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2023-09-06 TC Agenda_combinedAGENDA RICHFIELD TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION MEETING BARTHOLOMEW ROOM, CITY HALL Wednesday, September 6th, 2023, 7:00 PM Attachment 1. Call meeting to order 2. Review & approve agenda 3. Review & approve minutes for August 2, 2023 meeting #1 4. Nicollet Ave a) Open House #1 Recap 5. ADA Transition Plan Project Evaluation Criteria 6. USDOT Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods Grant a) Overview of application b) Action item: Recommendation to City Council 7. Active Transportation Action Plan a) Overview of draft plan b) Action item: Recommendation to City Council 8. Project Updates a) 65th St Reconstruction b) I-494: Airport to Hwy 169 c) 77th Street & Lyndale Ave Signal d) 71st Street SRTS Sidewalk e) 66th Street & Richfield Parkway Pedestrian Improvements f) 2023 Concrete Project g) CC Liaison/Other Commissions/Bike Advocates 9. Other Business 10. Upcoming events/meeting(s) a) Wed, October 4th, 7:00pm: Transportation Commission Meeting 11. Adjournment Richfield Transportation Commission Attachment #1 August 2nd, 2023 - Meeting Minutes 7:00 p.m. | Bartholomew Room, City Hall Commission members: Husniyah Bradley (Chair), Jim Mahoney, Jeff Walz, Carl Woetzel, Louis Dzierzak, David Gepner Commission members not in attendance: Michael Kohout, Rory Cook, Liaisons: Councilmember Sean Hayford Oleary, Dan Kretsinger, Jan Matheus City Staff Liaison/Staff: Matt Hardegger, Olivia Wycklendt, Joe Powers Other: Matt Huggins, Graham Johnson Tyler McLeete, Dan Edgerton I. Call meeting to order Vice Chair Walz called the meeting to order at 7:01 pm. II. Approval of Agenda Motion by Commissioner Gepner to approve the agenda. Seconded by Commissioner Dzierzak. Motion carried. III. Review & Approve Minutes for June 7th, 2023 Meeting Motion by Commissioner Woetzel to approve the June 7th, 2023 meeting minutes. Seconded by Commissioner Walz. Motion carried. IV. Nicollet Ave Hennepin County representatives Tyler Mcleete and Graham Johnson jumped into the Nicollet Avenue reconstruction project discussion by showing the Commission several modes of data, including historical traffic reports and crash summaries on Nicollet Avenue from roughly the last 20 years. Dan Edgerton took over the presentation following the overview through an existing condition exercise, where the commission members ranked how Nicollet Avenue between 66th and 77th St currently serves different communities of transportation, such as pedestrians bus transit, automobiles, and bikers. Commissioner Mahoney and Gepner, and Liaison Matheus all agreed that currently and especially during the Winter months, it is much better biking on the roadway along Nicollet rather than using the Bike Path off the road going east and westbound across the county road. Transportation Engineer Hardegger asked the commission what the experience was crossing Nicollet Avenue as a pedestrian, to which several commissioners agreed that crossing Nicollet Avenue was difficult and often felt unsafe. Overall, the commission agreed that Nicollet Avenue currently services automobiles more than any other transportation category, with the road currently poorly servicing pedestrians, bicycles, and bus transit. Edgerton finished his portion of the presentation summarizing how the first open house for the project would go. The first open house for the project is scheduled for August 22nd at Augsburg Park Library from 4 – 7 PM. Commissioner Mahoney and Liaison Matheus both made the point that biking on Nicollet Ave during the winter is better on the street rather than the bike path, specifically when travelling on 76th Street. Commissioner Dzierzak brought up the timing of the signaled intersection at 71st and Nicollet, and that often cars slam on the breaks. Edgerton mentioned that the data does reflect that this intersection does have a higher crash rate than other intersections along Nicollet. (CHECK RECORDING AT 7:48) Hardegger poised question to commission how it feels to cross Nicollet as a pedestrian, several commission members agreed that it was difficult to cross Nicollet and that it didn’t feel safe. The resounding impression from the Commission is that Nicollet Avenue currently largely services automotive transportation and does not provide enough infrastructure or good quality infrastructure for pedestrians, bicyclists, and bus transit. V. ADA Transition Plan Update Transportation Engineer Hardegger presented the recently acquired data regarding the City’s ADA Transition Plan, which involved collecting data on miles of sidewalks and trails throughout the City, as well as push button systems, pedestrian curb ramps, and Metro Transit facilities. While the data yielded that most of the locations had at least one point of non- compliance, many of the noncompliance issues could be easily resolved with milling the concrete stated Hardegger. Commissioner Mahoney suggested that City Staff reach out to similar neighboring Cities to see how they’ve handled their transition plans. City Council Member Hayford O’Leary mentioned that taking maintenance in consideration as a part of how ADA improvements are made is critical, as even normally compliant ADA routes in the summer can become non-compliant in the winter due to snow and ice. VI. 73rd Street Demonstration Project Install Day Transportation Engineer Hardegger revisited the 73rd Demonstration project, which involves painting temporary crosswalks and placing some bollards along 73rd St between 76th and Cedar Avenue. He stated he is looking for volunteers on August 16th to help paint and install bollards along the corridor. VII. Project Updates • 77th St Underpass. Civil Engineer Olivia Wycklendt announced that the project is essentially complete, excluding some punch list items. The turf of the soccer fields within Washington Park should be fully established by Fall of this year. • 65th St Reconstruction. Wycklendt mentioned that while the project continues to progress, there have been a few delays on the project due to some unforeseen circumstances. The roundabout at 65th St and Lyndale is anticipated to be opened by mid-October of this year. • I-494: Airport to 169 Update. Transportation Engineer Hardegger stated that until Thanksgiving of this year, the ramp from southbound 35-W to westbound 494 will be closed. Another ramp closure is anticipated for Lyndale Avenue to Westbound 494, with that lasting approximately 1-2 months. Otherwise impacts to Richfield remain minor. • 77th/Lyndale Signal Project. City Engineer Powers said that the project is underway, with portions of the intersection currently excavated. The City improved the pedestrian detour route around the construction area to be more accommodating for residents. The project is expected to wrap up sometime in mid to late September. • 71st St SRTS Sidewalk. Hardegger notified the commission that there are some right-of-way complications with the project which has delayed the project a few months, however he is hopeful that the project would still occur in Fall or early spring of 2024. • Liaison Updates. Liaison Jan Matheus announced that there is a community ride Wednesday August 9th at 6:30, starting at the Richfield Pool and that anyone is welcome to join. She also announced that they are looking for a new Safe Routes to School coordinator. Liaison Dan Kretsinger announced that interviews for the Safe Routes to School coordinator are being held on the 3rd. Councilmember Hayford O’Leary mentioned that the 77th St Underpass ribbon cutting ceremony was last week. He informed the Commission that the council are working on ordinances regarding the recent legalization of marijuana in the City of Richfield. VIII. Upcoming events/meeting(s) The next regularly scheduled Transportation Commission meeting is Wednesday, September 6th, 2023. IX. Adjournment Chair Bradley adjourned the meeting at 8:31 pm.