habitat, and Indigenous cultural resources. Extensive coordination with federal and state agencies, tribal representatives, and local partners informed a solution that respected both regulatory requirements and community values. Environmental documentation, cultural resource protection, and context‑sensitive design were integral to every phase of the project.
The completed corridor includes a modern roadway, two roundabouts, a new bridge, and a pedestrian trail connection. Together, these improvements deliver safer, more reliable access for residents and visitors while preserving the natural and cultural character of the Gull River corridor for generations to come.
I-694 Watermain Crossing, City of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota
A critical 24-inch trunk watermain serving the City of Brooklyn Center crossed beneath one of the Twin Cities’ most constrained freeway corridors, where I-94, I-694, MN 100, and MN 252 converge. The aging, bent spun steel pipe had been lowered decades earlier during freeway construction and sat deep below retaining and sound walls. In early 2023, a failure confirmed the growing risk: water flooded to the surface and froze on a freeway ramp, creating an immediate hazard to motorists and underscoring the danger of another break beneath this high-traffic interchange.
Bolton & Menk led a rigorous, safety-first alternatives analysis to identify the lowest-risk, most reliable solution for this complex location. After evaluating multiple trenchless and excavation methods, we recommended cured-in-place pipe (CIPP) rehabilitation. This approach preserved the existing alignment, avoided deep excavation near sensitive infrastructure, and met hydraulic and fire flow requirements while allowing freeway traffic to remain open throughout construction.
Completed in November 2024, the rehabilitated watermain now provides an estimated 50 to 75 years of reliable service. The project dramatically reduced the risk of future freeway flooding or icing, safeguarded motorists and workers, and ensured dependable water and fire protection for surrounding neighborhoods without closing a single lane of interstate traffic.
Award-winning projects start with empowered people. See how the teams behind our recognized engineering work also make Bolton & Menk a Top Workplace in Minnesota.
