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Isanti council flags truck-parking, jurisdiction and cost questions for Town's Edge/Railroad Avenue project
Summary
At a May work session, Isanti City leaders questioned a plan to move curb and add sidewalk along Railroad Avenue and discussed Town's Edge Road timing, jurisdictional splits, a $637,721 CIP figure and a possible $140,000 widening option; staff will return with public-works details.
Isanti City council members pressed staff for more detailed plans and cost trade-offs for a proposed Railroad Avenue curb-and-sidewalk reconstruction and for Town's Edge Road during a budget work session.
The council discussed a staff plan to reconstruct the east curb line of Railroad Avenue and install a sidewalk from the old curb to the new line while leaving the west curb untouched. Council members raised safety concerns tied to frequent semi-truck parking along the street, saying parked semis routinely use the painted lane and that moving the curb inward could leave insufficient room for two-way traffic in practice.
City staff said the construction plan would bring the east curb out roughly to the painted white line and would add a sidewalk to get pedestrian traffic off the street. Staff also told the council that extending the west side by about two feet to provide more room would add roughly $140,000 to the project cost. Town's Edge Road is included in the city's 20-year CIP for 2029 with a project-level cost shown as $637,721.
Council members also flagged jurisdictional and stormwater complications: Town's Edge is split between the county on the south side and the city on the north, and members asked how MS4 stormwater requirements would apply where county and city standards meet. Staff deferred technical MS4 questions to public-works staff, and asked Jason (public works) to return with updated plans and preliminary cost estimates.
Members suggested staff explore nonconstruction options such as approaching adjacent property owners about easements, repairing curb in place rather than wholesale replacement to reduce cost, and discussing offloading behavior with local businesses whose semi parking contributes to the lane blockage. The council also discussed whether the corridor qualifies for state aid and whether designation as a snow-emergency route would alter funding or parking rules; staff said state aid is the likeliest external funding source but will confirm criteria with public works and state guidance.
Next steps: council asked public-works staff to present refined design options and cost estimates at a future meeting so members can weigh safety, right-of-way and funding trade-offs before the project is moved forward in the CIP.
