It may have been a class project, but it’s a project with a lot of class.
The 14 engineering students were thorough, thoughtful and methodical.
And the best part of the plan done by the Civil Engineering Design class at Minnesota State University is that the 10.3-mile bike path from St. Peter to Mankato is possible.
The 350-page report, which includes the route, the wetland mitigation plan, the bridges and cost estimates, received an enthusiastic response from area county engineers. (A component of the plan is a proposed shortcut road from Highway 169 to St. Peter — also a doable plan, but one that would that would be much more costly from about $5.7 million to $16 million with the inclusion of a flyover ramp.)
Mankato City Engineer Ken Saffert expects to see future grant applications or requests to the Legislature for funding for the trail. The study estimated the trail would cost $2.3 million. That price tag includes $300,000 to replace wetlands as required by law.
The project aligns with the goal of the state to run a trail the length of the Minnesota River. Other segments have been completed north of our region. Everyone who lives in this area is aware of the beauty of the river valley between Mankato and St. Peter. A bike trail along that stretch would be a benefit to area residents as well as tourists, who could also link up to other existing trails in the area.
Elsewhere in the state, communities are well aware of the attraction a bike trail can have. The Lake Wobegon Trail in central Minnesota now has the longest-covered bridge in the state with the communities along the trail hoping to attract visitors. There’s no such covered bridge in the local bike trail plan, but the St. Peter area instead has one of the most scenic stretches of the Minnesota River valley.
The engineers who critiqued the students’ study had positive feedback about it. The biggest roadblock they cited was that a government entity would have to take ownership and be responsible for long-term maintenance.
Nicollet County has only one developed park in its system — Seven Mile County Park. It would make sense that the county complement Seven Mile by paying to maintain a trail that would showcase the park and draw people to the area.
The students did their homework. Now it’s the duty of the community and its officials to put the plan or a version of it in place. The coordination of this project between MSU and local government is an outstanding example of how the university is served by giving its students practical experience and the community is served by gaining fresh ideas and good information it can use in the future.
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