Idaho Street Reopens in Morgan Park

MORGAN PARK, Minn.– A long-closed street in Morgan Park opened back up today, with a ceremony.

Idaho Street was closed last fall due to safety concerns about the bridge that passes over it.

At the time, this left residents with only one way in and out of the neighborhood.

“We’ve got approximately 130 bridges in Duluth that we have to inspect, and I can tell you that this was the worst bridge in the city for a number of years. We inspected it last October and followed up some deficiencies that had us really concerned,” said Jim Benning, Director of Public Works.

After these concerns were identified, the decision was made to temporarily close the road.

Although it caused inconvenience for residents, it seems the decision was justified.

The bridge had rusted columns and bases, along with visible cracks.

One resident said she felt compelled to speak up and push for change.

“I just knew that this needed to be improved and that it was a major issue. I’d actually had a citizen report it to me about three years ago. So, I just called Jim Benning, emailed Jim Benning to figure out maybe. Could be done. Safety is a big concern of mine. So yes, I like, I’ll advocate for safety whenever I can, to try and get things better,” explained Ruby Berg, a Morgan Park resident.

The street was closed for a total of nine months.