The suburb wanted to fix up the street. Then residents saw the price tag.

A little road is kicking up a big controversy in Inver Grove Heights.

In May, the south metro city approved an early design that would add a fresh coat of pavement, a storm sewer system, curbs and gutters to the Blackberry Trail area, a well-trodden thoroughfare that winds among impressive houses.

Neighbors are set to each be assessed $24,580 to fund the work, which will also better direct stormwater to reduce erosion, according to a preliminary calculation.

But the project, construction of which could start in 2026, has incensed much of the neighborhood, with homeowners decrying its high cost and potential damage to their properties.

Some have taken their criticism further, arguing the city hasn’t been transparent about the road reconstruction’s details or incorporated their feedback into the design.

“The people of this area are really, really concerned with the disruption, with the cost,” said neighbor Chris Maley. “And we didn’t have any say in it.”

City engineer Paul Merchlewicz defended the project in an interview, saying staff continue to work with residents to minimize damage and have followed the normal assessment process to calculate costs. The project, he explained, is a badly needed overhaul that will remedy drainage problems and reduce erosion.

But that explanation hasn’t assuaged the fears of many neighbors, who contend their rural road doesn’t need a pricey facelift.

Said neighbor Kent Miller: “Do I want to pay $25,000 for a project that I don’t even want?”

Homeowners have voiced a number of complaints about the project.

Miller, who has lived in the neighborhood nearly 30 years, worries a plan to fill an embankment on his property to prevent flooding could damage trees that have taken decades to mature.

Matthew Isaac, who said neighbors have learned over the years how to successfully manage water accumulation on the road, fears plans to direct stormwater into a pond at the bottom of the neighborhood could harm nearby wildlife.

And Maley, who moved here from Minneapolis for the solitude and lush surroundings, was distraught to learn the city intends to move a road as much as 20 feet closer to her property to fix a mistake made years ago. Shifting the thoroughfare, she worries, could replace a wall of thick pine trees and a landscaped hillside with the whoosh of passing cars.

“We’ll be passing sugar with cars that go by,” she said.

Sarah Scovil said she was disappointed with the city’s meetings about the project, arguing officials haven’t provided detailed plans about how the road reconstruction could change their properties. In Scovil’s telling, the city has also disregarded the perspectives of longtime residents whose understanding of the neighborhood’s topography could inform the design.

“The government needs to work like an honest, functioning government,” she said. “If you’re asking for our money and you are respecting us as taxpayers and citizens, you need to be more transparent.”

Merchlewicz, the engineer, said the repavement and storm sewer installation is badly needed to fix a cracked road that doesn’t drain properly and prevent water from eroding people’s yards. Such improvements will lengthen the thoroughfare’s lifespan, he added.

As for potential property impacts, Merchlewicz said the road replacement will affect all properties in the neighborhood “at a high level,” but most construction will occur within city rights of way and easements. More specific changes to residents’ yards and driveways will emerge once staff completes the final design in January 2026.

Asked about worries over the project’s cost, Merchlewicz said staff calculated that number using the city’s 46-page standard assessment process.

Brian Connolly, city public works director, added that an independent appraiser plans to conduct a “benefit analysis” to ensure that the assessment matches a homeowner’s anticipated property value increase from the work.

Said Merchlewicz: “We’ve tried to explain our assessment policy, and these residents aren’t being treated abnormally,” he said, adding that the city hosted three meetings — more than usual — to solicit input and answer questions about the preliminary plan.

Merchlewicz noted the city intends to lay down a narrower-than-usual road to minimize its impact on properties and work with residents worried about tree damage.

Moving the road is necessary to improve access to a nearby right of way, Merchlewicz said, adding that staff intend to work with Maley to reduce potential encroachment on her trees and garden. But the city, he added, ultimately has to prioritize building a durable road over addressing everyone’s wishes.

“The neighborhood felt that we should design it how they wanted it,” he said. “And from an engineering and liability standpoint, we can’t always give everybody exactly what they think the solution may need to be.”