Stearns County approves County Road 2 right-of-way plat, authorizes Xcel distribution relocation amid safety concerns

The Stearns County Board approved Highway Right of Way Plat No. 69 for the reconstruction of County Road 2 (SAP 073-602-051), and authorized county staff to sign an overhead service agreement with Xcel Energy to relocate distribution lines along the same corridor.

Highway staff explained the project covers County Road 2 between 420 First Street and County Road 1 north of Saint Stephen. As a state-aid minor arterial roadway, staff said the reconstruction requires 8-foot paved shoulders. The board approved the right-of-way plat after extended discussion about safety, property impacts and possible alternate alignments.

Jody (county highway staff) reported the project is in the county’s five-year program for 2025, that the plat reflects recently restaked temporary easements and that staff had received a petition and multiple emails from affected homeowners. The board heard three written statements read into the record from residents. Key resident concerns included previous crashes and vehicles entering yards; a school-bus stop in front of one home and the risk to small children; frequent speeding; and the effect of moving the center line on the ability to add onto homes or sell properties.

One resident letter urged shifting the alignment to the south to preserve tree buffers and keep the right-of-way further from homes. Another recounted multiple crashes on a property and said the proposed alignment would place the new edge of right-of-way “27 feet from the corner of my house,” raising safety fears. A daycare provider wrote that drivers often pass on the left and that increased curve speeds would create a longer runway for speeding vehicles, raising child-safety concerns.

Staff said alternate alignments would require environmental assessment, potential wetland mitigation and wetland credits, and additional negotiations with Brockway Township. Jody said staff’s recommendation was to proceed with the current alignment and add the 8-foot paved shoulders and gentler roadside slopes; staff argued the paved shoulders would allow farm equipment to pull over and improve reaction time for drivers. The board approved the right-of-way plat after discussion; at least one commissioner called the choice “picking which option causes the least misery.”

Separately, staff asked the board to authorize the county engineer to sign an Xcel Energy agreement to relocate distribution lines from private easement onto the new transmission poles. Highway staff said Xcel updated its estimate for the distribution relocation and credited used-up life; the distribution relocation cost to Xcel is $154,113.81. The board authorized the county engineer to sign the agreement.

Board members also outlined next-step options if the board later decides not to proceed with this alignment: order an environmental assessment for a new alignment, negotiate further with the township and landowners, or abandon reconstruction and do a resurfacing-only project (which would not address the safety issues residents raised). Staff will continue right-of-way outreach with affected property owners and enter negotiated easements where possible.