Highways 210 and 61 intersection closed Thursday

The intersection of Minnesota Highway 210 and Carlton County Highway 61 in Carlton will close Thursday as construction continues on J-turn installation at the site.

Originally, Carlton County officials expected the installation would be done without having to close the intersection. But the best and quickest way to tie in Highway 61 with the new stop area was to close the intersection for a day, county engineer JinYeene Neumann said after Tuesday's county board meeting.

"It'll be open by Thursday night," Neumann said, anticipating a shutdown between six and eight hours, if all goes according to plan.

Because the closure is for one day only, there will be no marked detours. Instead, motorists will be left to figure out alternatives on their own.

The $1.1 million project is nearing completion. The J-turn, or reduced conflict intersection, is being installed to both address safety and excessive queuing of vehicles waiting to turn at the intersection, located across from Kwik Trip.