Victoria council hears multi‑year Highway 5 and local road construction plan, warns of extended closures

City Engineer Carrie Garen told the Victoria City Council at a March workshop that construction on several major transportation projects affecting the city will move into active construction this spring and continue across 2026–2027, with multiple full closures and staged detours.

Garen said the Highway 18/80 Second Street project is under contract and “construction’s anticipated to begin weather dependent in April,” with 80 Second Street closed to through traffic from April to November and local driveway access managed by the project team. She added that utility relocations and tree clearing have already begun.

The update covered County and city projects including the 80 Second Street (Highway 18) improvements, the roundabout at Bavaria, the Marsh Lake Road (Highway 11/14) roundabout, the Highway 11 North improvements, and a multi‑phase Highway 5 and 11 project the city is leading. Garen said the city expects a mid‑July start for full closure work on the Bavaria roundabout, with a projected full closure window “mid July up till September” depending on contractor scheduling.

“The roundabout at Bavaria … will have to be fully closed to through traffic,” Garen said. She warned that posted county detours will likely shift drivers onto nearby streets; she told council members to expect increased traffic on parallel roads such as Cochia and that residents near those routes “are likely to see more traffic in that area.”

Garen said the Marsh Lake Road roundabout has been bid and construction could begin mid‑April, and that the County‑led project includes a trail extension connecting the Laketown neighborhood to Huntersburg and to Chaska. She said that trail work was added after bids came in favorably and that constructing trails as part of highway projects is “significantly more cost effective than coming in and building them after the fact.”

For the city‑led Highway 5 and 11 downtown project, Garen said bidding would begin in April and construction staging was planned so work north of Highway 5 (Steiger Lake Lane, the northern roundabout and County Road 11) would be completed first, with a goal of reopening northern access by Aug. 1 before closing Highway 5. She said the Highway 5 major reconstruction would result in extended closures in 2026–2027: “Rolling Acres Road will be closed to through traffic in 2026, and Highway 5 will be closed to through traffic from downtown Victoria all the way to 41 for all of 2027 construction season.”

Garen described technical constraints at tight intersections and the need to relocate sanitary sewer and other underground utilities to accommodate roundabout footprints. She said the project team is considering contractual incentives to encourage early completion and reduce the closure period at the busiest segments.

Council members asked questions about whether nearby streets would be widened or receive turn lanes as part of roundabout work; Garen replied that Bavaria is a city street and that no expansions of Bavaria are currently included in the roundabout contract, though the city could pursue improvements separately. Council Member Roberts asked whether the trail along Bavaria to Highway 5 was included; Garen said that trail was added and “is funded as part of the Highway 5 project.”

Garen also flagged public outreach: a town hall about Highway 5 noise walls will be held this week, providing the noise study and the criteria MnDOT and Carver County must follow under state and federal regulations, and separate open houses were scheduled for the 80 Second Street and 11 & 14 roundabout projects (Lions Pavilion, 4:30–6 p.m.) and for the city’s 5 and 11 downtown west project (March 27, 5–6:30 p.m. at City Hall).

She cautioned that mapping apps can reflect closures ahead of schedule — an issue the city had to correct last summer — and urged continued outreach to businesses so residents know “our businesses are open” during construction.

The presentation closed with Garen saying the combined set of projects will significantly affect residents over the next three construction seasons and that the city and county will keep publishing schedule updates, detour maps and meeting material online.

Ending: The council did not take formal votes on specific transportation contracts at the workshop but directed staff to continue outreach and to provide follow‑up scheduling details to council and the public as contractors finalize timetables. Town halls and open houses were scheduled and the project teams will post detour and closure details as they become available.