04-22-24-WS - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION—APRIL 22, 2024 3 Councilmember Holden questioned how many of the intersections were categorized at a Level C. She was of the opinion the City should not be happy with a Level C when there were opportunities to make things better with this new development. Mr. Rojer stated building appropriate infrastructure would be the key to supporting this development. He said that Level C is considered standard. He indicated expanding Highway 96 to six or eight lanes would assist with improving traffic flow, but this was not reasonable. He explained Level C would require a 30 to 45 second delay at traffic signals. He stated this was not anything he was concerned about. Councilmember Holden inquired how many of the intersections were at Level C and how many were better. Ms. Haase stated there was a mixture between AM and PM peaks. She explained County Road H and I 35-W southbound and northbound ramps were anticipated at Level A in both the AM and PM peaks under both scenarios. She indicated the CSAH 96 and the Northern Heights access point would be Level C. She stated the CSAH 96 and Highway 10 southbound ramp would be Level C and for the maximum development scenario would be Level D for the AM peak and Level C for the PM peak. Councilmember Holden reported Ramsey County owns the traffic signals. She asked if this had been taken into consideration. Mr. Rojer stated he had coordinated with Ramsey County and they provided the initial signal timing. He noted they have had additional coordination since then. Councilmember Monson pointed out the information for the intersection grading was on Page 13 of the packet. She appreciated the Kimley Horn staff speaking to the realities that if you want everything to be a Level A, you're talking about mass spending and big roads. She said so to keep an A and hold an A, there is a trade-off. Mr. Rojer commented that with roadways and developments, it is a grading scale but not like the scale in school where everybody wants an A. He said it was all about right sizing for developments and so D and E are what are considered to be the right size for a roadway. Mayor Grant reported back in 2014 when a roundabout was being proposed, he recalled an ADT of 29,000 was discussed and CSAH 96/Northern Heights would support 9,700 ADT. He questioned if the roundabout would support a greater ADT than 29,000. Mr. Rojer stated this was evaluated and commented on how traffic would be spread out throughout the day. He indicated he was not seeing anything in his updated analysis that shows the roundabout would be over capacity throughout the day. Mayor Grant asked what the turn signal at CSAH 96/Parkway would support. Mr. Rojer anticipated 23,000 cars per day would be added and noted this intersection would operate effectively. He stated the development would have 46,000 trips per day and with the general distribution, half would use the north entrance and half would use the south entrance.