Commuters of Scott County rejoice! After years of delays, funding is
in place to fix the traffic-clogged intersection of Highway 169 and
Interstate 494.

The regional Transportation Advisory Board on Wednesday gave the green light by voting for a funding package that includes the final $34 million needed to make the redesign happen. 

"This concludes a year-long battle and debate that led to great success," announced Scott County Commissioner Jon Ulrich of Savage in an e-mail to community leaders. 

The National Weather Service (NWS) has extended the flood warning until 11 a.m. Sunday due to an ice jam in Sand Creek north of Jordan.

The ice jam is located roughly 1½ miles south of the junction of 173rd Street and the west side of Highway 169 in Sand Creek Township.

Officials report that the ice jam was larger and the flow of the creek around the jam was changing. Water could rise behind the jam as long as it remains in place.

The National Weather Service has issued a warning about ice-jam flooding on Sand Creek, 1.6 miles south of the junction of 173rd Street and Highway 169 in Sand Creek Township, just north of Jordan.

The warning is in effect until 7 a.m. Saturday. Water may continue to rise behind the jam overnight as long as it remains in place, said the weather service. Those in the vicinity from Jordan to Carver should be aware of the situation, said the weather service. Carver could experience flooding.

Jury selection in the second-degree murder trial of Charles Anthony Maddox Jr., 46, continued Wednesday in Scott County District Court in Shakopee.

After filling out and returning questionnaires on Tuesday, the prospective jurors were brought before the court, sworn in and asked to answer several follow-up questions about their responses under oath.

Some of the questions defense attorney Frederic Bruno asked potential jurors were: what is their opinion of using force in a self-defense situation; has the juror ever been falsely accused; do they believe the testimony of police officers is mo

Nancy Huddleston of the Savage Pacer reports:

The commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) has ordered the Highway 13-County Road 101 intersection improvement project to move forward as planned rather than slow it down to investigate concerns raised by nearby business owners.

Highway 282 reopened in time for the Scott County Fair traffic that often loads the main transportation arteries through Jordan.

"The project's done," City Engineer Carol Caron said Wednesday, a day after the road reopened. "In our minds, getting the project done so fast is a plus."

While the stoplight at the intersection of highways 21 and 282 was not yet operational as of Wednesday morning and there have been a few complaints about the new streetlights, the section of Highway 282 between Highway 21 and Mertens Street is open to through traffic.

Shannon Fiecke of the Shakopee Valley News reports:

After taking extensive public comment, the Scott County Board passed the proposed social-host ordinance on a 3 to 2 vote Tuesday.

Supporting the proposal were Commissioners Barb Marschall of Prior Lake, Jon Ulrich of Savage and Jerry Hennen of Shakopee. Opposed were Tom Wolf of Savage and Joe Wagner of Sand Creek Township. Watch this Web site for more from the meeting.

Shannon Fiecke is a staff writer for the Shakopee Valley News. She can be reached at sfiecke@swpub.com.

At a cost of $15,707.05, the city of Jordan will build a stairway and driveway to and from the former St. John the Baptist Catholic School parking lot, in exchange for an easement on property where it will build a stoplight and sidewalk at the intersection of highways 21 and 282.

On the day new detours around the Highway 282 reconstruction were set to open – Monday, May 4 – Jordan city staff decided to keep the detours closed so that the city council could decide whether or not it wants to open the intersection of Highway 282 and Mertens Street to traffic.

Months ago, as the controversial $3 million project proceeded, city officials told Jordan business owners that they would attempt to alleviate concerns about cutting off customers’ access between the downtown and Triangle Lane business districts.

In a 4-3 vote tonight, the Jordan City Council decided to give St. John the Baptist Catholic Church up to two more weeks to complete negotiations regarding the intersection of highways 21 and 282.