Hiway 53 reroute.

[delcecchi]

Cool video

[video:youtube]

Or web page

http://minnesotabrown.com/2015/03/stunning-video-shows-new-hwy-53-route.html

[SkunkedAgain]

That's a neat video - a little slow moving so better if you do like the webpage suggests and skip through it. It will be a pretty drive over the pit.

[magnum mike]

Let's hope the mines stay open so this needs to happen...

[Bigfatbert]

Very good point out Mag Mike. The hwy relocation that is set to happen in the near future is going to be done with a serious chunk of change , that we the tax payers are paying for. US Steel should have to gaurentee that during construction, and up to the completion of ,and for some time after that they will be up and operating at full capacity.....To do this huge project , and pay the money to complete it ,we the tax payers , and employees should have the promise that the company will even be operating to mine the ore that's under that existing roadway , don't you think.. I personally believe US Steel has some sort of grudge with the state ,and is using this road relocation as some sort of leverage to save the company money somewhere , somehow down the road. We all know the the mining companies pay lots of money for emission compliances ,and taxes to the state that I'm sure the money making top US Steel executives are not happy giving up out of there already fat wallets. Is this new road really needed , I'm sure they have other ore deposits that could be mined, that we the people , and our state,does not need to relocate a busy ,existing road at our expense, with no gaurentee that the mining company will even be operating.. I know that this agreement was made some time ago , but come on , what's the sense of doing it ,if the company has half there employees on layoff , or shutdown completely... I bet if the state said we will not tax them as much that they might be interested in making a deal to scrap this project..This whole project smells. . That's it ,I'm done with my vent.. Good day , and happy Easter to all.

[Ice Wolf]

What I don't understand is why would the state build a highway through privet property? Back in 1960 when they came up with building the highway through the mine property instead of going around it knowing some day 53 would need to be re routed. What would the price be back in 1960 to have routed 53 around the mine property compared to today's price? Is it common for the state to have a highway through privet property? I would not think so.

[Pzswenj]

Honestly, US Steel doesn't owe the State any assurances. They made an agreement with the state, and actually gave the state more time to get the road moved than originally specified in the agreement (recognizing nothing gets done fast in with today's environmental regulations).

My personal vent, and no offence to the fine residents and Business owners of Eveleth and the surrounding area, is that the road should be rerouted to the west and into Virginia that way, based on viewing US 53 as a corridor to keep materials and goods flowing in a reasonable and rational fashion. Look at the route US 53 now takes, and look at the tortured path it will take in the future, all in the name of keeping the road in its existing corridor. That's what an engineers mind sees anyways, though I acknowledge there is a large political element here.

[delcecchi]

One issue with the West Alternative, is that it made the trip from Eveleth to the medical facilities and other things in Virginia quite long. So to go to the grocery store or Target from Eveleth was suddenly going to be like a 40 minute drive.

[D11R]

US Steel? What do they have to do with this? The property is now owned by Cliffs Resources who own Hibbing and United Tac and Northshore Mining. The two US Steel properties are a ways away. I think that should be pointed out before we rip US Steel and say the owe the state anything.

[delcecchi]

OK, folks get confused about which company owns which mine that we drive by. In any event, the state made a deal with the company back in the day and now has to live up to it. They made the deal for an easement because the cost of buying the mineral rights by eminent domain would have been huge, even back then.

[SkunkedAgain]

...and kicking the can down the road is American as apple pie

[delcecchi]

I guess 53 could have totally bypassed the quad cities in order to prevent a hypothetical issue in the distant future. Or maybe the iron ore market would have gone to heck and they would never have mined that taconite.

But, at this point in time, what difference does it make?

(have you looked at map of "west alternative"?)

[Bigfatbert]

Yah my fault ,not sure what I was thinking when I wrote US Steel. I meant to say Cliffs .

Sorry for any confusion this has made.