The following article by Janet Moore was published in the July 23, 2015 edition of the Star Tribune:

Transit Deja Vu: Another Round of Public Hearings Set for Southwest Light Rail

Met Council Chairman Adam Duininck — Photo by Glen Stubbe, Star Tribune

Changes from cost-cutting have changed $1.74 billion project.

Just when it seemed like a retooled Southwest light-rail line was back on track, the Metropolitan Council opted Wednesday to order a new round of public hearings that will stretch into October.

The hearings and subsequent votes, called municipal consent, will take place in Hennepin County and the five cities along the line — Minneapolis, St. Louis Park, Hopkins, Minnetonka and Eden Prairie. They are prompted by more than $250 million in cuts to the project, including dropping the final station at Mitchell Road in Eden Prairie and deferring another stop at Town Center there.

The cost of the slimmed-down line now stands at $1.74 billion, a dramatic change that will require more public input.

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 http://m.startribune.com/local/west/318217091.html