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From the Grand Portage and National Park Service - February 2, 2023

 The National Park Service has released the “Mile Creek Road Realignment and Bridge Construction Environmental Assessment” Environmental Assessment (EA) for Grand Portage National Monument.

Cook County, Minnesota and the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (Ojibwe), in partnership with the Grand Portage National Monument, propose to realign a segment of Mile Creek Road/County State Aid Highway 17 and construct a new bridge across Grand Portage Creek. The purpose of this EA is to evaluate the potential impacts of constructing a new bridge across Grand Portage Creek to reduce the hazard caused by a blind curve, eliminate traffic and plowing impacts on an existing historic bridge, and increase pedestrian access.

How to get involved:
Engaging with you is a critical part of our preliminary planning process. Your feedback will be used to refine project designs and support the analysis of any environmental impacts. Anyone interested in learning more about the project and providing input can participate by reviewing and commenting on the EA from February 2-March 4, 2023. This EA is available on the NPS Planning, Environment, and Public Comment (PEPC) website (https://parkplanning.nps.gov/MileCreekRd). You may post comments online using the above link or submit comments via USPS mail. Comments submitted by mail must be postmarked by March 4, 2023, and should be sent to:

Heather Boyd, Superintendent
Grand Portage National Monument
P.O. Box 426
Grand Portage, MN 55605

The impacts of the proposed construction project are analyzed in this EA. The park evaluated two alternatives in the EA: Alternative A- No Action; and Alternative B – County Road 17 Re-Route (Preferred Alternative). Under Alternative A, the road would not be realigned. Under Alternative B, an existing blind curve would be removed, a portion of the original asphalt would be left in place as a walking path, and the road would be re-routed across a new bridge.

This EA has been prepared in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to provide the decision-making framework which 1) analyzes a reasonable range of alternatives to meet objectives of the proposal, 2) evaluates potential issues and effects to the Park’s resources and values, and 3) identifies mitigation measures to lessen the degree or extent of these effects.

Please be aware that the entire comment submitted – including personal identifying information such as address, phone number, and email address – may be made publicly available. Requests to withhold such personal identifying information from public release will be considered, but there is no guarantee that they will be withheld.

www.nps.gov/grpo

Grand Portage National Monument is co-managed with the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, and part of the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov.