Highway 14 safety gets attention

The saga of Highway 14 took a new turn this week as a safety audit by independent consultants determined the road from North Mankato to New Ulm was even more dangerous and deadly than previously thought.

This story is of great interest to the communities along the road and us here at The Free Press. In 2010, reporter Mark Fischenich spent months researching the crash rates on the highway and interviewing numerous sources for what became a three part-series on the highway.

Pouring over pages and pages of statistics, our report determined Highway 14 from North Mankato to New Ulm had a fatal crash rate nearly twice the state average. In my mind it is one of the most significant reports on public policy this newspaper has ever done.

The series has been recognized with awards from various organizations.

But the recent safety audit only confirms what we determined, but even more so.

The recent safety audit determined it is now three times the state average.

In a positive sign, it appears MnDOT officials are going to do something about the safety. There are several shorter-term solutions to improve safety quickly, including a center cable fence, rumble strips in the median and widening the road in places.

But the complete four lane expansion from North Mankato to New Ulm did not appear to be a solution MnDOT favored, mostly because officials say the state does not have $300 million to spend on it. Although it's important to note Sen. Kathy Sheran got MnDOT officials to say at a recent hearing that the four lane was not out of the question.

We argued in an editorial Thursday, that the money doesn't have to be the hold up. The "convenience project" of upgrading the Highway 169, 494 interchange cost $125 million alone.

I've been communicating with legislators and the governor's office, arguing again and again how important it is to make this road safe and how long we've been fighting for it. Local legislators of both parties are supportive. We're seeing the governor's office give this more personal attention than ever before.

The next step may be gathering public support to at the very least get approval of some of the more significant temporary measures and get the four-lane project on MnDOT's 20 year list for completion.

Stay tuned for how you can help.

Gov. Dayton meets with FP editorial board, reporters

Gov. Mark Dayton paid his first visit since election to the home office of The Free Press and met for about an hour with The Free Press editorial board and political reporter Mark Fischenich.

A few snippets from the meeting.

Vikings stadium

The Vikings stadium deal was a 50-50 proposition at the start of the legislative session and it is still at 50-50, Dayton said. He noted this is his 14th legislative session as someone in the executive branch, and says he knows anything can happen even at the last minute.

In response to a question, he said he believes there is amazing support for Vikings stadium in outstate Minnesota. He related a story from Republican Sen. Majority Leader Dave Senjem who asked a Rochester restaurateur if he is affected by the Vikings being in state.

The restaurateur said he schedules four more workers on days the Vikings game is on the television. At a Twin Cities restaurant, they put on 12 more people.

Health care law

The state is moving ahead setting up health care exchanges, those comparison shopping institutions for consumers and small business.

He says the task force working on it has very broad support from health care providers, insurance companies even the business lobbies like the Minnesota Chamber and Minnesota Business Partnership.

These will likely go on even if they become voluntary and even if parts of health care law are struck down by the Supreme Court.

Mankato bonding proposal

Dayton has the Mankato project in his bill, but noted the just released House Republican bill does not include it and some other projects.

He says he's glad Mankato area Republican legislators are supporting it but raised his eyebrows and chuckled a bit when he was told the Republican legislators expect him to help with the project. He said he's happy to push for it but needs the support of the local Republicans since the House Republican bill is a very bare bones $280 million, and that the Legislature is controlled by the Republicans.

He remembered former Republicans including some of his relatives who would always support the idea that a strong downtown was great economic engine for a community and was "mystified" Republicans anew don't seem to support that idea.

Highway 14 upgrades

Dayton listened and took notes on editorial board's discussion of Highway 14 and needed upgrades. Free Press series detailed Highway 14 as one of the most dangerous road in the state. Dayton said he was going to check on leftover money in MnDOT funds from overbids that may be able to finance some of the four-lane project from North Mankato to New Ulm. That was a suggestion to me a few years ago from then deputy MnDOT commissioner

He seemed generally interested and said he was going to get a briefing from MnDOT Commissioner Tom Sorel and get back to us on what could be done.

Local leaders have vowed to contact Dayton and have him tell MnDOT to put the road on the 20 year list for improvements. But Dayton said that can be a "slippery slope" dictating to commissions in ways that would seem political.

He also said it was his responsibility to make sure safety as well as congestion were emphasized in MnDOT road project decisions.

Look for Joe Spear's columns on these subjects in the print edition, where there will be more context and analysis.

Dayton budget and your property taxes

Gov. Mark Dayton unveiled a budget today that raises $3.5 billion in new taxes, mostly on the upper income and wealthy, cuts $775 million in health care -- nursing homes and assisted living payments take a hit -- and kind of surprisingly, doesn't call for more cuts in local government aid.

The folks from the Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities I met with last week are probably happy about that.

Lobbyist Tim  Flaherty, Mankato Mayor Eric Anderson and Mankato City Manager Pat Hentges met with me arguing that local government aid is about 25 percent below where it used to be four or five years ago. Mankato used to get close to $9 million, now it will be getting near $6.3 million.

Dayton's budget message seemed to emphasize he was not going to put up with property tax increases. The Minnesota Department of Revenue has a study that shows for every $1 cut in local government aid, property taxes go up 67 cents.

There is now becoming a wide disparity in how much property tax a $2 million commercial building pays in Eagan versus Mankato.

Former Republican Rep. Dan Dorman of Albert Lea also was traveling with the group. He is now an economic developer in Albert Lea.

Dorman says the Pawlenty era cuts to LGA were the worst thing he ever voted for just because they hurt outstate Minnesota so badly. When he tried to remedy the situation a few years into Pawlenty's term with the famous "Dorman Amendment" taking equal amounts of property tax relief from suburban as well as outstate areas, he lost, with many of his fellow Republicans voting against him.

The Dorman Amendment wouldn't have saved outstate from cuts, it simply would have made all cities, rural and urban, pay their fair share.

Many of those who killed this fair bill were rural and outstate Republicans who were upbraided by this newspaper for their anti-constituent vote.

So far, it appears Dayton is wanting to curtail more cuts to LGA and help keep property taxes stable. It may not play out that way exactly, but outstate cities certainly have a friend in the governor's mansion where a few years ago they had only an enemy.

The LGA lobbying effort this year will be focused on rural legislators.As Flaherty pointed out, they only need a few to vote against the majority, a majority that no longer holds the power of the governor's office.