Prior Lake, Minnesota - Over the past three months the SMSC improved two local roadways.

Work on an overlay of County State Aid Highway 83, commonly called County Road 83, from Wilds Parkway to Flandreau Trail, a stretch of approximately 1 mile, began in late September and is expected to be completed in mid-October. CSAH 83 serves as a connection between the cities of Prior Lake and Shakopee.

In July 2007 the SMSC paid to complete the overlay work on McKenna Road from approximately Shepherd's Path to County Road 16. The SMSC reconstructed McKenna Road in 1996. Previously a gravel road, the SMSC paved it at a cost of over $240,000. This new project included pavement restoration and crack repair, a two-inch thick overlay of new bituminous asphalt, and shoulder reconstruction.

Northwest Asphalt, a contractor from Shakopee, Minnesota, was the contractor selected for both projects. Northwest Asphalt, a family-owned business, has worked for the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community on various contracts dating back more than 15 years.

"This is another way the SMSC is a good neighbor and demonstrates the tribe's commitment to maintaining shared infrastructure with other local governments. We also have a longstanding policy of hiring local contractors whenever possible to keep those jobs within Scott County," said SMSC Tribal Administrator Bill Rudnicki.

Previously the SMSC paid $2.5 million to help reconstruct the intersection of County Roads 42 and 83 and portions of both roads (CR 42 east to CR 21 and CR 83 south to Wilds Parkway). The SMSC put in a stoplight at Dakotah Parkway and CR 83. For a reconstruction project of County Road 82, the SMSC also paid $1.4 million and donated approximately eleven acres of land (valued at approximately $600,000) needed for right-of-way purposes. Five of those acres were turned over permanently, the remainder as a temporary construction easement. The SMSC has paid more than $5 million for road construction since 1996. The SMSC has also granted significant amounts of right of way to other governments for construction of county roads flowing through the greater Community.

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