STURGIS, S.D. – The South Dakota Department of Transportation will be holding a public meeting Thursday, August 27^th, to update Sturgis residents about the major project that will widen and rebuild Lazelle Street.

The highway is a state-owned highway, also known as Highway 34, and the project is being handled by the state of South Dakota, not the city of Sturgis.

D.O.T. Rapid City Regional Engineer Mike Carlson tells KBHB News, this is a large project that will be split into several phases.

“It is a series of three projects,” Carlson said. “Each project probably two years long, so it’ll take us, once we get started, about six years to complete all the reconstruction of Lazelle Street.”

The project runs from 10^th Street to east of Blanche Street in Sturgis.

Carlson says there are several reasons for the rebuilding and widening of the road.

“You know, one, to widen the lanes. Everything’s worn out, so it’s just ready for a reconstruction. And so, you know, we’ll replace the pavement, replace all the drainage structures. All those drainage structures are getting to an age now where you need to replace them. They’ve aged out. Also to upgrade the signals, especially at Junction and Lazelle, get that signal upgraded so that, you know, with the new technology, we have new street lights, new sidewalk, ADA sidewalks on both sides. So, it’s something that’s needed in Sturgis, so it’s time to get that rebuilt.”

As expected, a project of this size will have an impact on residents who live along Lazelle Street. Carlson says they will be meeting with owners and tenants who live along Lazelle who have personal property affected by the right of way being acquired for the project.

“Well, and we’ve had some public meetings in the past, and we’ve told a lot of the landowners when they came to those public meetings that what our plan was is to widen it, so you know, we’re trying to share the pain on both sides of the road for the most part. So, we’ll be taking some additional property on both sides just to get that. I can’t remember how many more feet we need, but it’s probably 5 or 6 foot on both sides in order to get our 55 foot of road in.”

Carlson says he understands there will be some upset residents who are being affected by the project and the property needed to make the road safer and more compliant with today’s needs.

At next week’s meeting, the D.O.T. will explain the project, the need for it and what programs are available to help landowners who are going to be affected by it. They include a property acquisition offer and a relocation assistance program.

They will also explain the Department’s right of way process.

The meeting begins at 5:30 on Thursday, August 27^th, at the Sturgis Community Center.