Rep. Emmer Seeks $3M For I-94 Expansion Project In Wright County

ST. MICHAEL, MN — St. Michael could be in line to get millions of dollars in federal funding to put towards a project to expand Interstate 94 in the area.

U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer submitted a request for the City of St. Michael to get $3 million to expand I-94 to six lanes between Albertville and Monticello.

The lane-expansion work is part of a larger $10 million project, for which the Minnesota Department of Transportation has already committed $7 million, Emmer said.

The project also includes the reconstruction and widening of the County Road 19 bridge over the interstate, Emmer said.

“This project is one of the last steps in completing the six-lane freeway expansion west of the Twin Cities,” Emmer said, noting the project will also “continue lane continuity” with projects currently underway to Albertville’s east and Monticello’s west.

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Members of Congress can request funding for up to 15 specific projects in their districts that "serve the public good" as part of the appropriations process.

Officials from St. Michael, Rogers, Monticello, Otsego, Dayton and Wright County all wrote letters of support for Emmer’s funding request, along with the I-94 West Corridor Coalition, the I-94 West Chamber of Commerce, the Greater St. Cloud Development Corporation and King Solutions.

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The first phase of the project expanded I-94 from Rogers to St. Michael, leading to a 55 percent drop in travel-delay times throughout that stretch of the interstate, officials said.

“We expect for the Albertville to Monticello project to produce similar results,” officials said in their letters of support.

St. Michael City Administrator Steve Bot said the “ability of this artery to hand capacity efficiently and safely is key to Minnesota’s vitality,” as I-94 links the Twin Cities metro to the northern and western parts of the state and provides access to the Upper Midwest.

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“The completion of the I-94 Expansion project from Albertville to Monticello is crucial for enhanced economic development, increased safety, an improved quality of life, and increased freight mobility,” Bot wrote .

The project to add a third lane in each direction between Albertville and Monticello would likely start in 2023 if funding is approved, officials said.

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