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front of the buildings, they could be
<br /> planned closer to the activity generated
<br /> along the thoroughfare in the developing
<br /> transit corridor. Signs will be oriented
<br /> towards the roadway and are minimized;
<br /> they are designed to accommodate the
<br /> actual viewing requirements of 1 inch in
<br /> letter height for each 50 feet of viewing
<br /> distance. This allows for smaller signs
<br /> that still provide ample recognition.
<br /> Additional signs are planned for mount-
<br /> ing under the canopy that connects the
<br /> station building and retail areas, These
<br /> signs will be oriented perpendicular to
<br /> the building facade, and will assist
<br /> pedestrians to locate their destinations,
<br /> The proposed retail buildings are
<br />designed to have a residential character,
<br />featuring hip and gable roofs, brick and
<br />stone finishes, and cedar shake siding.
<br />Outdoor eating areas, designed to gen-
<br />erate the atmosphere of a pleasantly
<br />landscaped home garden patio, will be
<br />available for all restaurant tenants.
<br />South and west facini~ exposures will
<br />allow these seating areas to be used
<br />into late fall, Moveable seating, umbrel-
<br />las and large tables with comfortable
<br />chairs are designed to encourage people
<br />to stay and enjoy the space.
<br />
<br />Financing
<br />The CTS project demonstrates that
<br />involving multiple agencies in transit
<br />projects creates opportunities to obtain
<br />funding from numerous sources. The
<br />MVTA submitted a funding request
<br />based on the conclusions of the Publi6
<br />Facilities Study, and the Metropolitan
<br />Council, the regional Planning Organiza-
<br />tion, dedicated US$900,000 of general
<br />bond money for land acquisition. To
<br />fund the total land purchase cost of
<br />US$1.92 million, additional options
<br />including Tax Increment Financing (TIF),
<br />Certificates of Participation (COP) and
<br />Economic Development Agency (EDA)
<br />funding are being explored.
<br /> The City of Apple Valley has the
<br />power to act as an EDA to secure the
<br />remaining funds for the land. These
<br />funds would be obtained in the form of
<br />a loan against future revenues from the
<br />project and assessments would be
<br />levied against the property. For the City
<br />to participate in this capacity, devel-
<br />opers would also need to be secured
<br />for all stages of the retail and commer-
<br />cial development.
<br /> To generate the necessary funds for
<br />project construction, the MVTA and the
<br />City of Apple Valley developed a joint
<br />submittal requesting a US$350,000
<br />grant under the Metropolitan Livable
<br />Communities Act. if authorized by the
<br />Metropolitan Council in January 1997,
<br />this grant will pay for some of the com-
<br />
<br />munity enhancing elements of the plan,
<br />such as multimodal pedestrian and bicy-
<br />cle connections between the' transit sta-
<br />tion and the surrounding land uses, high
<br />quality green spaces to provide a coun-
<br />terbalance for concentrated development
<br />patterns, information and technology
<br />improvements, and security enhance-
<br />ments. Allocation of these funds would
<br />serve the City of Apple Valley by provid-
<br />ing enhanced pedestrian and bicycle cir-
<br />culation and reducing automobile con-
<br />gestion, and also help the MVTA meet
<br />its goal of expanding multimodal connec-
<br />tions for transit access.
<br />
<br />"Moveable seating,
<br />umbrellas and large
<br />tables with comfortable
<br />chairs are designed to
<br />encourage people to stay
<br />and enjoy the space"
<br />
<br /> The nature of the CTS project means
<br />that it meets criteria for consideration
<br />under the US Federal Transit Adminis-
<br />tration's Livable Communities Initiative,
<br />and that application process is being
<br />considered to finance further develop-
<br />merit activities on the site.
<br /> At about the same time that the
<br />MVTA was looking for CTS project fund-
<br />ing, the Oakota County Transportation
<br />Department was preparing a I.995 Inter-
<br />modal Surface Transportation Efficiency
<br />Act (ISTEA) Grant application for a high-
<br />way improvement project adjacent to
<br />the proposed CTS project site.
<br /> However, at the initial meeting of the
<br />multiple agencies participating in the CTS
<br />project, it was decided that ISTEA fund-
<br />lng requests for the CTS project and the
<br />adjacent Dakota County highway project
<br />should be combined. Integrating the two
<br />projects would provide the opportunity
<br />to enhance the functioning of the transit
<br />corridor adjacent to the station site by
<br />improving access off the highway, there-
<br />by increasing the efficiency of transit
<br />vehicle movement and improving park-
<br />and-ride vehicle access to the facility.
<br /> With assistance from LSA Design
<br />and the MVTA, multi-agency cooperation
<br />produced a joint request for
<br />US$350,000 to fund the general con-
<br />struction of the parking surface, addi-
<br />tional pedestrian connections, and the
<br />bus staging area off the adjacent high-
<br />way. As ISTEA funding is preferentially
<br />
<br /> allocated to multimodal development
<br /> projects, this pro-active partnering of
<br /> agencies and projects proved highly
<br /> successful in securing a portion of the
<br /> necessary construction funds. The com-
<br /> bination of County and transit authority
<br /> projects helped the joint project score
<br /> the highest ranking of all the highway
<br /> projects submitted throughout
<br /> Minnesota that year, and resulted in the
<br /> application being approved.
<br /> As the planning process continued,
<br /> a new law passed during the 2995/96
<br /> session of the Minnesota State Legis-
<br /> lature provided a potential opportunity
<br /> for the City of Apple Valley and the MVTA
<br /> to create a 'Special Service District'
<br /> around the entire parcel. This would
<br /> allow the multi-agency partnership,
<br /> using the City of Apple Valley's assess-
<br /> ment authorities, to levy actual mainte-
<br /> nance and capital replacement costs to
<br /> all future landowners and leaseholders.
<br /> By transferring the burden of mainte-
<br />nance costs away from the transit
<br />authority, the new law would enable the
<br />transit authority to mandate enhanced
<br />levels of maintenance while freeing up
<br />transit funds previously dedicated to
<br />that maintenance. Those funds may now
<br />be used for transit service improve-
<br />ments such as circulating shuttles
<br />between the major activity centers of the
<br />community and expanded reverse com-
<br />mute service from urban areas to
<br />increasingly concentrated suburban
<br />employment centers.
<br />
<br />Cooperation
<br />The MVTA is also encouraging future
<br />inter-agency cooperation efforts with
<br />groups that are not invotved in the pro-
<br />posed CTS project. These include poten-
<br />tial partnerships with the local school
<br />district to provide mid<lay and school
<br />commute service for students. Local
<br />schools lie along regularly scheduled
<br />routes, and the MVTA is currently provid-
<br />lng mid-day service for students who
<br />participate in work/study sessions dur-
<br />lng the school day.
<br /> This service has proven invaluable to
<br />students who have no other means of
<br />travel, and can be readily replicated in
<br />other school districts and cities in the
<br />MVTA service area. Expanding the ser-
<br />vice would allow other school districts
<br />and cities to take advantage of safe,
<br />well-designed transit stations for staging
<br />buses, and climate-controlled waiting
<br />areas for passenger transfers:
<br /> Through working with mutual sensi-
<br />tivity to transit and community needs,
<br />this project has tremendous potential
<br />for both economic sustainability and
<br />for. revitalizing the image of transit
<br />throughout the MVTA system. 0
<br />
<br /> PASSENGER TER~V~INAL '96
<br />-32- z4
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