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Residents voice strong opposition to MN DOT J‑turn plan; city says work will proceed in 2029
Summary
At a May 14 council meeting, Mayor Toby Strom summarized a May 13 Minnesota DOT public meeting on planned J‑turns along US Highway 2 and county roads; residents raised safety and farm‑access concerns, and MN DOT said it will proceed with construction beginning in 2029 with only slight plan modifications.
Mayor Toby Strom told the McIntosh City Council on May 14 that engineers from the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MN DOT) presented proposed J‑turn installations on US Highway 2 and County Roads 8 and 41 at a public meeting on May 13.
According to Strom, MN DOT described the changes as driven by safety and economic considerations, but members of the public overwhelmingly opposed the proposal. Residents singled out the Highway 2 and County Road 32 intersection (Marcoux Corner) as a primary example of what they called an engineering failure, and several reported near collisions there.
Farm equipment maneuverability on the south side of Highway 2 was a recurring concern: attendees said that the J‑turn design would make it harder for farm tractors and semitrailers to access field entrances and the local grain elevator. Strom said MN DOT acknowledged that changes were needed after the public raised safety incidents but told the crowd the agency intends to move forward with J‑turn construction beginning in 2029 with only slight modifications to the current plans.
The council did not take formal action on the project during the May 14 meeting. Mayor Strom’s summary was presented as information from the MN DOT meeting; no city vote or direction was recorded in the minutes.
The next procedural step described in the meeting record is MN DOT’s planned implementation timeline; residents seeking more detail should consult MN DOT’s project materials or attend future public sessions.
