Pothole-laden Ayd Mill Road will undergo a $3.5 million mill-and-overlay fix in the coming weeks, two years ahead of schedule.

Following a lengthy discussion on Wednesday, the St. Paul City Council voted 5-2 to approve St. Paul Public Works’ revised five-year plan for street reconstructions and mill-and-overlay work, which catapults the 1.5-mile Ayd Mill Road project to the top of the list for bond financing.

“We’ve spent about $250,000 annually to keep the road barely serviceable,” said Public Works Director Kathy Lantry, addressing the council. Related Articles St. Paul City Council approves $600,000 charge for downtown improvement district

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Council Members Mitra Nelson and Jane Prince voted in opposition, noting that neighborhood advocates have long called on the city to rethink how to improve Ayd Mill Road, with no discernible progress. Some have called for a direct connection to Interstate 94; others have asked for a two-lane parkway; and still others envision something else entirely.

“I just see this … as a chance to get out of the cycle,” said Nelson, calling for a plan that moves beyond continual pothole repair.

In 2002, Mayor Randy Kelly opened the south end of the then-35-year-old road to Interstate 35E, but the north end empties five blocks south of I-94 at Selby Avenue.

Some 24,000 cars a day access Ayd Mill Road, many of them entering and exiting from neighborhood streets.

“When Mayor Kelly made this decision to open it, it was like, ‘Hey let’s open it,'” Prince said. “There wasn’t a thoughtful plan about how it was going to function as a street.”

Some residents have even called for closing the road entirely and converting it into a linear park, a prospect that some council members worry would simply force traffic onto nearby thoroughfares such as Lexington Parkway.

“Everyone who is now on Ayd Mill was cutting through Lexington,” said Council Member Chris Tolbert, remembering the traffic woes of his childhood. “I like having Lexington walkable, bikable.”

Council Member Dai Thao expressed relief that the mill and overlay would soon proceed. “You can go on your GPS at home and you can actually see the potholes,” he said. “I think it’s important that we get this work done.”