WS 1999 04 05CHANHASSEN CITY COUNCIL
WORK SESSION
April 5, 1999
Mayor Mancino called the work session to order at 5:30 p.m..
COUNCILMEMBERS PRESENT: Mayor Mancino, Councilwoman Jansen, Councilman
Engel, Councilman Senn
COUNCILMEMBERS ABSENT: Councilman Labatt
STAFF PRESENT: Anita Benson, City Engineer
PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM PRESENT: Jim Grube, Hennepin County; David Juliff,
and Tim Phenow, SRF Consulting Group, Inc.,
CONSENT AGENDA DISCUSSION:
1. Lake Ann Park Entrance Road Parking Lots and Trail Reconstruction Cost Estimate
Bill Engelhardt presented a cost estimate to the City Council The estimated cost to complete this
work is more than originally anticipated. The majority of the increase was due to an expansion in
the scope of the work.
Upon conclusion of council discussion, staff was directed to work with Engelhardt and Associates
in preparing a series of options. These options would reduce the thickness of the typical parking
lot section and elimination of landscaping islands. Staging the improvements and elimination of
the road reconfiguration shall also be considered.
2. Southwest Metro Transit Update - Len Simich
Mr. Simich updated the City Council on 1998 accomplishments and what is proposed for 1999.
The City Council also talked about the Park and Ride site located at the Chanhassen Bowl and
Mr. Simich's commitment to working with the City in researching alternative locations.
Mr. Simich then presented Mark Senn with his Southwest Metro Certificate of Recognition for
his service on the Southwest Metro Transit Commission.
3. Code of Ethics
Mr. Bob Ayotte announced that he no longer felt the City of Chanhassen needed an Ethics
Commission; however, the City should look at establishing a buying policy/procurement policy.
He also suggested the City council consider Ethics Training for the City Council and Staff. The
City Council agreed, and asked Staff to schedule a meeting with Roger Knutson, City Attorney,
for a special training session regarding "Conflict of Interest" and presenting a summary of the
state statute regarding this issue. Councilwoman Jansen offered a copy of the League of
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April 5, 1999
Minnesota Cities Competitive Bidding Requirements as a guide for establishing a procurement
policy.
This item will be scheduled for a future work session and staff will present alternative policies.
4. TH 101 Update
Open Houses
The first item of discussion was the format for the open houses as well as the content of the
material which was to be presented. All members of the Council had received a packet of
information prior to the study session which outlined the proposed agenda for the open houses, as
well as the form in which the information would be presented. There was some initial concern
regarding the timing of the agenda items for the open house in relation to the recent highway 212
open houses. After some discussion, it was agreed that the time frame for the various agenda
items appeared to be appropriate. It was recommended that index cards or comment cards be
made available at the open house for submission of questions by residents in the event that the
resident is unable to stay for the question and answer period. In addition, it was recommended
that directions to the open house locations be well publicized (newsletter, newspaper). The
individual plan views which will be distributed and also shown on the overhead projector will be
revised to show all the street names on both the Chanhassen and Eden Prairie sides of Highway
tat.
Other Discussions
The following is a paraphrased exchange of questions by the Council and responses from
members of the project management team.
At the open houses for Highway 212, the largest concern among residents was noise mitigation.
Is there any plan for noise mitigation along the corridor? It is recognized that there will be a need
to address the noise issue along the corridor. With the number of direct accesses along the
corridor, it will be difficult to effectively mitigate the noise (lots of openings in walls/fences). A
chart which MnDOT presented at the Highway 212 open houses will be used for the Highway
tat open houses. This chart shows a comparison of various activities (conversation, etc._ and
their associated decibel range. Anita agreed to obtain a copy of this chart from MnDOT staff.
Could the storm sewer be constructed as part of the overlay alternative? Yes, it is feasible to do
this. The cost will be added to the matrix which was prepared to compare the alternatives, and
the text on the alternative description will be modified to remove the note regarding inadequate
drainage.
Why are there no traffic signals shown for the overlay alternative? There are numerous problems
associated with installing traffic signals without constructing the proper left turn lanes. Left
turning traffic ends up blocking the through traffic and causes the roadway to operate inefficiently
as well as creating an unsafe situation.
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April 5, 1999
Why is there a trail shown on the Eden Prairie side of the roadway? Eden Prairie is planning to
construct the trail at this time, but it is possible that the trail could be deleted from the project.
There are parallel trails on Dell Road, and there are some design difficulties associated with
constructing the trail on the east side of Highway 101 approaching the curve at Town Line Road
(narrow boulevard between the roadway and the retaining wall).
How wide is the "frontage road" on the south end of Highway 101, and will it be private or
public? The frontage road is shown as approximately 16 feet wide as there is a need for additional
width for snow plowing operations and possibly snow storage. At this point, the details of
whether it would be public or private have not been worked out. It is shown to indicate that
access to the homes in this area could be maintained.
How long are the turn lanes? The left turn lanes are approximately 300 feet long with an
additional 180 foot long taper, and the right turn lanes are slightly shorter.
Why are there channelized intersections shown and what is meant be a "future" signal? An
explanation of the concept of signal warrants was given, and that these intersections likely would
not meet those warrants immediately after reconstruction. However, it is expected that in the
very near future those intersections (Valley View and Pleasantview) would meet warrants for a
traffic signal and at that time the signals could be installed.
Why does Highway 101 need to be 4 lane for restoration of function? Highway 5 and Highway 7
(in Carver County) are 4 lane undivided. It was acknowledged that this is a valid observation and
that the traffic volumes for Highway 5 and Highway 7 in Carver County would be compared to
the traffic volumes on Highway 101.
Why is the two lane alternative not an option for the counties, and is the resurfacing alternative
also a non-option? The reconstruction of Highway 101 needs to be a balance between the desires
and needs of the neighborhoods and the desires and needs of the region. The two lane option and
the overlay option do not serve the needs of the region. For this reason, the counties would not
support either of these options. The presentations at the open houses will include these two
options, but the reasons for which the counties cannot support them will also be presented. (A
comment was also made that the residents along this corridor have been unaware of any future
expansion of the roadway, compared to nearly 20 years of discussions for the Town Line Road
reconstruction).
Could the four lane undivided roadway be shifted like the 4 lane divided? Yes, this is feasible.
Do we want to expand the coverage of the newsletter for the Highway 101 Open House notices?
It is possible to do a city-wide mailing. The original intent was to use the same mailing list as for
the previous two newsletters, and to supplement them with notices in the local newspaper. It is
also possible that an article in the local newspaper could be published for more extensive media
coverage.
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April 5, 1999
Where is the traffic coming from? Why is there a 65% increase in traffic over the next 20 years?
A "travelshed" map will be prepared for presentation at the open houses which will show from
where the majority of traffic is coming.
How will the task force be used to assist in the decision making process? One suggestion was to
simply use public hearings as the local residents will want to have as much individual input as
possible, while another suggestion was to wait and see what comes out of the open houses and
then have a joint council meeting with Eden Prairie. Jim suggested that the council needs to
decide what they want to do about the task force and let Anita know what they would like said at
the open houses regarding the task force.
What is the status/time frame for construction of Highway 1017 Construction could begin in 2 to
3 years, as there are a number of tasks that need to occur prior to construction. Consensus on an
alternative, environmental documentation and approval, design, approval of plans and
authorization to purchase right-of-way.
The above represents SRF Consulting Group's interpretation of the Council Study Session.
5. Interview Five Candidates for Park and Recreation Commission
The City Council interviewed candidates for the Park and Recreation Commission. Appointments
will be made at the April 26, 1999 meeting.
6. Miscellaneous
Transportation Task Force (verbal)
The City Council, in the past, was considering establishing a task force to review each of our
transportation issues. The City Council conclusion at this time was to establish a broad range
transportation task force but to look at specific task forces like "Highway 101 Task Force" as
example. No action or direction was given at this time.
Courtyard Conference Room Layout
Staff was directed to receive quotes for the two alternatives (#1 A & B and #2) as outlined in
their packets. This item will be presented at their next council meeting.
The work session was adjourned at 6:30 p.m.
Submitted by Todd Gerhardt
Acting City Manager
Prepared by Gina Burmeister