Scene of the Closure: Lakeville Police Talk to MnDOT about I-35 Repairs

Winter's barely over, but the summer construction season around Lakeville has already begun.

On May 3, the month-long, $20 million project to repair Highway 35 began, closing southbound I-35E from County Road 42 to the I-35/35W/35E split.

Both the city of Lakeville and the Lakeville Police Department filmed video interviews with Kirsten Klein, a press aide at the Minnesota Department of Transportation.

Klein said that while month seems like a long time in a highly trafficked area, MnDOT is going as fast as it can.

"It's actually one of the quickest re-decks we've done of this size in the state," she said in the police department's video, which is viewable above or on YouTube. "We're trying to hurry it along because we know there's a lot of people who go across this area."

Along with repairing the deck of the Highway 35E bridge that goes over Highway 35 at the split, MnDOT is doing concrete pavement repair near I-35 and County Road 50.

"It means they're going to be cutting out the bad spots in the road and replacing it as people go through," Klein said. "South of 70 you're going to see whole panels replaced."

The city of Lakeville's interview with Klein is also available on YouTube.

Related:

• MnDOT to Close Five Miles of Southbound Interstate 35E for 30 Days Over Summer 2013