VIRGINIA, Minn. - Minnesota Lt. Governor Tina Smith and other state and local officials officially marked the start of the Highway 53 relocation project today.
"Spanning more than 1,000 feet across the Rouchleau Mine Pit, the new U.S. Highway 53 bridge will be essential to the economic vitality of the Iron Range," said Lt. Governor Smith. "With more than 10 million pounds of American-made steel, the new bridge will be a testament to the hard work of Iron Range residents."
The $156 million construction project, which includes building 3.1 miles of new state highway, relocating a recreation trail and constructing an 1,100-foot bridge over the Rouchleau pit, is necessary to accommodate expansion of the Cliffs Natural Resources iron ore mine in Virginia. Kiewit Infrastructure Company, an international construction, mining and engineering company, has been selected as general contractor for the project.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation built the original roadway in 1960 on land owned by iron mining interests. The easement the agency signed in order to build the road included a requirement that MnDOT would move the road with three years notice if the mining company needed to get to the ore underneath. In 2010, the mining interests notified MnDOT that the road would need to be moved. Later that year, MnDOT and the mine company agreed to a 2017 date for the road to be moved.
"Part of the project development process included mineral rights acquisition," said MnDOT Commissioner Charlie Zelle. "The state has purchased the mineral rights under the new alignment to ensure that MnDOT will not have to move the road again."
The project will provide more than 100 construction jobs over the next two years. The current highway will remain open until the new roadway is ready for traffic.
