City Council Meeting Date: September 12, 2017
To: Mayor and City Council
City Administrator
From: Sean Simonson, Engineering Manager
Dave Bennett, Public Works Director/City Engineer
Title
Discussion of preliminary design options Division Street and Seventh Street Reconstruction; Washington Street Mill and Overlay.
Body
Action Requested:
The Northfield City Council discusses design options for the Division Street and Seventh Street Reconstruction Project, and the Washington Street Mill and Overlay, and provides direction regarding design amenities to include in the final design.
Summary Report:
As we think about the how we want to approach the improvements, think broadly about what we are trying to accomplish with the project. Although the City cannot provide all accommodations for everyone, below are some key consideration of project goals:
• Install improvement that will provide safe and comfortable streets for all users. For this project improve safety of all those currently living and visiting the City.
o Safety - numerous pedestrians walking downtown (put pedestrians first). Improve sight lines and reduce traffic speeds.
• Context -
o Design in alignment with the Downtown Streetscape Plan and what is going on around the area for user activities (pedestrians, non-motorized vehicles and motorized vehicles).
o Continuity (east side of Division St. is parallel parking, west side angled), Washington St. is a Major Collector and the primary north-south route without stops. It is also the primary north-south route for bikes.
• Complete Street Policy -
o Look for opportunities to make improvement for all users of City right-of-way.
o Fill in sidewalk gaps (north side of Seventh Street by Water St. & Washington St. by the Library).
• Continue to foster and enhance a vibrant Downtown.
Toole Design Group, along with City Staff, has facilitated a Public Engagement process that has included three public meetings to gather input from adjacent property owners and community members. As an additional component of the Community Engagement process, Toole Design also created an on-line survey (Attachment 1) to gather data regarding what design preferences users were most concerned with, and information regarding barriers to walking and biking along the project corridors.
Toole Design and the City of Northfield held the third Community Meeting on August 30, 2017 to present three concept designs for both the Division and Seventh Street Reconstruction Project (Attachment 2) and the Washington Street Mill and Overlay Project (Attachment 3) derived from feedback from the on-line survey and the preceding property owner/community member meetings. Feedback from that meeting was again collected and processed, and recommended alternatives for both the Division Street and Seventh Street Reconstruction (Attachment 4) and the Washington Street Mill and Overlay Project (Attachment 5).
Staff feels the recommended alternative for Division and Seventh and Washington align with the input received from the community and align with the vision and goals of the City. The final recommendation for Division and Seventh utilizes components of all three of the original concepts, and Washington Street utilizes primarily concept 2 with one component of concept 3 with the bump at the Washington and Fifth Street parking lot entrance.
The visual renderings and PowerPoint will be sent out on Monday with the supplemental memo.
Alternative Options:
Additional options can be discussed and brought forward, however, staff is looking for direction from Council on September 19 to keep the project on track for 2018 Construction.
Financial Impacts:
The estimated project cost is $2,777,105.00, which would be funded through assessments, Municipal State Aid (MSA) funds, bonding, and utility enterprise funds. Project costs could vary depending upon scope changes brought forth by the complete streets design review.
Tentative Timelines:
Attachment 6 shows the project process.