Back in February, at the Mayor's State of the City event, Woodbury Public Works Director Mary Van Milligen gave her own forecast for the 2026 construction season. Woodbury News Net reported that she called it "challenging" and said whether it would feel easier "really depends on where you live and where you're going."
Eight months later, that holds up. Woodlane Drive and Afton Road reopened on Oct. 16 after being closed most of the season, and Eastview Road was scheduled to follow on Oct. 21. Woodlane Drive has one fewer travel lane, part of Afton Road was planned narrower, and Eastview Road now has a four-way stop where traffic used to flow. Most of these changes slow drivers down and make more room for people walking or biking. On the other side of town, Bailey Road is still closed in two places, so the season isn't over for everyone.
Woodlane Drive Reopened With One Fewer Lane
Woodlane Drive between Bailey Road and Wooddale Drive got the biggest change. Woodbury News Net expected it to open to two-way traffic on Friday, Oct. 16, after the final layer of pavement went down between Wooddale Drive and Courtly Road. By Oct. 19 the outlet reported the road open, with striping still to be finished without another closure.
The new lane layout is the part drivers will feel. According to the City Council's April 22, 2026 minutes, the project combined new pavement and curbs with pedestrian crossing upgrades, trail replacement and extensions, water main replacement, and some storm and sanitary sewer work. City Engineer Tony Kutzke told the Council that the federal grant money paid for the four-to-three lane conversion part of the job. City staff also described extending the trail from Bailey Road to Lydia Lane and adding refuge islands on stretches with no west-side trail, partly to close a gap in safe crossings for students.
The road took a long time to plan. The city held four neighborhood meetings between July 2024 and March 2026, sent 5,000 letters, and drew 170 people to meetings and 139 questionnaire responses. The low bid came in at $7,106,683, about $333,000 below the $7,440,000 budgeted for 2026.
The work is done on the street, but residents along it will see one more effect next year. The same minutes list proposed special assessments of $5,071 to $11,875 per single-family parcel, payable over 15 years at 4.50% interest. The first payment is due with the first half of 2027 property taxes, and there is a 30-day window to pay with no interest. These figures come from that public meeting record and are general information only. They aren't tax or financial advice, so property owners should confirm their own assessment and options with the city or their own advisor.
Afton Road Was Planned Narrower on Purpose
Woodlane lost a lane. On Afton Road, the plan was to make the pavement itself narrower. The half-mile rehabilitation from Tower Drive to Radio Drive included full pavement replacement, curb repairs, rehabilitation of about 1,600 feet of the existing north-side trail east of Tower Drive, and a trail extension that ties into the Radio Drive trail system.
The city's Afton Road feasibility report called for narrowing the eastern segment from 32 feet to 24 feet. The reason was partly to fit the trail without taking more private property. It was also a response to residents who raised concerns about speeding. Afton Road reopened in both directions Oct. 16, and the trail connection between Tower Drive and Radio Drive was expected to open the same week.
Woodlane and Afton started as separate projects, but both ended up with less room for cars, more trail, and better crossings.
Eastview Road Is Set to Return With a Four-Way Stop
Eastview Road follows the same pattern on a smaller scale. The stretch between Fox Run Road and Settlers Ridge Parkway was scheduled to reopen in both directions on Wednesday, Oct. 21, and the intersection with Settlers Ridge Parkway is now a four-way stop. If you've driven through there for years without stopping, it's an easy change to miss. The Eastview trail was also expected to reopen the same week.
Eastview's work was delayed for a reason outside the city's control. City minutes say Metropolitan Council excavations for a sewer force main delayed the city's Eastview rehabilitation work.
Bailey Road Is Where the Season Keeps Going
The new lane layouts mostly affect neighborhoods in central and eastern Woodbury. For drivers who use Bailey Road to reach Highway 61 or Interstate 494, the season isn't over. On Monday, Oct. 19, Washington County closed County Highway 18, which is Bailey Road, at Sterling Avenue and Bailey Court in Newport to build utility crossings under the road. The county's notice estimated about three weeks. Sterling Avenue stays closed for the whole project, and Bailey Court is closed for part of it. Woodbury News Net gave a slightly longer estimate of three to four weeks. Counting from Oct. 19, that points to a reopening somewhere between early and mid-November.
Here's what to know for the next few weeks around Bailey:
- Highway 61 and I-494 access: The Newport closure cuts off Bailey Road access to both.
- Trails: The trail on the south side of Bailey Road is closed between the entrance to La Lake Park and Woodlane Drive. The north-side trail is still open as an alternate.
- East end: As of Oct. 11, Bailey Road was also still closed between Neal Avenue and Highway 95, and that report gave no reopening date.
- Highway 95: At the far east end, MnDOT lists its project at Highway 95 and County Highway 18/40th Street/Bailey Road as complete. That project built a single-lane roundabout, a trail for pedestrians and cyclists, resurfacing, and drainage and accessibility improvements. MnDOT's 2026 metro construction table still shows the same project running May through November 2026, so check the project page before you plan a route through there.
The Highway 95 roundabout fits the same pattern as Woodlane, Afton and Eastview. It replaced a different kind of intersection with a single-lane design and added a trail.
The Pipe Under All of It Runs Into 2027
Van Milligen pointed to one main reason for this year's disruption. The city was installing 17 miles of pipeline along major roads as part of its $330 million water treatment infrastructure program. Woodbury News Net reported in March that the work was expected to finish this season. The city's water treatment project map, updated Oct. 19, 2026, now gives a longer schedule. It places the remaining pipeline segments and final plant construction in 2026 through 2027.
The map lists 2026 pipeline work on Valley Creek Road, Bailey Road between Woodbury Drive and Radio Drive, Colby Lake Drive, Radio Drive north of Bailey, Pioneer Drive and Hargis Parkway. Valley Creek Road had the hardest stretch. A failed water main extended work between Dancing Waters Parkway and Woodbury Drive into early September, Woodbury News Net reported in June.
On the same map, a Sept. 25 update said project-related road and trail closures should be minimal from then on. The next scheduled job is on Radio Drive near Five Oaks Community Church and Dale Road, with a tentative start in May 2027. That means next spring has at least one dug-up road already on the calendar.
The plant all this pipe connects to will treat 32 million gallons a day from all of the city's current groundwater wells, and the city expects it to start operating in 2028.
Getting Around Woodbury This Winter
As of late October, most of central and eastern Woodbury is open again, and several of those roads now carry less car capacity and more trail than before. Woodlane is three lanes. Part of Afton was planned narrower to slow traffic. Eastview has a new stop at Settlers Ridge Parkway, and trails now connect into the Radio Drive and Lydia Lane areas. The western stretch of Bailey Road toward Newport will likely stay closed until about mid-November, and Radio Drive has pipeline work scheduled for May.
The city's inTouch updates, which Assistant City Engineer Mike Hejna mentioned at the April hearing, send weekly construction news by email. Subscribing is the easiest way to hear when the Bailey Road closures lift.
If you live along one of these corridors and wonder how a new lane layout, a nearby trail connection, or a coming assessment might matter when you decide to sell, Matthew Vorwerk can walk through it with you using your street's specifics. Let's Connect.
