Email from Keith Paap via Tom Furlong 4-26-05
Message
Page 1 of 2
Aanenson, Kate
From: Tom Furlong [tfurlong@apexfsLcom]
Sent: Tuesday, April 26, 2005 1 :08 PM
To: Gerhardt, Todd; Aanenson, Kate
Subject: FW: Hidden Creek Meadows (Planning Case 04-31)
Todd & Kate,
Thought you would want to be aware of this. We can talk later.
Tom
-----Original Message-----
From: Keith Paap [mailto:keith@paap.us]
Sent: Tuesday, April 26, 2005 10:50 AM
To: tfurlong@ci.chanhassen.mn.us
Cc: btjorn hom@ci.chanhassen.mn.us; slabatt@ci.chanhassen.mn.us; blundquist@ci.chanhassen.mn.us;
cpeterson@ci.chanhassen.mn.us; frances@paap.us
Subject: Hidden Creek Meadows (Planning Case 04-31)
Dear Members of the City Council,
Although you have already met and approved the preliminary plat for the development at Hidden Creek Meadows
at last night's council meeting (4/25), I would like to provide some additional input and would appreciate your
feedback on how the situation can be improved while the development continues to move forward. I am attaching
the information I was able to pull from the city's web site. Unfortunately it is a relatively large file and my
apologies for the size but I wanted to make sure you had it available since my comments relate to this document.
My address is 4001 Pipewood Lane. This puts me at the beginning of Pipewood Lane that is being extended for
this development. We signed our papers to purchase the property in April of 2004 and moved in late summer of
last year. The planning commission provided hearings for public input last winter on a couple occasions.
Unfortunately I was not notified of these hearings and did not know they were proceeding. I checked with the city
just last week on this and was told we were not notified due to the fact that they pull peoples names from the
county and it did not show us as new owners at that time. (In fact they said the records still did not show us as
owners.) I can tell you the county assessor knows we live here! However, that's not apparently where the city
pulls their information. At the time I called, I spoke with Bob Generous on this project and he let me know that is
was going before the city council this week. However he also informed me that it would just be for the council's
review and this would not be an opportunity for public input. This came as yet another disappointment as I chose
instead to watch the meeting on cable access and watched the floor be opened for public input.
I am definitely not against this development. I was expecting some type of development in this area and simply
consider it normal growth. My primary concern has to do with access to MN Hwy 7 from the development. This
will bring this development to somewhere between 50-60 lots that will have only one access to Hwy 7. This could
become problematic considering the high percentage of traffic (95-99%) that turns left (east). I was told (during
phone call with Bob Generous) that the connection to Cartway Lane provides the secondary access to the
development that is needed and that this would be plowed and could be used. However in last night's council
meeting this was presented as "emergency vehicle only" access which leaves all traffic going out the one exit to
Hwy7.
You will also see in the attachment that Mn/DOT has also expressed concern on the traffic levels accessing Hwy
7 from this development. (Memo from Mn/DOT is found at approximately p.80 in the attachment.) The letter
4/26/2005
Message
Page 1. at 1.
indicates that access may be restricted in the future to only a right turn in and right turn out of the development.
Given that there are no good areas for a U-Turn along Hwy 7 west of this development, this would mean traffic
wourd begin to use other neighborhoods to make the switch from westbound to eastbound. Mn/DOT also points
out the need to keep the access to Cartway Lane open as access with no mention of restriction access to
emergency vehicles.
The lack of a formal secondary access also means that there will be no other access for construction traffic down
this long cul-de-sac other than directly in front of the existing homes on Pipewood Lane. Safety is of concern
since I have two children (currently age 5 and 7) as well as a young child at our neighbors home.
I look forward to your feedback and hope there is still time to improve this development going forward. I moved
from Minnetonka where I lived along Hwy 101 and have worked with the City of Minnetonka and Hennepin County
on their expansion plans for 101. In that situation, the working dialog was excellent even to the point of having
Lee Gustafson and the Hennepin County right of way agents walk the lot and go over in detail plans and options
going forward. I am somewhat dismayed at the difference in the value of public input that I have seen so far.
Even the public input provided at last night's council meeting was simply shown as concern but in the end just
bypassed as "unfortunate". I'm hoping this will improve going forward.
<<...>>
Keith Paap
4001 Pipewood Lane
Chanhassen, MN 55331-7761
keith@paaQ.,us (email)
952.470.1776 (home)
612.600.4646 (cell)
Instant Messaging
keithpaap (yahoo - includes webcam)
keithpaap (aim)
keithpaap@hotmail.com (msn)
4126/2005