City Council Workshop

Blaine City Hall City of Blaine 10801 Town Sq Dr NE Blaine, MN 55449 Anoka County, Minnesota Minutes - Final City Council Workshop Thursday, July 14, 2016 6:30 PM Cloverleaf Farm Room A NOTICE OF WORKSHOP MEETING 1 Call to Order The meeting was called to order by Mayor Ryan at 6:30 p.m. 2 Roll Call Quorum Present. ALSO PRESENT: City Manager Clark Arneson; City Attorney Patrick Sweeney; Planning and Community Development Director Bryan Schafer; Public Services Manager Bob Therres; Finance Director Joe Huss; Safety Services Manager/Police Chief Chris Olson; City Engineer Jean Keely; Communications Technician Roark Haver; Senior Engineering Technician Al Thorp; City Clerk Catherine Sorensen; and Recording Secretary Linda Dahlquist. Present: 5 - Mayor Ryan, Councilmember Swanson, Councilmember Bourke, Councilmember Herbst, and Councilmember King Absent: 2 - Councilmember Hovland, and Councilmember Clark 3 New Business 3-1 WS 16-40 TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT AND ENFORCEMENT PROGRAM City Engineer Keely gave an overview of the SEH traffic study on 119th Avenue. She stated SEH conducted traffic volume counts on all of the side streets of 119th and speed counts on 119th. She gave an overview of SEH’s recommendations to maintain all-way stops at Isanti, Owatonna, and 119th; modify pavement marking from London to Radisson; install speed feedback signs on eastbound Cloud Drive and westbound 119th. Councilmember Bourke stated residents have noticed an increase in speed near London Street. City Engineer Keely stated the speed feedback signs have been ordered and should arrive in three weeks. She noted the signs are solar powered and cost $5,000 per sign. City Engineer Keely stated SEH did not recommend a right-in/right-out for City of Blaine Page 1 City Council Workshop Minutes - Final July 14, 2016 119th Avenue at Radisson Road due to traffic relocating of approximately 1,300 vehicles per day to neighboring streets. She noted that there is less traffic on the weekends compared to week days. Councilmember Herbst requested the SEH traffic report be given to the residents. City Manager Arneson replied the traffic report will be posted on the City’s website. Councilmember Herbst asked if the road will remain MSA. City Engineer Keely replied State Aide said they will work with the City. Councilmember Bourke stated the extra striping is beneficial. He requested a meeting with the County on other road issues. He stated he will make a motion for the temporary road changes to be made permanent. Councilmember King stated he is in favor of making the temporary road changes permanent. Mayor Ryan suggested changing the speed on Lakes Parkway and Club West Parkway to 30 miles per hour. City Engineer Keely replied Lakes Parkway is designed for a higher speed because there are no driveways on the road. He noted a speed study has to be conducted when there are no driveways on the road. Councilmember Swanson asked for the cost of the traffic study. City Engineer Keely replied the cost was under $6,000. Councilmember Swanson stated he is going to request a traffic study for Rice Creek Parkway. He asked about Xylite. City Engineer Keely’s response was that Xylite is urban residential north of Rice Creek Parkway. Councilmember Bourke asked if there is an arbitrator for traffic issues with MnDOT. City Engineer Keely replied MnDOT uses an ombudsman for citizens’ traffic issues. Councilmember Herbst asked if interior roads could be posted 25 miles per hour. City Engineer Keely replied the Statute contains an option for 25 miles per hour for a road that is less than one-mile long. Councilmember Swanson stated he spoke to Representative Sanders about giving local municipalities authority to post 25 miles per hour. City Engineer Keely replied 30 miles per hour is in MN Statute for urban residential areas. Safety Services Manager/Police Chief Olson stated staff has taken a multi-tiered approach to traffic management. He stated the current program works; although dedicated resources are needed to respond in a timely City of Blaine Page 2 City Council Workshop Minutes - Final July 14, 2016 manner. He gave an overview of equipment that includes squad cars, traffic monitoring equipment, and information and activity management software. Councilmember Bourke asked if there is a log kept on issues. Safety Services Manager/Police Chief Olson replied yes but the department needs resources to do a better job. Councilmember Bourke asked about the reuse of equipment. Safety Services Manager/Police Chief Olson replied equipment is reused as much as possible; although new squads get new equipment. Councilmember Herbst suggested not buying more speed carts and use Patrol Officers to issue speeding tickets. Safety Services Manager/Police Chief Olson gave an overview on communication and input that includes ongoing partnerships with City departments; receiving and processing traffic complaints; responding back to constituents; and working with a commission for input and communication. City Engineer Keely stated six cities have transportation committees that are made up of staff and councilmembers; three cities have committees that review major transportation projects; and Columbia Heights, Monticello, and Edina have resident commission/committees. City Engineer Keely stated the City’s Traffic Commission will have seven resident members (two members from each ward) and an at-large chairperson. She stated the Traffic Commission would act as an advisory board to the City Council; would review neighborhood traffic issues and complaints, define issues, review alternatives and cost of implementation, hold public hearings, and make recommendations to the Council. She stated the Engineering Department and Police Department would prepare staff reports and present information for items on the Traffic Commission’s meeting agenda. She suggested the City hire a traffic engineer. Councilmember King asked if traffic engineering could be outsourced, where would the funding come from, and which budget will be affected 2016 or 2017. City Manager Arneson replied funding would be in the 2017 budget. Councilmember Swanson suggested waiting for the new Council is in place before appointing members to the Traffic Commission. Councilmember Bourke commented that the residents on 119th had come to the City in prior years to address the road issues and they were referred to the Traffic Management Program. Councilmember Herbst asked how many hours will the new two officers be City of Blaine Page 3 City Council Workshop Minutes - Final July 14, 2016 devoted to traffic control. Safety Services Manager/Police Chief Olson replied approximately 3,000 man hours devoted to traffic control. Discussed. Other Business None. None. ADJOURN The Workshop adjourned at 7:30 p.m. Adjourned City of Blaine Page 4