New Prague council orders design work for $6.7 million street and utility overhaul after public hearing

The New Prague City Council voted Sept. 9 to order the design and preparation of plans for the 2025 Street and Utility Improvement Project and approved an engineering services contract to take the work to bid. The project covers multiple streets in the northeast neighborhood, including Lincoln Avenue North, Pershing Avenue North and First Street Northeast, and includes full street reconstruction, new sanitary and water mains, storm sewer work, sidewalks and some alley improvements.

City staff estimated construction and related costs at roughly $6,678,000, with street work about $3.8 million, stormwater $772,000, sanitary sewer $798,000 and water main $1,073,000. The engineer said those totals include a 10 percent contingency and other project‑related costs and that some sidewalk work is funded through an active transportation grant.

At the hearing, several residents objected to proposed sidewalks on their blocks and asked the council to reconsider placement and scope. “I’ve never once felt unsafe,” Rachel Miller, who lives on Lincoln Avenue North, told the council, urging officials to present safety data before taking property for boulevards and sidewalks. Another resident, Greg Bark, said residents worry about parking, access during construction and the extra burden of sidewalk maintenance.

Councilmembers and staff emphasized that sidewalks are often installed to complete connections in the city’s capital improvements plan and that some sections are eligible for MnDOT state aid and an active transportation grant. The city engineer described boulevard‑style sidewalks as the preferred standard for ADA usability and snow storage but acknowledged options such as behind‑curb sidewalks where right‑of‑way or site constraints require them.

The project will be funded from multiple sources: utility funds (sewer, water, stormwater), assessments to benefiting properties, general levy, municipal state aid (for the Pershing Avenue state‑aid route) and the active transportation grant. Staff estimated the special assessments would account for approximately 23.7 percent of bonded cost — above the commonly used 20 percent benchmark and within ranges seen on denser neighborhood projects.

City staff told residents about deferred assessment options, noting common eligibility categories such as seniors and veterans, and said the city would provide information to property owners. The engineer also reported that about 20–21 service connections in the project area are on the initial list for lead service replacement funding and that the city has applied for a drinking‑water grant to address lead lines.

By motion, the council approved the resolution to order the improvement (to move the feasibility report into design and bidding) and then approved an engineering services proposal with a not‑to‑exceed design fee of $202,400, which includes an amendment to expand survey and topographic work. Both measures passed by voice vote.

Next steps outlined by staff: finalize design and plans this fall and winter, advertise for bids in February, open bids in late February and consider awards in early March; construction is anticipated in the April–October window with final paving the following construction season. The council also directed staff to continue neighborhood outreach and to provide assessment notices and hearing information in February if the project proceeds.

The action taken Wednesday advances the city’s capital improvements plan in that neighborhood, but council members acknowledged that some design decisions — including final sidewalk alignment and any changes to assessment splits — could be adjusted as design work proceeds.