Washington County and the City of Woodbury, located have recently experienced one of the fastest growth rates in the state of Minnesota. Radio Drive (CSAH 13), a two-lane arterial corridor in Woodbury, became notorious for traffic delays and high crash rates, including pedestrian fatalities. County and City officials wanted to improve safety, traffic mobility and aesthetic appeal along the Radio Drive corridor, but preliminary construction cost estimates had ranged up to $14 million, with construction period estimated at two years.

Howard R. Green Company worked with the County to establish a value-engineering approach to the Radio Drive corridor. This process relentlessly pursued creative means to reduce cost and shorten the schedule, while unleashing the corridor’s potential to serve the community in multiple ways. The Radio Drive improvements were constructed at a cost of $9.6 million – a savings of more than $4 million over preliminary estimates – and construction time was reduced by 12 months.

The project’s numerous benefits were realized by means of several innovative design and construction concepts, including the following:
		Complete closure of the project zone to hasten construction activities and eliminate costly temporary infrastructure
		Mechanically Stabilized Embankment (MSE) walls, in lieu of more traditional cast-in-place walls, saving more than $400,000
		Multiuse trails and pedestrian underpasses
		Careful minimization of earthwork and right-of-way acquisition, for a savings of more than $1,000,000
		Rain gardens to preserve water quality and beautify pedestrian areas
		Multilane 20,000 Average Daily Traffic (ADT) roundabout, expandable to 60,000 ADT in the future, at the Bailey Road intersection

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Project of the Year: Minnesota County Engineers Association (MCEA)

Grand Award: American Council of Engineering Companies - Minnesota (ACEC-MN)