I am writing to inform residents in the area of a significant potential project underway which will perhaps impact residents across many local boundaries in our region from Clearwater, Silver Creek, Otsego areas & Elk River throughout Big Lake, Becker, Monticello Twps. & cities.

Aug. 8 I attended my first meeting of the Central Mississippi River Regional Planning Partnership (CMRP) formerly known as “Highway 25 Coalition.”  This partnership has evolved through a series of meetings going back to 2016. Together the group is currently made up of county board members from Sherburne & Wright Co., city councils, city administrators, township boards from Becker, Big Lake & Monticello & some other nonvoting attendees.

The group formed a “joint powers” agreement in 2017 to provide an organizational framework & a budget. This information & much more is available on the group’s website/PDF https://regionalplanningpartnership.org/ & https://regionalplanningpartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/CMRP-...

I encourage citizens to attend these meetings & contact their local representatives with input. The direction of this group will significantly impact for the long term, some 200,000 citizens represented in the area. Proposals from this group will impact the local comprehensive plans for numerous cities & twps. as well as impacting dramatic change decades ahead.

Meetings will come in communities through civic events & regular scheduled meetings of the CMRP. There is a meeting set as soon as Sept. 7 at West Bridge Park in Monticello to solicit input.

Dr S Bye

Monticello, MN

(Editor’s Note: Above letter edited for Brevity)