Met Council approves additional $111 million for Southwest light-rail line, but more is needed

A series of actions taken in recent weeks to prop up the Southwest light-rail line culminated Wednesday when the Metropolitan Council approved a multimillion-dollar infusion to advance the beleaguered $2.7 billion project.

On a 12-1 vote, the council amended its 2022 budget to include an extra $111 million — most of it federal COVID-19 relief money — to see the line's construction into 2024. The action follows last week's Hennepin County Board approval of an additional $100 million for the project, boosting the Southwest budget by a total of $211 million.

But as much as $260 million still could be needed to complete the line.

Several members of the Met Council's Committee of the Whole said voting to commit the additional money was difficult but necessary. "If you're a fan of light-rail, this is not a great day," Council Member Judy Johnson said. "These are hard decisions to be made."

But Johnson said the project must move forward. Once completed, she said, the Southwest line "will serve us very well going into the future."

The project had been short by $470 million, so the Met Council and its partners must find up to $260 million to finish the line. It's unclear where the rest of the money will be found.

"Hopefully, a year from now we'll have more [funding] solutions," Johnson said.

The Met Council's Transportation and Management committees this month agreed to recommend the additional $111 million, tapping its allotment from the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021.

Including last week's $100 million, Hennepin County has authorized about $1 billion toward construction of the project. With stops in Minneapolis, St. Louis Park, Hopkins, Minnetonka and Eden Prairie, the 14.5-mile line lies entirely within the county.

Hennepin County's contribution is funded through its half-cent transportation sales tax, but commissioners emphasized that other transportation projects would not be affected by their decision to approve the additional $100 million.

The lone dissenting vote Wednesday was cast by Wendy Wulff, a Met Council member since 2009 who represents parts of Dakota and Scott counties. She said Hennepin County officials should provide more financial support.

"They chose the alignment. ... It's still their project," she said. "They aren't fully invested in their own project."

But Met Council Chair Charlie Zelle said the "hard, but important vote" was necessary to get the job done. "We're doing the right thing with our eyes wide open," he said.

The Southwest line is more than 60% complete and slated to begin service in 2027, nearly a decade later than originally planned. About $1.8 billion has been spent on the project, with most of the money coming from the federal government and Hennepin County.

If the Met Council opted to abandon the project, it would be on the hook to pay back the Federal Transit Administration nearly $1 billion.

The state Office of the Legislative Auditor, a nonpartisan watchdog agency, is conducting a special review into Southwest's cost overruns and delays. The first of two reports is expected to be released in February, with the second in the spring.