Minutes - Public Works Committee - 04/19/2016

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6.01: Staff Updates on Improvement Projects and Items of Interest Chairperson Riley asked if there are any differences from what is published in the agenda. City Engineer Westby announced the NW on ramp at the interchange is still closed, but will open on April 22. Councilmember Johns noted there is still landscaping to be done and general aesthetics. City Engineer Westby acknowledged that and explained the landscape is one of the last things to be done. It is still planned to be done by the end of May. Chairperson Riley noted MnDOT gave a rather bleak outlook on TH 47. He said he was unhappy with their decision to do nothing. City Engineer Westby stated MnDOT does not make improvements unless it is based on need, which means the number of accidents. He added MnDOT does not make adjustments in a corridor if the issues are only attributed to congestion. He said MnDOT encouraged the staff to look at the most recent documents on this, which are from around 2006. Councilmember Johns pointed out they were looking at the railroad and considering doing some grade separation improvements around there. She noted a lot of traffic backs up into Anoka. She asked if anything has been discussed regarding this. City Engineer Westby answered nothing has been discussed. Chairperson Riley stated many of Ramsey's neighborhoods will start to use this corridor. He suggested staff look at the construction going in that area, and try to forecast what the traffic could be. City Engineer Westby noted Ramsey Boulevard will be closed next week from Monday to Wednesday to repair the railroad track. This will greatly detour traffic. Traffic will be much heavier on Bunker Lake Boulevard and Sunfish Lake Boulevard. City Engineer Westby stated he has no word on when the County is planning on completing an overlay on Armstrong Boulevard or Bunker Lake Boulevard. City Engineer Westby said there is a request to use some monies from spot improvements on Sunwood Drive to do some improvements in 2017. This could be a six-figure project. He said he will bring this project back in May. Chairperson Riley mentioned the crosswalk in front of the building is becoming uneven. He suggested taking the first 15 minutes of the next meeting to go out to observe and discuss options for repairing it. 6.02: MnDOT Limited Use Permit Public Works Committee/April 19, 2016 Page 3 of 5