Grant will pay bulk of Armory Road project

Armory Road will be smoother, safer and a little less steep at the end after a $1.8 million reconstruction project is mostly complete in 2026.

For now, that project exists only on paper, but assistant city engineer John Anderson said construction is expected to start next spring during a public hearing at Tuesday's Cloquet City Council meeting.

It's a well-used road, leading from Minnesota Highway 33 to the Cloquet Armory, McDonald's Restaurant and entrances to the Lumberjack Mall businesses and SuperOne. Armory Road is also the sole access to Olympic Drive: home to two hockey arenas and the Pine Valley Park, with its ski jumps, bike and ski trails.

The project will include the entire road, from Hwy 33 to White Pine Trail, along with new construction of sanitary sewer, storm sewer and water mains. It will include full reconstruction of the pavement, with the exception of a portion in the middle - from Olympic Drive to the city's public works department - which travels through wetlands.

"Geotechnical engineers are recommending we do a reclamation ... do as little disturbance as possible as not to have any further consolidation of the peat material in that area," Anderson said.

In addition to new pavement, plans also include a number of safety improvements, including making 90-degree intersections at Olympic Drive, the public works entrance and Spring Lake Road. The city plans to cut down the hill between the public works garage and White Pine Trail to improve sight distance. An 8-foot multi-use trail would run on the north side of Armory Drive as far as Olympic Drive. Additionally, future parking would be limited to one side of the road as far as Olympic Drive with no parking allowed past that point.

A snowmobile trail that currently cuts diagonally across Armory Road also will be rerouted along the south side of Armory Road from the Public Works entrance to the Spring Lake Road and will create perpendicular crossings.

Schedule and funding

The project would start in 2025 at the top, where Armory Road meets White Pine Trail. The hill would be cut down, along with a number of trees to improve safety. Phase one would also include reconstruction of the roadway as far as Good Hope Church. A second phase, also planned for 2025, would go from Good Hope Church to the Hwy 33 frontage road. A third phase, set for 2026, would see final pavement and curb installed at the intersection of Armory Road and the public works entrance.

The project would be funded by four sources, according to staff reports, with almost 80 percent of costs covered by a Local Road Improvement Program grant from the Minnesota Department of Transportation for $1.4 million. The balance of the road work ($58,000) would be paid for through the city's state aid account, while the city water fund would cover $272,000 in water improvements and the city sanitary sewer fund will cover almost $62,000 in sewer improvements. Although much of the land along Armory Road is city owned, the city would assess other adjacent property owners a total of $28,000, Anderson estimated.

No one from the audience spoke during the public hearing, and councilors unanimously approved both the reconstruction project and parking restrictions.

Residents living on the southern end of Spring Lake Road would have to detour to White Pine Trail to Airport Road and ultimately Big Lake Road for part of the summer.