A ceremonial groundbreaking for the Southwest Corridor light rail project took place in the middle of nowhere in Hopkins on a Friday afternoon in November. It was 30 degrees and the ground was still a little frozen, but a handful of Minnesota politicians looked like they couldn't be happier to be there shoveling dirt.

It's a groundbreaking so many of them thought they'd never see.

This year marked a huge milestone for the project. Construction is slated to begin on the line this winter. When it's finished, it will connect Minneapolis to the southwest suburbs. The line has been in the planning stages for at least three decades, or even longer, depending on who you ask.