Agenda - Council - 02/09/1999 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Metropolitan Council Working for the Region, Planning for the Future '1 Januaw 22,1999 Mr. Steven Jankowski, P.E. City of Ramsey 15153 Nowthen Blvd. Ramsey, MN 53303 RE: Reconstruction of Trunk Highway 47 - Environmental Assessment Metropolitan Council District 9 Referral File No. 16943-1 Dear Mr. Jankowski: Council staff have concluded their review of the above referenced environmental assessment (EA) to determine its adequacy and accuracy in addressing regional concerns. This EA proposes a project that would reconstruct approximately 1.5 miles of Trunk Highway 47 in the city of Ramsey, Anoka County from 'about 656 feet south of 142ad Ave to about 788 feet north of 153rd Ave. in addition, the project will extend Sunwood Drive by approximately 1,000 feet from the west to intersect TH47 across from existing 149th Ave. N.W. The project results anticipate improving both traffic safety and flow as well as accommodating anticipated capacity increases. The information provided in the EA appears to be incomplete. The Council would appreciate reviewing the following information before a negative declaration is issued. In section III, C.7 (page 29), the EA discusses the water quality impacts of the project; however, no effort is made to estimate the magnitude of these changes. Without this information it is impossible to compare the quantity and quality of site runoff before and after the project. An example of a simple pollutant loading calculation can be found in Protecting Water Quality in Urban Areas (MPCA 1989). Section III, C.7 also indicates that water quality mitigation will rely on stormwater ponds. The information provided regarding pond design is insufficient to assess the pollutant removal performance of the proposed ponds. However, based on the information that is provided, it appears that these ponds may be undersized. If standard pond design criteria, such as those developed from the Nationwide Urban Runoff Program (NURP) are being used, then the EA should state this explicitly. In addition, while sedimentation ponds are generally effective at removing particulate associated pollutants, they are not effective at removing dissolved pollutants, particularly road salt. A mitigation strategy should be considered to minimize the water quality impacts of salting and sanding operations. Several pertinent Best Management Practices (BMPs) are described in Stormwater BMP Design Supplement for Cold Climates (Center for Watershed Protection 1997). AREA CODE CHANGES TO 651 IN JULY, 1998 I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I Firth Street St. Paul. Minnesota 55101-1626 (612) 602-1000 Fax 602-1550 TDD/TTY 291-0904 Metro Info Line 602-1888 An Eqt~(tl Ol¥~Orh~ni!y Ernplollf'r