In years to come, a major re-working of a stretch of Duluth’s I-35 corridor could take place.

That stretch is from County Road 61 in Midway Township to Duluth’s 26th Avenue East.

Tuesday night, project leaders hosted an open house where they met with the community to share their initial plan.

It kicks off a long process that also includes a lot of community feedback.

The Duluth Superior Metropolitan Interstate Council and MnDOT want to address current and future needs for the final stretch of I-35, which sees heavy volumes of traffic year-round.

“The planning is always really important, infrastructure costs a lot of money, so thinking about not just what are the needs today but how are they going to change over the next 20 years,” said Angie Bersaw, a project manager advising the proposal.

Bersaw said they want to consider all transportation needs like freight, transit, car, bike and pedestrian.

There are three phases of the plan: identifying issues, determining alternatives and finally, developing an implementation plan.

“And at each of those three phases, we’ll have opportunities like we have tonight for open houses or online engagement, different ways to connect with the public,” Bersaw said.

Dale Bergeron, a Duluth resident who lives on London Road, was at Tuesday’s open house.

“If you look around, there are hundreds of thousands of people that depend on that road, and there aren’t 100 people in this room,” Bergeron said. “There aren’t 50 people in this room, and that’s a bad sign.”

Bergeron said he’s optimistic about the project but concerned about just how much the public’s voice will actually be heard.

“How do we get input from people and how do we make them have their voices heard and more importantly, their needs met?” Bergeron asked.

He spent years working in transportation and said Duluth has complex transportation needs.

“I have a lot of respect for the DOT and what they’re trying to do, but they really need to think beyond the engineering and keep the community in mind,” Bergeron said.

The I-35 Corridor Plan Proposal process will last until the end of next year.

There’s no timeline yet for when construction might begin.

To read this original story and more news, follow this link to the Northern News Now website.