02-20-1991 Planning Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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t h ■ 5|» 'I’Sfr': PLANNING COMMISSION SPECIAL MEETING HELD FEBRUARY 20, 1991 Cohen stated that there is some flexibility for the citizens because the road is a State Highway and M^3D0T has a dilemma with the City of Long Lake. Alan Carlson said, "The Planning Commission has heard the consensus of the citizens and they want you to push Highway 55 so it will address the traffic coming and going from the west. Highway 12 will need to be upgraded to safely get local traffic through." Cohen stated that MNDOT may look at a County Road 6/Highway 101/1-394 option before considering Highway 55. ofAnother resident stated that a basic principle negotiation is to say no and go from there. He said, "After you say no and do everything possible to gain that, then state our alternative position. If you do not say no to from the start, you are starting at the wrong place. I would also like to point out that there has been no discussion regarding watershed into Lake Minnetonka. That is one of the objectives of the Comprehensive Plan. The City may be under pressure to provide sewage treatment facilities at a substantial cost." John Merideth said, "I think one of the decisions that has to be made is whether or not the citizens believe our City Council is limited to choosing between one of these three routes, or if they have the freedom to do whatever they think is best for our Community. I believe it would be a mistake to underestimate the influence of a strong stand by the City Council. I also believe that Highway 55 lends itself better as a corridor because of its surrounding characteristics. Highway 12 is much different and more residential in nature." Sherokee Use volunteered to survey the property owners along Highway 55 to get their opinion of where the corridor should be. She said, "I would think that the people along Highway 55 would love the corridor there. They are already commercial. It would not be difficult to swing up to Highway 55 past Delano. You could by-pass Rockford and end up ca Highway 55 where the industrial area begins." Cohen stated that he had attended a MNDOT meeting in the City of Medina. He said, "We are all saying go with Highway 55. The residents of Medina are saying go with Highway 12." Hanson said, "I have spent a fair amount of time considering this issue with no particular position to take. I have though about the obvious, pragmatic situations. Not the least of which is that there is hundreds of millions of dollars of 1-394 coming out and now stopping at the border of Orono, and we are telling MNDOT to take Highway 55. I'm enough of a pragmatist to say that grates against me a little bit. It seems to me that it behooves - 11 -