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MnDOT Femdale: Citizens’ resolve is ‘rock solid’-rankles
<br />a pair of
<br />suburbs
<br />Plymouth, Wayzata
<br />united against TSM
<br />Ily («reg Krakuu
<br />Stall Writer
<br />To residents of the 1'win
<br />Cities’ western suburbs, the
<br />Highway 12 project has become
<br />like Freddy Krueger; Its big and
<br />scaiv and it keeps coming back.
<br />rhe Minnesota Department
<br />of Transportation (MnDOT) has
<br />discussed Highway 12 expansion
<br />since at least 1958. Nearly 40
<br />years later, MnDOT managers
<br />appear to be leaning toward a
<br />specific proposal, one that has
<br />people in Orono, Plymouth and
<br />Wayzata hopping mad
<br />It's called Transportation
<br />System Management (TSM),
<br />and it is designed as an alterna-
<br />live to expanding existing roads
<br />Irom two to four lanes. MnDCJT’s
<br />Tom O’Keefe, appearing at a
<br />public city council workshop at
<br />Wayzata City Hall last Wednes
<br />day, said TSM is one of 10 op-
<br />iions under consideration.
<br />FERNDALE: To Page llA
<br />From Page lA“Eight of the alternatives are four-
<br />lane alternatives," he said. “One is TSM,
<br />and one is no-build."
<br />O’Keefe said MnDOT planned to pare
<br />down its list of options April 22. What he
<br />left*unsaid is that TSM appears to be the
<br />only option under serious consideration.
<br />“The four-lane alternatives face two
<br />obstacles," O’Keefe said. “One, lack of
<br />funding in the metro area, and two. Met
<br />Council doesn’t favor four-lane expansion
<br />outside of the Metropolitan Urban Ser
<br />vices (Area)."
<br />O’Keefe said the department is always
<br />required to add “no-build" to its list of op
<br />tions, but that choice has received little
<br />attention.
<br />The TSM proposal would make more
<br />minor improvements to existing roads in
<br />an attempt to disperse traffic more even
<br />ly along east-west roadways, including
<br />County Road 6 and Watertown Road as
<br />well as Highway 12 Part of the plan calls
<br />for an interchange connecting Highway
<br />12 to Ferndale Road.
<br />O’Keefe said I'SM was a late entry in
<br />MnDOT’S plans, growing out of media
<br />tion between Orono and Long Lake.
<br />“Early on in that process, it was rec
<br />ognized that perhaps four lanes were not
<br />needed," said O’Keefe, who added that
<br />the proposal should reduce usage of Fer
<br />ndale Road.
<br />Wayzata City Councilmember Andrew
<br />Humphrey then asked O’Keefe, if that
<br />was the case, why the ferndale inter
<br />change was needed O’Keefe answered
<br />that it hud been drawn into the plan
<br />based on tralTic forecasts that attempt to
<br />predict road usage for the next 20 years.
<br />When asked by a member of the audience
<br />how accurate those forecasts are, O’Keefe
<br />said, “We do need to do more work on
<br />them.”
<br />* If being calm, cool and collected gets us an
<br />interchange, maybe we should
<br />go for wild, hot and random! *
<br />— Tim Wold
<br />Plymouth City Councilmember
<br />The workshop was later opened for
<br />questions from the audience, but O'Keefe
<br />heard more angry rhetoric than inquiry.
<br />“We’ve been here for 46 years," said
<br />Phil Harder of 127 S. Femdale Road in
<br />Wayzata. “I just can ’t understand the jus
<br />tification for this. I think it’s an unwise
<br />move for the city."
<br />Councilmember Chris Morrison then
<br />reminded the citizens in attendance that
<br />they should st>k to asking questions, cit
<br />ing the "uniqv! opportunit)r" of having a
<br />MnDOT repres .mtative appear at the pub
<br />lic meeting. Bu. more posturing followed.
<br />Julie Streetei Dallin, president of the
<br />Greater Wayzata Area Chamber of Con»-
<br />merce, voiced her organization ’s opposi
<br />tion to the proposal.
<br />"This option would bo detrimental to
<br />the business community," she said, “par
<br />ticularly retail."
<br />Her remarks were greeted with ap
<br />plause from the assembly. Plymouth City
<br />Councilmember Tim Wold then stepped
<br />to the podium, delivering a short but pas
<br />sionate speech that drew another chorus
<br />of applause.
<br />Wold prefaced his remarks by an
<br />nouncing that he was appearing at the
<br />meeting in his official capacity os Ply
<br />mouth’s Ward 2 councilmember. He
<br />added that the Plymouth Council has al
<br />ready voted unanimously to oppose ai.y
<br />interchange at Ferndale Road.
<br />“We are very concerned about the safe ty of our streets," he said. “What we are talking about in my mind’s eye is turning
<br />Femdale into a four-lane road. This just
<br />doesn’t make common sense."
<br />Wold said that if the interchange were
<br />built and traffic grew to meet MnDOT
<br />projections, his city would be forced to ex
<br />pand the road to four lanes. He also ques
<br />tioned the compromise that begat TSM.
<br />“I ’ve got more constituents in Ward 2
<br />than in the entire city of Long Lake,"
<br />Wold said. I implore you, when you elim
<br />inate alternatives, eliminate anything
<br />that includes an interchange at Ferndale
<br />Road.
<br />“We’ve been calm, cool and collected.
<br />But if being calm, cool and collected gets
<br />us an interchange, maybe we should go
<br />for wild, hot and random!
<br />“My resolve is rock solid.”
<br />Wold was just part of a highly visible
<br />Plymouth contingent at the meeting.
<br />Also speaking were Councilmember
<br />Christian Preus and Mayor Joy Tierney.
<br />Both spoke in opposition of the inter
<br />change, although Preus commended O’
<br />Keefe on his handling of the situation.
<br />Preus also said he believed that either
<br />the interchange would not generate the
<br />anticipated traffic, or ho said, “the pro
<br />jections will come true and the inter
<br />change is just a band-aid approach to a
<br />much bigger problem."
<br />O’Keefe said he is not convinced that
<br />the interchange is not necessary, saying
<br />that the Twin Cities saw population in
<br />crease by 20 percent from 1970-1990,
<br />while vehicle miles traveled increased
<br />230 percent during that same period.
<br />He went on to say that MnDOT has
<br />earmarked $39 million for the Highway
<br />12 project beginning in 2001. He said the
<br />department will narrow its options April
<br />22 and announce a final decision on ex
<br />pansion plans in October 1997.
<br />Plymouth/Wayzata/Orono/Long Lake Sun-Sailor/Wednesday, April 10, 1996
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