1A, B2 Guiding Plan - Implementation Report

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COUNTY RD E (B-2 DISTRICT) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN 1.0 INTRODUCTION In October of 2008,the City of Arden Hills accepted the Guiding Plan for the B-2 District("Guiding Plan"). The B-2 District is generally bounded by Hamline Avenue(Trunk Highway 51)to the west, Canadian Pacific railroad tracks to the north,Lexington Avenue(County State Aid Highway 51)to the east,and the east-west Harriet Avenue alignment to the south(see Figure 1). County Road E(County State Aid Highway 15)is the primary roadway providing access to and through this district. The Guiding Plan process examined existing conditions,created a long-range redevelopment vision and guiding principles,addressed transportation questions,evaluated market potential,reviewed land uses,and prepared design guidelines. The purpose of this County Road E(B-2 District)Implementation Plan("Implementation Plan")is to revisit the goals and recommendations of the 2008 Guiding Plan and better illustrate the recommendations of that document through more defined roadway concepts. The work performed for this project was directed by the Project Management Team(PMT)which included staff representatives from the City of Arden Hills and Ramsey County. A central focus of this planning effort has been a robust public engagement program,discussing specific improvement strategies. The public engagement included two primary elements as summarized below: Corridor Advisory Committee(CAC)—This body was made up of local stakeholders,including property owners,business residents,and City Council members. A roster of the CAC is included as Appendix A. Bolton and Menk met with this group on three occasions to present and discuss design alternatives,and get feedback and direction. Individual business meetings—The project team solicited 25 local business owners to schedule one- on-one meetings. Fourteen of these responded and participated. In addition,a City Council Work Session was held after the first two CAC meetings to update the Council on work progress and to get its input and guidance to complete the project. Individual meetings,issues discussed, and outcomes are summarized in Section 3.0. 2.0 BACKGROUND TRAFFIC CONDITIONS Based on Mn/DOT data,County Road E currently carries over 14,000 vehicles per day. While it is classified as a`B"Minor Arterial roadway in the metro area network,it has numerous access points in the project area. Traffic counts(vehicle and pedestrian)for PM peak conditions were taken on January 5, 2012.1 This was prior to the closure of northbound Snelling Avenue,which occurred later in the spring. The resulting data is summarized on Figure 2. Level of Service(LOS)analysis for existing conditions was performed. All of the intersections in the project corridor currently operate at LOS C or better,which is acceptable. However,two specific movements are problematic: • Westbound movements at County Road E and northbound Hwy 51 ramp/Connelly Street—The total westbound movements(left,thru,and right)result in a cumulative LOS D for westbound 'It may be noted that the Walgreens Pharmacy at the corner of County Road E and Lexington Avenue was under construction while the traffic counts were taken. To account for this,trip generation estimates based on Institute of Traffic Engineers guidance were made and added to the observed traffic counts. Prepared by:Bolton&Menk,Inc. Project No.716.104355 County Rd E(B-2 District)Implementation Plan-Page 1