Minutes - Economic Development Authority - 02/11/2021

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Motion carried. 4.03: Receive Comments on Concept Level Layout Review for Anoka County's Interim Improvements Proposed to Bunker Lake Boulevard/County Road 116 City Engineer Westby presented the staff report. Acting Chairperson Burandt asked if these modifications would be temporary to be in place with the Highway 10 construction or intended to be permanent. City Engineer Westby replied that ultimately the improvements would be permanent and likely more restrictive than shown in the interim design. Acting Chairperson Burandt commented that he has lived and worked in Ramsey for over 20 years and stated that he can tell that traffic on Highway 10 is bad because of the impact it has on Bunker Lake Boulevard and Sunwood. He stated that people will find Bunker Lake Boulevard as an alternative for Highway 10. He stated that there will be challenges to businesses and encouraged staff to reach out to those businesses and make them part of the discussion sooner rather than later. Member Cords asked and received confinnation that the bypass lane would be intended for left- hand turns which would allow through traffic to continue to flow. He asked if the flow of small vehicles and large commercial trucks is for the Altron site and what impact this would have on the shipping for that business. City Engineer Westby replied that those are great questions and are the same questions and concerns that staff and the Council have. He stated that staff made the comment one month ago that the County needs to consider those concerns and have discussions with those businesses. He stated that the County has had discussion with All Seasons but is unsure if the County has met with additional businesses. Economic Development Manager Sullivan stated that staff is asking for some comments from the EDA and asked if there are key components that the EDA want to ensure are conveyed to the County. He stated that it sounds like the County is in discussion with Altron and has had conversations with All Seasons. He stated that perhaps the EDA would want to ask the County how it intends to communicate with those businesses in a timely manner. He recognized that the City is not the lead agency and therefore staff does not want to overstep boundaries but also wants to ensure that the businesses are involved and there is discussion as to possible mitigation efforts that could be incorporated. Member Heineman asked if part of the driver in these improvements is the anticipated traffic increase that will travel this route during the Highway 10 project. City Engineer Westby confirmed that MnDOT anticipates that traffic counts will double in this area during the Highway 10 project. Economic Development Authority/ February 11, 2021 Page 5 of 8