Purpose

• The bill would appropriate 4,750,000 dollars from the bond proceeds fund to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to support a multimodal, shared-use trail extension. This extension would run from the city of La Crescent to Hokah and Houston, as part of completing the Root River State Trail. It also authorizes the sale and issuance of state bonds to fund this work.

Main Provisions

• Funding and purpose:
  • Allocate 4,750,000 dollars from the bond proceeds fund to the DNR.
  • Use these funds for acquisition of property and easements, as well as predesign, design, environmental review, permitting, and preliminary engineering for the trail extension.
• Route and alignment:
  • The trail would follow the Root River corridor and the Historic Bluff Country National Scenic Byway.
  • It would cross, where necessary, Root River marked Trunk Highway 16 and follow an abandoned rail bed and corridor including County Trunk Highways 7 and 25.
  • The trail may be routed through existing DNR lands, state lands and easements, and public/private lands as needed to create a continuous 18-mile trail.
• Eminent domain:
  • Land acquisition may occur without using eminent domain as necessary to maintain a continuous routing of the shared-use path.
• Phase and project scope:
  • This appropriation covers Phase 1 of the project.
• Unspent funds:
  • Any money not used after completing Phase 1 can be repurposed for final engineering and construction of the bike trail, with written notice to the commissioner of management and budget.
• Bonding process:
  • The commissioner of management and budget must sell and issue bonds up to 4,750,000 dollars to fund this section, following Minnesota statute sections 16A.631 to 16A.675 and the state constitution (Article XI, Sections 4-7).

Significant Changes to Existing Law

• New capital investment funding:
  • Establishes a dedicated appropriation and bond authorization for extending the Root River State Trail from La Crescent through Hokah to Houston (Phase 1).
• Land acquisition approach:
  • Explicitly allows routing of the trail through public and private lands without the use of eminent domain when necessary, which guides how land may be obtained or rights secured for continuous trail routing.
• Process and oversight:
  • Ties the funding to the standard state bonding process and applicable statutes, ensuring the project follows established procedures for bond issuance and capital investments.

Relevant Terms - multimodal shared-use trail - Root River State Trail - La Crescent, Hokah, Houston - bond proceeds fund - acquisition of property and easements - predesign, design, environmental review, permitting, preliminary engineering - Historic Bluff Country National Scenic Byway - Root River - Trunk Highway 16 - abandoned rail bed - County Trunk Highways 7 and 25 - eminent domain - Phase 1 - unspent funds - bonding (sale and issuance) - Minnesota Statutes 16A.631 to 16A.675 - Minnesota Constitution Article XI