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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2007-11-15 Minutes MINUTES OF THE Edina Transportation Commission Thursday, November 15, 2007 Edina City Hall 4801 West 50th Street Council Chambers MEMBERS PRESENT: Les Wanninger, Steve Brown, Marie Thorpe, Jean White, Marc Usem, Geof Workinger, Paul Mooty, Warren Plante, Hilah Almog MEMBERS ABSENT: STAFF PRESENT: Jack Sullivan, Sharon Allison I. Call to Order The meeting was called to order by chair Wanninger. II. Comments a. Chairman Comments None. b. Public Comments None. III. Old Business a. Northeast Edina Traffic Study Implementation Chair Wanninger explained that approximately one year ago, the Council unanimously approved the ETC’s recommendation of the traffic study which included measures to improve traffic flow at 50th & France, etc., and some implementation began in this area this summer. Wanninger said the presentation tonight is for the first round of residential safety improvements. Assistant City Engineer Sullivan explained that this was on the agenda previously for informational purposes only and staff is now seeking approval for implementation beginning in 2008. Sullivan said staff is asking that the ETC adopt a motion that the residential area safety improvement measures for the Country Club area are consistent with recommendations of the Northeast Edina Traffic Study and the goals and objectives of the City of Edina Transportation Commission Policy. Transportation Engineer Mike Kotila with SEH, explained that the plans have been refined since their presentation in October. Since that time, they’ve met with the Heritage Preservation Board and held an open house for residents of the Country Club neighborhood. Some of the changes include posting signs at entry points into the neighborhood that would warn drivers of speed humps and raised crosswalks in an effort to encourage them to reduce their speed and possibly adding an advisory speed plate below. Changes made to the drawings include narrowing down at some intersections, evaluating getting rid of the diamond shape warning signs, using a reflective sign post that would be less obtrusive, etc. 2 Regarding the suggestion from the Bike Edina Task Force to add a bike lane on Wooddale Avenue, Kotila said the existing roadway is 23 ft and to accommodate driving lanes and bike lane (5 ft.), the roadway would need to be approximately 31 ft. wide, plus an additional 7 ft. for parking. He said to add a bike lane the entire length of the corridor on Wooddale Avenue, between Country Club and Sunnyside would impact parking and loss of trees. At the conclusion of the presentation, discussion focused on reason for close proximity of speed humps, police and fire response time as a result of speed humps, reduction of cut-thru traffic, setting precedent for other neighborhoods and implementing bike lanes into current plans. Kotila said the roads are too narrow for bike lanes and project manager, Paul Pasko of SEH, said the desire of the Heritage Preservation Board is to have less pavement. Pasko said they could not give an opinion on incorporating bike lanes into the plans. He said a discussion by the stakeholders would be necessary - Heritage Preservation Board, ETC, Bike Task Force and residents. Sullivan said the Bike Task Force is on the agenda later and he is planning a workshop for the ETC to discuss the Bike Plan. In the meantime, he said the task at hand is to decide whether or not the plans presented are agreeable with the Northeast Edina Traffic Study. Staff’s recommendation is as follow: If so desired by the Transportation Commission, adopt a motion recommending that the residential area safety improvement measures for the Country Club area are consistent with the recommendations of the Northeast Edina Traffic Study and the goals and objectives of the City of Edina Transportation Commission Policy. A motion was made by Commissioner Usem to approve the plans as presented and he recommended that the plans be reviewed by staff, ETC and the Bike Task Force to make potential bike improvements. Seconded by Commissioner Thorpe. All voted aye. Motion carried. b. Edina Gateway – Pentagon Redevelopment Sullivan said the Edina Gateway redevelopment plans was presented at the last meeting for informational purposes only and since that time, staff has had a series of meetings with the applicant regarding the completeness of the application. He said this project is a first of its kind for the City. He said because of the size of the project, it has to go through a 3-step process: preliminary development plan (current stage), overall development plan, and final development plan and with each step there is an approval process. Sullivan explained that the preliminary development plan only requires that the ETC agree to their conceptual design, if they believe it fits with the AUAR. The applicant is seeking approval for their conceptual layout which now includes number of residential units and square footage of commercial and retail space. Later on, they will be back with an overall development plan with detailed traffic, utility and infrastructure analysis. A final development plan will be the third and final step. He said staff is working with WSB to evaluate traffic triggers as a result of the redevelopment. Staff is recommending approval of the preliminary plan with some conditions attached. 3 Paul May, architect with Miller Dunwiddie Architecture, explained that Pentagon Park was built in 1963 and is at the end of it useful life. The 135 acre site is located next to Fred Richards Golf Course, just off Highway 100, on West 77th Street and over to Parklawn Avenue. May said they are seeking rezoning for 43 acres. He said they are looking for feedback on what characteristics the ETC would like to see in the conceptual layout. Daniel Coyle, civil engineer, with Kimley Horn Associates, said to demonstrate sustainability they will be integrating bicycle movements, removing large pavement areas and using pervious pavers, creating more friendly pedestrians walkways, etc. JoNette Kuhnau, transportation engineer, with Kimley Horn Associates, said the traffic modeling they are using extends outside of the development area. She said they are studying various intersections within the area to see what impact they will have on the network. May said they’ve reviewed staff’s conditions and is okay with them. Discussion focused on traffic triggers which Sullivan said is an extension of the AUAR, but it does not consider everything in totality. He said staff will be working with WSB to identify traffic triggers and costs as the different phases are brought online. Sullivan said the AUAR also identified growth for 2014 and 2030, and a portion of the City of Bloomington was also included in the AUAR. Kuhnau said the residential portion of the development will generate fewer trips than what is there today. Staff’s recommendation is as follow: If so desired by the Transportation Commission, adopt a motion recommending that the Edina Gateway Pentagon Park Redevelopment traffic study is within the parameters set forth in the AUAR study and that the transportation component of the development application can move forward to the “Overall Development Plan”. The Development team will meet the following conditions at the time that they submit an application for the Overall Development Plan. Conditions of the recommendation are as follows: 1. The Traffic Study needs to follow the requirements set forth in the ETC Transportation Impact Analysis (TIA) guidelines adopted by the Transportation Commission. 2. All comments outlined in the WSB review memo dated October 31, 2007 should be addressed in the TIA. 3. All assumptions in the TIA need to be clearly identified, including but not limited to, development densities, phasing plans, background traffic growth, etc. 4. Relocation of the Fred Richards Golf Course entrance. 5. Acknowledgement and incorporation of a future roadway realignment and right of way dedication at the intersection of Parklawn and W. 77th. 6. All service entrances along W. 77th and other city roads be right-in/right out only. 7. Any other reasonable conditions as the project becomes further refined and defined in the Overall and Final Development Plans. A motion was made by Commissioner Brown to approve staff’s recommendation as outlined in a memo dated November 15, 2007. Seconded by Commissioner Mooty. All voted aye. Motion carried. 4 IV. New Business a. Bike Edina Task Force – Bike Comprehensive Plan Sullivan said the Bike Plan will be presented tonight and the task for the ETC is to determine what can be taken from the Bike Plan to be included in the Transportation Comp Plan. He said the inclusion of the Bike Plan will be in addition to the Pedestrian Plan. Additionally, the Council has directed the ETC to review the Bike Plan and make a recommendation, therefore, Sullivan said he is planning a workshop for mid-December to give Commissioners the opportunity to review the plan in more detail. He said the Council is expecting a recommendation by January. Antonio Rosell, engineer, with Community Design Group, and engineering consultant for the Bike Edina Task Force, said many people are already biking in Edina and the goal is to increase safety, as well as the perception of safety. He said Edina is not connected to any bike network today, nor commercial areas, schools, and recreational facilities. He said they are proposing a network that would include a primary and secondary route that would connect to the public schools, and a regional route running north/south and east/west. He said cost is not prohibitive because existing roadways can accommodate bike lanes by signing and striping. He said one mile of striping is less than $50,000 (striping on both sides of roadway and other traffic control signs). He said intersections that are uncomfortable for bicyclists could be painted with a blue crossing to get drivers’ attention. Lastly, he suggested a promotional campaign and recommended that the Bike Task Force continues as a Bicycle Advisory Committee. The following were discussed:  Rosell said the primary/secondary routes would be signed.  Rosell said any traffic is allowed on roadways with bike lane; the ideal speed for shared roadways is 25-30 mph. City Engineer Houle is on a committee that is working to lower the speed limit to 25 mph.  Rosell said kiosks with bike map routes can be added.  Rosell said obstacles that may prevent implementation would be lack of knowledge on the measures in the toolbox and unsupportive City staff. There is some resistance to changing road widths, but otherwise staff is supportive. Research shows 11 ft. driving lanes are safe in urban areas.  Rosell said the plan does call for all stakeholders to be involved in the implementation stage, however, apart from a survey that was done, they have not contacted the school administrators or parent councils.  Ms. Alice Hulbert, a member of the Bike Task Force said the high school’s Project Earth Group has contacted them regarding coordinating a bike-to-school day in the spring. She said they recently installed bike racks and they are looking at the design for Valley View Road and how to make it safer for biking.  Wanninger suggested including a public relations piece that would address changing behaviors for cyclists who tend to ignore traffic signs in very much the same way as drivers or pedestrians.  Rosell said it is most likely that the primary routes would be implemented first, working with the City’s reconstruction schedule. However, they have not identified which road they would begin with. 5 V. Approval of Minutes a. Regular Meeting of October 18, 2007 Commissioner Usem motioned to approve the minutes of October 18, 2007, with edits. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Brown. All voted ayes. VI. Planning Commission Update (Commissioner Brown) Commissioner Brown said they are still working on the Comp Plan and have hosted several neighborhood meetings at the community schools. He said they will continue to fine tune the Plan the remainder of the year. VII. Open Discussion None. VIII. Staff Liaison Comments (Sullivan) Assistant City Engineer Sullivan made the following announcements:  December ETC meeting is cancelled.  An open house for the W. 70th/Cornelia Traffic Study is scheduled for January 23, 2008, at Cornelia Elementary School, 6:30-9:00 p.m.  A public hearing for the W. 70th/Cornelia Traffic Study is scheduled for January 31, 2008, at City Hall, 6:00-9:00 p.m.  The roundabouts on W. 70th between France Avenue and York Avenue are open. Prior to this meeting, chair Wanninger said he asked all Commissioners to drive through the roundabouts to evaluate them and be able to personally relate as they get feedback.  “Be the Pace Car, Not the Race Car, slow down in residential neighborhoods” was the bumper sticker winner and stickers will be printed and distributed at neighborhood meetings. Meeting adjourned at 8:48 p.m.