Loading...
2020-05-06 TC Minutes Richfield Transportation Commission Attachment #1 May 6th, 2020 - Meeting Minutes 7:00 p.m. | WebEx Virtual Commission Meeting Commission members: Wes Dunser (Chair), Ken Severson (Vice Chair), Paul Chillman, Husniyah Bradley, Kyle Schmidt, Louis Dzierzak, Mollie O’Howard Commission members not in attendance: Dan Edgerton, Jeffrey Walz Liaisons: Simon Trautmann, Sean Hayford Oleary Liaisons not in attendance: n/a City Staff Liaison: Jack Broz Other City Staff: Scott Kulzer I. Call meeting to Order Chair Dunser called the meeting to order at 7:01 pm. II. Approval of Agenda Motion by Commissioner Severson to approve the agenda, s/Chillman. Motion carried. III. Review & Approve Minutes for March 4th, 2020 Meeting Motion by Commissioner Bradley to approve the March 4th, 2020 meeting minutes, s/Severson. Motion carried. IV. 65th St. Reconstruction/Lyndale Ave. Pedestrian Improvements Staff Liaison Broz gave an update on the 65th Street/Lyndale Ped Improvements preliminary design process. Broz began by recapping the “Guiding Principles” as they relate to 65th Street and reminded commissioners that the intent is to view the Open House #4 recap through those lenses. Broz briefly walked through the Open House #4 summary and highlighted some of the more common themes. After a brief discussion of the commissioner’s initial impressions, Broz began walking through the updated draft layout starting at the West side of the project near Rae Drive. Initial discussion centered around parking on Rae Drive, the three crosswalks on 65th Street in the Richfield Lake area, and the very large box culvert that would be installed as part of the project to alleviate flooding problems in the area. The commissioners discussed the nuances of having parking vs. adding a bike lane or better bike facilities. Many commissioners agreed that the availability of parking in this area was a top priority in this area due to the businesses and senior condos. Broz next moved to the pedestrian improvements on Lyndale from 66th to the crosstown, noting in particular the 4-to-3 lane conversion and the addition of parking on the west side to accommodate new and planned development in the area. Safety concerns were raised about the existing and potential pedestrian crossings at 64th and Lyndale. Broz next moved to the draft roundabout at 65th and Lyndale and potential redevelopment in the NE of this area. Concerns were raised about the proximity of the access to the liquor store and to the Wendy’s restaurant coming out of the roundabout. Commissioners wondered about possible access changes that might make the SB roundabout exit to Wendy’s more driver friendly. Broz noted he would direct the design consultant to brainstorm some possibilities for the area but did note any access changed to that business would likely be very expensive, given past experiences. Broz moved to 65th St. East of Lyndale, noting how in this stretch the idea was to have a boulevard instead of on-street parking due to the abundance of parking already in this are to serve businesses. Broz detailed the access changed to the North of 65th street, keeping most of the existing cul-de-sacs in place and expanding 1-way access at Pillsbury to 2- way, which is how the neighborhood was originally designed. Discussion on the access changed centered around the (in)equity of routing all traffic into the neighborhoods by the apartments on Pleasant Ave. Following conclusion of the discussion, Broz noted how there would be a similar 65th St. Work Session presentation on May 26th to the City Council and that Open House #5 was slated for the first week of June. V. Project Updates  Broz gave a brief update on the Lyndale project, which will be wrapping up with a few weeks worth of work in May.  Broz noted the 77th Underpass project was still on track for 2021 construction and staff and our legislators were working on getting bonding dollars to finalize the funding package. VI. Work Plan Review/Next Steps The next Penn Corridor Study Open House will be scheduled at a later date, most likely in late June or early July. VII. Upcoming events/meeting(s) To accommodate the 65th Street Open House #5, Broz suggested moving the next Transportation Commission meeting to June 10th from June 3rd. Motion made by Commissioner Severson, s/Dzierzak. Motion carried. VIII. Adjournment Motion made by Commissioner Severson to adjourn meeting, s/Bradley. Motion carried. Adjourned at 9:09 pm.