St. Cloud And Waite Park Get $1.2 Million For Road Upgrades

ST. CLOUD (WJON News) -- St. Cloud and Waite Park will both be getting some help with future road improvements. The two cities are each receiving just over $1.2 million in federal grant money to assist with new road improvement projects.

Waite Park will use the funds to expand 10th Avenue South between Highway 23 and the railroad tracks south of Division Street. The project will add an additional southbound lane and a roundabout at the intersection of 1st Street South, near the Kwik Trip and Gateway International Plaza, along with a raised median between Highway 23 and the roundabout. The city believes the improvements will address congestion and traffic backups with construction in 2028, and a total cost of over $3.3 million.

St. Cloud plans to use the grant money to reconstruct 9th/10th Avenue between University Drive and 2nd Street North. The city says some of the utilities adjacent to the road are over 100 years old and need replacing, and the project may also improve pedestrian crossings near Eastman Park and Lake George.

The total cost of the reconstruction is about $6.5 million and is expected to begin in 2028. Both St. Cloud and Waite Park were awarded the funds by the St. Cloud Area Planning Organization's Policy Board through the federal Surface Transportation Block Grant Program.