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2025-08-06 TC MinutesMINUTES RICHFIELD TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION MEETING BARTHOLOMEW ROOM, CITY HALL Wednesday, August 6th, 2025, 7:00 PM Commissioners in attendance: Jacob Olson, Stella Yang, Adam Knosalla, Brinnon Kubista, Eli Straub, Jaz Warren, Louis Dzierzak, David Gepner Commissioners absent: McKenzie Burke City Staff: Matt Hardegger, Jake Whipple, Olivia Wycklendt, Joe Powers Liaisons: Sean Hayford Oleary (City Council), Husniyah Bradley (Community Services Commission), Ben Surma (Planning Commission), Jan Matheus (Bike/Walk Richfield) 1. Call meeting to order Chair Dzierzak called meeting to order at 7:00 PM 2. Review & approve agenda Commissioner Kubista moved to approve the agenda. Second by Commissioner Knosalla. Motion approved. 3. Review & approve minutes for June 4th meeting Commissioner Warren moved to approve the minutes from June 4th. Second by Commissioner Yang. Motion approved. 4. Metro Transit Arterial BRT Study Update Metro Transit Principal Planner Jake Knight provided an update on Metro Transit’s ongoing study to identify the next three arterial bus rapid transit lines (aBRT. This included an overview of the differences between regular route local bus service and aBRT service, an overview of the existing aBRT network, a discussion of screening criteria used, and a discussion of the remaining 10 routes. The remaining candidate lines included four routes in Richfield – Route 4 (Penn Ave), Route 14 (Bloomington Ave north of 66th Street), Route 18 (Nicollet Ave), and Route 515 (66th Street/Bloomington Ave). Public engagement will be ongoing through August. Commissioners Warren and Kubista discussed data collection timing and methods, and inquired what the remainder of the process will look like. Knight responded that ridership data was collected in fall 2024 with an online comment map available for current feedback, and a third engagement period would occur when finalist routes are selected. Commissioner Gepner asked about the timing of the study, specifically why they hadn’t been doing this type of study previously since they’d been operating a bus system for years. Knight responded that Metro Transit is looking to create more efficient transit lines and increase service and ridership on important lines. Chair Dzierzak asked if Metro Transit was hoping to drive mode shift to transit by increasing ridership and lowering vehicle traffic. Knight said the goal for arterial BRT is to grow ridership, which can result in some mode shift to transit, but it is not a direct consideration factor for route selection. Councilmember Hayford Oleary stated that he thinks the 515 should not be upgraded, since the existing route serves the city well and removing stops would make the route less accessible for residents. Route 4 on Penn Avenue would serve the city well by spreading out BRT lines. Route 18 is very close to Portland Ave (D Line) and would be MINUTES less geographically useful for Richfield, but if it were selected, it should extend further south into Bloomington than has been shown to date. Planning Commission Liaison Surma asked how Metro Transit determined which branch of the 4 to use for BRT (Penn or Lyndale). Knight answered that this was studied during Metro Transit’s pervious Network Next study. Commissioner Straub supported the Route 4 upgrade to spread routes around Richfield. Commissioner Knosalla asked whether the Route 18 would remain with more frequent stops if it were upgraded, and whether a Penn route would be coordinated with ongoing design. Knight answered the future of Route 18 would be studied further if the route is upgraded, local routes do occasionally remain in parallel. Metro Transit has been actively coordinating with Hennepin County on the Penn Ave project. Commissioner Kubista stated concerns with the current speed of the Bloomington Ave route (14) and thought a BRT upgrade would benefit riders. Commissioner Gepner stated that he’d like to see faster service across Richfield, especially east-west on Route 515, and would like that route to be upgraded. Transportation Engineer Hardegger summarized that the Commission preferred that Route 4 and Route 14 be upgraded to BRT, was against any upgrade to Route 515, and was neutral on Route 18. Summary was accepted by acclamation, Commissioner Gepner dissenting on the Commission’s opposition to upgrading Route 515 specifically. 5. 2026 Sidewalk Projects Intro Transportation Engineer Hardegger gave an overview of three sidewalk projects planned for 2026: A Safe Routes to School (SRTS) project at Sheridan Hills Elementary that received grant funding in 2024, and two Pedestrian Master Plan sidewalk routes on 64th and 73rd Streets that received Met Council Regional Solicitation funding in 2023. Engagement plans were presented for each project along with expected challenges and expected timelines. Chair Dzierzak asked about the construction timeline. The SRTS project would be June to August while school is out, 64th and 73rd would be completed by September/October 2026. Councilmember Hayford Oleary asked what improvements at 64th and Nicollet would be. Hardegger answered that it would require coordination with the County. Potential options include a median and/or an RRFB, but it is unlikely that the County would support an RRFB. Councilmember Hayford Oleary expressed support for an RRFB at that spot. Councilmember Hayford Oleary asked where the 73rd project would need to switch sides of the road. Hardegger replied that the preferred scenario is a continuous north side facility, but if that cannot be built within budget due to curb replacement costs, the walk would be on the south only between Portland and 12th. Hardegger also confirmed that all proposed walks would be 6 feet wide, with a potentially narrower boulevard on 73rd in constrained areas. Councilmember Hayford Oleary expressed desire to build any new trails 10 feet wide. MINUTES Commissioner Olson asked whether the Nicollet/64th Street intersection was part of the upcoming reconstruction. Councilmember Hayford Oleary mentioned that there was a poor quality sidewalk on Nicollet between 64th and 62nd that needs to be upgraded, hopefully with county support. Hardegger said they will come back with these projects in November and encouraged Commissioners who live near the projects to attend any neighborhood meetings. 6. Hennepin County CSAH 32 (Penn Avenue) Technical Analysis HC Project Manager Matt Huggins presented about upcoming public engagement and timeline for the Penn Avenue Reconstruction planned for 2028. Traffic Engineer Graham Johnson presented a technical analysis of traffic in the project area including historical crash data before and after the re-stripe. Traffic counts were taken in May, with supplemental counts in the fall due to construction effects in May. Speed data was collected at 3 locations. At all 3 locations, 60-70% of the traffic was speeding with an 85th percentile 3-5 mph over the speed limit. Vehicle, bike, and pedestrian volumes were taken at each intersection for warrant analysis. Warrants were met for the existing signals at 64th, 66th, and 76th. Warrants were not met for a new signal but were met to keep the signal at 69th Street. No warrants were met at 75th Street. Johnson also discussed expected growth rates for population and county VMT reduction goals, which led to a projected flat traffic level out to 2050. Commissioner Yang asked if the crashes in the data are reported crashes. Johnson answered yes, only reported crashes are included in the database. Commissioner Warren asked how the crash data compares to similar corridors. Johnson answered that the corridor is safe relative to the data, especially with no fatal crashes in last 10 years. Liaison Bradley asked why counts were taken for 14 hours and whether that covered mornings or evenings. Johnson said those 14 hours typically cover 85-90% of daily traffic, and they count 6am-8pm on a single day. Liaison Matheus pointed out that the signal at 75th Street is the middle school and should not be removed. PM Huggins mentioned that warrants are largely used for state aid eligibility for costs, and that the County is aware of the high school density at the intersection (three schools). Olson asked whether improved pedestrian crossings are taken into account for volume warrants, if better ped facilities increase demand. Johnson and Huggins answered that warrants are based on existing counts, but the county is aware of the safe routes to school issues that have been identified in the area. Lance Bernard from Transportation Collaborative (TC^2) presented on parking along Penn Ave corridor. Parking counts were taken during peak periods on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays of both off and on street parking usage within a block of Penn Ave. Segments of the corridor did high street parking utilization, especially immediately south of 66th. Some individual parking lots were also at capacity during peak periods. Overall, there did not appear to be less parking available than current demand.. MINUTES Chair Dzierzak was interested to see what the engagement feedback shows with respect to perceptions of parking for businesses on Penn. Councilmember Hayford Oleary reiterated his desire to see on-street parking in the business district, since a district-wide approach is unlikely. Other on-street parking that the city has added recently (6600 and 7600 blocks of Lyndale) have high utilization in areas that would have had low counts prior to the project. Bernard mentioned that he had finished doorknocking at all the businesses along Penn prior to the meeting. Commissioner Gepner asked if he had spoken to a principal or manager at all of them, Bernard replied that they had talked to an owner or manager, or gotten the contact information of the correct person if they were not available. Tom Kaiser, Zan Associates, presented on the public engagement process they plan on implementing for this project. Open House 1 will be collecting experiences of people on Penn today and providing background information. Kaiser noted that many people will be familiar with previous outreach plans on Penn Ave and wants to integrate those previous studies. The event will be on August 20 from 4:30-7pm at St. Richards Church. Postcards were sent to 4400 addresses. Commissioner Olson asked if the project team will be at PennFest. Kaiser confirmed they would. Huggins stated the project team would likely be back to the Commission approximately every 3 months until a design is finalized. 7. Project Updates a) City Staff o Updates were provided on ongoing construction projects, including the Hwy 62 sound wall, 70th Street SRTS, 73rd Street trail, Nicollet Ave, 494, and cracksealing. Traffic concerns from construction traffic for 494 were discussed, most have been passed to Public Safety. A speed sign was placed west of Nicollet to attempt to calm traffic in advance of the closure. b) Liaisons o City Council i. Councilmember Hayford Oleary and Joe Powers updated the commission about the 494 work session with MNDOT. Council discussed the ramps at 35W and 76th street, bike and trail facilities along 78th street, the 2nd Ave pedestrian bridge, and noisewalls west of Penn on 78th Street. MnDOT will not revisit noisewall voting from Phase 1, and will not be making any changes to the 2nd Ave ped bridge. MnDOT is expecting to build a new pedestrian bridge at 73rd Street over 35W in 2030. Wood Lake Nature Center had a groundbreaking ceremony, construction is expected to finish in Fall 2026. Pool improvements will be coming in 2026 as well, mostly maintenance. Approval was given to a development at 65th and Penn. Legion Apartments proposal near Veterans Park was not well received. 66th Street median concerns have been heard and council is working with Public Works to improve. Richfield Lake issues with overgrowth and geese are also being studied. o Community Services Commission MINUTES i. Liaison Bradley updated on upcoming events that CSC will be tabling at in advance of the new Community Center plans. o Planning Commission i. Liaison Surma updated the commission on new zoning code changes that the Planning Commission sent to City Council for approval. o Richfield Public Schools i. Liaison Matheus offered an update for Liaison Brackett that Richfield was recognized at a statewide SRTS conference for increases in biking/walking percentages. o Bike/Walk Richfield – i. Liaison Matheus discussed Learn to Ride programs for kids and noted that Richfield is a leader in youth bike education. 8. Other Business a) Bike Tour start time and route – Currently planned for September regular meeting. o Engineer Hardegger previewed the route for the bike tour and reminded commissioners that the meeting would start at 6pm. 9. Upcoming events/meeting(s) a) Wed, August 20th, 4:30pm-7:00pm: Penn Avenue Open House #1, St. Richard Catholic Church (7540 Penn Ave S) b) Wed, September 3rd, 6:00pm: Transportation Commission Meeting (Bike tour, meet at City Hall) 10. Adjournment Commissioner Knosalla moved to adjourn the meeting. Second by Commissioner Straub. Motion adopted. Meeting adjourned at 8:55pm.