HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council - 05/07/2013 - Workshop APPROVED MINUTES
CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP & OPEN PODIUM
TUESDAY, MAY 7, 2013 CITY CENTER
5:00—6:25 PM, HERITAGE ROOMS
6:30—7:00 PM, COUNCIL CHAMBER
CITY COUNCIL: Mayor Nancy Tyra-Lukens, Council Members Brad Aho, Sherry Butcher
Wickstrom, Kathy Nelson, and Ron Case
CITY STAFF: City Manager Rick Getschow, Police Chief Rob Reynolds, Fire Chief George
Esbensen, Public Works Director Robert Ellis, Community Development Director Janet Jeremiah,
Parks and Recreation Director Jay Lotthammer, Communications Manager Joyce Lorenz, City
Attorney Ric Rosow, and Recorder Lorene McWaters
PLANNING COMMISSION: Mary Egan, Steven Frank, Ann Higgins, Catherine Lechelt, Jake
Lee (Vice Chair), John Kirk, Jon Stoltz (Chair), Travis Wuttke
GUESTS: Mark Furhrmann, Metro Transit; Mark Koegler, HKGI; Jim Alexander, Southwest
Project Office
Workshop - Heritage Room H
I. SOUTHWEST LIGHT RAIL TRANSIT UPDATE
A. Project Overview and Timeline—Mark Fuhrmann, Metro Transit
Furhmann provided an overview of the Southwest LRT project, which will consist of
15 miles of double track running from downtown Minneapolis to Eden Prairie with an
expected ridership of 30,000 per week by 2030. He also reviewed the general project
timeline that calls for project development in 2013-2014, environmental documentation
in 2014, engineering in 2014-2015, funding agreements in 2015, construction from
2015-2017 and passenger operations beginning in 2018.
B. Station Area Planning Update - Mark Koegler, HKGI
Koegler provided a station area planning update. He said collaborative work on the
transition station area actions plans (TSAAP) is underway. The TSAAP process
addresses station platform locations, park and ride sites, future development potential,
access and circulation planning, infrastructure planning and stormwater management
solutions. Koegler presented charrette results for the proposed stations, and explained
that the exact locations will depend on the final alignment as well as other factors.
Koegler said the public meetings are being held in April and May to obtain feedback on
the initial designs. Station area planning will continue this summer, and additional
public meetings will be held in July and August. Refined station area planning is
expected to be completed by September, and municipal consent will be sought in
October.
City Council Workshop Minutes
September 18, 2012
Page 2
Koegler explained the SWLRT advisory committee process. He said another major
component of the project will be location of the operations and maintenance facility
(OMF), which will serve as the main location for cleaning, maintenance and storage
of the rail cars. He showed examples of Hiawatha and Central Corridor OMFs, and
reviewed some of the criteria that will be considered when determining the location
of the SWLRT OMF.
Koegler said a TSAAP/OMF workshop is scheduled for Monday, May 13, at 5:00
p.m. at City Center. Results for the five Eden Prairie stations will be presented. The
public is encouraged to attend this meeting to receive detailed information about the
project and provide input.
C. Technical Issues Overview—Jim Alexander, Southwest Project Office
Alexander reviewed the list of identified technical issues, including several that are
specific to Eden Prairie, including:
• Eden Prairie Alignment
• Nine Mile Creek Crossing
• Golden Triangle Station
• Shady Oak Road Crossing
• City West Station and TH 212/TH 62 Flyover Bridges
Alexander provided 1 lx17 drawings of each of technical issues areas and discussed
some of the issues that must be worked through.
Economic Development Manager David Lindahl stated that UHG has indicated they
would prefer a tunnel rather than a bridge at the UHG station. Public Works Director
Robert Ellis pointed out that Shady Oak Road is currently undergoing major
reconstruction, and construction of a tunnel at that location would require tearing up the
newly constructed road. He said associated costs would have to be absorbed by the
City. Lindahl said ShopNBC has also indicated a preference for a tunnel. They are
concerned about the amount of noise that would be generated during construction of a
bridge, and how that might impact their operations. Planning Commissioner Katie
Lechelt asked if there are any vibration issues anticipated. Alexander said that would
depend on proximity to businesses.
One of the proposed sites under consideration for the OMF is near Shady Oak and TH
212. Lindahl said the City has concerns about this site since it is considered a gateway
to the area. Another possible OMF site involves property owned by Liberty Property
Trust. Lindahl said they would likely be more amendable to having lots C and D used
for an OMF.
Mayor Tyra-Lukens said she is concerned because it does not seem as if parking, or
lack of parking, is being addressed at the Singletree Station. Aho said he agreed. Jake
Lee said there seem to be a lot of stations planned for Eden Prairie, and some of the
proposed alignments would add time to trips that riders may not find acceptable. Aho
City Council Workshop Minutes
September 18, 2012
Page 3
and Butcher Wickstrom also voiced concerns about parking at the station near
Brunswick. Aho asked if consideration has been given to terminating the line at
Southwest Station. Alexander said they are looking at how that scenario would affect
costs, ridership and run times. Community Development Director Janet Jeremiah noted
that half of Eden Prairie's population lives west of Mitchell Road, and that should be
taken into consideration in relation to where the line terminates.
Council Member Butcher Wickstrom asked how the LRT would affect SouthWest
Transit's service. Mayor Tyra-Lukens said as a member of the SouthWest Transit
Board, she knows they are interested in continuing to operate express bus service to
downtown. SouthWest Transit has asked for Met Council's support for construction of
a new park and ride facility at 169 and Pioneer Trail;however, that support has not
been forthcoming so far. Council Member Aho, also a SouthWest Transit Board
member, said it is his understanding that SouthWest Transit would not be allowed to
offer express bus service to downtown since it would be in direct competition with the
LRT. Tyra-Lukens said SouthWest Transit's concerns have been forwarded to the Met
Council.
Open Podium - Council Chamber
II. OPEN PODIUM
A. Dan Kittrell—Aquatic Project
Kitrell said he lives on Summit Drive in Eden Prairie. He noted he has e-mailed
the City Council and written a newspaper commentary about his position on the
proposed aquatic improvements at the Community Center. He questioned why the
City needed to go to referendum in 2005,but not now. He also questioned the
wisdom of the City building something that would be in direct competition with
the private sector.
III. ADJOURNMENT