Public Involvement

Hennepin County and Mn/DOT’s effort to develop a corridor design concept and an Environmental Assessment will need to integrate the strong values and priorities of communities along the corridor while maintaining a regional perspective. 

An effective Stakeholder Involvement Plan is critical to ensure that issues and concerns are understood and addressed as part of the process.  The development of the TH 55 Coalition indicates that there is a very strong base of community interest and investment in the roadway; therefore, citizen and municipality involvement is a priority in our plan.  Natural resources, including wetlands, floodplains, and Lake Sarah, are abundant in the project area, making agency involvement (Department of Natural Resources, Army Corps of Engineers, and US Fish and Wildlife Service) another important focus of the plan.  It is critical that each of these groups has an opportunity to become informed about the project and to provide feedback and technical advice so that project impacts are minimized and properly mitigated when unavoidable and permitting and approvals go smoothly.

Hennepin County and Mn/DOT are committed to providing a safe, economical and timely solution to the many issues and will make every effort to consider stakeholders’ concerns in developing the design layout and in analysis of environmental effects of the project.  

Goals and Obectives of the Plan

• Minimize conflict by developing a corridor design concept and evaluation process that maintains early and ongoing stakeholder involvement
• Inform stakeholders of project design status, including maintaining communication with the Highway 55 Coalition
• Understand stakeholders’ concerns and emphasize responsiveness to them in evaluating corridor design concept options
• Meet with property owners, communities, citizen groups and agencies to respectfully listen to their concerns and understand their values
• Educate stakeholders about the impacts and benefits for each community
• Build support for a reasonable solution that will address safety concerns, congestion, and delay while remaining cost-effective.

Stakeholders and Interested Parties

Policy Makers (includes elected/appointed officials and staff)

• State Legislature
• Metropolitan Council, including Metro Transit
• Hennepin County
• City Governments (Public Works and Planning departments)
• Plymouth
• Medina
• Corcoran
• Greenfield
• Rockford
• Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)
• Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT)

Regulatory Agencies (includes boards and staff)

• Elm Creek Watershed Management Commission
• Minnehaha Creek Watershed District
• Pioneer-Sarah Creek Watershed Management Commission
• Bassett Creek Watershed Management Commission
• Three Rivers Park District
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
• Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MnDNR)
• Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MnPCA);  Air Quality and Noise
• Minnesota State Historic Preservation Office (MnSHPO)

Citizens

• Highway 55 Coalition (and technical advisory committee)
• Affected Property Owners
• Business along corridor
• Citywide residents and  businesses
• Users of the transportation system

Go to Top

Steps of the Stakeholder Involvement Process

• Identify key issues through outreach activities
• Clarify the issues through follow-up communications
• Analyze design and environmental issues to better understand implications
• Disclose findings of analyses to concerned parties
• Respond to questions and clarify position on issues
• Move forward with responsible design decisions and environmental documentation

Go to Top