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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016-03-17 MinutesDraft Minutes☒ Approved Minutes☒ Approved Date: 4/21/2016 1 Minutes City of Edina, Minnesota Transportation Commission Community Room March 17, 6:00 p.m. I. Call To Order Chair LaForce called the meeting to order. II. Roll Call Answering roll call were members Bass, Boettge, Brown, Ding, Iyer, Janovy, LaForce, Loeffelholz, Miranda, Olson, and Ruehl. III. Approval Of Meeting Agenda Motion was made by member Janovy and seconded by member Bass approving the meeting agenda. All voted aye. Motion carried. IV. Approval Of Meeting Minutes Motion was made by member Bass and seconded by member Janovy approving the edited Feb. 18, 2016, minutes. All voted aye. Motion carried. V. Community Comment Mr. Jim Grotz, 5513 Park Place, asked about the tax revaluation study for churches -- how much did the study cost, who initiated the study, and how was it transferred through to the City Manager. He said churches are seven day activity centers that are for profit. Chair LaForce explained that this was on the agenda for discussion. Mr. Bob Vose, 5817 Eastview Drive, requested support from the ETC for the Benton Avenue Bridge (over TH-100) to look at safety concerns. He said the area is poorly lit, there are many children in the neighborhood, plus increased pedestrians when there are school activities. He said traffic coming off the TH-100 southbound ramp to Benton will eventually hit a pedestrian. City engineer Millner said representative Erhardt made a request to MnDOT to review safety concerns and city staff met with MnDOT recently to discuss what improvements could be done in conjunction with their improvements on TH-100. Another meeting is scheduled for next week Friday to discuss a plan that may be implemented immediately. Member Janovy noted that the ETC has talked about safety issues at this area several times. Member Bass asked if MnDOT could present their plans to the ETC and city engineer Millner said there might not be enough time between implementation and the next ETC meeting. Mr. Vose added that the Grandview Transportation Study will have an impact on the Benton Avenue Bridge. VI. Reports/Recommendations A. Special Assessment Policy Revisions City engineer Millner said he was seeking feedback on the six items listed in the report. He said the City Council provided feedback on Mar. 2 in a work session and asked that staff seek feedback from the ETC. The City Council will hold a public hearing for public input (date to be determined). Draft Minutes☒ Approved Minutes☒ Approved Date: 4/21/2016 2 Item #1: Create one assessment policy (local and municipal state aid) Item #2: Add decorative street lights to the policy City engineer Millner said the Pedestrians & Cyclist Safety (PACS) Fund only funds safety/non-motorized related street lights. Discussion: • Clarify non-motorized and neighborhood street lights; • What is the meaning of decorative? • Are there data that could help to determine where lights are installed? City engineer Millner said yes, but it does not include comfort level, tripping, etc. • Consider changing the word “decorative” and change the PACS policy; • Consult with the Energy and Environment Commission; city engineer Millner said staff is already using LED lights; • Has PACS paid for any lighting? City engineer Millner said only one (at an intersection); Item #3: Add Land Use Table into the policy City engineer Millner said the table is used frequently to determine special assessments and is referenced in the policy. Discussion: • Make sure terms align to avoid confusion; • Are city properties assessed? City engineer Millner said yes, based on developable lots. • Change “Churches” to a more generic term such as ‘places of worship;’ Item #4: Church REU Value – change to 0.2 REU per 1000 SF City engineer Millner said this was brought to staff’s attention by member Janovy that the assessments were calculated differently. He said a study was done by an appraisal consulting company and they evaluated six to seven churches for approximately $5,000. The study finding is that they could assess for more than $400,000; however, this would not meet the legal definition of showing benefit which is around $130,000. The change would allow consistent calculation for all church properties. Discussion: • Utilities are not assessed so why is it used to show benefit? • Aren’t special assessments done by few cities? City engineer Millner said no, there are several cities that use special assessments; • Do not want to see residents take on the burden if they do not assess on the higher amount; city engineer Millner said legally, the City cannot assess for more than the benefited amount; • The recommendation is closer to the practice but this does not take into consideration the impact churches have on the street system and they do not pay for maintenance because they do not pay taxes; • Make it closer to the amount of schools; churches have income; offices are 1.5 and they pay property tax; • Are they trying to solve a problem that doesn’t exist? Why not wait and address all the issues related to special assessment? City engineer Millner said they cannot wait now that they have a study that makes clear what should be done. • Churches operate very differently and this should be taken into consideration. Item #5: Corner lot partial REU value calculation – change to one divided by # of adjacent streets Draft Minutes☒ Approved Minutes☒ Approved Date: 4/21/2016 3 City engineer Millner said this was bought to their attention by Sharon. Item #6: Phase in Corner lot calculation City engineer Millner said this would begin with the 2017 projects and staff would track 1/3, 2/3 assessments until they are phased out. B. 2016 Work Plan Updates Member Loeffelholz discussed what corporations consider project champions to be. He said project champions are like an informal board; they’re advocates waving the flag for the project to drive it further; they maintain relationships, answer questions, attend other meetings if you so choose to become even more involved, etc. Member Iyer said this gives him a sense of ownership and the expectation for the year. He asked if there is any expectation at year’s end to come back with an update. Chair LaForce said yes because they are responsible for their work plan. Because this is new for everyone, chair LaForce suggested that they think about the structure of how to handle their project, e.g. working group or some other structure, for discussion next month. Members were assigned to the following projects: • Circulator in the Southdale Area – Loeffelholz and Brown • Organize and host a transportation themed event – Bass • Review and provide input on the 2018 Comprehensive Bike & Pedestrian Plan – Olson and Miranda • Review and provide input on Edina To Go mobile application – Iyer • Review Quality of Life survey and public meetings to identify gaps – LaForce • Evaluate Living Streets/Street Smarts campaign – Janovy • Walking Map – Boettge C. Valley View Road Bicycle Facility Concepts: Brookview Avenue to W. 66th Street Transportation planner Nolan presented two options (option 1 has a bike lane on each side of the road and option 2 has a bike lane on only one side). He said this is an idea that positions staff for implementation when funding becomes available. Option 1 was preferred by most commissioners with the following comments: • One-way is preferred to avoid oncoming bikers; • Would the bike lanes on Valley View Road be dedicated bike lanes? Planner Nolan said yes. • Focus should be on the larger, surrounding area for connectivity; consider spending the money on upgrading the pedestrian bridge over TH-62; what impact will the Southdale Transportation Study recommendation have on this? Planner Nolan said they are not planning in isolation but because of funding sometimes they can only build a piece at a time. • The bike lanes are too close to the ramps; agreed with bridge improvement; • Concerned with alignment of driving lanes going north and turning onto TH-62; • Can the bike lanes be on the opposite (east) side of the ramps? • Agreed with focusing on the larger area to also include residents in the southeast and northeast; connect to Southdale Drive instead of W. 66th Street; agreed with bridge improvement; it will be expensive but do it right; current plan creates an artificial sense of safety; • Current plan builds into a network; • Agreed with system wide view; Nine Mile Creek Trail will increase desire and so will development in the Southdale area; prefers option 1 but consider protected bike lanes. Draft Minutes☒ Approved Minutes☒ Approved Date: 4/21/2016 4 D. Traffic Safety Report of Mar. 2, 2016 A.1. Member Janovy suggested holding this for further study to determine parking utilization because there are impacts on the recommended side that will limit parking. Member Brown agreed and mentioned the email that was received from a resident who would be impacted. Member Olson said one-sided parking is not a hardship. Member Bass suggested restricting parking on Thursdays during garbage pick-up hours. Motion was made by member Janovy and seconded by member Loeffelholz to move A.1. to Section C for further study specifically to determine parking utilization. Ayes: Bass, Boettge, Brown, Ding, Iyer, Janovy, LaForce, Loeffelholz, Miranda, and Ruehl. Nay: Olson Motion carried. A.2. Change “considering” to ‘study.’ Motion was made by chair Bass and seconded by member Iyer to forward the amended Mar. 2, 2016, Traffic Safety Report to City Council. All voted aye. Motion carried. VII. Correspondence And Petitions An email from a resident titled “Making Edina roads safer for pedestrians’ to Mayor Hovland was forwarded to the ETC. The email is related to Mr. Vose’s comment above regarding the Benton Avenue Bridge and also Valley View Road. After discussion, motion was made by member Iyer and seconded by member Loeffelholz noting the ETC had identified this area as an issue area in the past and supports the study that staff is engaged in with MnDOT to make the intersections safer. All voted aye. Motion carried. VIII. Chair and Member Comments A. Living Streets Citywide Integration Chair LaForce asked if there are other policies or practice areas that they need to work on similar to their work on the neighborhood roadway reconstruction survey and the TSC requests. Some suggestions were looking at how other departments are integrating Living Streets, rail crossings in the city, and create a matrix to track success measures and benchmarks. Member Miranda said there is a social initiative called ’30 days of biking’ and asked if they could promote it or blog about it. Planner Nolan will coordinate with member Miranda. Member Iyer noted that the new member handbook does not address social media. Member Janovy said she attended the Energy and Environment Commission (EEC) work session with City Council and the EEC requested more communication with the City Council. She feels the same way too that the ETC needs to have more time with the Council. She said 3 minutes to present at a Council meeting and one, one hour work session is not sufficient. Member Iyer concurred and said he addressed this five years ago. Member Brown said TC&W completed work on the bridge in Bloomington/Savage and they expect traffic to begin in May carrying grain to and from New Orleans (two trips daily). He said a friend who lives on Grove Street next to the railroad would prefer passenger rail. Draft Minutes☒ Approved Minutes☒ Approved Date: 4/21/2016 5 Member Olson welcomed new members Brown and Miranda. IX. Staff Comments • Neighborhood Roadway Reconstruction – bids were opened for three projects and two came below the engineer’s estimate while the third was at the engineer’s estimate. More bid openings are scheduled for next week. • Greater Southdale Area Planning Framework Vision – A joint work session is scheduled for the ETC and the Planning Commission for Mar. 23, 5:30-6:30 p.m. • An open house is for MnDOT’s TH-100 project is scheduled for Apr. 30. • MnDOT plans to replace the TH-169 bridge with a causeway; work will begin after construction is completed on TH-100 because the northbound detour will TH-100 while the southbound will be I-494. The City Council is providing feedback because of the detour. • The City of Bloomington is conducting a study on France Ave over I-494 where they experience the highest number of crashes in the city; planner Nolan is involved with the study that will conclude later this summer. • The cities of Edina and Minneapolis, and Hennepin County worked jointly on the bump outs and restriping on Xerxes Avenue. When Penn Avenue closed for reconstruction, Minneapolis saw an opportunity for a traffic signal at Xerxes Avenue and W. 60th Street. The traffic signal will be installed this summer and be paid for by a 3-way split between the three agencies. It will be timed with the ramp signals. • Hennepin County approved removal of the free right at the southeast corner of York Avenue and W. 66th Street. • 2016 Street Smart Campaign will be on the agenda for discussion next month because the communications department would like to know if the ETC is interesting in doing a campaign. • The communications department is looking for feedback on the Edina To Go mobile application for implementation by the end of the second quarter. X. Calendar of Events A. Schedule of Meeting and Events as of Mar. 17, 2016 XI. Adjournment at 8:25 p.m. Draft Minutes☒ Approved Minutes☒ Approved Date: 4/21/2016 6 J F M A M J J A S O N D SM WS # of Mtgs Attendance % Meetings/Work Sessions 1 1 1 3 NAME TERM (Date) 6/21 Bass, Katherine 3/1/2017 1 1 1 3 100% Boettge, Emily 3/1/2017 1 1 2 67% Brown, Andy 3/1/2019 1 1 100% Iyer, Surya 3/1/2018 1 1 1 3 100% LaForce, Tom 3/1/2018 1 1 1 3 100% Loeffelholz, Ralf 3/1/2018 1 1 1 3 100% Janovy, Jennifer 3/1/2017 1 1 1 3 100% Miranda, Lou 3/1/2019 1 1 100% Olson, Larry 3/1/2017 1 1 1 3 100% Ding, Emily (student) 9/1/2016 1 1 33% Ruehl, Lindsey (student) 9/1/2016 1 1 2 67% TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION ATTENDANCE