City Council - 03/17/2009 - Workshop APPROVED MINUTES
CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP & OPEN PODIUM
TUESDAY, MARCH 17, 2009 CITY CENTER
5:00—6:25 PM, HERITAGE ROOM II
6:30—7:00 PM, COUNCIL CHAMBER
CITY COUNCIL: Mayor Phil Young, Council Members Brad Aho, Ron Case, Jon Duckstad, and
Kathy Nelson
CITY STAFF: City Manager Scott Neal, Police Chief Rob Reynolds, Fire Chief George Esbensen,
Public Works Director Eugene Dietz, Community Development Director Janet Jeremiah, Parks and
Recreation Director Jay Lotthammer, Communications Manager Joyce Lorenz, Assistant to the City
Manager Michael Barone, City Attorney Ric Rosow, and Recorder Lorene McWaters
Heritage Room H
Council Member Nelson was absent. Planner Regina Herron and Assistant City Engineer Randy
Newton attended.
I. SOUTHWEST LIGHT RAIL TRANSIT (LRT) UPDATE
A. Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS)
Oscar Gonzalez of HDR, Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority (HCRRA)
consultant, provided an overview of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement process
for the southwest Light Rail Transit(SW LRT)project. He said the DEIS is a required
component of the project development process for all new FTA starts. Gonzalez said the
scoping portion of the DEIS took place from September 8 to November 7, 2008, and
included several community meetings. Gonzalez said HCRRA plans to complete the
DEIS by the end of 2009. Evaluation of alternatives was conducted after scoping. The
next steps are to finalize the DEIS and publish it. Currently, two alignments are under
consideration. The first alignment(Alignment 1) would follow the LRT trail right-of-
way, which Hennepin County already owns. The other alignment under consideration
(Alignment 3) would run through the Golden Triangle and terminate at Mitchell Road.
The study includes analysis of significant earthwork; right-of-way issues; and roadway,
right-of-way, and at-grade impacts.
Mayor Young said the City of Eden Prairie has clearly expressed support for Alignment
3. He said he thought Hennepin County was in agreement that this was the alternative
that should be pursued. He asked why Alignment 1 is included in the study. Gonzalez
said that for funding purposes both alignments must be studied. Assistant City Engineer
Randy Newton said Hennepin County plans to identify a locally preferred alignment by
early summer, and this alternative will go forward in the DEIS process.
City Council Workshop
March 17, 2009
Page 2
B. Station Area Planning
Gary Hay and Tom Johnson from Hay Dobbs presented an overview of the station area
planning study. Hay said that, unlike the DEIS, the station area planning study is for
Alignment 3 only. Hay reviewed proposed land use plans for the five stations
anticipated for Eden Prairie: City West Parkway/Shady Oak, Golden Triangle, Eden
Prairie Town Center, Southwest Station, and Mitchell Road. The study is expected to be
completed this summer. Council Member Aho said it is important that LRT not have a
negative impact on the current traffic situation. Hay said that is one of the challenges
being studied as part of the planning process.
Council Chamber
II. OPEN PODIUM
III. ADJOURNMENT