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03-30-89 PC Minutes MINUTES OF A SPECIAL MEETING OF THE GOLDEN VALLEY PLANNING COMMISSION March 30, 1989 A special meeting of the Planning Commission was held in the Manager's Confer- ence Room of the temporary City Hall, 7711 Country Club Drive, Golden Valley Road, Golden Valley, Minnesota. The meeting was called to order by Vice Chair McAleese at 7:30 A.M. Those present were .Commissioners Kapsner, Leppik, Lewis, and McAleese. Commis- sioners McCracken-Hunt, Prazak and Russell were absent. Also present were Mark Grimes, Director of Planning and Development, and Beth Knoblauch, City Planner. Director Grimes explained that the purpose of the special meeting was to formu- late a recommendation for the City Council regarding the Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority's light rail proposal. Representatives from the County had. made a presentation on the proposal at the Commission's previous meeting. The recommendation of the Commissioners should address the light rail concept, the route location, and the Golden Valley stations. Vice Chair McAleese said that the Commissioners should at least approve the light rail concept, or there was no reason for the meeting to proceed. Commis- sioner Leppik agreed, but said that the airport link would be the most important feature of the system, and she had some concern about whether light rail would be very successful without it. Vice Chair McAleese indicated that the County is aware of the importance of the airport link, but the big questions right now is who should pay for it. There is considerable pressure to put a large share of the financial burden onto the proposed Mall of America in Bloomington. Following some additional general discussion, the Commissioners agreed that the light rail concept is valid and that a metro light rail system is desirable in view of increasing pollution problems. The Commissioners next discussed the system routes. Commissioner Leppik pointed out that using the existing rail corridors was the least disruptive way to build the system. Vice Chair McAleese indicated that several alternatives were considered, within rail corridors and elsewhere. The Northwest Corridor route, serving Golden Valley and neighboring communities, would serve the most people with the least disruption and cost. Director Grimes added that, in fact, this is the most cost-effective route in the system. Commissioner .Lewis said that, living near the proposed route and being affected by traffic increases on Golden Valley Road, she could understand the concerns of other City residents. Commissioner Leppik asked whether the Northwest Corridor would be the first route to be built. Director Grimes said that it would. There was discussion about the yellow ribbons that residents. near the proposed Golden Valley Road station had tied around trees in protest. The consensus of the Commissioners was that the Northwest Corridor is a useful route, despite localized opposition. It is regrettable. that some people perceive the route as an infringement on their property rights, but there is no way to build a route anywhere that would not affect someone. 1 1 1 Minutes of a Special Meeting of the Golden Valley Planning Commission March 30, 1989 Page 2 Golden Valley station locations formed the next topic of discussion. Commis- sioner Leppik said that it didn't make sense to have no stations in Golden Valley, even though the two that are proposed are not in great locations. There was general discussion of station locations and how they were selected. Vice Chair McAleese reported that the Minneapolis Park Board, which initially opposed the station on its land at Xerxes and Plymouth, had reconsidered and now believes that the station will considerably improve park access. Commis- sioner Kapsner agreed, but pointed out that access for regular commuter purposes, particularly .from the Golden Valley side, was pretty limited. Director Grimes. added that parking availability also would be limited. Vice Chair McAleese felt that, with bus service so good. on the Minneapolis-side of that station location, there wouldn't be much incentive for people over there to use the station. Commissioner Leppik summed up by saying that she considered this station to be a park stop rather than a transit stop. The Commissioners agreed that the stop at Plymouth and Xerxes. is a good idea. because it increases park accessibility and is supported by the Minneapolis Park Board, and minimal. commuter use is not necessarily an issue. Regarding the Golden Valley Road station, Commissioner Kapsner stated that he saw no way to eliminate it without hurting the usefulness of the route for many potential commuters. There was general discussion of the site's characteristics and of the. alternative site that was originally proposed across the intersection. The Commissioners felt that traffic would be a big problem at either site, but topography also was a major issue. that resulted in dropping the first site in favor of the second. Director Grimes explained that, while traffic would certainly increase, the higher levels would be distributed over a fairly long peak period rather than being concentrated in a fifteen minute or half hour interval. Planner Knoblauch pointed out that, in view of recently discovered soil problems on the site, the station might be too expensive to build. even if it received local approval. Director Grimes felt that the biggest impact of the station would be felt by the three homeowners on Bonnie Lane, and that the County should buy these properties. Commissioner Leppik agreed, and said that the values of .those properties couldn't help but be drastically reduced because of the station. There was also discussion about the impact on the homeowners along Kewanee Way, but the Commissioners felt this to be less than some homeowners believe. For one thing, the tracks exist already, and the railroad could do whatever it wants on them. As for child safety, the more frequent use of the rails should actually reinforce the safety factor to both children and parents, whereas now the infrequency of rail use means that no one expects to have to watch out for trains and so could be taken by surprise. Also, the County has indicated a willingness to fence off the rail corridor and thus prevent accidental straying t _ _~ Minutes of a Special Meeting of the Golden Valley Planning Commission March 30, 1989 Page 3 onto the line. Finally, regarding loss of park access, Director Grimes pointed out that the City maintains no easement for public access now, so even though trails appear to ..exist across the tracks and into the park this technically represents a trespassing onto rail road property. Vice Chair McAleese returned to the traffic issue. Even though there would be some dispersion of .the increased traffic, he felt that it would definitely put a strain on Golden Valley Road. Director Grimes said that, since this is a County road, the County would be responsible for correcting any traffic problems. Commissioner Kapsner felt that, at minimum, a new traffic signal would need to be installed at Bonnie Lane and Golden Valley Road. Commissioner Lewis agreed that a signal should be recommended by the Planning Commission.. Commissioner Leppik felt that the County should buy all of Bonnie Lane from the City, as long as we are already recommending the buyout of the Bonnie Lane homeowners. Then the County could be responsible for .the entire site, and Bonnie Lane could become -just a driveway into the parking lot. Director Grimes said that the City would still need to use Bonnie Lane in order to access the park trail head at the road's end. In further discussion, though, it appeared that the trail could be realigned to run along Bassett Creek and another access. point might be developed. There was also discussion of how the purchase of the road and the tree homes, which appear to be on better soil than some of the rest of the site, might allow the County to redesign the station to avoid the worst of the soil problems. Security was the final issue discussed. by the Commissioners. Director Grimes was not entirely comfortable with the security provisions outlined by the County. Commissioner Lewis talked about parking lot security problems downtown and in general. Planner Knoblauch pointed out that crime in general is a problem that Golden Valley and other Metro Area communities would simply have to learn to address as the Metro Area grows and becomes more cosmopolitan. Keeping the station out of Golden Valley will not keep crime out, but there is a need to take measures to prevent crime at the station and elsewhere. The Commissioners agreed that a full security study should be done by the County so that. reasonable security precautions can be taken. The Commissioners. agreed that the Golden Valley Road station should be included in the preliminary design plan because it is the best location to serve Golden Valley. However, there are a number of concerns regarding the station locations that should be addressed by the HCRRA including: 1. Security of the station site 2. Access to Golden Valley Road 3. Effect on the fire station and homes on Bonnie Lane 4. Access to the park trail The meeting was adjourned at 8:20 A.M. 1