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Motion carded. Voting Yes: Chairperson Elvig, Councilmembers Cook and Olson. Voting No: <br />None. <br /> <br />Case #4: Adopt Pedestrian Curb Ramp Detail <br /> <br />Assistant Public Works Director Olson explained pedestrian curb ramps are the transition zones <br />between sidewalks and curb and gutter. They are installed at all locations where walks or trails <br />cross the street. The enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) made installation <br />of a different surface treatment on the ramps mandatory. The purpose for the change in surface <br />texture is to provide notice to the visually impaired that there is a crossing ahead. Truncated <br />domes were adopted as the standard in the early 1990's then implementation was suspended for <br />ten years due to the maintenance concerns with the domes. Snow removal equipment sheared off <br />the domes, removing and replacing the panels was labor intensive and might need to be done <br />every year. <br /> <br />Assistant Public Works Director Olson explained during the suspension the standard practice for <br />constructing pedestrian curb ramps was to install exposed aggregate on the ramp surfaces. The <br />only exception to this practice was on Minnesota State Aid (MSA) projects where state and/or <br />federal money was involved. Truncated domes were installed on all projects where federal <br />money was included in the funding mechanism. The suspension expired in 2001 and was not <br />renewed. The ADA requirements are being reviewed and new guidelines will be issued in the <br />future. This summer the League of Minnesota Cities legal counsel issued an opinion that <br />truncated domes must be installed on all pedestrian curb ramps in public right-of-way. A copy <br />of the opinion, the old detail and the new detail are attached. <br /> <br />Assistant Public Works Director Olson advised staffhas been reviewing options for the truncated <br />domes and has obtained research performed by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation on <br />various dome systems. The methods studied included stamping the surface of the wet concrete <br />to form the domes, installing plastic mats with domes in the wet concrete, rubber mats attached <br />to cured concrete, masonry panels inset into cured concrete and a cement product toweled onto <br />existing surfaces. The only product that was passed the testing was the plastic mats. The <br />remainder were not approved for use on Wisconsin DOT Projects. <br /> <br />Chairperson Elvig inquired about retrofitting curb ramps in Town Center where there will be a <br />high pedestrian traffic area. <br /> <br />Assistant Public Works Director Olson explained in most cases a lot of the sidewalks have not <br />been constructed, or they are in the process of waiting to get some curb ramps or pedestrian curb <br />ramps removed because of cracks. A decision should be made regarding the overall detail before <br />these ramps are removed. <br /> <br />Councilmember Olson inquired how the curb ramps stand up to snow removal. <br /> <br />Assistant Public Works Director Olson replied effort needs to be taken not to run into the curb <br />ramps too hard. He explained staff has been informed if the City does not use the curb ramps <br /> <br /> Public Works Committee / September 20, 2005 <br /> Page 5 of 9 <br /> <br /> <br />