NEW ULM – The New Ulm City Council is a requesting a variance from the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) for standards related to parking standards on North Garden Street.

In 2027, the city is preparing to reconstruct a section of North Garden Street from Center Street to 5th North Street. The project is scheduled to receive federal funding that will include pedestrian enhancements at the 1st North intersection adjacent to Harman Park and a min-roundabout at the 5th North intersection.

City Engineer Joe Stadheim said for this project, the city is seeking a variance from MnDOT’s road design standards for parking. MnDOT standards require a 14-foot distance between the back of the parking stalls and traffic lanes for a roadway seeing over 3,000 vehicles per day. The current configuration of North Garden Street adjacent to Harman Park has angled parking with a distance of 4-feet between the back of the parking stall and traffic lane. In order to conform to the MnDOT standard, the angled parking on Garden Street near Harman Park would need to be eliminated or the city would need to eliminate a section of sidewalk along Harman Park.

The variance request would allow New Ulm to keep the 4-foot distance and keep the angled parking.

Stadheim said the reason for the request is because the parking spots are next to Harman Park athletic fields and angled parking is required. Peak traffic times for Garden Street do not coincide with use of the angled parking.

City councilor Eric Warmka ask if the new street design would reduce parking in this area.

Stadheim said with the bump out on 1st North, the city could lose a couple parking spots. The city is working to maximize and maintain parking at this location.

Council President Andrea Boettger asked if the project will move forward with the variance requests. Boettger said she felt strongly about having the bump outs in this area.

Stadheim said because this was a state aid road, the state aid office would have final say on project approval, but he was hopeful the variance request would be approved.

“I think we have a strong case to deviate from state aid standards,” he said.

City Councilor Larry Mack said he liked the proposal maintaining the angled parking. He made the motion to approving the variance request to MnDOT. Councilor Warmka seconded the motion. It was approved by the council.

The request will go to the Thursday, March 27 meeting of MnDOT variance committee for consideration.

New Ulm will also hold a public open house for the North Garden Street project, including concept designs. The open house is 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 25 in the New Ulm City Council Chambers.