Staff photo by Clay Schuldt The intersection at Garden and Center Streets will be the subject of an evaluation study and concept design, to deal with safety issues and concerns the city has.

NEW ULM — An evaluation study and concept design for the intersection of Center Street and Garden Street was approved by New Ulm’s City Council, Tuesday.

The intersection of Center Street and (Brown County CSAH 13) and Garden has long been a challenging intersection for vehicles and pedestrians.

In addition to being a major corridor through New Ulm, the intersection is located near Harman Park, The New Ulm Park and Recreation Center, and Brown County Human Service building. Hermann Heights Park and Martin Luther College are located just up the hill from the intersection. St. Paul’s Lutheran, Jefferson Elementary and New Ulm Middle School are located a few blocks south of the intersection. During school drop-off and pick-up hours, the intersection is extremely busy. In addition, the steep Center Street hill makes downhill traffic tend to come faster as it approaches the intersection.

Center and Garden have been identified as a priority by New Ulm’s Safety Commission, Heart of New Ulm, Safe Routes to School Team and by public comments during the comprehensive plan update process.

The city council previously authorized a request for proposal for the engineering study and concept design, Feb. 7. Bolton & Menk, Inc. was awarded $50,310 to perform the evaluation and concept design for the intersection.

Bolton and Menk will collect field data including traffic volumes, delay time, pedestrian and bicycle counts and accident history, gathering public input on the intersection, data analysis, concept design of the preferred alternative and report and concept design presentations.

The study will help the city when seeking funding for permanent infrastructure improvements.

The presentation of the study findings would take place in October.