Getting There: Moran Prairie roundabout is now complete

The roundabout on 57th Avenue and Freya Street was completed Friday, six years after receiving funding.

The $832,000 project, awarded to Cameron-Reilly LLC, was funded almost entirely through a $728,000 federal grant through the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Program in 2018. The program exists to provide funds for reducing the congestion on roadways and improving air quality.

The intersection was known by locals of the Moran Prairie area to get congested at times, particularly during rush hour when 57th Avenue had no openings for traffic from Freya to pass through. Parents picking up their kids from the Moran Prairie Elementary School just down the road also added to the wait times people faced.

In a previous interview with The Spokesman Review, Matt King, the pastor at the nearby Followers Church, said that “if you stand here for about five minutes, you’ll hear a couple honks.”

Even for drivers who were unbothered by the conditions at 57th and Freya originally, the end of construction signifies the end of using detour routes to get to work.

“I’m just glad it’s open and I don’t have to go around anymore,” said Betsy Kargol, who works at the Avamere at South Hill retirement community a few blocks from the intersection.