Photo by Deb Gau MnDOT project manager Jesse Vlaminck, at left, answers questions from members of the public about major reconstruction work on Highway 19 (College Drive). Reconstruction of the roadway is planned to begin May 5, and will affect College Drive between Marlene Street and Main Street.

MARSHALL — Major reconstruction of part of College Drive in Marshall will be gearing up in just a few weeks.

On Wednesday, local residents and business owners crowded around a table of maps at the Marshall-Lyon County Library, to learn more about what was coming.

“When does it start, and when does it end?” one person asked a Minnesota Department of Transportation engineer. Other community members had questions about access to street parking, or how their driveways would be affected by construction.

MnDOT held two open house sessions on upcoming Highway 19 construction Wednesday afternoon. The first session was geared toward businesses and residents affected by the construction, while the second session was more general.

MnDOT plans to reconstruct Highway 19 (College Drive) between Marlene Street and Bruce Street in Marshall. However, the work won’t all be done this year. MnDOT and contractor representatives said just the first half of the project, from Marlene Street to Main Street, will be done this year.

“The plan is for us to start May 5,” said Erika Coudron of R and G Construction.

Work is planned to stop in October before moving on to the second half of the project in 2026.

The reconstructed roadway will be concrete, and there will also be new sidewalks and features like pedestrian curb ramps. While construction is going on, the city of Marshall will also be replacing the water and sewer lines underneath the roadway.

As part of this year’s construction, a bike lane will be striped from Marlene Street to just west of Fairgrounds Road, MnDOT materials said. Traffic signals at South Second Street would also be removed, and Marvin Schwan Memorial Drive will have a right in/right out intersection with College Drive.

Traffic that is passing through Marshall on Highway 19 will be detoured, MnDOT said. Traffic will be redirected south onto Lyon County Road 7, and onto Minnesota Highway 23 from there.

Coudron said this year’s construction work will be split up into different phases, which will help keep access open to Legion Field and the Marshall Aquatic Center over the summer.

The first phase of construction on Highway 19 this spring will be from just west of Marlene Street, to the west side of the bridge near Legion Field, Coudron said. From there, the work zones will jump around to different stretches of the project area.

Stage 2 of construction will be from West Greeley Street to West Main Street. During this stage, Saratoga Street will be closed but Greeley Street and the intersection of College Drive and Main Street will stay open.

Construction will continue west along Highway 19 for stage 3. The work zone for this stage will go from South Fourth Street to West Greeley Street. During this portion of the project, a roundabout will be built near the National Guard Armory. The roundabout will help slow down traffic and reduce confusion at the three-way intersection of College Drive, South Second Street and Country Club Drive, MnDOT said.

As part of construction of the roundabout, Artillery Drive in front of the Armory will be permanently closed. Timmerman Drive will be converted to a one-way roadway and will provide additional parking at the Armory, MnDOT said.

Renderings of the roundabout at Wednesday’s open house showed that it would feature a “truck apron” of pavement around the center of the roundabout. The apron would give buses and large vehicles space to navigate the turns, MnDOT representatives said.

Renderings of the roundabout also included pedestrian crosswalks.

During stage 3 of construction, Country Club Drive and South Second Street will be closed, but Fourth Street will be open to traffic.

The last stage of construction for this year will go from east of Parkview Drive to South Fourth Street. During this stage, Fourth Street will be closed, MnDOT said.

Coudron said part of the contract for the Highway 19 construction required R and G to provide residents and businesses access to their properties. Coudron said she was serving as a liaison to local businesses during the construction project, and she would be providing MnDOT with weekly construction updates.

Updates will be posted on MnDOT’s project website at mndot.gov/d8/projects/hwy19marshall. Updates will also be posted on Facebook. MnDOT materials also stated starting May 1 update meetings for businesses will be held Thursdays at 10 a.m. at City Hall.