Minutes - Council - 03/10/2009 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Motion carried. Voting Yes: Mayor Ramsey and Councilmember Look, Elvig, Dehen, Jeffrey, McGlone and Wise. Voting No: None. The public hearing closed at 7: 17 p.m. Council Business Mayor Ramsey called the regular City Council meeting back to order at 7: 17 p.m. Councilmember Elvig stated that he is all for saving money and postponing projects if it can be done and staffwill take a close look at that. He stated that there is money set aside each year, so he would ask staff to escrow those funds. He stated that the City has to consider that when the road does need something done, it will be more expensive in the future. He stated that with the maintenance program they are trying to prevent extraordinary costs when they are brought back. Mr. Rowen stated that he agrees that repair is needed, but just not to this extent. Councilmember Dehen stated that in listening to their comments, it solidifies his belief that the assessment process should really prioritize the needs of the roads. He stated that if this is just brought in house and if there is, perhaps, a road tax, the City can alleviate a lot of the problems the City is having with the public objecting to work that needs to be done. He stated that he would like to do away with the assessment process. Case #2: Consider Public Works Committee Recommendation for the Temporary Closure of 1420d Avenue City Engineer Jankowski stated that Public Works Committee had taken a look at the number of accidents at 1420d and Highway 47 and had concerns about cut through traffic in the neighborhood. He stated that a recommendation was made to the Council that was ratified in December that 1420d be closed. He stated that the City received a request from residents with a counter petition to consider other alternatives. He stated that there was a public hearing on February 17,2009, which was well attended. He noted that the minutes from that meeting and the meeting in November are included in the packet. He stated that the alternatives that were focused on at the February 17th Public Works Committee meeting were restricting left turns at Dysprosium and 1420d and persuading MnDOT to prohibit left turns on Highway 47 to 1420d Avenue, as well as a temporary closure of 1420d between Highway 47 and Argon Street. He stated that following a straw poll of the residents at the hearing, the Public Works Committee recommended the temporary closure for a period of one year. He stated that there were questions raised about the traffic counts and their accuracy. He stated that they went out today and put some tube counts down and the numbers, in some cases, are slightly lower, but very. close. He reviewed the traffic count numbers and compared today's results to the September results. He stated that the Public Works Committee also recommended. that a safety study be done at some time in the future. City Council / March 10,2009 Page 6 of 13