Sinkhole closure on St. Paul’s West 7th sparks worry for neighbors

The usual hum of traffic on W. 7th Street will be quiet for most of the summer, replaced by the noise of road construction.

Unlike the lane and bridge closures snaking around the rest of downtown St. Paul, this closure — due to a 35-foot-deep sinkhole that opened over the weekend — was not planned.

But residents say the sinkhole didn’t exactly come as a surprise, because of the street has been in bad shape for a long time.

“There have been potholes on West Seventh for years, and nobody’s done anything,” said Emily Velazco, as she walked her twin 4-year-old sons in a wagon on the sidewalk.

The future of the street has changed direction repeatedly. Ramsey County abandoned plans for a streetcar to the airport last year, and now the city and the Met Council are looking at bus rapid transit. While the Minnesota Department of Transportation plans to rebuild the road, work on this section was not slated to begin until 2029.

The eventual plans for the street involve taking the four-lane road to three lanes, widening sidewalks and adding bike lanes.

But right now, Velazco said, the way people drive on W. 7th Street makes it a less-than-pleasant place for a stroll with her kids. Drivers are often speeding as they exit Interstate 94 or 35E, she said, and veering erratically to avoid the biggest potholes.

Neighbor Raven Cross said the street is always congested, and she often sees some detour or construction site.

Now, with the street closed, there’s no Wild hockey game traffic, but Cross is worried about the businesses on the street.

“It kind of takes away from the neighborhood,” she said. “You don’t see people. It’s just dead like this.”

It’s already been a tough year for downtown St. Paul, which has seen condemned buildings and closed restaurants, and plenty of chatter about both. Renovation of the Xcel Energy Center is a dimming prospect for this year with the Legislature just a week from the end of session. The prospect of state and city office workers’ return has done little to improve the mood. Now the sinkhole threatens to take a bite out of summer bar and restaurant business.

City officials say there will be closed lanes on W. 7th Street until mid-July. Signs on Kellogg Boulevard and Grand Avenue warn of road closures and say “business access only.” The middle two lanes of the four-lane street are closed, surrounded with chain-link fence around the workers digging out the damaged road.

Sean Kershaw, the city’s Director of Public Works, said in a comment on Facebook that the work will be time-consuming because workers have to dig 30 feet into the limestone below W. 7th Street, while trying to avoid hitting water lines inches from the damaged area.

Velazco worries construction and unplanned closures like this will make St. Paul’s streets even harder to navigate, especially for out-of-towners unfamiliar with the capital city’s road-design quirks.

Not everyone is concerned.

Kevin Nickelson parked a few blocks away to pick up lunch and groceries from Cossetta’s, but said the lane closures and construction didn’t much bother him. Parking is always hard to find, he said, so walking a little ways is nothing new.

Jan Mandell, eating a gelato on Cossetta’s sidewalk patio, said she sees construction as a part of life.

“There’s a lot of other things to be worried about,” she said.