City gives go-ahead for highway underpass project
By Daniel Arens
Hazen is still in the final wrap-up process of a large street project that impacted nearly every portion of the town. But a fortuitous cost-share might bring the next major project to town in the near future.
For several months, the city commission has discussed various improvements in Hazen related to Highway 200. These include additional lighting along the road, completing a bike path circuit for the town, and the later addition of an underpass for pedestrians at the highway’s intersection with 4th Ave. NE near Cenex, possibly the busiest intersection in town.
But there was also reason to be concerned about whether the projects might prove feasible. For one thing, there was the cost to consider, especially regarding installing the underpass. For another, because Highway 200 is a state road, any such project would ultimately be a state project, needing approval from the state to get it off the ground.
