Laserfiche WebLink
<br />Councilmember Elvig stated the citizens wanted the amenities and this plan gave the citizens a <br />lot of open space with a water feature. <br /> <br />Deputy City Administrator Nelson stated there was the opportunity to bring the residential <br />density up if it was needed. She believed there should be flexibility in the plan. <br /> <br />Councilmember McGlone stated lakes did not pay taxes and might be overrated for the value <br />received. He asked if the Committee came up with a cost analysis for digging the lake. <br /> <br />Mr. Lazan indicated the plan could change with whatever the market was dictating. <br /> <br />Councilmember Wise agreed the City needed to be flexible with the plan. <br /> <br />Gary Sauer, Tiller Corp, stated Council had to careful and not rush their decisions. He believed <br />it would be 3-5 years before something would happen and it would take that long for a good <br />project to materialize. He noted the Council needs to have an idea of where to put businesses <br />and residential. He indicated the amenities of lakes were good for residential, but were not good <br />for retail and other businesses. He did not believe the lake feature as proposed was a good idea. <br />He stated it was important to bring in retailers and those retailers could be connected with <br />walkways. He indicated the City needed to work on the legislators now for a bridge over the <br />Mississippi River. He noted there was still a lot of work to do, but the City had the time to do a <br />good project. He encouraged the City to bring sit-down restaurants, a movie theater, and nice <br />shopping areas into the community as well. <br /> <br />Mayor Ramsey asked how the City could figure out how much the City would need to spend <br />short and long-term. <br /> <br />Mr. Sauer responded with a good architectural plan, the plan was easier to sell to the retailers. <br /> <br />Councilmember Wise believed the City was impeded by its location. He asked should the City <br />be looking at fixing the transit issues. <br /> <br />Mr. Sauer responded the transportation issues were very, very important and the City should be <br />working on the transportation issues now. <br /> <br />Public Works Director Olson stated he had been told the river crossing was many years away, <br />however, if there were some interest in the bridge the City could put it in the design, but it would <br />be difficult to obtain it anytime soon. <br /> <br />Councilmember Look stated he did not know if money would be well spent on an Armstrong <br />overpass at this point. He believed the interchange should be shifted to the west. <br /> <br />Councilmember Dehen believed there might be a lost opportunity where the proposed <br />interchange was being located. <br /> <br />City Council Work Session / September 15, 2009 <br />Page 6 of8 <br />