MARSHALL — While the planning is far from over, the Minnesota Department of Transportation knows what direction it wants to take for safety updates at four Marshall intersections. MnDOT project manager Gene East said planners for a 2025 reconstruction of Highway 19 (College Drive) in Marshall will be looking at a roundabout at the intersection of College Drive, Country Club Drive and South Second Street, as well as turn restrictions at two other intersections near downtown.

MnDOT and the city of Marshall are also discussing a possible pedestrian crossing at the intersection of College Drive and Lyon Street, East said.

Last week, East updated members of the Marshall City Council on the planning process for reconstruction. MnDOT had asked for public feedback on how to improve four key intersections on Highway 19: the three-way intersection where College Drive, Country Club Drive and South Second Street meet, Marvin Schwan Memorial Drive, Lyon Street, and West Marshall Street.

“We had a great show of interest from the community,” including more than 300 people who participated in an online open house, and more than 600 people who responded to a survey on the project. However, public feedback was just one part of the planning process. “All of the decision is not completely based on feedback,” he said. Engineering and technical analysis took precedence, he said.

East said MnDOT would be moving forward with planning a roundabout at the three-way intersection near the Marshall National Guard Armory. When MnDOT gathered feedback, members of the public were divided on whether they would support a roundabout.

“There seems to be yet a bit of a ‘love them or hate them’ attitude toward roundabouts,” East said. But part of that might have had to do with how the proposal was communicated, he said. Most of the questions MnDOT got from the public were focused on pedestrian safety and whether a roundabout could accommodate trucks. East said the roundabout would be able to handle trucks and improve safety at the intersection.

East said MnDOT will also be moving ahead with proposed turn restrictions at the intersection of Marvin Schwan Drive and West Marshall Street. The intersection of College Drive and Marvin Schwan Memorial Drive would be limited to right turns only. The plan for the intersection of College Drive and West Marshall Street would be to build a concrete median that allows only right turns. Both changes would improve safety, East said.

The right-turn-only proposal at the Marshall Street intersection were “very well received” by the public, East said. That intersection, located near a historic bridge and the Marshall city band shell, has poor visibility for traffic making a left turn onto College Drive.

One planned proposal — removing the traffic signal at the College Drive/Lyon Street intersection — will involve some further discussion between MnDOT and the city. MnDOT’s plan is to replace the stoplights with stop signs on Lyon Street. However, East said some residents questioned the proposal.

“A major portion of the feedback was on pedestrian needs,” East said. Members of the Marshall City Council also raised concerns that the Lyon Street intersection was a point for pedestrians to access downtown.

East said MnDOT and the city will continue to talk about possibly adding a pedestrian crossing at the Lyon Street intersection.