Minnesota Zephyr Move Stalls, Stillwater to Start Main Street Construction Monday

Moving the , Dave Paradeau said Friday morning.

After moving six dining cars from the north end of downtown Stillwater to Bayport, the movement of the two locomotives has stalled.

The two locomotives can’t be moved until there is clearance in Bayport, Paradeau said.

“There’s not enough space on the other end, so we have to move them one at a time,” Paradeau said. “We’re doing it as fast as we can.”

In addition to the space issue, Paradeau said he has to wait for the moving crews to come back into town to complete the transport.

“Everything is lined up,” he said. “We’re hoping to get the locomotives out very soon.”

But the Pedestrian Walkway construction project—which was delayed once to move the Zephyr—is set to resume early next week. That construction will shut down the northbound lane of Main Street until Aug. 1, weather permitting.

When asked if the downtown walkway would be delayed until the Zephyr is completely moved, Stillwater City Administrator Larry Hansen said: “We certainly can’t wait forever on [Paradeau’s] project.”

City Engineer Shawn Sanders said the city is going to go ahead and start working on the Main and Commercial streets intersection. Construction could start Monday, and if not, it will begin Tuesday.

The city initially hoped the project would be completed by June 30, but weather and the anticipated move of the Zephyr have delayed construction work.

Work on the project is expected to be “substantial completed” by Aug. 3, according to a project update from the city of Stillwater. The expected completion date is weather-dependent.

Although some side work on landscaping and other elements of the project may continue into the early part of August, the parking lots and restrooms should all be open by August 3.

Detours

In order to complete the second phase of the crosswalks at Main and Commercial streets, northbound traffic on Main will be rerouted on to Water Street. (This is the same detour that was in effect for the first phase of the work.)

The detour will begin shortly after 9 a.m. Monday, July 23, when access between Main and Commercial streets will be closed.  

If the weather holds, the road will reopen by 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 1. 

Parking Restrictions

While the detour is in effect on Main Street, no parking signs will be posted in the following locations: 

• On Main between Myrtle and 150 feet north of Commercial
• On Water Street between Myrtle and Mulberry streets
• On Myrtle between Main and Water streets.
• On Mulberry between Main and Water streets  

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