HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-24-2020 Worksession Packet 0
City of Oak Park Heights Worksession
Date: Tuesday, November 24, 2020
Time: 5:30pm
This meeting will be conducted by video/telephone conference due to the ongoing COVID-19 health pandemic. The
meeting will follow the provisions of Minnesota Statute § 13D.021. If practical, members of the public may be
permitted to remotely listen to the meeting as provided in 13D.021, Subd. 3, subject to such person paying for any
added cost incurred by the City as a result of the additional connection. The open meeting can be viewed remotely
online at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83409540703 or by calling (312-626-6799) and entering meeting ID
83409540703#. There is no participant ID needed.
Please contact the City at 651-439-4439 or jpinskikcityofoakparkheights.com in advance of November 24, 2020 if
you have any questions about access.
1. Call to Order
2. Lookout Trail
3. Adjourn
® Stantec Memo
To: Oak Park Heights Mayor and City Council From: Lee M. Mann, PE(/�
City Administrator City Engineer
File: 193805170 Date: November 19, 2020
Reference: Lookout Trail Reconstruction Project— Project Layout and Resident Letter issues
On October 24th, staff met with residents on Lookout Trail to share information regarding the proposed
improvements for Lookout Trail and gather feedback from the residents. The proposed improvements are
shown the accompanying Lookout Trail Reconstruction Figure 1, copies of which were shared with the
residents with the meeting notice; a large-scale exhibit was available for viewing at the meeting. See Figure 1
attached.
The current proposed design includes reconstructing the road in its existing location, adding storm sewer
under the westerly curb, and a installing a pathway on the west side of the road adjacent to the curb as shown
in the attached Figure 1.
The residents at the neighborhood meeting brought up a few issues specific to the proposed design (vs.
general questions i.e. how far back the driveways would be replaced):
• There were questions about the curb. The residents indicated a desire to continue to be able to park
along the road, so they did not like the idea of B618 curb proposed for the west side adjacent to the
path.
• The residents questioned what would be done with the mailboxes if the path is installed next to the
curb on the west side.
Subsequent to the neighborhood meeting, the residents along Lookout Trail forwarded a letter to the City
which was included in the October 30th weekly notes. In summary, the letter indicates the residents desire to
have the path installed on the east side of the road.
We have reviewed the resident comments and will present options for the City Council to consider at the
November 24th workshop.
Attachment: Figure 1
c. file
ml v:119381active11938051701communicationslcorrespondencellookout trail res issues mem.docx
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To: Eric Johnson, City Administrator October 30, 2020
Oak Park Heights, MN 55082
Re: Lookout Trail Bike Path
Dear Eric,
Thank you for sending the notice of the projected road work on Lookout Trail for summer, 2021.
Several of us property owners missed your information gathering meeting on Saturday, Oct 24, so
we'd like to share our thoughts with this letter. We want to assure you that we have no objection to
creating a bike trail along Lookout Trail, but we have major concerns and suggestions regarding the
placement of the path.
Our main concern is that the bike path is shown on the Planning Commission's map along the west
side of Lookout Trail. We believe it would be much safer and more user friendly to put it across the
road,along the east side instead. Here are our reasons:
Public Safety Issues:
I. There are nine private driveways to cross along the west side of the road, all of which slope
downhill to Lookout Trail from the homes on the hillside,and some of which have limited
visibility because the driveways cut through a steep cliff. We worry that bikers coasting
downhill at some speed will be unable to avoid colliding with a vehicle that suddenly appears
crossing the path to enter the roadway. On the other hand, there are no (zero) private
driveways along the east side of the road, making that a much safer option for both walkers
and bikers, and less worrisome to homeowners using their driveways.
2. We also anticipate that many recreational bikers on this path will want to visit the Scenic
Overlook Park on the east side of the road. The way the proposal was drawn, those bikers
will need to cross the road from west to east in order to get to Overlook Park,and then cross
back over to the west side again to continue along the path after exiting the park.
3. In fact, the plan as drawn requires path users to cross the road near the bottom of the hill and
again at the top where the trail turns south to go over the Beach Road bridge. That is a lot of
potential traffic danger that could be eliminated simply by locating the trail along the east
side of the road, all the way up the hill. That is apparently how MNDoT planned the trail
when starting it at the intersection with Hwy 95.
4. Another concern with having the path crossing people's driveways is that it would limit
access to mail boxes for mail deliveries along the west side of the road. How pan the mail
truck pull up to those mail boxes if the bike path is in the way? If your plan calls for
relocating all the mail boxes to the east side of the road, that would impose safety hazards to
the homeowners who then would have to cross the road each day to get their mail.
5. Similarly, garbage trucks need to get close to the bins for collecting trash and recycling each
week. We typically place those bins next to the street the night before trash day and pull
them back up our driveways the following day when they are empty. If the bike path were
on the west side,it seems we would have to roll our garbage bins across the road for service.
b. Yard waste is another concern. Where will we place large bags of leaves and grass clippings
if there is a bike trail on the west side of the road? Or, how about the occasional appliance
that we need to dispose of?There could be many items blocking the trail on trash day each
week- not a safe situation for cyclers!
Boulevard Maintenance:
1. Most property owners along Lookout Trail have been maintaining the boulevard on their
side of the road quite nicely at their own expense. It seems that the east side of the road is
what would benefit most from a nice paved trail. It would help clean up the buckthorn,
weeds, and poison ivy that grows wild in the ditch.
2. Snow plowing along the trail would likely create ridges of snow across each driveway, in
addition to whatever the street plow leaves behind.This would be an additional
inconvenience to property owners in winter time.
3. What about liability issues if a walker or biker slips and falls while crossing one of our
driveways? This could be a hazard for pedestrians on the path, especially in tunes of freezing
and thawing weather. Are the property owners liable for such accidents?
Summary:
It seems apparent to us that placing the bike/pedestrian path along the Cast side of Lookout Trail is
the most logical, safe, and efficient solution to every one of our concerns listed above. It also might
be a less expensive solution, both for the City and the property ownez•s -fewer driveway
interruptions, less inconvenience for mail and trash service,and easier snow plowing in the winter.
We have heard some say there is insufficient shoulder space on the east side of the road for a bike
trail bc-cause of the steep slope in certain areas, but shine you are planning to di,-, up the entire street
with this project anyway, why couldn't the new road surface simply be shifted a few feet toward the
west in order to make room for the bike trail on the cast side? Or maybe you could gain more width
for bikes by lowering the path a few feet below the street level in certain areas.
We welcome walkers and cyclers to our neighborhood, but we must make sure to create a safe and
enjoyable environment for them. We strongly believe that the plan as drawn to date would cause
multiple unnecessary public safety hazards for property owners,drivers, bikers and pedestrians.
Sincerely,
Lookout Trail Property Owners
I Attachment: List of Signatures