Special Requir for rezoning in the highway 12 corridor

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November 7, 2000 Page 2 of 2 The second access drive connects directly to TH 12, south of the proposed site. At the location of this access, TH 12 currently has a closed median. We would recommend a right in/right out only access at this location, leaving the median,.on TH 12 closed. We further recommend a short right turn lane be created from TH 12 into the access drive. By re-striping the existing markings with a short taper immediately following Brown Road North, this lane could be created without widening TH 12. One lane in each direction would suffice for the amount of traffic expected for this access drive. A third access is in the northwest corner of the site. Based on site plan drawings and field reconnaissance, we were unable to determine where this access leads. Further investigation will be needed before making a recommendation. However, we would not recommend this access if the drive connects into a residential area. Due to the high volumes on TH 12 and the likely delays for vehicles turning onto TH 12 from the side streets, it is likely that many motorists would seek this route as an alternative to the other access drives. Thus, the amount of'cut-thru' traffic in the connected area would likely increase dramatically. Internal Traffic Flow From the access directly off TH 12, motorists proceed to an internal intersection and are able to choose to go to the office building or the senior housing,. This allows vehicle trips to and from each building without disruption of activity at the other. The access drive connecting to Brown Road North does not provide this type of separation. Motorists using this access to and from the office building would be driving through the middle of the senior housing parking, creating safety concerns. Correcting this potential problem would require changes to the existing site plan. Some options include: • Swapping the location of each building so the office building is on the east side of the lot and the senior housing is on the west side of the lot. Although this may result in the undesirable situation of apartment residents driving through the office parking lot, office users are generally used to more vehicle activity in their building's parking lot. • Provide a separate drive aisle to the south of the senior housing parking. This puts the parking close to the building while allowing other vehicles to continue through the lot without disruption from parking activities. • Provide a separate drive aisle north of the senior housing building. Apartment parking could remain as shown or be shifted to the north side of the building as well. Either option would allow office users to use this drive instead of going through the apartment parking area. Changes should be made to separate the office users from driving through the senior housing areas. The access drive in the northwest corner of the site could have motorists from the senior housing driving through the middle of the office parking, depending on where this access leads. Although not desirable, office users are generally used to more vehicle activity in their building's parking lot. As stated before, this access drive and its relation to the internal traffic flow should be re-assessed when more information is known. Pedestrian Movements To provide additional safety and encourage pedestrian movements, sidewalks should connect each building to the existing trail and sidewalk system, located on the east and south sides of the lot. This would allow people from either building another option to use to reach nearby land uses or for general exercise. Bonestroo, Rosene,Anderlik and Associates 2335 West Highway 36 + St. Paul, MN 55113 + Phone: 651-636-4600 + Fax: 651-636-1311