On Tuesday, the Edina City Council abruptly hit pause on a proposed $20 million pedestrian underpass beneath France Avenue, shelving a major safety project that was being planned between West 72nd Street and Gallagher Drive. The move stalls work city staff had been pursuing alongside redevelopment of the former Macy’s furniture site and leaves the high-profile crossing idea without any clear path to construction.
As reported by KARE11, council members voted to stop immediate progress on the underpass after a rush of public comments that questioned the scope of the project, its $20 million price tag and how, exactly, the city planned to pay for it. The station noted that the decision puts a stop to any pending steps tied to moving the design contract ahead.
Engineering Work Put On Ice
The council was poised to consider awarding nearly $388,000 to engineering firm LHB for preliminary architectural and engineering work, a contract meant to sharpen the project’s design and nail down a more detailed cost estimate. That item was pulled back as council members weighed residents’ concerns alongside other budget priorities, according to the Star Tribune.
What The Underpass Was Supposed To Fix
City project materials show the underpass was designed to link neighborhoods west of France to Centennial Lakes Park and the Edina Promenade, giving people on foot and on bikes a way to slip under the six-lane artery that carries more than 27,000 vehicles a day. The project website, which features renderings and a feasibility report, also makes clear that money for actual construction has not yet been identified, per Better Together Edina.
Opponents at community meetings and online argued that the project’s cost is out of proportion and pushed the city to look at cheaper, simpler fixes. “I think there are other alternatives that make way more sense that are considerably more cost-efficient,” resident Ann Hustad told KSTP. Planners, for their part, countered that a bridge would still have to clear the busy roadway and would come with long approach ramps and significant property impacts.
City officials had previously said much of the funding would likely come from tax-increment financing tied to nearby redevelopment and from grants, and they estimated the $20 million cost included roughly a 20 percent contingency. With the council now pausing the design step, staff will revisit how to pay for the project and redo some public outreach before bringing the issue back for another look, the Star Tribune reported.
For the moment, redevelopment around Southdale will move ahead without any guaranteed grade-separated crossing in the mix. City leaders say the pause shifts attention back to lower-cost safety upgrades such as improved crosswalks, signal timing tweaks and targeted sidewalk work. Local coverage and the city’s own project documents indicate the underpass is not dead, just dormant, but it will not advance anytime soon.
