For several years, Hastings residents have been looking at maps, intersection drawings, roundabouts, medians and proposed improvements for Highway 61. Now, the conversation is moving toward the part everyone will actually have to live through, construction.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation confirmed during a recent public meeting in Hastings that the long-awaited reconstruction of Highway 61 will be a two-year construction project, rather than the roughly year-and-a-half schedule officials had previously hoped might be possible.
The good news for motorists is Highway 61 is not expected to completely close. The less welcome news is that traffic will be reduced to one lane in each direction through active construction areas, and those conditions will move through the city as crews rebuild approximately 2.7 miles of one of Hastings' most important roads.
"It's a two-year project," MnDOT project manager Robert Jones said during the meeting.
That statement may be one of the most important updates to come from the July gathering. MnDOT had explored whether the project could reasonably be built in about 18 months, but the amount of work involved, combined with the need to maintain traffic and access along the corridor, made that schedule unrealistic.
The current plan instead calls for construction to be divided into three primary geographic stages, with traffic shifted as different portions of the highway are rebuilt. Some preliminary work could begin in 2027, the main project is scheduled to be let for bids in January 2028, and construction would continue through 2029. The majority of the heavy road construction is expected during 2028.
That gives Hastings a little time before the orange barrels take over Vermillion Street, but not nearly as much time as it may sound like. Work connected to the project is already beginning.
During 2026, motorists and property owners can expect to see surveying, soil borings, tree work and other preliminary activity along the corridor. Right-of-way work is also underway, and some property owners have already been contacted as MnDOT determines what land or temporary construction access may be needed.
The project is currently around the 30 percent design level. MnDOT expects to reach approximately 60 percent design in November, with final plans targeted for September 2027. Those percentages matter because plenty of engineering decisions still need to be made.
The broad design of the road is established. Hastings knows where the major roundabouts will go, where the new traffic signal is planned, where medians will restrict some movements and generally how the rebuilt corridor will look. What remains is figuring out exactly how to build it.
For a road like Highway 61, that is no small detail. Highway 61 is not simply another city street where crews can place a barricade at each end and send motorists elsewhere for a summer.
It carries regional traffic through Hastings, serves as the primary north-south route through much of the community, provides access to businesses and neighborhoods and, most importantly when considering a complete closure, crosses the Mississippi River. A full closure and traditional detour was therefore not considered a practical construction option.
MnDOT also studied whether two lanes in each direction could remain open while construction occurred. That was ruled out as well, leaving one lane northbound and one lane southbound through construction as the working solution.
MnDOT's published construction plan divides the project into three segments. The first extends from just north of Third Street to the Vermillion River. The second runs from the Vermillion River south to Highway 316. The third continues from Highway 316 to 36th Street.
Within those larger segments, traffic would move around the construction itself. Crews are expected to work on the southbound portion, northbound portion and center portion of Highway 61 at different times. When work is occurring on one side of the highway, traffic can be shifted to the other.
A center turn lane is expected to remain available during portions of the northbound and southbound lane construction, but it will not be available while the middle section is being rebuilt. On paper, the concept is relatively simple, build one side while traffic uses the other, switch traffic, build the second side, then complete work in the middle.
Doing that for more than two miles of a heavily traveled highway, while keeping homes and businesses accessible and coordinating utilities, intersections and bridges, is considerably more complicated.
Jones pointed to reconstruction work in downtown Rochester as an example of the general construction approach, where one side of a roadway was rebuilt while traffic remained on the other. The exact order in Hastings, however, is still being developed.
MnDOT and project partners are meeting regularly to work through construction staging, and Jones emphasized that the project remains at only about 30 percent design. That means the plan residents saw in July is a much clearer picture than Hastings had a year ago, but it is not yet the final construction playbook.
One question raised during the meeting was why work would not simply start with the Highway 316 area, one of the largest and busiest intersections in the project. Jones said other pieces have to come first.
Among the most significant are construction of the crossovers that will allow traffic to shift around work zones and replacement of the deteriorating retaining wall near Todd Field. Jones referred to those early pieces as the "biggest dog" when discussing what needs to happen before the rest of the construction sequence can fall into place.
MnDOT expects to have a clearer staging order available as the project reaches the 60 percent design level later this year. That November update could be particularly important for businesses.
Although 2028 remains the year most Hastings residents are likely to associate with Highway 61 construction, some work may begin much sooner. Early construction packages are being considered for 2027, including the Todd Field retaining wall and construction of traffic crossovers needed for the larger project.
The existing Todd Field wall has been part of the project discussion for years. Its replacement is tied both to the condition of the wall and planned accessibility improvements in the area. Because of the wall's historic character, its replacement also requires coordination with historic preservation officials.
If that work can be completed before the main road reconstruction reaches full force, it removes one major complication from the larger project. The same is true of traffic crossovers.
Before crews can repeatedly move northbound and southbound traffic from one side of Highway 61 to another, they need places designed to safely make those transitions. That preliminary work may not attract the attention of a new roundabout or a completely rebuilt section of highway, but it is essential to making the construction plan function.
It also explains why the first major work residents notice may not happen where they expect.
By January 2028, the project is scheduled to be let for bids. From there, Hastings enters the heart of the construction period.
The current plan divides the work into three primary areas, but the character of construction will change from north to south. The northern portion includes the older and more developed part of the corridor, along with a significant amount of underground infrastructure.
According to information presented at the July meeting, MnDOT expects utility work to be an important part of the first stage, with construction beginning on the side where much of that work is concentrated while traffic uses the opposite side.
The second stage, from the Vermillion River to Highway 316, involves full-depth concrete reconstruction. This is not simply a resurfacing project where crews grind away a few inches of worn pavement and place a fresh layer on top. The highway is being rebuilt.
The southern segment between Highway 316 and 36th Street is expected to use full-depth asphalt pavement. That portion can be constructed more quickly than the concrete section, and the staging discussion presented in July indicated that a short-term detour may be possible for some work in that area.
The overall project, however, is not expected to include a complete Highway 61 detour. Motorists should expect lane closures, traffic shifts, delays and changing access points, but they should not expect Highway 61 to disappear as a route through Hastings for two years.
For residents, that may make the difference between inconvenience and outright isolation. For businesses, it could make the difference between customers being delayed and customers believing they cannot get there at all.
Maintaining business access has become one of the central issues surrounding the Highway 61 project. The corridor is lined with restaurants, retailers, service businesses, offices and other destinations that rely on people being able to find their way in and out.
Construction will change those routes. A driveway may remain open while the customer's normal turn disappears. An intersection that worked one way on Monday may operate differently a few weeks later. Traffic approaching from the north could have a different path than traffic approaching from the south.
Customers may see construction ahead and decide to go somewhere else unless they know the business remains open. That is why the conversation about Highway 61 has increasingly moved from simply designing the road to preparing Hastings for construction.
The Hastings Area Chamber of Commerce has organized a Highway 61 Open for Business effort to bring businesses together before and during the project. MnDOT has also established business resources for the project, with communication expected to increase substantially as construction approaches.
The basic message will need to be repeated often. Highway 61 businesses are still open, homes remain accessible and the road remains open, but the route to reach a particular destination may temporarily change.
Two years is a long time to communicate that message. It is also a long time for motorists to deal with a one-lane construction corridor.
Traffic through Hastings can already become congested during busy periods, particularly when an incident or other problem disrupts Highway 61. Reducing the highway to one lane each direction creates an obvious concern about backups.
The project team has acknowledged those challenges, and construction staging is being designed around keeping traffic moving while still providing enough room for crews to safely rebuild the roadway.
There is no version of the project where traffic operates exactly as it does today. There is also no practical way to reconstruct 2.7 miles of Highway 61 without affecting drivers. The goal is to manage the disruption rather than pretend it will not exist.
That means Hastings motorists may eventually become very familiar with alternate local routes. Some traffic will undoubtedly leave Highway 61 whenever delays increase, navigation apps will send drivers through city streets, residents who know Hastings well will find their preferred alternatives and people traveling through the community may discover roads they have never used before.
For neighborhoods near Highway 61, that could mean additional traffic during construction. For businesses located away from the highway, it could mean changed traffic patterns of their own. For everyone, it will require some patience.
The construction inconvenience is coming because MnDOT and the city are planning significant changes to the corridor.
The project extends roughly 2.7 miles, from just north of Third Street to just south of 36th Street. Concrete pavement is planned from the northern end of the project to the new roundabout at Highway 316.
Two full-sized roundabouts will be built, one at Highway 316 and another at 36th Street. The roundabouts will be different from the smaller compact roundabouts familiar to drivers elsewhere in Hastings.
They are designed to accommodate Highway 61 traffic, including larger trucks, while slowing vehicles and reducing the types of conflicts that can result in severe crashes.
A new traffic signal is planned at 18th Street. That intersection has been identified as a location where a controlled signal can improve access while preparing the corridor for future traffic growth.
Several other intersections will change substantially.
Medians are planned at Fifth Street East and West, Seventh Street East and West, Ninth Street East and West, 19th Street West and 24th Street West. Vehicles will no longer be able to cross Highway 61 directly east to west at those locations.
Instead, drivers will make right turns and use other intersections when they need to reverse direction. Additional movement restrictions are planned around 11th Street East and Highway 55, 14th Street East and West and 16th Street East.
Those changes are designed to reduce conflict points, improve pedestrian safety and make traffic movement along Highway 61 more predictable. They will also require some drivers to relearn familiar routes.
Someone who has crossed Highway 61 at the same intersection for years may need to travel another block or two. A customer approaching a business may need to pass the property, turn around at another intersection and return from the opposite direction.
Those permanent changes are one reason business-access discussions cannot wait until construction begins.
The project also includes major pedestrian improvements. New six-foot concrete sidewalks and pedestrian ramps are planned on both sides of Highway 61, and an eight-foot trail is planned from Highway 316 to 36th Street.
A separate bicycle and pedestrian bridge has been proposed next to the Highway 61 bridge across the Vermillion River, although that portion remains dependent on funding and approval. If constructed, the bridge would connect with the Vermillion River Trail system and other new pedestrian facilities.
The project also includes drainage improvements and city utility upgrades. That underground work is not nearly as visible on a project rendering, but it contributes to both the cost and construction complexity.
Rebuilding the road gives the city an opportunity to address aging infrastructure beneath it rather than return later and dig through newly completed pavement.
The current overall construction estimate is roughly $40 million, with the City of Hastings describing the project at approximately $41 million in its July update. That number reflects a project that has changed over time as the design has developed, funding has been secured and additional work has been incorporated.
The project began much more broadly as a study of Highway 61.
MnDOT and the city spent 2022 through 2024 studying the corridor, collecting public comments and developing concepts. Residents identified concerns about vehicle speeds, pedestrian crossings, congestion, sidewalks, intersections and the overall character of the highway.
The result is the design Hastings is now preparing to build.
For several years, those discussions could still feel theoretical. A roundabout on a presentation board does not delay anyone's commute, a proposed median does not block a turn and a construction-stage diagram does not put a line of brake lights outside a business.
That is beginning to change.
Tree removal, borings and surveying are happening in 2026. Right-of-way work is underway, the design is expected to reach 60 percent in November, possible early construction begins in 2027, final plans are expected in September 2027 and the main project is scheduled for bids in January 2028.
Then come two construction seasons.
That timeline makes the July meeting an important turning point. The question is no longer simply what Highway 61 will look like when the project is finished, but how Hastings gets there.
For businesses, that means planning how customers will find them when construction shifts. For residents, it means learning what stage is active and which intersections are affected. For MnDOT and the city, it means communicating construction changes quickly and clearly.
For motorists, it means understanding that "open" and "normal" will not mean the same thing for a while.
Highway 61 will remain open, traffic will continue moving north and south and homes and businesses are expected to remain accessible. The trip through Hastings during construction will sometimes take longer, however, and the route into a particular driveway or side street may change.
The project team still has time to refine exactly how that works. With design at about 30 percent during the July meeting, MnDOT officials stressed that the construction sequence remains a work in progress.
By the expected November update, Hastings should have a much clearer idea of which work will happen first, where traffic will move and how the different pieces fit together. That information may matter more to the average driver than another drawing of the finished road.
The final Highway 61 promises smoother pavement, safer intersections, new pedestrian facilities, improved utilities and a corridor designed for future growth.
Before Hastings gets any of that, it gets construction, two years of it.
The barrels are not lining Highway 61 yet, and the main reconstruction remains more than a year away. That makes 2026 and 2027 the community's planning window.
Businesses can begin thinking about customer access and communication, residents can begin learning what will change and MnDOT can continue refining a construction schedule that has to balance traffic, businesses, homes, utilities, safety and the practical reality that Hastings cannot simply shut down its main north-south highway.
There will be plenty more meetings before the work is finished, and there will almost certainly be changes to the details. Once construction begins, Hastings residents will also have plenty of opportunities to become experts on cones, temporary lanes and traffic shifts.
One question from the project's earlier planning phase, however, now appears settled.
Highway 61 is going to take two years.