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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017-05-18 MinutesDraft Minutes☐ Approved Minutes☒ Approved Date:06/15/17 1 Minutes City of Edina, Minnesota Transportation Commission Community Room May 18, 2017, 6:00 p.m. I. Call To Order Chair LaForce called the meeting to order. II. Roll Call Answering roll call were commissioners Ahler, Brown, Iyer, Kane, LaForce, Miranda, Olson, Richman and Ruthruff. Absent: Commissioners Koester and Olk. III. Approval Of Meeting Agenda Motion was made by commissioner Miranda and seconded by commissioner Richman approving the meeting agenda. All voted aye. Motion passed. IV. Approval Of Meeting Minutes Motion was made by commissioner Miranda and seconded by commissioner Olson approving the revised Apr. 20, 2017, minutes. All voted aye. Motion carried. V. Community Comments – None VI. Reports/Recommendations A. Edina Community Circulator: Next Steps Planner Nolan said most of the May 2 work session with City Council was spent discussing the Community Circulator and the Council authorized getting a formal report from DARTS. Staff is drafting the 2018-19 budgets and it includes a line item for $10,000 for this project. According to Ms. Whited, the timing and funding is ideal for early 2018. She suggested reconvening in late-summer, early-fall to draft the proposal. Planner Nolan said in the meantime, the commissioners could begin discussing potential routes and advisory board members. B. 2018 West 62nd Street Municipal State Aid Reconstruction Planner Nolan said W. 62nd Street is scheduled for reconstruction in 2018 and staff is considering realigning the unique intersections at W. 62nd Street, Oaklawn Avenue and Valley View Road. Planner Nolan said a recommendation was made in the Wooddale/Valley View Small Area Study and staff is considering their recommendation. Additionally, he asked for feedback on the type of bike facility because W. 62nd Street is a primary bike route. The consensus was support for the small area study recommendation because it already has community support and for an off-road multi-use trail on the north side of the street. C. University of Minnesota Student Capstone Report: Interlachen Boulevard & Blake Road Intersection Planner Nolan said this area is scheduled for reconstruction in 2021, and the students recommended a roundabout. He said staff liked the idea but concerns are two driveways that align directly into the roundabout and how to design the roundabout for safe navigation by cyclists and pedestrians. Director Millner reached out to one property owner so far to begin discussing realignment options. The current estimated cost is $1.3M. Planner Nolan was asked what was the benefits of using students and he said it saves on design options and cost, and regarding a bike lane to the roundabout, one is planned for a future date. A continuous bike lane in the roundabout was noted as being safer. Draft Minutes☐ Approved Minutes☒ Approved Date:06/15/17 2 D. Traffic Safety Report of May 3, 2017 A.I. Planner Nolan clarified that they are not planning to lower the speed limit. Motion was made by commissioner Olson and seconded by commissioner Ahler to forward the May 3, 2017, TSC report to Council with the clarification. All voted aye. Motion passed. VII. Correspondence And Petitions – None VIII. Chair and Member Comments Commissioner Olson said Edina is losing its gas stations with one currently scheduled to close. Since gas stations are transportation related, he asked if this would become an issue for Edina. Planner Nolan said he wasn’t aware of any studies that addressed this concern. Commissioner Ruthruff said he was happy with the Interlachen Boulevard and Blake Road roundabout. Commissioner Iyer mentioned the newspaper article on the proposed Twin Towers and suggested being proactive rather than reactive as it relates to transportation. He said they should use W. 70th Street as an example where the unintended consequence pushed traffic to W. 66th Street when the speed limit was reduced to 25 mph on W. 70th Street. He suggested creating a taskforce to look more comprehensively at the area. Commissioner Ahler said she was at a youth climate summit and the maps on biking and walking were very popular and they received many comments on biking and walking in Edina. Commissioner Kane agreed with commissioner Iyer. He suggested that commissioners considered visiting the project sites for input purposes. Commissioner Richman said she had a lengthy conversation with one of the councilmembers about traffic studies and how traffic studies always show that a development project can be done. His feedback was that the traffic study process was probably archaic for the current needs. She suggested the ETC review the traffic study process and make it broader with wider ranges; she mentioned W. 66th Street as an example that is already backed up with traffic and more developments are planned. Commissioner Brown said with the Southdale area becoming more densely populated, the City needs to think about street cars, better connection to the surrounding areas and start investing in these improvements. Commissioner Miranda asked if Minneapolis does traffic studies when they build new towers. Planner Nolan said he did not know the answer to this. Tomorrow is the kick off meeting for the Bike and Pedestrian Plan. Chair LaForce thanked everyone for their participation in the Comprehensive Plan planning process. He said the ETC was well represented. IX. Staff Comments • Projects: the Valley View Road sidewalk is done in the Birchcrest B project area; May 25 bids will be opened for Chowen Park D; Oaklawn Avenue sidewalk will go out for bids in a couple weeks; W. 50th Street and Vernon Avenue reopened. • The Bike and Pedestrian Plan kicks off tomorrow. • Five proposals were received for Passenger Rail Engagement and Kimley-Horn was selected; their proposal will go to Council June 6 for approval. • Three Rivers Park District is doing a regional trail study that includes the cities of Bloomington and Edina. • The ETC had the best participation at the May 8 Comprehensive Plan kick-off meeting. Draft Minutes☐ Approved Minutes☒ Approved Date:06/15/17 3 • A kick-off meeting is scheduled for the 44th Street & France Avenue Small Area Plan; Planner Nolan is the staff liaison. X. Calendar of Events A. Schedule of Meeting and Events as of May 18, 2017 For information purposes - no discussion. XI. Adjournment at 7:45 p.m. J F M A M J J A S O N D SM # of Mtgs Attendance % Meetings/Work Sessions 1 1 1 1 1 5 NAME (Date) Ahler, Mindy 1 1 1 3 100% Bass, Katherine 1 1 2 100% Boettge, Emily 1 1 2 100% Brown, Andy 1 1 1 1 1 5 100% Iyer, Surya 1 1 1 1 4 80% LaForce, Tom 1 1 1 1 1 5 100% Janovy, Jennifer 1 1 2 100% Kane, Bocar 1 1 1 3 100% Miranda, Lou 1 1 1 1 1 5 100% Olson, Larry 1 1 1 1 4 80% Richman, Lori 1 1 1 3 100% Ruthruff, Erik 1 1 1 3 100% Koester, David (student) 1 1 1 3 60% Olk, Megan (student) 1 1 2 40% TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION ATTENDANCE