Chime in now for big changes on Robert Street

WSCO survey open through mid-April

By Jake Spitzack | Staff Writer | March 2025

West Siders need to step up now if they want to help shape the future of Robert Street in their neighborhood. The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) is planning to make several improvements to the corridor in conjunction with the full street reconstruction occurring between Kellogg and Annapolis. Beginning as early as 2026, the project calls for creating a roundabout at the intersection of Robert, State and Sidney streets, and adding bike lanes and Metro Transit stops. However, staff from the West Side Community Organization (WSCO), St. Paul’s planning council for the West Side, are skeptical on whether those improvements were called for by people living in the community, and if they would even truly benefit for the neighborhood.

A survey to provide feedback about the proposed changes is available on the WSCO website through mid-April, and those who complete the survey will be entered into a raffle for a $300 prize. The survey results will be brought before MnDOT, which is expected to complete its final plan for the project this fall. The $25 million project is being covered by a Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity federal grant recently received by MnDOT.

“Community members are wanting greater transparency regarding the community engagement results that MnDOT gathered before releasing these plans,” said WSCO spokesperson Julia Diaz. “They kind of came in with all these data points saying, ‘our research shows that the community wants bike lanes, or they prefer a roundabout,’ but we want them to actually share what those exact community engagement steps were. The concern is that they’re just doing things as a box-checking exercise – doing the bare minimum to meet requirements, but not actually making a genuine effort to listen and integrate alternatives that are being offered by the community members.”

Some of the primary points of concern are that parts of Robert Street will be reduced from four lanes to two to make way for bike lanes, thus buses stopping at the proposed Metro Transit stops will force traffic behind them to stop. Likewise, the site of the proposed roundabout already has a dangerous blind spot due to the building on the corner, the former Morgan’s Mexican & Lebanese Foods. WSCO staff say the current project does not address that existing safety issue. Additionally, if there’s heavy traffic in the area, emergency vehicles may be forced to drive over the roundabout and center medians or take a longer route around.

WSCO’s Land Use Circle has created alternative options for the proposed plans, which are available to view on the survey. They include making Sidney Street a dead end instead of leading into the roundabout, and rerouting segments of proposed bike lanes. Staff are in favor of one major piece of the project: the replacement of the nearly 100-year-old Robert Street viaduct. MnDOT also recently received a grant to create a bridge at the Southport railroad crossing at Barge Channel Road to improve traffic flow and allow for an evacuation route if a train is stopped.

“It’s such a big win after so many years of pushing for that replacement of the viaduct and adding that raised railroad crossing at Barge Channel Road,” said Diaz. “There’s been years of advocacy behind those two major changes…. We’re hoping we can get those bus stops to have their own shoulder so that they’re not blocking traffic when they have to stop, but in general, having more forms of transportation available on Robert Street is really exciting.”

One of MnDOT’s community engagement workers for the project, Kevin Walker – a native of the West Side who still has family living there – said the Robert Street project was originally proposed in 2016 but at that time it was just to replace the road that was last updated in 1989. He said MnDOT has worked closely with WSCO since 2020 to guide the expanded plans including the viaduct replacement. Last November, at WSCO’s request, they mailed flyers to approximately 6,500 West Side homes, encouraging people to come to a meeting regarding the proposed work.

The WSCO Land Use Circle meets the fourth Wednesday of every month and the meetings are open to all West Siders. MnDOT representatives have attended some of the meetings and are also offering monthly “office hours” at local coffee shops so residents can learn more about the project. For more information, visit wsco.org or www.dot.state.mn.us/metro/projects/robertstreet/design.html.

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