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Public Works Department • Richard H. Hansen Transportation & Public Works Complex
4787 Midway Road, Duluth, MN 55811 • Phone: (218) 625-3830
James T. Foldesi, P.E.
Public Works Director/Highway Engineer
NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
August 28, 2015
MEDIA CONTACT: Jim Foldesi
Public Works Director
(218) 625-3830
Portion of County Road 715 to close Tuesday, September 1
With the coming extension of
the ArcelorMittal mine pit, an approximately one-mile segment of County Road
715, also known as Pike River Drive and Whiskey Road, will close indefinitely beginning
Tuesday, September 1. County Road 715 will remain open on the north end from
County State Aid Highway (CSAH) 21 to a point seven miles south. From the
south, it will be closed approximately a half-mile west of Trunk Highway 135.
Turnarounds have been constructed at the
points of the road closures. Options for alternate routes include CSAH 138,
County Road 416 and Trunk Highway 135.
St. Louis County does not
own the property, but had a roadway easement to use one mile of the land over
which CR 715 crossed. That easement expires on September 1 to accommodate mining
operations, thus prompting the closure.
Commissioner Tom Rukavina
with other County leaders and local government officials continues to look at
options for re-routing the road for the convenience of those who use it on a
daily basis. As a former legislator, then-Representative Rukavina authored
legislation in 2007 appropriating $2 million of Taconite Production tax in
order to relocate the road into the city of Biwabik. However, existing wetlands,
mineral rights considerations and other geographic features in the area limit
the options and add significant cost to any solutions for the long term.
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