CC_Minutes_2010_0208 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

Regular City Council Meeting Monday, February 08, 2010 Page 18 held in January, and the subsequent petition presented by a majority of the neigh- bors requesting that the City Council reverse their previous action. Mr. Schwartz advised that considerable discussion had been held among neigh- bors and between neighbors and staff over the last two months, and that staff had suggested that the neighbors petition to the City Council for reconsideration of their previous decision, with that petition presented at the January 25, 2010 meet- ing, as well as the City Council receiving additional comments for or against. Mr. Schwartz advised that the plans were 95% developed for the actual location at this time, and thus staff had put together rough drawings on the wall height for the perspective of the City Council and neighbors. Mayor Klausing noted that in June of 2009, the City Council had taken action ap- proving the noise wall as presented and based on the overwhelming positive feed- back in support of the wall by the neighborhood. Mayor Klausing noted that the recent petition indicated that this previous support had now changed almost com- pletely to opposition. Mayor Klausing opined that, in his almost nine years on the City Council, he could not remember such a turnaround; and sought input from staff, from their perspective, as to how this had occurred and whether sufficient information had been available since the inception. of the project. Mr. Schwartz clarified that, while not understanding the impetus for this new dis- cussion, concerns from neighbors were being directed to staff prior to the Open House meeting held in January. City Engineer Debra Bloom advised that, since preparation and delivery of the Council Agenda packet that included the petition requesting that the noise wall terminate just east of 2234 Marion Street, several additional homes were now supportive of the petition, and indicated the location of those homes on visuals for the City Council and public. Ms. Bloom reviewed several to-scale cross sections based on plan sheets just completed and provided by MnDOT and Ramsey County today, comparing exist- ing trees, wall height versus existing tree and/or home height, and proposed mi- nimal tree removal, that she had just completed showing perspectives from vari- ous locations, including 357 Capitol View; 325 Capitol View; 285 Capitol View; and 2241 Marion Street. Ms. Bloom reviewed the now 95% complete plans and location of the proposed ramp from Rice Street to Highway 36, and the off-ramp coming off and across Highway 36 to the bridge and connecting to a single-point intersection in the vicinity of Calibre Ridge townhomes. Ms. Bloom advised that, since the plan sheets had just been completed, she had only been able to meet with two residents to-date to provide them with this per- spective.