Community Voices Building a Better Bemidji Avenue
How Two-Way Communication Builds Better Projects
At Moore Engineering, our mission is to improve lives by building strong communities. For the CSAH 21 Corridor Study in Bemidji, that meant working with Beltrami County to hear directly from the people who regularly use CSAH 21, also known as Bemidji Avenue. Public input supported the study’s direction and confirmed that the community’s needs and safety concerns align with the plan.
Beltrami County launched the CSAH 21 Corridor Study to plan for the future of Bemidji Avenue, a route that connects neighborhoods, schools, and local businesses. As the public engagement consultant, our role was to make sure the people who use this road every day had a real voice in shaping what comes next.
A Purpose-Built Survey
We started by meeting with the County and engineering team to clarify the study’s goals and identify the decisions that still needed to be made. This step ensured the survey aligned directly with the project strategy. Every question was written to support the design and provide insight into how people use the corridor focusing on, walkability, school access, and how people use the corridor throughout the day. We also included open-ended questions to capture personal insights that might not fit into multiple-choice responses.
Understanding the Corridor
Then we learned more about the community itself. We looked at who lives, works, and travels along the corridor and reviewed local data to understand the mix of residents, families, and businesses that rely on Bemidji Avenue. This research helped us shape a survey that reflected everyday experiences and the priorities that matter most to the people who call this area home.
Starting with a Clear Invitation
We began our engagement campaign with a clear and accessible call to action, ‘Help Shape the Future of Bemidji Avenue’. From there, we worked to make engagement approachable and relevant, using trusted community channels to reach the people who know the corridor best.
Reaching People Where They Are
We partnered with trusted community groups to reach the families, commuters, and business owners who use Bemidji Avenue daily. Two local schools shared the survey through parent newsletters, on social media, and with flyers in school buildings. The Bemidji Area Chamber of Commerce promoted the survey in its newsletter, on social media, and through flyers in local shops, which connected us directly with business owners and their customers. We also made the survey mobile friendly, easy to complete in just a few minutes, and widely available through QR code flyers in public spaces and on Beltrami County’s social media. A small Chamber Bucks gift card incentive encouraged participation, but the real driver was the survey’s convenience and relevance. By meeting people where they already spend their time, we gathered practical input that reflected how the corridor is truly used.
Strong Results from Everyday Users
In just a few weeks, we received 208 completed surveys, representing approximately 2.5 percent of the corridor’s average daily traffic. More importantly, we heard from the right people, such as parents managing school drop-offs, commuters navigating daily traffic, and residents walking or biking the corridor all shared their perspectives. Their input surfaced shared concerns and priorities and gave the project team a clearer understanding of how the corridor is used in daily life. The quality and relevance of the feedback demonstrated that well-designed engagement builds trust and encourages participation. This insight helped affirm the County’s priorities for the corridor and provided additional context to support technical design decisions.
Closing the Loop
After the survey closed, we made it a priority to show people that their voices mattered in the process. We shared a summary of results on the project webpage and worked with our marketing team to create a short video featuring key findings, quotes from respondents, and an explanation of how the input will inform next steps in the corridor plan. By closing the loop in accessible, visual ways, we made it clear this was not a one-way conversation or a checkbox exercise. It was community input that supported and strengthened the project forward.
Building Better Projects and Stronger Communities
Public engagement is a commitment to ask questions, listen with intention, and respond with transparency. It strengthens trust in communities and strengthens designs because it is responsive to the people who use a project area most. On the CSAH 21 Corridor Study, engagement helped connect technical expertise with lived experience.
Public engagement is not just a step in the engineering process, but a tool for making more informed decisions. When we take the time to ask the right questions and hear directly from the people impacted by a project, projects are stronger, and more supported by stakeholders.
If you are planning a project and want to involve your community in a meaningful way, we can help. At Moore Engineering, public engagement is one way we support our larger mission of improving lives by building strong communities. To learn more, contact our Community Engagement Manager, Lauren Weller at [email protected].