Minutes - Council - 05/31/2005 - Laserfiche WebLink

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street widths they ran into a situation where a lot of the front entrances, which include patios, were running very close to the property line. Due to this people would step out of their homes and be a few feet from a public trail. Town and Country Homes chose to construct a second parallel trail, otherwise there would be front entryways connecting individually to the regional trail. They are proposing a five foot sidewalk, and rather than about 60 connections there would be seven connections to the public trail. They feel this provides more room to the homeowners and a safer route. There would be roughly 13 to 15 feet from the entryways to the five foot sidewalk, and then about five feet between the sidewalk and the public trail. Assistant Community Development Director/HRA Executive Director Frolik stated Town and County ttomes has done an excellent job in the interior connectivity. Councihnember Cook stated he would be more in favor of the proposed trail if it were to be moved so there is more space between the two trails for a buffer, with the boulevard trees placed between the two trails. Councihnember Strommen concurred. Mr. Voss explained Town and Country Homes is asking for a licensing agreement with the County, in which if the County needs more right-of-way and the sidewalk has to be removed it will be the responsibility of Town and Country Homes. He expressed concern if the trees are placed between the two trails there is a possibility they will need to be removed in the future. He explained the current landscaping plan would be contained with the property line. Mayor Gamec inquired about the County's reaction to the trail proposal. He expressed concern with the heat between the trails killing the landscaped area. Civil Engineer II Linton replied the City Engineer has been in contact with the County Highway Department. The last email from the Assistant County Engineer states "It appears that the City and the County are on the same page. I would suggest the design of the site be changed to put the private sidewalk on private property and have direction connections to the public trail." Councihnember Jeffrey stated he agrees with the wider space between the trails. He expressed concern that there could be a safety hazard with the public trail and the five feet of greenspace with bicycles and kids running out the doors without a larger buffer. If the larger buffer can be accomplished he would be in favor of the private trail. Councihnember Olson stated she would not agree with the front yards going onto the public trail. She expressed safety concerns with things such as grills in the area so close to the public trail. Councihnember Pearson stated he agrees with the additional greenspace between the trails. I-lowever, they are trying to get density in this area, which may not occur if there is too much greenspace. Councihnember Strommen noted the Council's suggestions for the additional greenspace area may contlict with the County's suggestion for placement of the sidewalk on private property. Civil Engineer II Linton indicated this is a unique situation that only occurs on this one stretch of Bunker Lake Boulevard. The rest of the site has a narrower right-of-way. On Ramsey Boulevard the public sidewalk is half in the County right-of-way and half on the private, and City Council / May 31, 2005 Page 5 of 8