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ARDEN HILLS PLANNING COMMISSION—April 15, 2020 5 Commissioner Jefferys indicated she was pleased to see these plans moving forward. She questioned how the success of this plan would be monitored by the City. Community Development Manager/City Planner Mrosla reported staff would be working closely with the school district to monitor the new signage. He explained certain signage required approval from the State of Minnesota. Commissioner Zimmerman thanked staff, the City Council and school district representatives for their efforts on this project. He was pleased that all student safety concerns were being taken into consideration. Chair Gehrig agreed stating he recalled reviewing this project previously and understood there were concerns regarding traffic and safety. He was pleased to see these concerns were now being addressed. Chair Gehrig opened the public hearing at 7:14 p.m. Chair Gehrig invited anyone for or against the application to come forward and make comment. Elizabeth Garsky, 1795 Lake Valentine Road, explained she sent an email to the Planning Commission. She feared that too much signage would be installed and that it would be ignored. She recommended the parent drop off location be changed. She stated she was very concerned about the backups being caused by parents picking up and dropping off students. She commented further on the difficulties she has getting to her home in the evening hours. She feared that the residents that live in the area had given up on voicing their concerns because all of these changes have come about so quickly. She questioned why this project would move forward if the school district did not receive land from the State of Minnesota. There being no comment Chair Gehrig closed the public hearing at 7:20 p.m. Commissioner Weber discussed how structured medians assist with properly directing traffic. He questioned what the size of the median would be. He recommended a full-length median be considered for safety purposes. Public Works Director/City Engineer Blomstrom reported the intent of the small raised median was to provide some pedestrian protection and refuge. He explained the challenge of putting in a longer median was that it reduces the capacity of the left turn lane. He stated the City would have to work through the best balance during the project design phase. He indicated he has had some discussions with the school district regarding the parent drop off location but the school has not proposed make a change to the locations at this time. Commissioner Vijums commented the parents parked along Valentine Road for drop off and pickup and questioned how this concern would be addressed going forward. Community Development Manager/City Planner Mrosla suggested the Commission add conditions to address this concern. He stated Condition 13 could read: Additional signage be placed stating "No Parent Drop Off or Pickup". He reported Condition 14 could read: Pavement marking shall be added to the parent drop off and pick up area or the western access.