Agenda - Council - 04/28/2020 - Laserfiche WebLink

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CC Regular Session 5. 10. Meeting Date: 04/28/2020 By: Bruce Westby, Engineering/Public Works Information Title Adopt Resolution #20-083 Authorizing Letter of Support for Ramsey Boulevard/Highway 10 Grade -Separation Improvements Regional Solicitation Application Purpose/Background: Purpose: The purpose of this case is to adopt Resolution #20-083 authorizing a letter of support for Anoka County to apply for Regional Solicitation funding through the Metropolitan Council for Ramsey Boulevard grade -separation improvements at Highway 10 and the BNSF railway crossing. Background: In September of 2014, the Cities of Ramsey and Anoka, in partnership with the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT), the Anoka County Highway Department, and the Metropolitan Council, completed the Highway 10 Access Planning Study. This Study included an Implementation Plan that identified 21 proposed improvement projects along the Highway 10 corridor through Anoka and Ramsey. Each of the identified projects were prioritized in the implementation plan as immediate, short-term, mid-term, or opportunity/ development/safety driven projects. On October 28, 2014, the Ramsey City Council adopted the Highway 10 Access Planning Study, thereby supporting the mutual goals and objectives of the various agencies to improving the operations and safety of Highway 10 in balance with local community values. After the Highway 10 Access Planning Study was complete, the City of Anoka hired Bolton and Menk to develop a singular plan for improvements to Highway 10 through the City of Anoka, which they named the Anoka Solution. The Anoka Solution plan includes $85 million in proposed improvements to Highway 10 including grade -separation of the intersections at Fairoak Avenue and Thurston Avenue, frontage road connections on both sides of Highway 10, and improvements to the existing grade -separated intersection of Main Street and Highway 10. After developing their plan, the City of Anoka applied for external funding through various state and federal grant programs and recently announced that their project is fully funded with construction scheduled to start in 2022. The City of Elk River was recently awarded full funding for grade -separating intersections along Highway 169 through their City, which means the City of Ramsey will have the only two at -grade signalized intersections on US 10/169 after Anoka and Elk River complete their improvements. In 2018, the City of Ramsey hired Bolton and Menk to develop a singular plan to improve operations and safety along Highway 10 through the City of Ramsey, consistent with the Highway 10 Access Planning Study. Through most of 2019, City Staff worked with Bolton and Menk, Anoka County, the Minnesota Department of Transportation, the Federal Highway Agency, and the City of Elk River to develop the Ramsey Gateway plan. This plan includes grade separation improvements for Highway 10 at the intersections of Sunfish Lake Boulevard and Ramsey Boulevard, frontage road improvements on both sides of Highway 10, and grade separation improvements for the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) railway crossings of Ramsey Boulevard and Sunfish Lake Boulevard. To ensure that the Ramsey Gateway improvements can be constructed as soon as possible, external funding applications must continue to be submitted as opportunities arise. An opportunity currently exists to apply for federal grant funds through the Metropolitan Council's Regional Solicitation program, which is a competitive process to award federal transportation funding to projects that meet regional transportation needs. Attached to this