Benton County Approves 3 Up the Hill Construction for 2016

FOLEY -- A major road construction project in Sauk Rapids will move forward in 2016 despite previous concerns about how to pay for it.

Benton County Engineer Chris Byrd says the county board approved a five-year construction plan which includes the project known as "3 Up the Hill" to be built in 2016.  A majority of the project lies along 2nd Street South in Sauk Rapids and connects to County Road 3.

Byrd says they received additional federal money through the St. Cloud Area Planning Organization, will use additional State Aid dollars and dip into the county's reserves to pay for the remaining $6,200,000 of the project.

Byrd says as a result of the funding shift, they are taking themselves out of the running for state bonding dollars. The project has been left out of recent bonding bills, forcing the county to look for alternative funding sources.

Byrd says they will let bids this winter and plan to get construction started first thing in the spring.