HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution - 2002-174 - Southwest Rail Transit Study - 10/15/2002 CITY OF EDEN PRa1RTF
HENNEPIN COUNTY,IIIINNESOTA
RESOLUTION NO. 2002-174
RESOLUTION RELATING TO THE SOUTHWEST RAH,TRANSIT STUDY
WHEREAS, The City of Eden Prairie is a fast growing suburb of Minneapolis whose
residents want to balance transit issues with an ability to preserve the beauty and environmental
value of the land which surrounds us; and
WHEREAS, while we recognize the short-term and long-term transit needs of our
community, we believe that all transit and roadway solutions need to be considered in a broad
context of financial, social and environmental impacts; and
WHEREAS, the City of Eden Prairie has already taken measures to participate in
roadway solutions that impact the community and are looking at additional investments that may
improve the existing roadway system; and
WHEREAS, the City of Eden Prairie has developed, consistent with the Met Council's
wishes, a sophisticated, yet financially feasible, bus system that serves the transit needs of its
community effectively. This bus system provides very reliable, cost effective commuter service
to Eden Prairie residents working in downtown Minneapolis and is in the process of expanding;
and
WHEREAS, more than one-third of all workers in Eden Prairie work within the "Golden
Triangle," the Southwest Metro Station is in very close proximity and along one of the arteries
that border it(Highways 212/5); and
WHEREAS, the Southwest Corridor (trail) is used by more than 250,000 residents per
year for recreational purposes and serves as a natural and beautiful amenity to the City and
surrounding communities; and
WHEREAS, the Southwest Corridor, as it passes through Eden Prairie, runs primarily
through residential and conservation areas and not along land masses occupied by businesses or
other commercial enterprises; and
WHEREAS, the study currently being conducted by the Hennepin County
Commissioners is attempting to establish the alignment of an LRT along the Southwest Corridor
because it owns the railway easements; and
WHEREAS, the City Council has had the opportunity to study the proposed alignments,
receive input from its professional staff, and consult with its citizens, has been asked by
Hennepin County to comment on the Southwest Rail Transit Study.
NOW,THEREFORE,BE IT RESOL`TD BY THE EDEN PRAIRIE CITY COUNCIL:
1. The City Council prefers an alignment, such as the alignment known as option WS,that
best serves the employee transportation needs of the Eden Prairie business community,
with an emphasis on the employee transportation needs of those employers in the Golden
Triangle area.
2. The City Council prefers an alignment that strengthens the mission of the community's
current transit provider of choice, Southwest Metro Transit,by terminating the alignment
into a multi-modal transit node at the Southwest Metro Station.
3. The financial feasibility analysis of the proposed alignments included the Southwest Rail
Transit Study should include estimates of the expenditure of funds by all city, county,
state, and federal levels of government, and by regulated public utilities,that will be
required to complete road and utility improvement and relocation projects which are
required for the construction of the project.
4. The financial feasibility analysis of the proposed alignments should include an analysis of
the automobile traffic displaced from the regional transportation system within the SW
LRT Corridor area that is directly attributable to that proposed alignment. The Southwest
Rail Transit study should clearly articulate its basic assumptions and methodologies for
its ridership projections for each alignment.
5. The study should clearly articulate the projected construction costs, annual operating
costs, and annual capital costs for the project. The study should clearly identify the
assumptions and methodologies employed to create the construction cost estimates of the
alignment and its future operating and capital replacement cost projections.
6. The City Council prefers an alignment option that complements and coordinates with the
transit services offered by Southwest Metro Transit. The City Council will be reluctant
to support alignments that may undermine the current or future operations of South West
Metro Transit.
7. The City Council prefers the preservation of the existing recreational use of the SW LRT
Trail. Should the final alignment of the Southwest Rail Transit Study result in an
alignment other than the SW LRT Corridor, City of Eden Prairie will agree to accept the
ownership and maintenance responsibilities of the SW LRT Corridor through our
community and to preserve its current recreational use.
ADOPTED by the Eden Prairie City Council on October 15,2002.
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