Special Session is Opportunity to Move Minnesota Forward

[commentary]

An upcoming special session now seems a virtual certainty, given that the dual disasters of the Interstate 35W bridge collapse and the massive flooding in southeastern Minnesota hit the state all at once.

What’s to be done?

more insideCertainly, funding will need to be appropriated for the reconstruction of the bridge in Minneapolis. That much is obvious. Certainly, some sort of assistance package will need to be assembled for those in flooded areas who have lost everything.

But once we pass the obvious mile markers, what’s next?  Should the Legislature increase permanent funding for roads and mass transit projects across the state?  Should light rail transit be included on the 35W bridge project?  Should this blinding example of our creaking, crumbling, disastrously overburdened infrastructure finally falling apart serve as a wake-up call to invest now so we don’t have to spend more money later?

In all cases, the answer is yes.

Moving Minnesota forward in terms of investments in infrastructure rebuilding and construction is of paramount importance right now.  We cannot afford to simply catch up — by the time we are caught up, we’ll already be stuck behind the 8 ball again.  Minnesotans will invest in their communities and shared resources when asked to share equally in the necessary sacrifice.  It’s time to bring the entire state together and declare that mediocrity is no longer acceptable. The Legislature can accomplish that in a special session and start repairing the infrastructure our communities need.

And damned be any who stand in the way.