St. Cloud APO Meeting To Involve New Local Leadership
The St. Cloud Area Planning Organization will meet Thursday at 4:30 pm at the Government Center in Sauk Rapids to discuss transportation for the St. Cloud area. This meeting is open to the public. Stearns County Commissioner Joe Perske joined me on WJON. He indicates this meeting is important because it brings together Stearns County Commissioners and the newly elected mayors in Waite Park, Sauk Rapids, St. Cloud and St. Joseph. This meeting will also include other area Mayors and elected officials.
Perske says this will inform the new leaders of the projects the county is focused on along with sharing local city transportation priorities. He says the dream of a beltway around the St. Cloud area is still something he'd like to see happen. This roadway would include a bridge across the Mississippi in the southside of St. Cloud near the compost site hooking up with highway 10 on the east side of the river. Perske says possible locations of the beltway in Sauk Rapids and Sartell could be constructed prior to a new Mississippi crossing. He says the timeline for each portion can vary and will be dependent on funding. Perkse says the beltway would create an easier way to get around the community and help reduce traffic in current high traffic areas.
Since this APO meeting is open to the public there will be a public forum at the beginning and questions can be asked when prompted.
Perske indicates the plan for the Stearns County Justice continues to be shaped. The preferred location continues to be just west of Modern Barnyard on the west side of St. Cloud but the building has been scaled down from a 5-story building to a 4-story building. He says the service center in Waite Park will continue to function after the new Justice Center is complete. He also would like to see a location downtown where services can continue. Those functions currently exist in the court facility complex in downtown St. Cloud.
If you'd like to listen to my conversation with Joe Perske, it is available below.