CCP 07-12-1999 - Laserfiche WebLink

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ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL - JUNE 28,1999 The Minnesota Department of Transportation asked that Ramsey County go back and revisit this issue. The Minnesota Department of Transportation's position is that they could accept this scenario, however, with conditions that address the safety and circulation issues developed in this area, such as closing off the accesses completely. This action would leave the City without any access to US Highway 10 for the properties north of Highway 96 and west of US Highway 10. The Minnesota Department of Transportation, Ramsey County and Arden Hills City staff worked at developing a frontage road option along the west side of US Highway 10, in lieu of the previous ramp proposal. This option would have some trade-offs and restrict some access, The southbound US Highway 10 traffic could not access Highway 96 at all. There would be an opening for the Scherer Lumber facility from north bound US Highway 10. This opening would be configured in such a way so as not to allow cut through traffic from US Highway 10 to Highway 96, The proposed frontage road would displace the current home sites on the west side of US Highway 10, The frontage road would provide access for local property owners by allowing for both east and west movements onto Highway 96. This option does put a greater focus on the interchange at 1-35W. Ramsey County has proposed a single point diamond design interchange for this location. This is an improvement, which will not occur for several years since the Minnesota Department of Transportation is considering the 1-35W corridor in a broader sense, Mr. T olaas stated that he did not believe there would be support for funding at this location until the Minnesota Department of Transportation completes the 1-35W study. Mr. Tolaas expressed his belief that this second option is an attractive proposal for circulation of the US Highway 10 and Highway 96 intersection. It is likely that the Minnesota Department of Transportation would work closely with Ramsey County to develop a funding package for this option. Mr. Tolaas stated that the County is not attempting to dictate to the City which scenario should be chosen. One option would be to back away from this entire segment until the funding is put together. At this point, the County cannot move forward with an engineering design until a concept is found which is acceptable to both the City of Arden Hills and the State of Minnesota. Mayor Probst noted that a related development was that the State of Minnesota is in the process of turning back Highway 96 to Ramsey County. With this process, Highway 96 is being scheduled for upgrades from Old Highway 8 through to White Bear Lake. In theory, by the end of this summer, everything from Lexington Avenue to the east will be completed. Mr. Tolaas noted that the eastern portion of Highway 96 is scheduled to be a two year project. Mayor Probst stated that in conversations with Ramsey County, the City of Arden Hills had thought there had been a resolution of the US Highway 10 and Highway 96 interchange. The Minnesota Department of Transportation entered the discussions somewhat late and had indicated a strong desire to have a grade separation with a bridge for US Highway 10 over Highway 96. The overall plan had been for US Highway 10 to serve as a reliever for 1-35W traffic. The initial proposal the City received from the Minnesota Department of Transportation related to this plan provided no access at the US Highway 10 and Highway 96 interchange. The City If-", li ,lD' ,..,.,........ 't;-' (4.1 '^ '~:'l'i e e