10-25-1999 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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fO o % GlTYofORONO Municipal Offices Street Address: 2750 Kelley Parkway Orono, MN 55356 ^0/'rif Mailing Address: P.O. Box 66 Crystal Bay. MN 55323 0066 OCf October 19, 1999 Cl, f ^ 5 1999 O/- >V(j Mr. Tom Johnson Hennepin County Public Works 1600 Prairie Drive Medina MN 55340 Subject: Minnetonka Beach Application for County Road 15 Pedestrian Overpass Bridge Dear Tom; Thank you for your assistance in obtaining more information on this project. My understanding is that the City of Minnetonka Beach has submitted an application to secure funding for a pedestrian overpass bridge along County Road 15.1 also understand that the specific details for this project are not known yet, and that this project will require further review and Hennepin County approval before funding is secured. The Cit}’ of Orono has not received any communications from Minnetonka Beach regarding this project. We have concerns about this project that we would like to make known early in the process before any design decisions are made. The City of Orono is concerned about the impacts of a pedestrian bridge over County Road 15 on the transportation of boats along this route. There are several Lake Minnetonka marinas located on this road, with many boats being transported from these marinas. Many boats in these marinas are stored for the winter in offsite locations requiring transport twice each season. There are very large boats being transported for which a standard clearance highway bridge would be problematic. Because of Lake Minnetonka, the road network in this area limited with virtually no options to use alternate routes. The City of Orono is requesting that a higher clearance standard be used in the design of any bridges over County Road 15. The use of clearance standards for bridges over railroads may be appropriate in this case. I also understand that the use of State and Federal funding for these projects requires coordination with neighboring communities. The City of Orono is located on both the east and west sides of Minnetonka Beach. We are requesting that the City of Orono be kept informed of the status of this project, and be given opportunities to provide comments on this project. Telephone (612) 2494600 • Fa.x (612) 249-4616