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I I I Council Meeting Minutes May 10, 1994 Page 3 SDecial Order of Business. continued Proper acknowledged that the City and County agonized over this issue at many meetings with residents, and the City received excellent advise from their consultants, SRF. Many newspaper articles were written about the project and staff did their best in getting the information out to residents. In fmal, it was a difficult and unpopular decision, but he feels it was the right decision. The plans and specifications are about 90% complete and the ROW acquisition process has begun. Because the daily traffic count in this area is approximately 20,()(X), something needs to be done to provide for safety. Benke noted that one of the areas of less certainty to the Council was evaluating anticipated traffic volumes and accidents. Because these volumes are not immediate; he asked if the roadway could be operated with a 4 ft. striped surface until a need is identified for the raised median design. Williams confirmed that Benke is not requesting a widening of the road; but merely replacing of the raised median with striping. Wayne Leonard, Ramsey County, noted that the east side does not have the capacity for additional ROW acquisition; but feels a protected left turn lane could be installed by moving the west curb line over 10ft. The median design allows for the opportunity to install decorative work and landscaping; whereas, landscaping would be lost with the striping option. However, if the decision is to stripe that area, any funding for the median could be reserved for future installation. Because the traffic volumes will continue to increase, he feels the median provides the opportunity to alleviate the safety issue. He feels the Council had reviewed much expert advise and had made a wise choice to install the median. He noted that if the road is widen and a left turn is installed, those residents would still need to cross two lanes of traffic. The left turn lane option could be accomplished without additional ROW, but the roadway would come closer to the west property lines. Such an option would go against the Council's objective to keep the roadway away from the property lines. Leonard strongly recommended against a 4 ft. painted island because of the projected traffic levels and the resultant safety concerns. Benke noted that off-peak traffic levels allow for left turns, and questioned if these homeowners are being penalized in order to solve the peak hour problem. Leonard said the two 5th and 7th St. signals would be interconnected and those left turns would be dependent upon gaps created by the signals. Benke feels that the projected 20,000 daily trip count is on the high side; and asked if we are penalizing these residents to solve a problem which may not occur for 15 or 20 years. Leonard noted that the 5th and 7th St. daily traffic count is presently at 20,000. Samuelson who is newly elected to the Council and was not involved in the original decision and asked the traffic count for that area. Leonard said that of the accidents reported to the Police, two occurred between 5th and 7th St. in 1991 and one in 1992; however there were quite a number at both intersections. He feels there are difficulties associated with making a left turn, but confirmed that not a high number of accidents occur with this movement. She asked what are the negative impacts associated with installation of the fifth lane. Leonard said that in addition to pushing the roadway closer to the wests ide properties, the landscaping opportunities would. be lost on that median and the roadway would appear wider. He feels that attempts to make a left turn is more dangerous than making a U-turn on a green arrow. Samuelson confirmed that there are no statistics which validate Leonard's statement. Special Order Qf Business Silver Lake Road Raised Median Report 94-103