Area Transportation Partnerships

The Southeast Minnesota ATP was established to bring together the transportation improvement recommendations of the MPOs, Transit Operators, MnDOT, cities, and counties into an integrated list of transportation investments in the form of the Area Transportation Improvement Program (ATIP). Southeast Minnesota ATP will also review and comment on the draft STIP, establish criteria for project selection, work with the MPOs to incorporate projects from their TIP, participate with the District in the development and/or review of policies and procedures for managing the program, and developing/reviewing priority lists for programs that are not included in the target. The ATP provides technical advice to the District Engineer who represents the Commissioner of the Department of Transportation.

The ATP shall follow STIP funding guidance for each category of projects and shall integrate the priority lists into the four-year ATIP. The ATP-6 shall annually solicit candidate projects in the following categories:

• Transportation Alternatives (TA)
• STP – Small Cities
• STP – Counties
• STP – ROCOG

Southeast Minnesota ATP’s ATIP and Amendment and Administrative Modification Policy provides guidance on when formal action is required to amend its ATIP and when such action is not warranted. The approved policy takes into account guidance developed by Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Federal Transit Administration (FTA), and the MnDOT Office of Transportation System Management (OTSM) for processing amendments and administrative modifications to the State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP). The policy clarifies Southeast Minnesota ATP’s ATIP amendment requirements, serves to streamline the ATIP amendment decision-making process, and minimizes potential delays to projects that would otherwise require formal action by Southeast Minnesota ATP.

Southeast Minnesota ATP meetings are open to the public.

In-person meetings are held at the MnDOT District 6 Headquarters Building (2900 48th Street NW, Rochester, MN). For virtual meeting links, please see the meeting agenda. Agendas will be posted a minimum of three days before the scheduled meeting date.

• View meeting notes, agendas and documents

Accessibility

To request an ASL or foreign language interpreter, call 651-366-4720. To request other reasonable accommodations, call the Minnesota Relay Service toll-free at 1-800-627-3529 (TYY, Voice or ASCII) or 711, or email your request to adarequest.dot@state.mn.us.

• September - January: Solicit projects
• February: Develop regional lists
• March - April: Develop Draft ATIP
• May: Public Review and Comment
• June: Draft STIP review and comment
• July - August: STIP Approval by Commissioner
• September - October: STIP Approval by Federal Transportation Authorities

Voting members

• Greg Paulson, Assistant District Engineer Program Delivery, MnDOT (Chair)
• Fausto Cabral, Assistant District Engineer State Aid, MnDOT
• Kurt Wayne, Planning Director, MnDOT
• Bob Gollnik, Executive Director, LAPC MPO
• Allison Sosa, Executive Director, ROCOG MPO
• Ia Xiong, Transit & Parking Systems Manager, Large Urban Transit System
• Bill Spitzer, Director of Transportation, Small Cities/Rural Transit System
• Cristina M. Mlejnek, Project Manager, Prairie Island Indian Community
• David Kramer, Winona County Engineer
• Mark DuChene, Faribault City Engineer
• Ben Johnson, Olmsted County Engineer
• Sean Murphy, Owatonna City Engineer

Alternates

• Steven Jahnke, Albert Lea City Engineer
• Brandon Theobald, Kasson City Engineer
• Mitch Wenum, Mower County Engineer
• Erin Duffer, LAPC Transportation Planner
• Jarrett Hubbard, Community Planning Manager, Olmsted County

We review operating procedures yearly at the September or October meeting for any improvements or updates needed to procedures or policies. If updates are needed a sub-committee will be created for recommending updates.

• Southeast Minnesota ATP operating procedures (PDF)

• Information on the program and requirements: Federal PROTECT Formula Program - MnDOT (state.mn.us)
• Multiple years of PROTECT funding available:
• $210,000 remaining in Federal funds for FY2028
• $550,000 available in Federal funds for FY2029
• $550,000 available in Federal funds for FY2030
• For projects within the 11-county Southeast MN ATP area
• Maximum of 80% PROTECT funds – must have a 20% local match or more
• Projects identified withing the MN Resilience Improvement Plan (RIP) are eligible for 87% Federal funding / 13% match needed.
• Download the LOI here: PROTECT LOI ATP6 for Fall 2025
• Submit completed LOI via email to MnDOT D6 Planning Director Kurt Wayne: kurt.wayne@state.mn.us

• Information on the program and requirements: Carbon Reduction Program (state.mn.us)
• Check the program website for eligible projects and application guidance
• EV infrastructure projects are strongly discouraged for CRP this year – they may become ineligible.
• For projects within the 11-county Southeast MN ATP area that are outside of the cities of Rochester and La Crescent (those cities have different funding pools)
• $888,000 available in Federal funds for FY2030 in the ATP area described above
• $280,000 available in Federal funds for FY2030 in Rochester
• $12,000 available in Federal funds for FY2030 in La Crescent
• Maximum of 80% CRP funds – must have a 20% local match or more
• Download the LOI here: CRP LOI ATP6 for Fall 2025
• Submit completed LOI via email to MnDOT D6 Planning Director Kurt Wayne: kurt.wayne@state.mn.us

• Information on the program and requirements: Transportation Alternatives - Minnesota Department of Transportation (state.mn.us)
• $2.1 million available in Federal funds for FY 2030
• For projects within the 11-county Southeast MN ATP area
• Maximum of 80% TA funds – must have a 20% local match or more
• Applications must request a minimum of $200,000 in TA funds ($250,000 minimum project cost)
• Download a Letter of Intent (LOI) form here: TA LOI ATP6 for Fall 2025
• Submit a completed LOI Form to MnDOT D6 Principal Planner Brian McCoy: brian.mccoy@state.mn.us

Southeast Minnesota ATP considers the transportation priorities of the area’s partnerships:

• Rochester Olmsted Council of Governments
• La Crosse Area Planning Commission
• MnDOT District 6

How the STIP is tied into the CHIP

The STIP is created by drawing projects from the Capital Highway Investment Plan (CHIP), the 10-year plan of which the first four years are the STIP and years 5-10 are the work plan years.

• View the CHIP